Filling Out the Dance Card
SOUTH REGION
SECOND ROUND
(1) FLORIDA
(16) ALBANY/MT. ST. MARY'S
(8) COLORADO
(9) PITTSBURGH
(5) VCU
(12) SF AUSTIN
(4) UCLA
(13) TULSA
(6) OHIO STATE
(11) DAYTON
(3) SYRACUSE
(14) W. MICHIGAN
(7) NEW MEXICO
(10) STANFORD
(2) KANSAS
(15) E. KENTUCKY
THIRD ROUND
FLORIDA Bruiser Patric Young vs. low-major frontcourt is cause for carnage.
PITT The Panthers are the most efficient No. 9 seed in the field.
SF AUSTIN Prime Cinderella pick entered the Dance on a 28-game winning streak.
UCLA 1987 hero (Steve Alford) gets the better of '88 hero (Danny Manning).
DAYTON Ex-Buckeye guard Jordan Sibert sends his old squad home early.
SYRACUSE Bumbling Orange escape a MAC upset in the final minute.
NEW MEXICO Lobos' front line trumps everything the Cardinal faced in the Pac-12.
KANSAS The scrappy Colonels' three-happy offense gives KU a scare.
SWEET 16
FLORIDA Gators feed on massive home court advantage in Orlando but don't even need it.
UCLA Lumberjacks meet Bruins' 6'9" jack-of-all-trades Kyle Anderson, who ends their run with a triple double.
DAYTON Flyers had the Atlantic 10's most efficient offense, while 'Cuse stopped scoring in mid-February.
KANSAS Non--lottery picks in Jayhawks' frontcourt—Perry Ellis, Tarik Black, Jamari Traylor—play huge.
ELITE EIGHT
FLORIDA UF extends Elite Eight streak to four by exploiting Bruins' D, which ranked 188th in three-point percentage allowed.
KANSAS Superhyped Canadian swingman (Andrew Wiggins) beats underrated Canadian swingman (Dyshawn Pierre).
FINAL FOUR
FLORIDA Unflappable guard Scottie Wilbekin (below right) is the difference against Kansas's mercurial floor general, Naadir Tharpe.
EAST REGION
SECOND ROUND
(1) VIRGINIA
(16) COASTAL CAROLINA
(8) MEMPHIS
(9) G. WASHINGTON
(5) CINCINNATI
(12) HARVARD
(4) MICHIGAN STATE
(13) DELAWARE
(6) NORTH CAROLINA
(11) PROVIDENCE
(3) IOWA STATE
(14) N.C. CENTRAL
(7) CONNECTICUT
(10) SAINT JOSEPH'S
(2) VILLANOVA
(15) MILWAUKEE
THIRD ROUND
VIRGINIA Nation's third-most-efficient D suffocates 298th-ranked offense.
MEMPHIS Tightest 8 vs. 9 game goes to backcourt with more Dance experience.
HARVARD This Crimson crew is an even tougher out than 2013's Cinderella.
MICHIGAN STATE Blue Hens undone by their D—the weakest of all No. 13 seeds'.
NORTH CAROLINA Marcus Paige over Bryce Cotton in best PG battle of the second round.
IOWA STATE Late-peaking Cyclones hand NCCU its first loss since Jan. 11.
CONNECTICUT Believe in 'Bazz: Napier ensures Huskies won't have a quick exit.
VILLANOVA Wildcats cruise over the weakest Horizon League rep of this decade.
SWEET 16
VIRGINIA Cavaliers' Pack-Line defense forces Tigers to take far too many contested three-pointers.
MICHIGAN STATE One upset is enough for Harvard, which lacks size to check State's 6'10" Adreian Payne.
IOWA STATE Fred Hoiberg beats Roy Williams at his own up-tempo game as ISU drops 95 points on UNC.
CONNECTICUT UConn has enough long-range firepower to knock off 'Nova, whose only flaw on D is stopping the three.
ELITE EIGHT
MICHIGAN STATE UVa's backcourt of Malcolm Brogdon and London Perrantes had no NCAA tournament experience before 2014, and it finally shows.
IOWA STATE Cyclones weren't good against teams with interior muscle (Kansas, Baylor, Texas), but the Huskies don't have that advantage.
FINAL FOUR
MICHIGAN STATE Frontcourt of Payne (below) and Branden Dawson is versatile enough to stop free-floating bigs Georges Niang and Melvin Ejim.
WEST REGION
SECOND ROUND
(1) ARIZONA
(16) WEBER STATE
(8) GONZAGA
(9) OKLAHOMA STATE
(5) OKLAHOMA
(12) N. DAKOTA ST.
(4) SAN DIEGO STATE
(13) NEW MEXICO ST.
(6) BAYLOR
(11) NEBRASKA
(3) CREIGHTON
(14) LA.-LAFAYETTE
(7) OREGON
(10) BYU
(2) WISCONSIN
(15) AMERICAN
THIRD ROUND
ARIZONA Sorry, but Damian Lillard ain't walking through that door.
