Arrr, ye scallywags! The top 5 swashbucklers be battlin' it out in the NCAA Tournament fer glory!
2024-03-27
Arrr me mateys, the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament be down to its final 16 ships. 'Tis clear, at least for now, who be the finest crews still dancin' the Big Dance. Let's see who be claimin' the treasure at the end!
The NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Sweet 16 will begin on Thursday and end Friday before the regional finals start for each quadrant. With the first two rounds out of the way, the top teams left in the Big Dance are becoming clear. While most of the matchups have been chalk (higher seeds defeating the lower seeds), the best schools left are starting to emerge. But who are the best of the best? Read below for the top five teams remaining in the field. And kudos to you if they’re still in your bracket.The Big East Conference probably could have had more than just three teams in the tournament, but that debate is for another day. The teams who made it from the conference are still in the tournament and have huge matchups in the Sweet 16. Creighton is one of them, and they are among the best teams left. The Bluejays have proven to be wildly efficient from the field, shooting 48.5%. The Volunteers are one of the best teams in the country, and could be interchangeable at No. 5 with the Bluejays. But Creighton can ball with the best of them and Tennessee will have to really shoot well and defend senior guard Baylor Scheierman hard in their matchup.Speaking of the Big East, Marquette is still fighting to dance its way all the way to the national championship. The Golden Eagles shoot at a 48.2% clip and have a plus-8.7 point differential. Good luck stopping guards Kam Jones and Tyler Kolek.Illinois took care of Morehead State in the first round and dominated Duquesne in the second round. The next test comes against Iowa State, one of the top teams in the Big 12 Conference all year. Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr. will be the key factor as he’s averaging 23.3 points per game. Something will have to give in their matchup.Purdue big man Zach Edey put up 23 points and 14 rebounds against Utah State, while Braden Smith and Lance Jones are both averaging around 12 points per game. "There’s no satisfaction," Edey said after the win over the Aggies. This week is their chance to make a statement. Look out, Gonzaga.The UConn Huskies could very much be the ones to win back-to-back national championships. They have shown no sign of slowing down their offense as they routed Stetson and Northwestern in the first and second rounds, respectively. UConn has also proven to step up on defense, only allowing 63.9 points per game. More of the same is expected of them come game time against the Aztecs.