Neil Greenberg guides you to a win in your women’s tournament pool.
Six Big Ten teams are in the NCAA tournament field, and all six have a chance to make a deep run.
The defending champion Cardinal approach things differently than some of its top challengers.
The Terps have dealt with challenges on and off the court this season, but they aren’t finished yet.
Connecticut, an 11-time national champion, is a No. 2 seed, but the Huskies still have a chance to essentially host a region final.
Latest NCAA tournament news and commentary
The easing of pandemic restrictions means we can again enjoy the social aspects of March Madness.
Recap all of Thursday’s action, including the Peacocks’ shocking upset of Kentucky.
Jerry Brewer profiles the Hawkeyes star, who’s a triple-double waiting to happen every night.
John Feinstein is in Pittsburgh, where some marquee names are hanging out this weekend.
The NCAA is putting more emphasis on the women’s tournament, one year after it dropped the ball on multiple occasions.
Barry Svrluga looks at the Hokies’ long road to its first ACC tournament championship.
It’ll be a new era in the ACC once Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski steps away after this season.
Neil Greenberg breaks down the men’s bracket and guides you on a path to tournament pool glory.
Which NCAA players will be taking the next step? Ben Golliver looks at the NBA stars of tomorrow.
First-round men’s matchups
2 p.m. (TBS): No. 3 Purdue vs. No. 14 Yale
4:30 p.m. (TBS): No. 6 Texas vs. No. 11 Virginia Tech
ACC champion Virginia Tech is ranked 23rd nationally in Ken Pomeroy’s ratings but received just a No. 11 seed from the selection committee. The Hokies will be a popular upset pick against a Texas team that has lost three straight and five of eight entering the tournament.
12:15 p.m. (CBS): No. 7 Ohio State vs. No. 10 Loyola Chicago
2:45 p.m. (CBS): No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 15 Delaware
6:50 p.m. (TNT): No. 4 Illinois vs. No. 13 Chattanooga
7:27 p.m. (truTV): No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 16 Wright State
9:20 p.m. (TNT): No. 5 Houston vs. No. 12 UAB
9:57 p.m. (truTV): No. 8 Seton Hall vs. No. 9 TCU
With Sister Jean cheering on Loyola as usual, the Ramblers will look to take down an Ohio State team that stumbled into the tournament, losing four of its last five games. If you’re looking for a 12-5 upset pick, UAB could be worth the chance against Houston: the Blazers feature 5-foot-11 guard Jordan Walker, who has scored at least 24 points in four straight games and has two 40-point games this season.
12:40 p.m. (truTV): No. 2 Auburn vs. No. 15 Jacksonville State
3:10 p.m. (truTV): No. 7 USC vs. No. 10 Miami
7:20 p.m. (TBS): No. 6 LSU vs. No. 11 Iowa State
9:50 p.m. (TBS): No. 3 Wisconsin vs. No. 14 Colgate
It’ll be interesting to see how LSU responds to Saturday’s firing of Coach Will Wade over what the school dubbed “serious” allegations of NCAA violations. Kevin Nickelberry, who has 12 years of head coaching experience at Hampton and Howard, will be the team’s interim head coach for the rest of the season. Colgate-Wisconsin features a great three-point shooting team vs. a bad three-point shooting team: the Red Raiders made 40.1 percent of their three-pointers this season (second nationally) while the Badgers made only 31.2 percent (291st nationally).
1:45 p.m. (TNT): No. 3 Texas Tech vs. No. 14 Montana State
4:15 p.m. (TNT): No. 6 Alabama vs. No. 11 Notre Dame
7:10 p.m. (CBS): No. 2 Duke vs. No. 15 Cal State Fullerton
9:40 p.m. (CBS): No. 7 Michigan State vs. No. 10 Davidson
The farewell tour for retiring Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski begins Friday night against Cal State Fullerton, which has allowed opponents to shoot 37.1 percent from three-point range (only Georgia State is worse among NCAA tournament teams).
