Your guide to March Madness Day 1: Recaps, every winner’s chance to advance, more
The first spherical of the 2026 males’s NCAA event has had slightly little bit of all the things: upsets, blowouts and large performances from the sport’s brightest stars.
Here is ESPN’s guide to all 16 first-round video games from Day 1, full with evaluation from on-site reporters of how every recreation was gained, and our consultants’ takes on every winner’s possibilities to advance to the Sweet 16.
Jump to: Relive the day
How VCU gained: The Rams completed a ridiculous comeback, erasing a 19-point second-half deficit to knock off North Carolina in additional time. Terrence Hill Jr. was electrical, connecting on 5 of VCU’s final six baskets, together with a 3-pointer with 15 seconds left in further time that successfully sealed the sport. Hill had 34 factors, 5 assists and 5 boards. It was an epic collapse for the Tar Heels, who missed their last 9 pictures, botched a pair of vital free throws in additional time and, after main by 19 with 14:58 to play, related on simply seven of 25 pictures. Per ESPN Research, the Rams’ 19-point comeback is tied for the biggest within the spherical of 64 for the reason that event expanded in 1985 — together with South Alabama towards Alabama in 1989. — David Hale
VCU’s second-round opponent: Illinois
How the Rams can advance to the Sweet 16: Phil Martelli Jr.’s squad can advance previous Illinois if Terrence Hill Jr. performs the function of Superman once more and his teammates make use of the identical resilience — on offense and protection — they demonstrated within the last 10 minutes of regulation on Thursday. The secret’s they will have to do it for 40 minutes towards Illinois on Saturday. The Rams scored at a clip of 138 factors per 100 possessions within the second half earlier than they compelled additional time towards the Tar Heels. But the 19-point deficit the Rams had to overcome may flip right into a 40-point drawback towards an Illinois squad with the perfect offense within the nation. They cannot let that occur. They’ll additionally want Lazar Djokovic (15 factors, 2 blocks) to put up huge numbers, too, as they try to stall the Illinois offensive machine. — Myron Medcalf
How Duke gained: No. 1 general seed Duke advances to the spherical of 32. That should not come as a lot of a shock, however Siena definitely did all it may to make issues fascinating, taking the Blue Devils to the restrict earlier than falling 71-65. The Saints led by 11 on the half and did not give up the lead till the 5:08 mark, however their starters performed with out a substitution till the ultimate 90 seconds of motion. And by late within the second half, it confirmed. Siena shot simply 8-of-34 from the ground over the ultimate 20 minutes, permitting the Blue Devils to claw their means again into the sport. Cameron Boozer had 22 factors and 13 boards to lead the Blue Devils, whereas his brother Cayden added 19. — David Hale
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TCU set to face Duke in 2nd spherical of NCAA event
Check out a few of the greatest highlights from TCU and Duke forward of their spherical of 32 matchup within the NCAA event.
