We know you’re upset. The underdogs have blown up all the bets in the country.
Perhaps it is the craziest March in history.
Kansas, the defending national champion, and Purdue, the No. 1 seed, are gone: The ‘Sweet 16’ will be without blue blood, Duke or North Carolina, for the second time since 1979.
There are upstarts like Princeton, Florida Atlantic and a team chosen to finish last in the Big 12 Conference.
And, being March, of course there’s Tom Izzo.
SOUTHERN REGION
Alabama has been seen as the No. 1 seed overall, beating out Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Maryland despite the turmoil surrounding the program.
Waiting for Alabama in Louisville, Kentucky, will be San Diego State. The fifth-seeded Aztecs are old and love to outplay opponents — just ask Charleston and Furman Universities.
The second game marks Princeton’s first ‘Sweet 16’ in 56 years. The No. 15-seeded Tigers had the first big upset of March by defeating No. 2 Arizona and proved it was no fluke by defeating Missouri.
They face Creighton, one of three Big East teams to go that far. Inconsistent at first, the Bluejays bombers and big man Ryan Kalkbrenner are in the Sweet 16 for the second time in three seasons after defeating No. 3 seed Baylor.
EAST REGION
Florida Atlantic won the battle of the darlings of the group by outpointing Fairleigh Dickinson, the second No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1, defeating Purdue.
The Owls better be prepared for some bruising against Tennessee at Madison Square Garden in their first ‘Sweet 16’. The third-seeded Vols fought their way through the first two rounds, pushing Duke after earning a win over Louisiana.
They will share the Garden marquee with Michigan State and Kansas State.
The Spartans are in their prime this March under coach Izzo, who won his 16th NCAA Tournament game as a bottom seed by defeating No. 2 seed Marquette.
Jerome Tang is leading underdog Kansas State from one Manhattan to another in his first season in the Little Apple.
Picked last in the Big 12, the Wildcats and undersized but undeterred guard Markquis Nowell brushed aside Montana State and wore down Kentucky for their first Sweet 16 since 2018.
MIDWEST REGION
Tang said the Wildcats won because they “have guys.” Houston has a few of its own.
The Cougars, the No. 1 seed in the Midwest, have played the lockdown defense that made them Final Four favorites early in the season, holding Northern Kentucky to 52 points and Auburn to 64.
The Cougars’ bid to play the Final Four at home now heads to Kansas City, Missouri, where they will face Miami.
The speedy fifth-seeded Hurricanes pummeled Indiana with offensive rebounding force, scoring 29 second-chance points to reach the Sweet 16 for the second straight season under Jim Larrañaga.
Another Texas team is still in contention to reach the Final Four in their home state: Austin’s.
No. 2 seed Texas overcame the midseason firing of coach Chris Beard to play some exceptional basketball under interim coach Rodney Terry. The Longhorns defeated Colgate in the first round and earned their first Sweet 16 appearance in 15 years with a 71-66 win over Penn State.
Next up is another coach making the most of an opportunity.
Fired by Arizona two years ago, Sean Miller landed back where he started at Xavier. The Musketeers earned their first Sweet 16 appearance since 2017 with an 84-73 victory over Pittsburgh.
WEST REGION
Losing guard Jaylen Clark has done little to slow down No. 2 UCLA. Now the Bruins hope their lineup doesn’t get depleted any more after key guard David Singleton injured his ankle late in a 69-63 win over Northwestern.
UCLA still has Jaime Jaquez and Tyger Campbell, which will give them at least a shot at beating Gonzaga in Las Vegas.
There were midseason rumors that the Zags were in for a down year. An eighth straight trip to the ‘Sweet 16’ with Mark Few put them to rest.
Two managers with familiar surnames face off in the other Sin City game.
Eric Musselman, son of veteran NBA and college coach Bill Musselman, has shown his coaching skills by leading Arkansas to the ‘Sweet 16’ for the third consecutive season. The Razorbacks got there by defeating top seed Kansas that made Musselman take off his shirt, again.
Danny Hurley’s father is a Hall of Fame high school coach, his brother is the NCAA all-time assistant leader. Bob’s son and Bobby’s brother have reinvigorated UConn, leading the Huskies to the ‘Sweet 16’ for the first time in nine years.