First-round women’s matchups
11:30 a.m. (ESPN2): No. 8 Miami vs. No. 9 South Florida
1:30 p.m. (ESPNews): No. 7 Colorado vs. No. 10 Creighton
2 p.m. (ESPN): No. 1 South Carolina vs. No. 16 Howard
4 p.m. (ESPN): No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 15 Illinois State
7:30 p.m. (ESPNews): No. 6 Georgia vs. No. 11 Dayton
10 p.m. (ESPNU): No. 3 Iowa State vs. No. 14 Texas Arlington
7:30 p.m. (ESPNews): No. 5 North Carolina vs. No. 12 Stephen F. Austin
10 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 13 UNLV
South Carolina enters the NCAA tournament as the favorite to win it all, but the Gamecocks also squandered a 15-point second-half lead in their stunning SEC tournament loss to Kentucky. In the game before that one, South Carolina also allowed Mississippi to trim a 25-point second-half deficit to just eight with a few minutes left. Iowa and Iowa State could be on a collision course for a Hawkeye State clash in the Sweet 16. The Cyclones defeated the Hawkeyes in the regular season, snapping a five-game losing streak in the series.
1:30 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 7 Mississippi vs. No. 10 South Dakota
3:30 p.m. (ESPNews): No. 8 Nebraska vs. No. 9 Gonzaga
4 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 2 Baylor vs. No. 15 Hawaii
6 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 1 Louisville vs. No. 16 Albany
1 p.m. (ESPNews): No. 6 BYU vs. No. 11 Villanova
3 p.m. (ABC): No. 4 Tennessee vs. No. 13 Buffalo
3:30 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 3 Michigan vs. No. 14 American
5:30 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 5 Oregon vs. No. 12 Belmont
Top-seeded Louisville has wins over Michigan and Connecticut this season, but the Cardinals were last seen surrendering a 15-point lead over the final five minutes of their ACC tournament quarterfinal loss to Miami. Tennessee won 18 of 19 to start the season but has been wrecked by injuries, including a dislocated elbow suffered by Jordan Horston, who led the Lady Vols in scoring, rebounding and assists.
2:30 (ESPNU): No. 5 Virginia Tech vs. No. 12 Florida Gulf Coast
5 p.m. (ESPNU): No. 4 Maryland vs. No. 13 Delaware
5:30 p.m. (ESPNews): No. 7 Utah vs. No. 10 Arkansas
7:30 p.m. (ESPNU): No. 8 Kansas vs. No. 9 Georgia Tech
8 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 2 Texas vs. No. 15 Fairfield
10 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 16 Montana State
2:30 p.m. (ESPNU): No. 6 Ohio State vs. No. 11 Missouri State
5 p.m. (ESPNU): No. 3 LSU vs. No. 14 Jackson State
With all but one player back from last year’s national championship team, Stanford could again be a tough out. Haley Jones and Cameron Brink both are Naismith Award semifinalists for the Cardinal. Second-seeded Texas, which won the Big 12 tournament for the first time in 19 years, was one of only three teams to beat Stanford this season.
11:30 a.m. (ESPN2): No. 8 Washington State vs. No. 9 Kansas State
1 p.m. (ABC): No. 2 Connecticut vs. No. 15 Mercer
1:30 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 3 Indiana vs. No. 14 Charlotte
2 p.m. (ESPN): No. 1 North Carolina State vs. No. 16 Longwood
3:30 p.m. (ESPNews): No. 7 UCF vs. No. 10 Florida
4 p.m. (ESPN): No. 6 Kentucky vs. No. 11 Princeton
7:30 p.m. (ESPN2): No. 5 Notre Dame vs. No. 12 Massachusetts
10 p.m. (ESPNU): No. 4 Oklahoma vs. No. 13 IUPUI
Connecticut isn’t a No. 1 seed but won’t have to travel far: The Huskies will open the NCAA tournament at home and then will play about 80 miles from campus in Bridgeport should they make the Sweet 16. The Huskies were buoyed by the late-season return of Paige Bueckers, the 2020-21 national player of the year who missed more than 10 weeks recovering from a knee injury suffered in December. Bueckers still does not seem to be at 100 percent yet, however.