OKLAHOMA STATE The Cowboys are the bracket's most dangerous No. 9 seed.
NORTH DAKOTA ST. Bison have brains (coach Saul Phillips) and Braun (star forward Taylor).
SAN DIEGO STATE Mountain West's best D contains Aggies' star guard Daniel Mullings.
BAYLOR Treys fall for Brady Heslip, who hit 14 in first weekend of '12 NCAAs.
CREIGHTON Doug McDermott continues to climb up scoring chart with 40+.
OREGON Surging Ducks (8--1 in last nine games) survive shootout with Cougars.
WISCONSIN Buoyed by partisan crowd in Milwaukee, ball-control Badgers carve up Oregon's suspect D.
SWEET 16
ARIZONA Sean Miller vs. Travis Ford, on a one-day turnaround, proves to be a coaching mismatch.
SAN DIEGO STATE Aztecs (Dunk City's second victim in '13) take a low-major sleeper more seriously this time.
CREIGHTON Providence's 2--3 befuddled Bluejays in Big East final, but Baylor's zone won't faze these shooters.
WISCONSIN Bracket's strongest 15 seed forces Bucky to stress in the opener.
ELITE EIGHT
ARIZONA Rematch from Nov. 14 yields same result—a Wildcats win—as 6'9" freshman Aaron Gordon (left) dominates on the interior.
CREIGHTON Bucky runs McBuckets off the three-point line; he counters by doing damage in the post, where UW doesn't alter many shots.
FINAL FOUR
ARIZONA By siccing Gordon and the 6'7" Rondae Hollis-Jefferson on McDermott, 'Zona holds him under 20 for first time since Jan. 25.
MIDWEST REGION
SECOND ROUND
(1) WICHITA STATE
(16) CAL POLY/TEXAS SO.
(8) KENTUCKY
(9) KANSAS STATE
(5) SAINT LOUIS
(12) N.C. ST./XAVIER
(4) LOUISVILLE
(13) MANHATTAN
(6) UMASS
(11) IOWA/TENNESSEE
(3) DUKE
(14) MERCER
(7) TEXAS
(10) ARIZONA STATE
(2) MICHIGAN
(15) WOFFORD
THIRD ROUND
WICHITA STATE No miracle here; Shockers excel at routing inferior teams.
KENTUCKY Julius Randle (6'9", 250) outbruises Thomas Gipson (6'7", 265).
SAINT LOUIS Billikens' all-senior lineup shakes off late-season slump.
LOUISVILLE Cards' coach Rick Pitino shows no mercy to ex-assistant Steve Masiello.
TENNESSEE Hugely underseeded Vols rank 13th in overall efficiency.
DUKE Consolation: Bears can tell their grandkids Jabari Parker scored on them.
ARIZONA STATE Horns are rejected by D-I's top shot blocker, Jordan Bachynski.
MICHIGAN Heavy doses of Nik Stauskas pick-and-rolls tranquilize Terriers.
SWEET 16
WICHITA STATE Kentucky finally gets a chance to see what a No. 1 seed chasing a 40--0 season looks like.
LOUISVILLE Pairing turnover-creating Cards vs. turnover-prone SLU about as fair as Ville getting a No. 4 seed.
DUKE While Tennessee's big men bully Jabari, sophomore southpaw Rodney Hood rains threes.
MICHIGAN Bachynski can't disrupt John Beilein's complex offense, which operates mostly beyond the arc.
ELITE EIGHT
WICHITA STATE Shockers' gap-closing man-to-man is good for warding off drives from Russdiculous and Chris Jones and avenging '13 Final Four loss.
DUKE In a war of the nation's No. 2 and No. 3 most efficient offenses, Devils are better able to make threes at domed Lucas Oil Stadium.
FINAL FOUR
WICHITA STATE WSU's blue-collar rotation of junior college transfers and no-name recruits trumps Duke's six McDonald's All-Americans.
WICHITA STATE The Shockers' backcourt has superior scorers to Arizona's, and a one-possession grinder at AT&T Stadium comes down to WSU's Fred VanVleet (right) and Ron Baker (above) making clutch jumpers off the bounce.
FLORIDA Will Yeguete (left) and his fellow seniors have oodles of tournament experience, a coach with two NCAA titles in Billy Donovan, top 20 rankings in both offensive and defensive efficiency and no losses since Dec. 2. The Gators won't be fazed at the Final Four.
FLORIDA These Gators are enemies of history: They halt the Shockers one game short in their bid for the first perfect season since Indiana's in 1975--76.
PHOTO
SCOTT CUNNINGHAM/GETTY IMAGES (WILBEKIN)
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DAVID E. KLUTHO/SPORTS ILLUSTRATED (BAKER)
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DAVID E. KLUTHO/SPORTS ILLUSTRATED (VANVLEET)
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JOHN W. MCDONOUGH/SPORTS ILLUSTRATED (GORDON)
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AL MESSERSCHMIDT/GETTY IMAGES (YEGUETE)
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AL GOLDIS/AP (PAYNE)
TWO ILLUSTRATIONS