Duke’s second-round opponent: TCU
How the Blue Devils can advance to the Sweet 16: Well, it might assist in the event that they confirmed up just like the crew that dominated within the second half towards Siena — and never the model that performed within the first half, when it was down by double digits. Duke’s offensive rhythm was clearly disrupted with out Caleb Foster, its greatest 3-point shooter (40.2%), and the Blue Devils’ protection was weaker than anticipated with Patrick Ngongba II out due to harm, too. In the second half, nonetheless, the Blue Devils turned to a zone and performed with a special defensive depth. They’ll advance if they’ve the identical mojo towards TCU. Isaiah Evans was a headache for Siena on quick breaks and off the dribble after halftime; Duke has to do more to put him able to affect the sport. Cameron Boozer was 13-for-14 from the free throw line. Good protection, Evans making performs and Boozer being Boozer are the keys to Duke transferring on. — Myron Medcalf
How High Point gained: Wisconsin jumped out to a 15-5 lead over High Point inside 5 minutes — however the Panthers did not let that final lengthy. They put collectively a 7-0 run to lower the lead to 15-12 and performed the Badgers shut, getting into the half down solely two factors. Wisconsin constructed one other eight-point lead with 7:08 to play, however High Point outscored the Badgers 18-12 to shut out this system’s first NCAA event win on a go-ahead layup from Chase Johnston — his first 2-point discipline purpose of the season. Johnson entered the sport 0-for-4 from 2-point vary, incomes most of his buckets from past the arc on 64-of-132 capturing from 3 on the season. Three Panthers gamers completed with double-doubles: Rob Martin (23 factors, 10 assists); Terry Anderson (15 factors, 11 rebounds); and Cam’Ron Fletcher (14 factors, 11 rebounds). — ESPN employees
High Point’s second-round opponent: Arkansas
How the Panthers can advance to the Sweet 16: High Point has gained 23 of its previous 24 video games and simply beat Wisconsin whereas taking part in a run-and-gun up-tempo affair — do not depend the Panthers out towards Arkansas. They will not be afraid of the tempo battle, though they will have to discover a means to gradual Darius Acuff Jr. and backcourt accomplice Meleek Thomas. Both are troublesome to hold from getting to their spots, and High Point simply allowed Nick Boyd and John Blackwell to mix for 49 factors within the win over the Badgers. Where High Point may have some success is on the different finish of the ground. Arkansas is strong defensively, however inclined to off ball and rotation lapses, and High Point will look to rise up and down the ground and take 3s. A repeat 15-for-40 3-point capturing effort can be good, too. — Jeff Borzello
How TCU gained: The Horned Frogs led by 15 on the half, trying poised to cruise into the second spherical; groups with halftime leads of 15 or more factors had been an ideal 34-0 over the earlier three tournaments, in accordance to ESPN Research. But the Buckeyes had no real interest in happening with out a combat, climbing all the way in which again to take a 51-50 lead on the 7:24 mark. The two groups traded blows the remainder of the way in which — till a nifty dish from David Punch to Xavier Edmonds with 4 seconds to play proved the distinction in a TCU victory. Punch was the late-game hero for the Horned Frogs, racking up 13 of his 16 factors, seven of his 13 rebounds and two assists within the second half to hold his crew dancing. — David Hale
TCU’s second-round opponent: Duke
How the Horned Frogs can advance to the Sweet 16: Siena grew to become the primary 16-seed to maintain a double-digit halftime lead over a 1-seed in NCAA event historical past, per ESPN Research, due to its early dominance within the paint. Francis Folefac, a 6-foot-7 ahead, was the anchor of a Saints squad that scored 22 factors within the paint within the first half towards the Blue Devils. That has to be the blueprint for TCU, too. The Blue Devils had been susceptible inside with out Patrick Ngongba II, their greatest defensive participant who is probably not accessible for the second spherical. That’s how the Horned Frogs can win, attacking inside and defending the rim towards Boozer & Co. They can even want 3s to fall once more (39% towards Ohio State), which solely occurred occasionally throughout the season once they had been fifteenth out of 16 groups within the Big 12 in 3-point capturing. — Myron Medcalf
