The madness continues! Sunday’s slate of NCAA Tournament games will set the men’s Sweet 16 field, while day 1 of the second round starts for the women.
Three of the four No. 1 seeds (Stanford, Louisville, South Carolina) in the women’s bracket took the court during a day where two No. 2 seeds — Iowa and Baylor — were eliminated in shocking fashion on their home courts. Creighton got a storybook ending in their win over Iowa, while South Dakota dominated basketball power, Baylor.
On the men’s side No. 11 seed Iowa State and No. 10 Miami took down higher seeds to earn suprise trips to the Sweet 16, in a tough day for the Big Ten and SEC.
Mike Krzyzewski’s career continues as the No. 2 Duke Blue Devils survived against No. 7 seed Michigan State Sunday in the sixth matchup between Krzyzewski and Tom Izzo in the men’s NCAA Tournament.
Follow along for all the action Sunday in the men’s and women’s NCAA Tournaments:
NCAA Tournament on Sunday:Matchups, TV, streaming and odds for men’s and women’s second-round games
NCAA Tournament bracket:Follow March Madness
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Purdue guts out win to salvage dreadful day for Big Ten
No. 3 seed Purdue (29-7) returned to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019 with an 81-71 win over No. 6 seed Texas.
Trevion Williams scored 22 points, Jaden Ivey added 18 and Zach Edey had 11 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Boilermakers, who salvaged a dreadful day for the Big Ten. No. 7 seeds Ohio State and Michigan State plus favorites No. 3 Wisconsin and No. 4 Illinois all lost Sunday
Marcus Carr scored 23 points, including 4-of-8 from beyond the arc, for Texas (22-12), while Andrew Jones added 17.
Up next for the Purdue: No. 15 seed Saint Peter’s on Friday night in Philadelphia.
— Scott Horner, Indianapolis Star
Reigning champ Stanford returns to Sweet 16
Lexie Hull scored a career-high 36 points with six 3-pointers and made six steals, leading No. 1 seed Stanford past eighth-seeded Kansas 91-65 in the second round of the women’s NCAA Tournament on Sunday night. With the win, the defending national champions extended their winning streak to 22 games and secured a trip to the Sweet 16.
Cameron Brink added 13 points, 12 rebounds and four assists as the Cardinal (30-3) used a dominant third quarter to pull away. The Cardinal outscored the Jayhawks 32-15 in the period to turn a 33-31 halftime advantaged into a 65-46 lead.
Iowa State women join men’s team in the Sweet 16
No. 3 seed Iowa State advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 67-44 victory over No. 6 Georgia in the second round of the women’s NCAA Tournament.
It’s the sixth trip to the Sweet 16 for the Cyclones and ends a long awaited return with their first since 2010.
After a scary close game with Texas-Arlington in the first round, Iowa State was firing on all cylinders during Sunday’s showdown. The Cyclones made five of its first eight shots and began rolling from there, leading 23-7 after the first quarter and 37-18 at halftime.
— Tommy Birch, Des Moines Register
Hurricanes storm into Sweet 16 with another upset
The NCAA Tournament has turned into a nightmare for the SEC.
The latest to get ejected early from the bracket is No. 2 Auburn, which failed to get off the ground against No. 10 Miami (Fla.) and lost 79-61 to leave Arkansas as the only team from the conference in the Sweet 16.
With baseline-to-baseline aggressiveness and a surprising amount of physicality against Auburn’s more imposing frontline, the Hurricanes pushed a 33-32 halftime lead to a 12-point advantage with eight minutes left and cruised past the Tigers.
Miami guards Isaiah Wong and Kameron McGusty combined for 41 points. Auburn freshman forward and projected lottery pick Jabari Smith was held to only 10 points on 4-of-16 shooting.
The SEC sent six teams into the tournament. Three lost in the first round: No. 2 Kentucky, No. 6 LSU and No. 6 Alabama. No. 3 Tennessee was knocked out in the second round by Michigan.
Miami is one of three ACC teams to reach the Sweet 16, joining No. 2 Duke and No. 8 North Carolina. This is the program’s third trip to the second weekend under coach Jim Larrañaga.
— Paul Myerberg
Texas Tech edges upset-minded Notre Dame
In his first season as head coach at Texas Tech, Mark Adams has the Red Raiders back in familiar territory — the Sweet 16.
No. 3 seed Texas Tech edged Notre Dame 59-53 to prevent the No. 11 seeded Fighting Irish from pulling off their second upset in three days after they took down No. 6 seed Alabama in the first round.
Kevin Obanor tallied 15 points and 15 rebounds, and Bryson Williams and Kevin McCullar added 14 points apiece to send the Red Raiders to their sixth Sweet 16 in school history and third in the past four tournaments.
Only this time, Adams, who served as Tech’s associate head coach from 2016-2021, will get to savor the win as the top man in charge before facing off against Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski in the Sweet 16.
