Victory never tasted so sweet
Coach Bo Ryan and Wisconsin look to make a splash in the tournament this year. They currently find themselves in the thick of things as Wisconsin takes on North Carolina, Thursday at 6:47 PM.
First 68, then 64, suddenly 32 and now 16. 16 teams currently stand in what used to be a 68 team mosh posh. With only four more rounds left in the NCAA Tournament, the competition ramps up to new levels with even higher stakes.
Three number one seeds still stand but Villanova finds themselves jousted out of the tournament after a 71-68 upset loss to the eighth seed North Carolina State. On the same side of the bracket, Michigan State, the Big Ten runner-up, upset a strong 2 seed, Virginia. If that didn’t ruin your bracket, then there is also seven seed Wichita State who pounced on Kansas’ mistakes on a way to a 78-65 win over the two seed.
Four seeds Maryland and Georgetown also found them on the wrong side of the box score as they were both upset by five seeds. Finally, Wisconsin pushed on after an early scare, Kentucky kept up their usual ways of winning and Duke pummeled San Diego State, led by the ferocious freshman Jahil Okafor.
Marquee matchups for the sweet sixteen include an always upset minded NC State against a strong Louisville team, Michigan State and an Oklahoma bout that should be intense to watch, a possible cinderella, UCLA, and Gonzaga matchup and a tough Big Ten ACC matchup with Wisconsin and North Carolina battling it out for a trip to the Elite Eight.
NC State versus Louisville: This matchup holds the only inner-conference fight as both NC State and Louisville are from the Atlantic Coastal Conference. NC are 1-1 in the two games they have played this past regular season. Louisville holds an overall better record with 26-8 while NC State boasts only a 22-13 record.
Michigan State versus Oklahoma: Runner up Big-Ten Champs, Michigan State only holds a seven seed to Oklahoma’s three seed, however, Michigan State has proved to be a force to be reckoned with after trouncing on the two seed Virginia in the round of 32. Oklahoma just came off a come from behind win over Dayton as they were down nine late in the second half, however, Oklahoma is unproven right now as they have played a 14 and 11 seed in the past two rounds.
UCLA versus Gonzaga: Cinderella in the making? UCLA is the only double-digit seed left in the tourny, winning against SMU in the Round of 64 and UAB in the Round of 32. Even though there first game came with controversy on the last shot, UCLA left no doubt in their last game racking up 94 points on UAB. However, their opponent is no joke either, Gonzaga, a two-seed, has easily handled its past two opponents by a 10 point margin and a 9 point margin.
Wisconsin versus North Carolina: Possibly one of the more highly anticipated matchups of the Sweet Sixteen, number one seed Wisconsin goes up against four seed North Carolina. Wisconsin overcame a slow start against Oregon on its way to beating them by seven, and North Carolina won a back-and-forth battle against Arkansas but finally came out on top by nine. North Carolina however appears to have lost a key cog on their squad as Kennedy Meeks is questionable for the game with a knee sprain suffered against Arkansas.
Whether you’re hoping to win your bracket group or just watching for the love of the game, this week’s sweet 16 should provide some high energy matchups.
Connor Hanson is a senior on the varsity football team. He will be a two-sport athlete this year, participating in football and track. He has been dubbed...