(11) Texas 79, (6) BYU 71
(11) How Texas gained: AJ Dybantsa did all the things he may to forestall BYU from being part of a second upset on the Moda Center on Thursday. He poured in 35 factors, changing into the primary freshman with that many in his NCAA event debut. He’s the second freshman with a 35-point recreation within the NCAA event, together with De’Aaron Fox (39 factors) within the 2017 Sweet 16 towards UCLA. But it wasn’t sufficient. Texas managed the momentum from the leap, as BYU led for simply 22 seconds. When the Cougars had been on the verge of staging a comeback, Longhorns guard Jordan Pope buried a clutch 3-pointer from the nook to prolong his crew’s lead to 75-68 with 1:29 to go. The Longhorns obtained a powerful efficiency from huge man Matas Vokietaitis, who posted 23 factors and 16 rebounds. Tramon Mark added 16 factors. — Ryan McFadden
Texas’ second-round opponent: Gonzaga
How the Longhorns can advance to the Sweet 16: Texas, after shedding 5 of six video games getting into the NCAA event, has picked up back-to-back wins over NC State and BYU — and it’ll want to proceed defending at a excessive stage to have a chance towards Gonzaga. The Longhorns’ defensive deficiencies haven’t precisely been a secret; Sean Miller has talked about it at size, bemoaning their incapability to guard opponents with out fouling. But towards NC State, they held the Wolfpack to 0.98 factors per possession — their first time limiting an opponent to fewer than one level per possession since Jan. 14. BYU scored 1.06 factors per possession towards Texas, however that is nicely under the Cougars’ season common, they usually have potential No. 1 NBA draft decide AJ Dybantsa. Fortunately for Miller, Gonzaga’s offense will not be predicated on getting to the free throw line. The Zags rating more paint factors per recreation than any crew within the nation, so Saturday’s recreation might be key for Matas Vokietaitis to shield the rim and stifle All-American Graham Ike. — Jeff Borzello
How Louisville gained: Isaac McKneely led the way in which for the Cardinals, regardless of a late comeback push by South Florida to flip what had as soon as been a 23-point lead to inside single digits within the last 5 minutes. But the Bulls had been utlimately unable to compete with the Cardinals’ 3-pointers, with USF star guard Wes Enis going 0-for-11 from 3 — the second-most missed 3-point discipline purpose makes an attempt in an NCAA event recreation for the reason that line was launched in 1987 (Wofford’s Fletcher Magee, 2019, was 0-for-12), per ESPN Research.
McKneely was 7-of-10 from past the arc — tied for many 3s made by a Louisville participant in an NCAA event recreation (with Taquan Dean in 2005), per ESPN Research. McKneely scored a team-high 23 factors, simply his second 20-point recreation this season. Overall, Pat Kelsey’s crew completed 13-for-25 (52%) from 3, in contrast to the Bulls’ 5-for-33 effort (15.2%). — Alaina Getzenberg
Louisville’s second-round opponent: Michigan State
How the Cardinals can advance to the Sweet 16: Despite main South Florida by 23 factors earlier than a late surge by the Bulls made the ultimate margin a lot nearer, Louisville has to clear up loads so as to beat Michigan State. South Florida grabbed 18 offensive rebounds — 37.5% of its misses — and Louisville can have a more durable time towards Michigan State, one of the dominant offensive rebounding groups within the nation. The key on the offensive finish, because it all the time is for Louisville, might be making 3s. The Cardinals rank within the high 5 nationally in 3-point try price and made 13 towards South Florida. Michigan State was in the midst of the pack within the Big Ten in 3-point protection and allowed a mean of 11.1 3-pointers in its losses this season. The X issue would be the availability of Mikel Brown Jr., although Louisville has found out how to win with out him over the previous 5 video games. — Jeff Borzello
How Gonzaga gained: Kennesaw State tried its hardest to pull off the largest upset of the primary spherical, and it hung robust for some time. The Owls had been down by one level within the second half earlier than Gonzaga used a 17-4 run to stretch its lead to 60-46 — then made one final try at a comeback within the last minutes, trimming the deficit to 5 factors earlier than Graham Ike‘s layup put the Bulldogs up 71-64 with 1:16 left.