Top seed Louisville holds off Gonzaga
After a tournament full of big upsets, No. 1 seed Louisville survived and advanced in a tight game with the No. 9 seed Sunday in the women’s NCAA Tournament.
The Cardinals scored a 68-59 win on their home court over a feisty Gonzaga team to reach the Sweet 16 in the Wichita Region.
Hailey Van Lith had 21 points and six rebounds to lead four Louisville players in double-figure scoring. With the win, the Cardinals finished the season with a 16-0 record at the KFC Yum! Center.
Iowa State knocks off Wisconsin
The 11th-seeded Iowa State Cyclones entered the men’s tournament as one of the coldest in all the field. But they’re still dancing after knocking off No. 3 seed Wisconsin 54-49.
The Badgers went 2-for-22 on 3-pointers and played more than half the game without starting point guard Chucky Hepburn, who departed with a lower-left leg injury.
Iowa State is going to its first Sweet 16 since 2016 thanks to Gabe Kalscheur’s game-high 22 points.
South Dakota upsets Baylor
There was something about being a No. 2 seed in the women’s tournament Sunday.
Not long after the second-seeded Iowa Hawkeyes suffered an upset defeat at the hands of No. 10 seed Creighton (and former Iowa player Lauren Jensen), No. 10 South Dakota stunned No. 2 Baylor, 61-47.
The Coyotes dominated wire to wire. Baylor failed to score for the first seven minutes of the game and were unable to recover, thus ending the career of potential WNBA No. 1 overall pick NaLyssa Smith.
Coach K smiling, Duke skates past Michigan State
The Michigan State-Duke matchup was everything a college basketball fan could have hoped.
In the end, it was the Blue Devils extending Coach K’s career with a 85-76 win. And Coach K was all smiles at the end, clapping toward the Duke fan section behind the Blue Devils’ bench. It was victory No. 1,200 of his career and the 99th in the tournament.
Izzo and Krzyzewski shared a hug to start the post-game handshake line.
“For a young group, they showed another level of guts,” Krzyzewski said of his team after the game.
Duke ended the game, which was closer than the final score indicated, on a 20-6 run.
Wisconsin’s Chucky Hepburn carried to locker room
Wisconsin men’s starting point guard Chucky Hepburn had to be helped to the locker room late in the first half after injuring his left ankle. Hepburn was in plenty of pain and could not put any weight on the leg.
The No. 3 seed Badgers trail the upset-minded No. 11 Iowa State Cyclones 27-26 at the half.
Almost at the same time, Duke’s A.J. Griffin suffered an ankle injury against Michigan State, but it was re-taped and he joined the team on the bench, per the CBS broadcast.
Hepburn returned to the Wisconsin bench for the second half with a walking boot and crutches.
Baylor held scoreless for 7 minutes vs. South Dakota
A 10 seed has already upset a home No. 2 seed in the women’s tournament Sunday.
South Dakota is looking to make it another.
The Coyotes led the Baylor Bears 16-4 after the first quarter and jumped out to an 11-0 lead early. Baylor had five turnovers during that span and South Dakota started 3-for-4 from behind the arc.
South Dakota carried a 34-23 lead into halftime.
Michigan State, Duke trade blows in first half
In the legendary coaches matchup, No. 7 seed Michigan State is hanging with two-seed Duke through the first 20 minutes – despite a scoreless streak that stretched nearly six minutes.
Gabe Brown nailed all four of his 3-point attempts and the Spartans went 7-for-10 from deep in the first half. The final minutes saw the two teams trade 3-pointers with what felt like every possession.
Mark Williams had 12 points to lead Duke and freshman Paolo Banchero scored 10.
Villanova withstands Ohio State rally
Jamari Wheeler’s 3-pointer with less than six minutes remaining cut No. 2 Villanova’s lead over No. 7 Ohio State to 60-58, the closest it had been since the start of the game. And it was the closest the Buckeyes would get.
Ohio State managed only three points the rest of the way, and the Wildcats regained some breathing room in the closing minutes. Collin Gillespie had a team-high 20 points, while Jermaine Samuels had 17, and Villanova moved on to the Sweet 16 for the second straight year.
Michigan and Villanova will now meet in the Sweet 16 in San Antonio, Texas, where the Wildcats won their most recent national title (2018).
South Carolina, Maryland move on
The game certainly wasn’t easy on the eyes, as the top-seeded Gamecock and No. 8 seed Miami combined for 18 field goals on 80 total attempts. But South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso supplied 11 points off the bench to provide a spark in the Gamecocks’ 46-33 victory.
In other women’s tournament action, No. 4 seed Maryland bested 12th-seeded Florida Gulf Coast by dominating the second and won 89-65.
