The NCAA Tournament has reached the Sweet 16, and there have been plenty of surprises. Kansas State and Michigan State have advanced, while Kentucky and Baylor have been eliminated. Kansas State, which was picked to finish last in the Big 12 preseason poll, has proven to be one of the biggest surprises of the tournament. Michigan State’s coach, Tom Izzo, is known as “Mr. March” because of his success in the NCAA Tournament. Drew Timme had a standout performance in Gonzaga’s victory over TCU. Kentucky, which is typically stacked with NBA talent, failed to make it to the Sweet 16 for the third year in a row. The third-seeded Baylor Bears were eliminated by the sixth-seeded Creighton Bluejays.
The men’s NCAA Tournament has advanced to the Sweet 16 after the field was narrowed down from 68 teams to 16. With another top seed, No. 2 Marquette, falling, it’s clear that this year’s tournament is wide open, and any team could come out on top. While top seeds Alabama and Houston are still in the mix, the NCAA Tournament has proved that there is no consistent standout this season. Sunday’s second round brought plenty of excitement, but the basketball theoretically gets better from here on out. Fans are hoping for better shooting percentages than the first four days of the tournament delivered.
On Sunday, eight teams were winners, including Xavier, which made it to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2017, and Kansas State, which is making its first Sweet 16 appearance since 2018. Kansas State had a strong showing in its upset of Baylor, while Xavier’s coach Sean Miller is experiencing a redemption season of sorts in his first year back at Xavier. Miller had faced a public fall from grace at Arizona following the FBI pay-for-play scandal, but he has made a strong comeback this season.
For those looking for updates and scores, there are several resources available, including NCAA Tournament updates, the latest men’s NCAA Tournament college basketball scores and schedules, and a sports newsletter that delivers top sports headlines daily. As the tournament continues, it will be interesting to see which teams will rise to the top and which will fall short.
The NCAA Tournament has reached the Sweet 16, and there have been plenty of surprises along the way. Kansas State, which was picked to finish last in the Big 12 preseason poll, has proven to be one of the biggest surprises of the tournament. The Wildcats defeated Kentucky 75-69 to earn a spot in the Sweet 16, despite being outrebounded 44-25. KSU finished tied for third in the Big 12, one of the toughest conferences in the nation, and first-year coach Jerome Tang has been named Big 12 coach of the year. Kansas State will face Loyola Chicago in the Sweet 16.
Tom Izzo, the coach of Michigan State, is known as “Mr. March” because of his success in the NCAA Tournament. Izzo’s team, which was seeded seventh, knocked off No. 2 Marquette to advance to the Sweet 16. This is the sixth time that Izzo has taken a team seeded fifth or higher to the Sweet 16, which is an NCAA record. Michigan State will face Baylor in the Sweet 16.
Drew Timme, Gonzaga’s all-time leading scorer and three-time All-American, had a standout performance in Gonzaga’s victory over TCU. He scored 28 points and had eight rebounds and three assists. Gonzaga has made the Sweet 16 for the eighth consecutive year under head coach Mark Few.
While there have been many winners in the NCAA Tournament, there have also been some losers. Kentucky, which is typically stacked with NBA talent, lost to Kansas State and failed to make it to the Sweet 16 for the third year in a row. Head coach John Calipari, who is one of the highest-paid coaches in college sports, will earn $8.5 million this season despite Kentucky’s underachieving. In contrast, Kansas State is only paying coach Jerome Tang $2.1 million.
Baylor is another team that lost in the second round of the tournament, falling to Kansas State. Despite having a strong season and being ranked in the top 10 for most of the year, Baylor couldn’t find a way to advance to the Sweet 16. The team’s top scorer, Jared Butler, was held to just nine points in the loss.
The NCAA Tournament has seen some major upsets, and the Baylor Bears are the latest team to fall. The third-seeded Bears, who won the national championship just two years ago, lost to the sixth-seeded Creighton Bluejays, 85-76. Creighton outrebounded Baylor 34-29 and scored 19 fast-break points to Baylor’s seven, making it clear that they were the more physical and hustling team. The loss has caused some to question whether the Big 12, which Baylor is a part of, was overhyped this season.
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