Three (potential) matchups

■ Connecticut vs. Florida Atlantic, second round: This would have been the championship game last season had San Diego State’s Lamont Butler missed his buzzer-beating jump shot in the national semifinals. Instead, the Owls had to spend an entire offseason thinking about what could have been. Florida Atlantic returned nearly its entire roster and has had a few bumps in the road, mostly caused by lack of attention to detail on the defensive end, but it remains a dangerous team and should have the attention of the defending champs should they match up this time.

■ Connecticut vs. San Diego State, Sweet 16: Similar story. It’s not often fans get the chance to witness a rematch of the previous season’s championship game so early in the tournament, but it very well could happen. It’s wild that three Final Four participants from last year are in the same half of the bracket. The Aztecs aren’t the same team as last year when they lost to the Huskies in the final, but they always defend and rebound. Those are qualities that often lead to March success. San Diego State also has a legitimate star in Jaedon Ledee.

■ Drake vs. Washington State, first round: Here’s one that is guaranteed to happen, and there will be an interesting dynamic at play. Kyle Smith’s Cougars boast the tallest roster in the country. The Bulldogs rank outside the top 300 in that metric, though they have still found a way to be a good defensive rebounding team. The size discrepancy alone could make this a fascinating matchup, but there is also an added element of Smith and Drake’s Darian Devries being highly sought after on the coaching carousel this offseason and perhaps auditioning for new jobs in this game.