Gonzaga was led by Ike, who completed with a game-high 19 factors and eight rebounds. Davis Fogle added 17 factors off the bench. The Bulldogs benefited from their journeys to the free throw line, the place they had been 20-of-23. They additionally managed the glass, outrebounding Kennesaw State 45-34. — Ryan McFadden
Gonzaga’s second-round opponent: Texas
How the Bulldogs can advance to the Sweet 16: Gonzaga will get to keep away from going through AJ Dybantsa within the second spherical, however now the Zags have to play a Texas crew with momentum — and one with dimension that might doubtlessly make life troublesome for Mark Few’s membership. What ought to decide the result would be the paint battle and free throw margin. Gonzaga leads the nation in paint factors per recreation, scoring almost 45, whereas capturing almost 59% contained in the arc. But the Zags outscored Kennesaw State by solely 4 factors within the paint Thursday. Graham Ike wants to be his ordinary dominant self, and it will likely be useful to get Matas Vokietaitis in foul hassle. Vokietaitis averages 5.3 fouls per 40 and dedicated at the very least 4 fouls in seven straight video games getting into Thursday. On the flip aspect, Ike can have to gradual the previous Florida Atlantic switch; Vokietaitis is averaging 17.6 factors over his previous 11 video games and had 23 factors and 16 boards towards BYU. — Jeff Borzello
How Vanderbilt gained: There will not be any more aura this March Madness — at the very least not from viral McNeese State supervisor Amir Khan. The 12-seed Cowboys began scorching and constructed an 11-point lead early within the first half, however Vanderbilt held on and rallied to take a three-point lead into halftime with a dominant presence within the put up. The Commodores completed the sport outscoring McNeese 34-22 within the paint, thanks largely to a 6-for-6 effort from huge man Devin McGlockton. Vanderbilt’s dimension benefit additionally supplied an edge on the glass, outrebounding the Cowboys 37-34, together with 28-18 in defensive boards. Vanderbilt guard Tyler Tanner led all scorers with 25 factors — 17 within the second half — and three 3-pointers. McNeese saved tempo with Vanderbilt, recording 16 fast-break factors and 9 steals, however it wasn’t sufficient to pull off the upset. — Brooke Pryor
Vanderbilt’s second-round opponent: Nebraska
How the Commodores can advance to the Sweet 16: Vanderbilt wants Tyler Tanner to excel and to restrict Nebraska’s shooters so as to advance. The Commodores had been a special crew within the second half towards McNeese on Thursday when Tanner, a projected first-round NBA draft decide, bought more snug towards the strain from one in every of America’s greatest defensive groups. He scored 17 of his game-high 26 factors after halftime. Overall this season, Vanderbilt is 13-3 when the 6-foot guard scores at the very least 20 factors. Nebraska, which had the perfect protection in Big Ten play this season, will do all it could actually to frustrate him. It’s not on him alone, although. The Commodores can have to do their greatest to shut down the Cornhuskers on the 3-point line: They’ve made 34 3-pointers of their previous three video games. — Myron Medcalf
How Texas A&M gained: Affected by an sickness and Texas A&M’s swarming protection, St. Mary’s main scorer, Paulius Murauskas, was held to a season-low 4 factors and performed simply 23 minutes off the bench. The Aggies’ protection was stifling: It recorded 12 steals, compelled the Gaels to flip the ball over a season-high 18 occasions and held them to simply 26 factors within the first half — their second-lowest output of the season. TAMU dominated within the paint, outscoring St. Mary’s 28-12 as ahead Rashaun Agee led all scorers with 22 factors. Agee and Aggie guard Rubén Dominguez every hit three 3-pointers. — Brooke Pryor
Texas A&M’s second-round opponent: Houston
