Dave Preston is an AP Top 25 voter. View his ballots here.
Welcome to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, as the wheat and chaff were separated over a six-day stretch that began with Howard posting its first win in the Big Dance and ended with the dreaded 9:45 p.m. tipoff that sadly is the price of CBS keeping the tournament with Turner Sports’ help.
And as the dust settles (or perhaps that’s the shreds of the backet you filled out), there’s still plenty to digest.
Best game
Iowa’s takedown of defending national champ Florida takes the prize, though Nebraska’s win over Vanderbilt saw a shot clang out at the buzzer for the Commodores. Or St. John’s buzzer-beating win over Kansas.
Conference call
The Big Ten is the early winner, going 13-3 over the first weekend while sending six schools to the Sweet Sixteen. The SEC has four teams in the Regional Semifinals, while the Big 12 has three, and the Big East has two. The ACC only has overall No. 1 Duke still playing.
Planting seeds
Twelve of the top 16 teams advanced, with each region boasting three of the top four seeds playing this weekend. Twos were wild (going 8-0) while the No. 9s (5-3) were sneaky good. Two teams from the bottom half of the bracket are still playing, and south No. 9 Iowa as well as west No. 11 Texas hardly fit the image of “pesky, small school surviving and advancing.”
Speaking of the annual “Is Cinderella dead?” debate (no mid-majors made the round of 16 for the second straight season), the argument could also be made that the NIL and transfer portal era have also killed — or at least wounded — the game’s blue bloods. For the first time since 1954, North Carolina, Kansas, Kentucky and UCLA failed to reach the Sweet Sixteen.
While St. John’s coach Rick Pitino suggested that the new era has evened out the playing field, UConn’s Dan Hurley expanded on the new college hoops reality.
“Tradition, history, it doesn’t mean as much as it did to recruits,” Hurley said. “I think first and foremost right now, it’s about the overall commitment you’re going to make. … You can’t get by on your ‘brand’ anymore and players dreaming of having played there one day.”
That said, Friday’s doubleheader delivers four elite programs to the District. Overall No. 1 seed Duke needs no introduction. UConn was as high as No. 2 nationally, St. John’s began the year No. 5 and Michigan State has been ranked as high as No. 7.
Coaches Pitino, Hurley, Tom Izzo and Jon Scheyer have combined to post 2,025 wins, reach a combined 18 Final Fours and capture five national championships. And that doesn’t include the titles each school won before their current coaches took over.
Get ready for some elite hoops between now and Sunday evening.
Friday’s games
No. 1 Duke (34-2) vs. No. 5 St. John’s (30-6) at 7:10 p.m.
I’m still floored that the Red Storm was the No. 5 seed after winning the Big East regular season and tournament titles. I also remain stunned they’d put St. John’s and UConn in the same region when only three schools from the conference made the tournament.
It’s more than just a battle of big men Cameron Boozer (ACC Player of the Year) and Zuby Ejiofor (Big East Player of the Year): the Blue Devils rank third in the nation in scoring defense and are fifth best in rebounding margin, while the Red Storm ranked 20th in turnover margin.
“Are we good enough to beat Duke? I have no idea,” Red Storm coach Pitino said. “We are very hungry, but what team in the Sweet 16 is not hungry? You’re four games away from a national championship, the dream of every athlete and every coach, and every fan.”
No. 2 UConn (31-5) vs. No. 3 Michigan State (27-7) at 9:45 p.m.
Elite defense and rebounding carry over into the nightcap: both teams led their respective conferences on the glass, while the Huskies paced the Big East in scoring defense as well as defending the three-pointer. These two teams actually played a scrimmage in October, and Hurley said he feels that while his team was exposed that day, both teams benefited from working out together.
“We both have had great seasons. We both — I thought — crushed the nonconference. We’ve played at the top of our leagues in conference play. And now we’re both in the second weekend. I’m just excited,” Hurley said. “UConn-Michigan State, it’s a crazy Sweet 16 game and I’m excited to be in it.”
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