The time of the year is here. March madness begins tomorrow with the first round of the tournament. Here is everything you need to know about the tournament.
The first play in games began on the 17th where Howard defeated UMBC in a close matchup, while Texas beat NC state to secure their chance at a trophy. The first round of the tournament begins on Thursday, March 19 where 32 games will be played.
Games like the 1 seed vs the 16 seed are almost a guaranteed win for the 1 seed. Only twice in the tournament’s history has a 16 seed upset and 1 seed: UMBC defeated UVA in 2018, while Fairleigh Dickenson defeated Purdue in 2023. This year’s 1 seeds are Duke, Arizona, Michigan and defending national champions, Florida.
Arizona arguably has the hardest section of the bracket with two major conference champions: Arkansas, led by freshman star Darrius Acuff, and the Purdue Boilermakers led by star point guard Brandon Smith.
Some underrated teams who could make a deep run in the tournament are Arkansas, UVA, Vanderbilt, Miami, Ohio State, St. John’s and UCLA. Don’t let the seed of the teams deceive you because anything can happen in March.
Now here is all you need to know from each section of the bracket.
East
Duke is the clear favorite to conquer the region, with the highest chance winning the whole tournament. However, some of the strongest challengers to Blue Devil dominance come from the East as well.
UConn (no. 2 seed) has won two of the last three championships and are looking for another trophy. Michigan State (no. 3 seed) is also not an easy team; they are led by hall of fame head coach Tom Izzo.
Other teams like St. John’s, Ohio State and UCLA are all very solid teams. The East sounds like it could go either way, but if you want to play it safe go with the no. 1 seed, Duke.
South
Defending national champs the Florida Gators lead the South; however, many argue that they are not the best in their region. The Houston Cougars are put at a no. 2 seed right behind Florida. This could result in an epic rematch of the national championship game from last year, where Houston fell short to Florida 65-63. Houston currently has a better record than Florida at 28-6; but Florida has a stronger resume then Houston giving them the edge.
Teams like Vanderbilt and Nebraska are also having record-breaking seasons. Both teams started the season off hot but simmered down towards the end, sitting at 26 wins each.
Teams like VCU and Penn are looking to upset and make a Cinderella run. Penn, led by former 5-star recruit TJ Power, sits at a no. 14 seed with has a highly talented roster. VCU made a special run in 2011 to the Final Four and they’re looking to repeat that again this year. They face off against North Carolina who previously was a highly respected team that defeated Duke in a thriller, but now have two key players out for injury.
Midwest
Led by Michigan, the Midwest is the most challenging to predict. Michigan is a clear favorite, but after losing to Purdue by 10+ points in the Big Ten championship.
Iowa State and Virginia are right behind Michigan sitting at the number 2 and 3 seeds.
Akron faces Texas Tech as a no. 12 seed looking to start their eighth run in the tournament. Many analysts are saying Akron will upset Texas Tech because the Red Raiders are on a three game losing streak without their star player, JT Toppin. The Zips are an underrated team heading into the bracket with a strong record of 28-5.
West
The last and maybe most talented region is the Wes as teams like Arizona, Arkansas, BYU, Gonzaga and Purdue fill up the higher seeds. Arizona is favored to make the final four; however, they don’t have an easy path. Arkansas is coming off a huge win over Vanderbilt in the SEC championship, and Purdue is the defending Big Ten champ.
BYU, led by A.J Dybantsia, is sitting at the no. 6 seed will play a strong Texas team. Overall, this region is the most difficult for teams to make the Final Four, but the Arizona Wildcats may have an edge.
This year is full of high level competition with one of the best freshman classes we have seen in years. The trophy could be handed to any team when is all said and done. Lets see who has what it takes to be a champion.
