March Madness 2012 TV Schedule: Florida Only Underdog Who'll Survive Thursday

While upsets make up a good amount of the charm of the NCAA tournament, don't expect many of those to happen when action resumes on Thursday. 

The higher seeds will show why they're seeded that way, with one exception. Let's take a look at just how those games will go down. 

No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 1 Syracuse

This is going to come down to a simple question: Can Wisconsin score enough points to hang with the Orange? The answer is going to be a rather clear no. Even without Fab Melo, Syracuse is just too strong offensively in this game.

Now, Wisconsin is adept at stopping opponents, which will come in handy and keep this game close—but in the end, teams are going to need to make critical baskets down the stretch to win the game. I trust Syracuse's wealth of players to get it done more than Jordan Taylor. 

Prediction: Syracuse 64, Wisconsin 58

No. 4 Louisville vs. No. 1 Michigan State  

Louisville is a fine team, but Michigan State is better. In order to pull an upset, something has to be exploited. Maybe it's a strength of the underdog, maybe it's a weakness of the favorite, but the underdog needs to find something to go to consistently. 

Against Michigan State, Louisville won't have that. Yes, they are good and actually pretty good across the board. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the Spartans are better in nearly every way. 

As if all of that wasn't enough, Michigan State also has the best player in Draymond Green. All of that will be too much for Louisville to overcome. 

Prediction: Michigan State 73, Louisville 64

No. 6 Cincinnati vs. No. 2 Ohio State 

See the notes about the Wisconsin vs. Syracuse game, and multiply it by two. That is what you're going to get here. The seeds can say whatever they want, but Ohio State is the best team in the East and will make the Final Four.

The reason is that they just have too many weapons in too many areas. Cincinnati is tough, but they're still going to have to stop Jared Sullinger, and I don't like their chances. Even if they get that done, the Buckeyes still feature Deshaun Thomas and William Buford. That is just too much for the Bearcats to handle. 

Cincinnati needs to keep this in the low-60s at the most, and Ohio State is just too strong for that to happen.

Prediction: Ohio State 78, Cincinnati 62

No. 7 Florida vs. No. 3 Marquette

There always has to be a black sheep. In this case, we're talking about the Gators. Florida has looked awfully impressive in the first two rounds. They may technically be a No. 7 seed, but sure aren't playing like it. 

The Gators move the ball well and score a lot of points, which is a tough combination to beat. The same can be said about Marquette, but the Gators are much hotter. Their games have not been close in this tournament. 

They have caught fire at the right time, which will vault them to the regional finals, at worst. Kenny Boynton and Bradley Beal will make the difference in what will be a high-scoring affair.

Prediction: Florida 74, Marquette 71

Sweet 16 Schedule (All Times ET):

Thursday, March 22

Region	Teams	Time	Television
East	No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 1 Syracuse	7:15 p.m.	CBS
West	No. 4 Louisville vs. No. 1 Michigan State	7:47 p.m.	TBS
East	No. 6 Cincinnati vs. No. 2 Ohio State	9:45 p.m.	CBS
West	No. 7 Florida vs. No. 3 Marquette	10:17 p.m.	TBS

Friday, March 23

Region	Teams	Time	Television
South	No. 10 Baylor vs. No 3 Baylor	7:15 p.m.	CBS
Midwest	No. 13 Ohio vs. No. 1 North Carolina	7:47 p.m.	TBS
South	No. 4 Indiana vs. No. 1 Kentucky	9:45 p.m.	CBS
Midwest	No. 11 North Carolina State. vs. No. 2 Kansas	10:17 p.m.	TBS

The regional finals will be played on Saturday and Sunday, with the times and television schedule being released as the games become official. 

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