The Sweet 16 is upon us starting Thursday. Here are five storylines as the National Collegiate Athletic Association is one step closer in determining a champion.
1) One double-digit seeded team left.
Of the 16 teams remaining, there is still one double-digit seed remaining. That happens to be the 11th seed North Carolina State. In the tournament to date, they upset the sixth seed Texas Tech 80-67 on Thursday in the first round and then beat Oakland 79-73 on Saturday in the second round. The Wolfpack have been led so far by D.J. Burns Jr. of Rock Hill, South Carolina, who has 40 points and 12 rebounds in two March Madness games. Next up for the Wolfpack is against Marquette on Friday.
2) Zac Edey is great.
The best player in the NCAA tournament is Canadian. Zac Edey of Toronto, Ontario has been a beast so far as he has had two double-doubles. In the first round, Edey had 30 points and 21 rebounds in a 78-50 win over Grambling. Then in the second round, Edey had 23 points and 14 rebounds in a 106-67 win over Utah State. Next up for Purdue is Gonzaga on Friday.
3) Two Superpowers collide.
The most intriguing game could be Duke versus Houston. Duke has won the NCAA Division I Championship five times and is looking for its first title since Mike Krzyzewski retired in 2022. Houston is the number one seed, and has never won the title before, but does have the support of CBS’s Jim Nantz in the stands, which should count for something. Shouldn’t it?
4) All Number one Seeds are left.
All four first seeds made it to this weekend. Joining Purdue and Houston are the University of Connecticut and the University of North Carolina.
5) Illinois most likely team to pull off an upset.
At this time, Illinois is the most likely team to pull off an upset according to the oddsmakers. They are only a 1.5 point underdog in their game against Iowa State.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