How the Aggies can advance to the Sweet 16: It’s all about Bucky Ball and the way efficient it may be towards Houston and the most effective backcourts within the nation. A&M desires to play quick, it desires to pressure turnovers and it desires to make groups uncomfortable. Houston takes care of the ball, rating seventh within the nation in turnover share — and the Cougars are even higher in Big 12 play. A&M forces turnovers on 18.6% of its defensive possessions; Houston has turned it over that steadily simply 5 occasions all season. Can A&M win the tempo battle? The Aggies common more than 70 possessions per recreation, rating within the high 40 nationally. Meanwhile, the Cougars play simply over 63 possessions per recreation, rating No. 352 nationally. This might be a real distinction of kinds, however the truth that A&M simply beat one other grind-it-out crew in Saint Mary’s ought to give the Aggies optimism. — Borzello
How Michigan State gained: North Dakota State took an 8-5 lead early within the first half towards Michigan State. That was the final time the Bisons had the sting because the Spartans gained their first recreation of their twenty eighth NCAA event look underneath Tom Izzo (third most in Division I since 1995-96, per ESPN Research). Michigan State transformed 58.9% of its discipline targets (the crew’s greatest in an NCAA event recreation since 1986) and made 50% of its 3s, as well as to going 16-of-18 from the road. The Spartans capitalized on the Bison struggling from 3 (6-of-25) with 31 defensive rebounds to their 4 offensive rebounds. Guard Jeremy Fears Jr. additionally grew to become the sixth completely different Michigan State participant up to now 60 years to document at the very least 10 assists in an NCAA event recreation, becoming a member of a prestigious listing of Magic Johnson, Cassius Winston, Draymond Green, Mateen Cleaves and Denzel Valentine. — Alaina Getzenberg
Michigan State’s second-round opponent: Louisville
How the Spartans can advance to the Sweet 16: Michigan State’s largest edge towards North Dakota State was its dominant frontcourt, with Carson Cooper, Jaxon Kohler, Coen Carr and Cam Ward combining for 62 factors and 24 rebounds. That can even be the place the Spartans will want to win towards Louisville. Despite having loads of dimension and depth up entrance, the Cardinals struggled on the defensive glass towards South Florida, and Michigan State is likely one of the top-10 offensive rebounding groups within the nation. The Spartans ought to give you the chance to have success in that space towards the Cardinals. Jeremy Fears Jr. would be the key — he did not rating the ball nicely towards North Dakota State and turned it over a season-high 4 occasions, however he’ll give you the chance to get downhill and put strain on Louisville. — Jeff Borzello
How Nebraska gained: The Cornhuskers made historical past with their first NCAA event win in program historical past as they throttled Troy with a dominant efficiency on each ends of the ground; they entered the sport as the one program of any energy convention with out an NCAA event win after going 0-8 of their earlier appearances. Junior ahead Pryce Sandfort erupted with a program-record seven 3-pointers in an NCAA event recreation, one in need of his profession excessive set earlier this season. As a crew, Nebraska shot 14-of-39 from past the arc whereas holding Troy to 8-of-28 from 3. The Cornhuskers not solely dominated the glass however turned these rebounds into 19 second-chance factors — nicely over their season common of 9.2. Nebraska additionally compelled Troy to commit 17 turnovers and turned these errors into 17 factors. — Brooke Pryor
Nebraska’s second-round opponent: Vanderbilt
How the Cornhuskers can advance to the Sweet 16: Nebraska has already made historical past by successful the primary NCAA event recreation at school historical past. Now it could actually add to that feat with one other victory and its first Sweet 16 look. How? Its protection has the flexibility to pressure Vanderbilt star Tyler Tanner into troublesome pictures. He was simply 2-for-6 towards McNeese within the first half Thursday, struggling towards its relentless strain. Nebraska is larger and higher (top-10 protection nationally) than McNeese, and the Cornhuskers have put the identical defensive clamps on elite groups in Big Ten play. Against everybody else, they have been ferocious. But they did maintain Troy to simply 47 factors (77 factors per 100 possessions) — the perfect protection we have seen within the opening spherical by means of the primary half of Thursday. Combine that with Pryce Sandfort, Rienk Mast and Sam Hoiberg all hitting huge pictures within the first spherical, and Nebraska could be on its means to the Sweet 16 for the primary time. — Myron Medcalf
