One Coach K will earn a W

Which Coach K will guide his team to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight: Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski or Utah’s Larry Krystkowiak? And can we buy a vowel?

Krystkowiak holds a slight advantage in number of letters in his last name — 11 to 10 — but Krzyzewski has the edge in practically everything else entering today’s South Region matchup of the top-seeded Blue Devils and fifth-seeded Utes at 6:45 p.m. on CBS (8).

The other three Sweet 16 showdowns on today’s slate are No. 2 seed Gonzaga vs. No. 11 UCLA (4:15 p.m., CBS (8)); No. 4 Louisville vs. No. 8 North Carolina State (4:37 p.m., TBS (7)); and No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 7 Michigan State (7:07 p.m., TBS (7)).

If the favorites hold serve — and that’s a big if — we could be looking at Louisville-Michigan State and Gonzaga-Duke duking it out for a trip to the Final Four in a Sunday doubleheader scheduled for 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on CBS (8).

Gonzaga, making its 17th straight NCAA Tournament appearance, has advanced to the Elite Eight only once, in 1999, when it lost to eventual national champion Connecticut. The Bulldogs never have reached the Final Four.

Saturday’s Elite Eight doubleheader, scheduled for 3:09 p.m. and 5:49 p.m. on TBS (7), will showcase No. 1 overall seed Kentucky vs. No. 3 seed Notre Dame in the late game, as the Wildcats attempt to run their record to 38-0 and move a step closer to becoming the first team since the 1976 Indiana Hoosiers to win the national title with an undefeated record.

The early matchup will feature No. 1 seed Wisconsin against No. 2 seed Arizona.

TODAY

BEST OF REST — Women’s NCAA Tournament, Sweet 16: No. 1 seed South Carolina vs. North Carolina (4 p.m., ESPN (30)); Iowa vs. Baylor (4:30 p.m., ESPN2 (31)); Arizona State vs. Florida State (6:30 p.m., ESPN2 (31)); No. 1 seed Notre Dame vs. Stanford (7 p.m., ESPN (30)); NCAA men’s hockey tournament, first round: No. 1 seed Boston University vs. Yale (11 a.m., ESPNU (320)); Minnesota vs. Minnesota-Duluth (2:30 p.m., ESPNU (320)); No. 1 seed North Dakota vs. Quinnipiac (5 p.m., ESPNU (320)).

SATURDAY

BEST OF REST — Women’s NCAA Tournament, Sweet 16: No. 1 seed Connecticut vs. Texas (9 a.m., ESPN (30)); Dayton vs. Louisville (11:30 a.m., ESPN (30)); No. 1 seed Maryland vs. Duke (1:30 p.m., ESPN (30)); Gonzaga vs. Tennessee (4 p.m., ESPN (30)); NCAA men’s hockey tournament, first round: Denver vs. Boston College (noon, ESPN2 (31)); No. 1 seed Minnesota State vs. Rochester Institute of Technology (1 p.m., ESPNU (320)); No. 1 seed Miami (Ohio) vs. Providence (3:30 p.m., ESPNU (320)); NHL: Anaheim Ducks at New York Islanders (10 a.m., Prime (50)); New York Rangers at Boston Bruins (10 a.m., NHL (316)); Los Angeles Kings at Minnesota Wild (5 p.m., FSW (49), NHL (316)); PGA Tour: Valero Texas Open, third round (10 a.m., TGC (339); noon, NBC (3)).

SUNDAY

BEST OF REST — NHL:Washington Capitals at New York Rangers (noon, NHL (316)); Anaheim Ducks at New Jersey Devils (4 p.m., FSW (49)); San Jose Sharks at Pittsburgh Penguins (4:30 p.m., NBCSP (38)); NBA: Houston Rockets at Washington Wizards (9:30 a.m., ABC (13)); PGA Tour: Valero Texas Open, final round (10 a.m., TGC (339); noon, NBC (3)); NASCAR, Sprint Cup Series: STP 500 (10 a.m., FS1 (329)).

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354. Follow him on Twitter: @tdewey33.