COLLEGE BASKETBALL: NCAA MEN’S TOURNAMENT REGIONAL BREAKDOWNS EAST REGION
No. 1 CONNECTICUT: Defending national champion didn’t land an easy path, with last season’s Final Four participants Florida Atlantic and San Diego State, and an arguable No. 1seed in Iowa State in the same region.
No. 2IOWA STATE: Cyclones were widely projected to be a No. 1seed, but their weak nonconference schedule was seen as a liability.
No. 3 ILLINOIS: Illini won Big Ten tournament title and the team’s 26 wins are the program’s most in the last 18years.
No. 4 AUBURN: Tigers enter the NCAA Tournament on a six-game winning streak. Auburn defeated Florida for its third SEC tournament title and coach Bruce Pearl’s 200th career win leading the program.
Stetson’s Jalen Blackmon scored 43 points in the Atlantic Sun title game.
CINDERELLA SEARCH
Stetson’s Jalen Blackmon set a conference record for most points scored in a tournament title game, finishing with 43and earning MVP honors. Blackmon ranks No. 10 nationally with 21.5points per game. PLAYERS TO WATCH
Johni Broome, center, Auburn: All-SEC first team and All-SEC defensive team selection is a key leader averaging 16.2points and 8.4 rebounds.
Riley Minix, guard, Morehead State: Ohio Valley tourney MVP ranks among top three nationally in field goals made (263) and averages 20.8 points.
Terrence Shannon Jr., guard, Illinois:
Shannon ranks third nationally in scoring at 22.6points per game, scoring 40 against Nebraska and 34against Wisconsin in Big Ten tournament.
RIM SHOTS
• Morehead State set a single-season program record with 318made 3-pointers so far this season.
• Oddsmakers favor UConn to repeat as national champion. The Huskies have lost once since Dec. 20, winning their last eight games by an average margin of 21.2points.
• Region features two elite defenses, with Auburn ranked No. 3nationally in field-goal percentage defense (38.5%) and Iowa State ranked No. 4nationally in scoring defense (61.3points allowed per game).
TCU and Jameer Nelson Jr., from the Haverford School, meet Utah State in a first-round game on Friday night.
MIDWEST REGION
No. 1 PURDUE: Can the Boilermakers avoid another terrible stumble after falling to 15th-seeded Saint Peter’s in 2022and 16th-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson in 2023?
No. 2 TENNESSEE: The Volunteers’ usual lockdown defense has faltered in back-to-back losses to Kentucky and Mississippi State, giving up an average of 79points.
No. 3 CREIGHTON: A 19-point walloping of defending national champion Connecticut late last month heralded the Bluejays as a team capable of a deep March run.
No. 4 KANSAS: In a massive relief for the Jayhawks, coach Bill Self said center Hunter Dickinson was expected to return from the dislocated right shoulder that recently sidelined him.
CINDERELLA SEARCH
Two years after it became the patron saint of NCAA Tournament upsets on the way to the Elite Eight, Saint Peter’s is back to put a scare into the hearts of heavyweights.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Zach Edey, center, Purdue: Consensus national player of the year has done it all — except reach a Final Four.
Dalton Knect, guard, Tennessee: Maybe the best pure scorer coach Rick Barnes has had with the Volunteers, Knect has averaged 21.1 points and made 39.7% of his 3-pointers.
N’Faly Dante, center, Oregon: Having finally put all his injuries behind him — for the moment, anyway — Dante is a two-way force, making 70.2% of his shots while averaging 1.85blocks.
RIM SHOTS
• This is Gonzaga’s 25th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, a run that started in 1999under coach Dan Monson before he left for Minnesota and later Long Beach State.
• Texas Christian redshirt senior forward Chuck O’Bannon Jr., who averages 5.6points while mostly coming off the bench, spent two seasons at USC and is the son of former UCLA standout Charles O’Bannon.
• South Carolina (26-7) has tied its 2017Final Four team for the most victories in school history after logging a record 25in the regular season.