Title game rematch highlights Sweet 16
March Madness is on. The beloved annual tradition that is the NCAA Tournament opened with bracket busters and overnight stars — Oakland’s Jack Gohlke and Oregon’s Jermaine Couisnard, anyone? — emerging out of nowhere.
Who will win it all? Connecticut is the No. 1 overall seed and the trendy pick to claim a sixth overall title and become the first team to repeat as NCAA champion since Florida in 2006-07. Other top seeds are Houston, Purdue and North Carolina.
There are no obviously dominant teams this year, and it could be a wild ending again; last year’s Final Four, remember, included two No. 5 seeds (Miami and San Diego State), the fourth-seeded Huskies and No. 9 seed Florida Atlantic.
One thing is for sure: The Big East and the ACC rolled in Week 1. Will it continue?
Top games
No. 1 seed UConn vs. No. 5 seed San Diego State, Thursday. This is a rematch of last season’s national championship game won by UConn in a 17-point cruiser. The defending champions have won their first two tournament games by an average of 28 points. The Aztecs have faced UAB and Yale so far; the challenge is far greater against the Huskies, who will have plenty of fans on hand in Boston.
No. 3 seed Illinois vs. No. 2 seed Iowa State, Thursday. The Illini have one of the most exciting players in the tournament leading their explosive offense in Terrence Shannon Jr. They will face a rugged defense this time in the Cyclones, who have wins this season over the likes of Houston and Baylor. A clash of styles.
No. 1 seed Houston vs. No. 4 seed Duke, Friday. Houston has to quickly forget the thriller over Texas A&M with the Blue Devils up next. Duke is coming off a 38-point win over James Madison but will face an outstanding Cougars defense. Depth and foul trouble could be key in this one.
No. 5 seed Gonzaga vs. No. 1 seed Purdue, Friday. The Boilermakers are rolling behind big man Zach Edey. The Zags will try to figure out ways around Edey — literally — with their crafty offense that emphasizes assists and kick-out 3-pointers. On defense, Gonzaga will try to limit Edey and force other players — Trey Kaufman-Renn or Fletcher Loyer, perhaps — to step up.
Earning more eyes
The first three days of the NCAA Tournament attracted record ratings, only to see the momentum stifled due to Sunday’s games being blowouts.
Overall, the tournament is averaging 9.07 million viewers on CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV. That is a slight increase over the 9.05 million average at this point last year.
Through Saturday, the tournament averaged 9.0 million, making it the most-watched through that stage.