Undefeated Kentucky advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament for the fourth time in five seasons, defeating third-seeded Notre Dame 68-66 in the Midwest Region final at Cleveland on Saturday.
NCAA Tournament
A year ago, Wisconsin topped Arizona by one point in overtime to advance to the Final Four. On Saturday, the top-seeded Badgers moved on again, coasting past the second-seeded Wildcats 85-78 in the West region final at Los Angeles.
Travis Trice led Michigan State with 24 points, including six points down the stretch, and Denzel Valentine chipped in with 18 to lead the No. 7 Spartans to a 62-58 win over the No. 3 Oklahoma Sooners in an East Regional semifinal at the Carrier Dome on Friday.
If it feels like Wisconsin and Arizona just played each other for a Final Four berth, it’s because they did. The Badgers and Wildcats clash in the Elite Eight for the second straight year, with the West Region title at stake.
Justise Winslow scored a game-high 21 points as top-seeded Duke outlasted fifth-seeded Utah 63-57 on Friday night in an NCAA South Regional semifinal game at NRG Stadium.
Kentucky reached the Final Four in 2011, won the NCAA Tournament in 2012 and was the national runner-up in 2014, while Notre Dame has not reached the Final Four since 1978. They’ll meet Saturday in the Midwest Region final.
Sean Miller is arguably the country’s best recruiter not named John Calipari. Miller is also considered an expert coach, having led teams to the Sweet 16 six times and Elite Eight four. But he is also the latest to own this moniker: Best coach not to have reached a Final Four.
Wisconsin plays for the right to reach a second straight Final Four today when it meets Arizona in the West Region final. Should they win, the Badgers then could face a national semifinal matchup against undefeated Kentucky.
Anton Gill, who was averaging 2.4 points per game, came off the bench to score seven points in the final seven minutes Friday night and spark fourth-seeded Louisville’s 75-65 victory over eighth-seeded North Carolina State in an East Regional semifinal game at the Carrier Dome.
Przemek Karnowski had 18 points and nine rebounds as the Gonzaga Bulldogs advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time in 16 years with a convincing 74-62 win over UCLA in Houston.
If your bracket picks still have a good chance of winning the office pool, you need to plan on paying taxes on your jackpot.
As a No. 7 seed, Michigan State wasn’t expected to do much damage in the NCAA Tournament but has emerged as the team to beat in the East Regional. Oklahoma has won 12 of its past 15 games and provides Michigan State with challenges on the perimeter and in the paint.
North Carolina State upset No. 1-seeded Villanova in the round of 32 to advance to the Sweet 16. Louisville advanced to the regional semifinals for a program-record fourth straight time with a 66-53 win over Northern Iowa.
Gonzaga dominated UCLA when the teams met Dec. 16, but there is much more at stake Friday when the West Coast powerhouses meet in Houston in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. The Bulldogs led by double digits for most of the second half en route to an 87-74 road win.
Duke and Utah each rely heavily on a standout freshman in the post and a senior star in the backcourt — two matchups that will take center stage Friday in Houston when the teams meet in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
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