A day after we saw a slew of upsets and five games decided by one point, the second full day of the NCAA tournament had some semblance of normalcy about it. Of the 16 games, 15 of the top seeds moved on with the only exception being 6 seed Providence’s loss to 11 seed Dayton, 66-53.
Other than that game, all the top seeds handled their business, although two four seeds – Louisville and Maryland – had to survive their games against UC Irvine and Valparaiso. But you win any way you can so I don’t think the Cardinals and the Terps are worried about having to scrap their way into the Round of 32.
In other games, top seeds Duke and Wisconsin handled their business against Robert Morris and Coastal Carolina, respectively. Same thing with 2 seeds Kansas and Gonzaga, handily disposing New Mexico State and North Dakota State to move into the next round.
As crazy as the first day’s games were, the second day lacked a whole lot of the suspense, drama, and controversy that dominated the headlines yesterday. Not that any of the top seeds care about how they won because all they’re worried about is moving on, which almost all of them have accomplished.
The favorites also fared a lot better compared to the pasting they received from the underdogs yesterday. The faves batted .500 (8-8) in yesteday’s games and while it didn’t nearly come close to turning the tables on the underdog, they at least accounted themselves better than they did the previous day.
The tournament now moves to the Round of 32 where eight games are on tap, including top seeds Duke and Wisconsin taking on 8 seeds San Diego State and Oregon, respectively and three two seeds – Virginia, Kansas, and Gonzaga – battling three 7 seeds – Michigan State, Wichita State, and Iowa in that order.
