THURSDAY'S GAMES
No. 16 Mount Saint Mary's vs. No. 16 Texas Southern 5:10 p.m. ET, trutv
Texas Southern (16-8) beat Prairie View A&M 80-61 in the SWAC Tournament to earn its trip to the big dance. The Tigers have nine won of their last 10 games. Senior guard Michael Weathers leads the Tigers in scoring, averaging 16.5 points per game. Texas Southern coach Johnny Jones is making his fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament. He led North Texas to the dance twice in 11 seasons. He clinched a tournament berth in 2015 as LSU'S head coach.
Mount Saint Mary's (12-10) upset Bryant 73-68 in the NEC Tournament, crashing the big dance for the first time since 2017. The Mountaineers aren't particularly explosive on offense, they don't shoot lights out and they finished last (63.7 points per game) in the NEC in scoring.
The winner faces No. 1 seed Michigan.
No. 11 Wichita State vs. No. 11 Drake 6:27 p.m. ET, TBS
Will an extended layoff lead to a rested or rusty Drake squad when the Bulldogs face Wichita State at Mackey Arena?
Drake (25-4) hasn't played since losing to Loyola-chicago in the MVC Tournament final March 7. They'll have plenty of options to get the offense going, as five 'Dogs average double-digit scoring led by senior forward Shanquan Hemphill (14.1).
Wichita State (16-5) lost to Cincinnati in the AAC final but earned an at-large bid and made the tournament despite former head coach Gregg Marshall resigning in November after an internal investigation for physical and verbal abuse. Interim coach Isaac Brown was promoted to head coach Feb. 26. Tyson Etienne leads the Shockers in scoring at 17 points per game. Winner faces No. 6 USC.
No. 16 Norfolk State vs. No. 16 Appalachian State 8:40 p.m. ET, trutv
Norfolk State won MEAC Tournament final to clinching its first tournament appearance since 2012. That Spartan team became the fifth-ever No. 15 seed to defeat a No. 2 seed. This version of Norfolk State (16-7) is led by senior guard Devante Carter in points (15.5), rebounds (5.3) and assists (4.0). Junior guard Joe Bryant Jr. is a capable secondary scorer and a 39% 3-pointer shooter.
Appalachian State (17-11) upset twotime defending Sun Belt champion Georgia State, punching its ticket to the big dance for the first time since 2000. The Mountaineers have a balanced offensive attack with four players -- Adrian Delph (13.2), Justin Forrest (13.0), Michael Almancy (12.9) and Donovan Gregory (10.7) -- in doubledigit scoring.
The winner faces No. 1 seed Gonzaga.
No. 11 Michigan State vs. No. 11 UCLA 9:57 p.m. ET, TBS
Michigan State (15-12) has made 23 consecutive NCAA tournaments under coach Tom Izzo. These Spartans don't have the floor general point guard of years past, but junior Aaron Henry, a Ben Davis grad, is a versatile 6-6 forward capable of taking over on both ends of the floors. Senior guard Joshua Langford and junior forward Joey Hauser can change a game quickly with their strong 3-point shooting. UCLA (17-9) backed its way into the tournament, losers of its last four games. Coach Mick Cronin's teams are usually known for grit and tough defense. The Bruins get it done on offense as former Kentucky guard sophomore Johnny Juzang leads the way averaging 14 points per game. Fellow sophomore Tyger Campbell runs the show offensively.
The winner faces No. 6 BYU.