How Arkansas gained: The victory marked the primary time the Razorbacks scored 90-plus factors in an NCAA event recreation since 1999. (They beat Siena 94-80 within the first spherical.) They jumped to a 17-point lead within the first 9 minutes and by no means appeared again. SEC Player of the Year Darius Acuff Jr. was one in every of 5 Arkansas gamers to rating in double figures, ending with 24 factors, seven assists and one steal. Meleek Thomas totaled 21 factors, eight rebounds and 5 assists, making him and Acuff the primary freshman teammates with 50 factors and 5 assists every in an NCAA event recreation. Thomas was additionally efficient on protection, recording a block and two steals. Even although the Razorbacks shot 19% from the 3-point line, they dominated within the inside, outscoring Hawai’i 64-40 within the paint. Arkansas generated 23 fast-break factors and 26 assists. — Ryan McFadden
Arkansas’ second-round opponent: High Point
How Arkansas can advance to the Sweet 16: Arkansas desires to run, and it desires a high-scoring recreation. High Point might be keen to play into that hand, and it is arduous to see how that is not a plus for John Calipari’s crew. The Razorbacks do not give the ball away since they’ve two high-level playmakers in Darius Acuff Jr. and Meleek Thomas, and their frontcourt is considerably more cell and athletic than Wisconsin’s bigs. The turnover battle might be key; High Point ranks within the high 5 in defensive turnover share, however Arkansas protects the ball higher than any crew within the nation. If Acuff and Thomas handle the ball and the Razorbacks can dominate the paint like they’ve achieved numerous occasions this season, High Point possible will not have a solution. Defensively, they cannot let Chase Johnston get scorching — from wherever on the ground. — Jeff Borzello
How Illinois gained: The Illini dominated all phases of this win. Though 5 Illini completed in double figures, freshman David Mirkovic was the star, main all scorers with 28 factors, 17 rebounds and three assists. Penn had no solutions for Mirkovic and Illinois’ dimension. The Illini had 44 factors within the paint, pulled down 20 offensive boards and shot 50% from the sector. Add of their 15 3s, and there was merely nothing Illinois did not do nicely. The Illini’s 105 factors had been probably the most by any crew on the event’s opening day and their highest output since scoring 113 in every of their first two video games of the season. — David Hale
Illinois’ second-round opponent: VCU
How the Fighting Illini can advance to the Sweet 16: Illinois, which owns the No. 1 offense in America, can advance with the identical overwhelming offensive assault it has relied on in wins over Texas Tech, Tennessee and Purdue. The Fighting Illini scored 40 factors within the first half towards Penn earlier than including 65 within the second half at a price of 197 factors per 100 possessions. For comparability: The Denver Nuggets have the NBA’s greatest offense of the season at 120 factors per 100 possessions. That’s how good Illinois is correct now. Brad Underwood’s crew can advance with one other overwhelming offensive effort. On Thursday, the Illini turned to David Mirkovic (29 factors, 17 rebounds) to hold their nationwide title hopes alive. It’s a tall job for the Rams, who can have to cease one of the potent offensive assaults in latest faculty basketball historical past. Meanwhile, Illinois simply has to be Illinois. — Myron Medcalf
How Saint Louis gained: This one was all Billikens. Georgia by no means held a lead, which means it stays the one SEC crew with out a NCAA event win since 2003. The Bulldogs merely had no reply for the Billikens as they scored layup after layup whereas a struggling Georgia offense made 34.7% of its discipline targets (25 of 72).
