There are just 16 teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament and it’s the first time we’ve ever seen every single 1, 2 and 3 seed make it this far. Some teams have been cruising through their games while some teams have had to fight to the final seconds.
In this unprecedented March Madness, will Oregon be able to keep the underdog story alive, or will the favorites continue marching forward. Here are the final 16 teams ranked, in this week’s Power 16.
Rank (Last week’s rank) | Record | Comment |
1. Gonzaga (4) | 32-3 | Gonzaga has been the only #1 seed that has been able to avoid any type of worry or drama. Albeit they have played some lesser competition that the others, the Bulldogs have been dominant. After a wire-to-wire beatdown on Farleigh Dickinson, Gonzaga was able to handle Baylor fairly easily. Brandon Clarke is coming off of one of, if not, his best performance of his career (36 pts, 8 rbs, 5 blks) and if his contribution stays at that level, Gonzaga may not lose again this season. The Zags will see Florida State in the Sweet 16. |
2. North Carolina (2) | 29-6 | The Tar Heels were down at half against Iona but eventually pulled away in the second half and cruised to a win. Next, North Carolina blew out Washington thanks to Coby White hot shooting in the first half and Luke Maye who recorded yet another double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds. UNC will meet the streaking Auburn Tigers when attempting to advance to the Elite Eight. |
3. Virginia (3) | 31-3 | UVA fans were having flashbacks as Gardner-Webb went into the second half with a lead over the Cavaliers. Virginia then caught fire on both ends of the court and finished with a 15-point win. They kept the momentum moving straight into the Oklahoma matchup where they controlled the floor for the majority of game in a relatively easy win. Tony Bennett and his team will square off with the longest shot on the board with Oregon. |
4. Duke (1) | 31-5 | It seems like there’s always a storyline with this Duke team. North Dakota State gave the Blue Devils a run for their money in the first half but eventually crumbled and lost by a 23-point margin. Next, the highly anticipated Zion Williamson and Tacko Fall matchup ended with a variety of controversial calls and close-calls. Eventually, Duke emerged with a one-point win and will face Virginia Tech in the Sweet 16. Duke’s inability to consistently knock down the three ball is seemingly becoming more and more of a problem. When knocking down the deep ball, they are probably the most dominant team in the country, when they aren’t, they seem to be on upset alert. |
5. Michigan State (5) | 30-6 | Michigan State had some issues with Bradley leading up the final minutes where they eventually pulled away. But they followed up the lackluster game with a washing of Minnesota to move them into a matchup with LSU. As it has been for the most of the year, it’s a matter of which Spartan team will show up to the game. When they’re playing well, they are as good as they get, but they have shown their tendency to have off-nights and fall to lesser opponents. |
6. Michigan (10) | 30-6 | The Wolverines are playing a great brand of basketball right now as they’ve cruised through two straight wins. Montana posed no threat to Michigan and Florida was much of the same. The defense has been unbelievable for John Beilein’s team as they’ve held their opponents to 55 and 49 points so far. Michigan’s balanced offense and suffocating defense will look to best Texas Tech and further their run into the tournament. |
7. Florida State (8) | 29-7 | Despite a struggle with Vermont in the opening round, what the Seminoles did to Murray State was unbelievable. Florida State was hitting everything they threw towards the rim and proved they can give any team a run when playing at that level. They will play Gonzaga for a bid to the Elite Eight in what could turn out to be one of the best games in the tournament. |
8. Texas Tech (9) | 28-6 | Texas Tech’s defense looks absolutely dominant thus far. The Red Raiders have held their opponents to 57 and 58 points and the 58 against Buffalo looks extra impressive after they dropped 91 on Arizona State. Sitting at number eight on this list, it probably seems pretty low, but that’s just a testament to the quality of teams left in this tournament. Chris Beard will have his biggest test of the season in a showdown with Michigan. |
9. Auburn (NR) | 28-9 | The Tigers have been on a hot streak since the SEC Tournament. Although they narrowly beat New Mexico State in the first round, Auburn convincingly beat Kansas in the round of 32. With Charles Barkley cheering them on, the Tigers will have to get past UNC in order to keep their season alive. |
10. Purdue (13) | 25-9 | Purdue is playing out of their minds right now. Correction, Carsen Edwards is playing out of his mind right now. Edwards went for 42 points in a dominant win over Villanova in which he hit 9 three-pointers. If Edwards is knocking down shots at a high percentage, there’s no team that the Boilermakers can’t beat. Tennessee awaits them in the Sweet 16. |
11. Kentucky (7) | 29-6 | Kentucky blew Abilene Christian out of the water in round one before barely surviving Wofford. The Wildcats have been without PJ Washington which could’ve played a part in the underwhelming performance, but he will be back for any games moving forward which should help John Calipari make the most of his team. Kentucky has a favorable matchup in Houston in the Sweet 16. |
12. Houston (15) | 33-3 | Houston has two blowouts in the tournament thus far. The problem is, they haven’t played a single-digit seed yet. However, the Cougars have done what they’ve done pretty much all season, beat their opponent. Corey Davis Jr is a known problem for opposing defenses, and he will need to continue to be just that for Houston to advance pass Kentucky. |
13. Virginia Tech (NR) | 26-8 | The Hokies have Justin Robinson back on the court and have moved into the Sweet 16 thanks to him. Virginia Tech has beaten St. Louis and Liberty thus far and will now have a rematch with Duke in which they will attempt to prove they are one of the ACC’s elite. It won’t be easy, but neither of these teams have yet to play when both are fully healthy so anything can happen. |
14. LSU (11) | 28-6 | LSU has not looked very good since losing Will Wade as a coach. They only beat Yale by 5 points and barely survived Maryland by 2 points. The Tigers have been a bit shaky for sure, but they still win. Regardless, in order to beat Michigan State, they will likely need to step it up a notch. The loss of Will Wade may prove to be too much to overcome. |
15. Tennessee (6) | 31-5 | The Volunteers have underwhelmed fans to this point. After only beating Colgate 77-70, Tennessee jumped out to a huge 25-point lead against Iowa… and promptly blew it and went into overtime. Eventually, Grant Williams proved to be too much to handle for Iowa, but Tennessee needs to take better care of the ball and play more efficiently if they are going to get past Purdue. |
16. Oregon (16) | 25-12 | The Badgers put together a good season, seemingly always hovering around the bottom of these rankings. Ethan Happ is one of the elite players in the country and has been tremendous in carrying his team to the spot that they are in. The Big Ten is arguably the best conference top-to-bottom in terms of talent and Wisconsin did a great job putting together a season like this. |
why is the sybnopsis of the
why is the sybnopsis of the oregon ducks about the wisconsin badgers? talk about no love for a team on a 10 game winning streak. I mean people are giving unc lots of well deserved credit for blowing washington out by 20 but the ducks did the same thing in pac 12 final.