The NCAA men’s basketball tournament’s Sweet 16 is set
The GIST: After last night’s second-round finale, the men’s Sweet 16 is officially set for Thursday’s tip-off — and despite a tumultuous first round (and the sport’s recent, sharp rise in parity), this year’s crop contains mostly familiar faces.
The chalk: All of the No. 1 and 2 seeds — plus half the No. 3s and 4s — survived and thrived this weekend. No. 1s Purdue, UNC, and UConn sailed through with relative ease, while No. 3 Illinois and No. 4 Duke especially impressed with huge margins of victory in each opening round.
- But not all top teams breezed through: No. 3 Creighton needed two OTs to outlast No. 11 Oregon 86–73 on Saturday, and No. 1 Houston added an OT of their own before sealing a heart-pounding 100–95 dub over No. 9 Texas A&M last night.
The underdogs: As for unlikely heroes, No. 11 NC State’s momentum entered “runaway freight train” territory when they neutralized potential Cinderella No. 14 Oakland 79–73 on Saturday, and No. 6 Clemson claimed one of the two second-round upsets with yesterday’s 72–64 win over No. 3 Baylor.
- And despite a rough season that threatened their March Madness berth, No. 5 Gonzaga proved why they’re on a nine-season Sweet 16 streak: The Zags logged two 21-point smackdowns, including Saturday’s 89–68 dub over No. 4 Kansas. Is this blackjack or basketball?