Saint Louis dominated the paint with 66 factors, the very best complete by any crew in a recreation up to now 20 NCAA tournaments. Six Saint Louis gamers completed with double digits in factors, and the Billikens made 58.3% of their discipline targets. The lone shiny spot for the Bulldogs was Jeremiah Wilkinson, who grew to become the primary Georgia participant with a 30-point recreation since 2002. The recreation marked the biggest loss by an SEC crew to an A-10 crew in an NCAA event recreation (the earlier largest loss was in 1997, when 9-seed Temple beat 8-seed Ole Miss by 22 factors). — Alaina Getzenberg
Saint Louis’ second-round opponent: Michigan
How the Billikens can advance to the Sweet 16: Saint Louis is an environment friendly offensive operation, capturing round 59% contained in the arc and round 40% from 3. That’s what the Billikens will want to get a win over a Michigan crew with simply three losses this season. They’ll have to be good on the perimeter and across the rim as they had been towards Georgia with 66 factors within the paint. But how? They’ll have to assault Michigan’s huge males, particularly Aday Mara, on ball screens, which is what Duke did down the stretch of its win over Michigan this season. Saint Louis has six gamers who’ve made at the very least 37% of their 3-point makes an attempt this season. The Billikens can advance in the event that they exhaust Michigan’s frontcourt with an inside-outside recreation that retains the Wolverines guessing and performs their greatest protection of the season to shield the rim towards one in every of America’s largest frontcourts. Easier stated than achieved. — Myron Medcalf
How Houston gained: Death, taxes and Kelvin Sampson successful at the very least one NCAA event recreation. With a dominant win towards Idaho, the Cougars have gained at the very least one recreation in eight consecutive NCAA tournaments, the second-longest lively streak behind Gonzaga. This time they had been paced by phenom Kingston Flemings, who set a program document with 18 factors — probably the most by a Houston freshman in an NCAA event recreation. Houston overwhelmed Idaho in every aspect of the sport, outrebounding the Vandals 47-32 and outscoring them within the paint 36-16. Five Cougars completed in double figures, whereas only one Vandal, Kolton Mitchell, reached that mark. — Brooke Pryor
Houston’s second-round opponent: Texas A&M
How the Cougars can advance to the Sweet 16: Houston, on paper, is constructed to stand up to Texas A&M’s urgent, up-tempo fashion. The Cougars have an elite three-guard trio in Kingston Flemings, Milos Uzan and Emanuel Sharp, who do not flip the ball over and are efficient at getting the sport to be performed at Kelvin Sampson’s most well-liked tempo. They can also pressure their very own fair proportion of turnovers, and A&M has had some points towards groups with intense on-ball strain. Where Houston can actually have an edge is on the offensive glass. The Cougars are yearly the most effective offensive rebounding groups within the nation, and whereas this yr’s group is not fairly as elite as earlier variations, they’re nonetheless within the high 30 nationally in offensive rebounding price and second-chance factors per recreation. A&M, in the meantime, was one of many worst defensive rebounding groups within the SEC. — Borzello
How Michigan gained: Howard gave Michigan a run for its cash early, protecting the sport inside 4 factors going into halftime. But popping out of it, the Wolverines distanced themselves by flexing their offensive muscle groups to draw back for his or her thirty second win of the season — second most in program historical past (probably the most had been 33 in 2017-18). The Wolverines shot 67.3% to the Bison’s 42.6%. Michigan additionally held the sting on the glass (35-23), led by ahead Morez Johnson Jr., who grew to become the fifth participant up to now 60 years with 20 factors, 10 rebounds and 100% FG (8-for-8) in an NCAA event recreation. Howard’s 10 first-half 3s saved the Bison within the recreation as they appeared for his or her second NCAA event win, however they adopted that up with simply 4 (4-of-13) within the second half. — Alaina Getzenberg
Michigan’s second-round opponent: Saint Louis
How the Wolverines can advance to the Sweet 16: The Wolverines can advance in the event that they use their dimension on offense and subdue a singular Saint Louis offense. Michigan had early struggles as Kenny Blakeney’s Howard crew centered on Yaxel Lendeborg (9 factors) and used a zone to hold the Wolverines out of the lane. It did not work for the entire recreation as a result of Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr. — who had 40 factors mixed — performed excessive of it whereas persevering with to rating from the perimeter to seal the win. Saint Louis would not have the scale to defend Michigan at any place. On offense, the Billikens could possibly be compelled to camp out on the 3-point line as a result of the Wolverines will not give them quite a lot of room to function within the paint. If Michigan hits its 3s, dominates inside and defends a flexible Saint Louis offense, the Wolverines ought to advance to the Sweet 16. — Myron Medcalf