ESPN announcers join Disney protest of Florida bill
During ESPN’s coverage of the women’s tournament Sunday, announcers Courtney Lyle and Carolyn Peck observed a moment of silence to express their opposition to Florida’s “Parental Rights in Education” bill, which would restrict discussions on sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom.
Stating that they stand in “solidarity and support” with their Disney colleagues in opposition to the bill — also known by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill — Peck and Lyle remained silent for about two minutes as the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Miami Hurricanes tipped off at 3 p.m. ET.
The protests during ESPN’s broadcast coverage of the women’s tournament began Friday. Announcers Stephanie White and Pam Ward also observed a moment of silence during Saturday’s game in Connecticut.
— Analis Bailey
Mike Krzyzewski’s coaching tree
For decades, Mike Krzyzewski has crafted a coaching tree with branches in nearly every conference, as programs look to capture Duke’s style and success through hiring one of his top assistants. Eleven former Duke payers or assistants are currently head coaches on the college or NBA level, including Arizona State’s Bobby Hurley, Notre Dame’s Mike Brey, Pittsburgh’s Jeff Capel, Northwestern’s Chris Collins and Quin Snyder of the Utah Jazz.
Overall, two members of the Krzyzewski tree have reached the Elite Eight but none have made the Final Four.
For more on Coach K’s coaching tree, click here.
— Paul Myerberg
Villanova cruising vs. Ohio St.; South Carolina underway
The No. 1 overall seed in the women’s tournament, South Carolina, is currently battling No. 8 Miami at home in action. The Gamecocks entered halftime up 23-10 in the low-scoring second-round affair.
Villanova took a 39-28 lead into the locker room against No. 7 Ohio State in the men’s Round of 32. Super-senior Collin Gillespie led the way for the second-seeded Wildcats with 12 points and Caleb Daniels had nine off the bench.
Creighton women stun No. 2 Iowa in women’s tourney
A potential matchup circled by bracket forecasters last Sunday was South Carolina possibly facing Iowa in the women’s Elite Eight.
Of course, the two-seed Hawkeyes would need to get past the second round. And No. 10 seed Creighton had different plans.
The Bluejays stunned Iowa inside a raucous, gold-clad Iowa-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday 64-62 to advance to the program’s first Sweet 16. Lauren Jensen, who transferred from Iowa after last season, led the way with 19 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer with 12.6 seconds remaining.
Monika Czinano had 27 points (11-for-14 from the field) but only two came in the fourth quarter and she went 1-for-6 in the final 10 minutes. National Player of the Year candidate Caitlin Clark (15 points) was mostly neutralized by the Bluejays defense and also only had two points in the fourth quarter.
Iowa had three looks at the rim down two and a chance to send the game to overtime, but all three attempts came up short.
Houston’s coach celebrates shirtless
Kelvin Sampson and the Houston Cougars are going to their third consecutive men’s Sweet 16. The only appropriate way to celebrate? By popping off the top and having his players douse him with water, apparently.
Late tech call sinks Illinois
The officiating in college basketball has been an issue throughout this men’s NCAA Tournament, and that trend continued once again during Sunday’s second-round matchup between Illinois and Houston.
Officials basically penalized Illinois’ R.J. Melendez for protecting himself from a potentially horrific fall.
With a little less than nine minutes to go in the second half, Melendez broke free down court for a fast-break dunk to cut the deficit to four. Now, Melendez went quickly into his two-handed dunk and hung on the rim to let his momentum swing him back. It wasn’t an unsportsmanlike move, but the officials couldn’t help themselves.
They called Melendez for a technical foul for hanging on the rim. Houston closed out the game on a 22-11 run.
— Andrew Joseph, For The Win
Houston handles Illinois
The final score doesn’t indicate how close this men’s 4-5 matchup was, with Houston knocking off the higher-seeded and Big Ten regular season champion Illini, 68-53.
The Cougars used a late 11-0 run to pull away and advance to their third consecutive Sweet 16 under coach Kelvin Sampson. All but one point came from Houston’s starters. Taze Moore (21 points) and Jamal Shead (18 points) led the way.
Illinois’ season ended in the second round for the second straight season. Kofi Cockburn had 19 for the Illini.
Zags can go as far as Drew Timme can carry them
After a first half in which coach Mark Few said Memphis “got up into us and we were just running around the 3-point line,” Drew Timme — who had attempted only three shots the first half — got considerably more active and aggressive in the paint, and his teammates did their part to find him.
Timme, the junior forward, started the half on a tear, scoring 11 consecutive points to pull Gonzaga within striking distance. The WCC Player of the Year scored 21 second-half points on 9-of-13 shots, willing Gonzaga back from 10 points down and helping the Zags to an 82-78 win over 9th-seeded Memphis. With the victory, Gonzaga advanced to its seventh consecutive Sweet 16.
Going deeper, and maybe even to the program’s third Final Four? Well, that will come down to Timme and how far he can carry them.
— Lindsay Schnell
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