March Madness 2015 Schedule: TV Info, Live Stream and Thursday's 2nd-Round Picks

The field of 64 is set. Let the madness officially begin. 

Even for the most casual basketball fan, Thursday could be the most sacred day of the calendar year: 16 games over a nine-hour span, all televised nationally for us to channel-hop and bracket-obsess. 

We've already seen significant madness in the First Four round, with Hampton—one of the worst regular-season teams in tournament history—knocking off Manhattan, solidifying a date with Kentucky in the second round. Mississippi dug itself out of a hole to come back and beat BYU, and Dayton's tilt on its home floor—the first true home-court tournament advantage in 28 years—came down to the wire. 

With the traditional bracket completely set, let's run through Thursday's slate of games.

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Schedule and Picks

Game	Time (ET)	TV	Live Stream	Broadcasters	Site	Pick
(4) Notre Dame vs. (13) Northeastern	12:15 p.m.	CBS	March Madness Live	Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Lewis Johnson	Pittsburgh	Notre Dame
(3) Iowa State vs. (14) UAB	12:40 p.m.	truTV	March Madness Live	Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel, Allie LaForce	Louisville	Iowa State
(3) Baylor vs. (14) Georgia State	1:40 p.m.	TBS	March Madness Live	Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Jamie Erdahl	Jacksonville	Baylor
(2) Arizona vs. (15) Texas Southern	2:10 p.m.	TNT	March Madness Live	Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Rachel Nichols	Portland	Arizona
(6) Butler vs. (11) Texas	~2:45 p.m.	CBS	March Madness Live	Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Lewis Johnson	Pittsburgh	Butler
(6) SMU vs. (11) UCLA	~3:10 p.m.	truTV	March Madness Live	Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel, Allie LaForce	Louisville	SMU
(6) Xavier vs. (11) Ole Miss	~4:10 p.m.	TBS	March Madness Live	Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Jamie Erdahl	Jacksonville	Ole Miss
(7) VCU vs. (10) Ohio State	~4:40 p.m.	TNT	March Madness Live	Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Rachel Nichols	Portland	Ohio State
(1) Villanova vs. (16) Lafayette	~6:50 p.m.	TBS	March Madness Live	Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Lewis Johnson	Pittsburgh	Villanova
(8) Cincinnati vs. (9) Purdue	~7:10 p.m.	CBS	March Madness Live	Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel, Allie LaForce	Louisville	Cincinnati
(4) North Carolina vs. (13) Harvard	~7:20 p.m.	TNT	March Madness Live	Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Jamie Erdahl	Jacksonville	North Carolina
(5) Utah vs. (12) Stephen F. Austin	~7:27 p.m.	truTV	March Madness Live	Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Rachel Nichols	Portland	Utah
(8) NC State vs. (9) LSU	~9:10 p.m.	TBS	March Madness Live	Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Lewis Johnson	Pittsburgh	NC State
(1) Kentucky vs. (16) Hampton	~9:40 p.m.	CBS	March Madness Live	Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel, Allie LaForce	Louisville	Kentucky
(5) Arkansas vs. (12) Wofford	~9:50 p.m.	TNT	March Madness Live	Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Jamie Erdahl	Jacksonville	Wofford
(4) Georgetown vs. (13) Eastern Washington	~9:57 p.m.	truTV	March Madness Live	Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Rachel Nichols	Portland	Georgetown

Key Matchups

(6) SMU vs. (11) UCLA

David Stephenson/Associated Press

A year after being snubbed by the selection committee, Larry Brown's SMU Mustangs are firmly planted in the field of 64 as a No. 6 seed, taking on one of the weakest teams in the tournament. 

SMU came away with the American Athletic Conference championship after a 21-11 regular season. Led by guard Nic Moore's 14 points and five assists a night, SMU ranked first in the conference in field-goal percentage while committing the fewest turnovers. After losing commit Emmanuel Mudiay to China shortly before the season, the 5'9" Moore was immediately thrust into a prime role, and the junior guard has taken advantage.

Brown, who has been all over the coaching map throughout his four decades, will be facing off for the first time against a UCLA program he led from 1980-1981. Thursday will be the coach's first NCAA tournament appearance since winning it all with Kansas in 1988. Any run this March could officially land Brown back in the profession's good graces after going a combined 111-163 over his last four NBA seasons in New York and Charlotte.

“I’m going against a school that means a lot to me,” Brown said, according to Bill Nichols of The Dallas Morning News. “I had an unbelievable experience at UCLA. I love the place. I love what it stands for.”

For UCLA, a win against the Mustangs would hardly have anything to do with Larry Brown. It would mean redemption for a week of America second-guessing its tournament credentials. But Bruins coach Steve Alford is aware of SMU's strengths, and he likened the team to another formidable opponent, per Zach Helfand of the Los Angeles Times:

"

They’re very long, they’re big, they’re strong, they’re physical,” UCLA Coach Steve Alford said. “We’re really comparing them to Arizona, to be honest with you.”

That’s not great news for UCLA. Arizona beat the Bruins by 10 in Tucson in February and by six in the Pac-12 tournament semifinals on Friday. ...

“They really guard," Alford said. "They hang their hat on the defensive end, and that’s probably the most concerning. We’ve got to find ways of scoring.

"

SMU ranked top-50 in the nation in both offensive and defensive efficiencies. On offense, Brown's team has an extreme weakness along the perimeter—they ranked 347th in threes attempted this year, and only Moore and Sterling Brown shot it at over 34 percent (minimum 11 attempts).

If UCLA can use its size to keep the Mustangs out of the middle, the Bruins may have a chance. But nearly every opponent has found that difficult thus far. 

Prediction: SMU 68, UCLA 63

(7) VCU vs. (10) Ohio State

Betting against a Shaka Smart VCU team in the tournament has proven to be dangerous in years past. But rarely have the Rams had to face a player as lethal as Ohio State's D'Angelo Russell.

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

Russell will have to handle VCU's full-court press, which forced the fifth-most turnovers in the nation this season. If Russell has a moderate weakness this season, it had to do with his three turnovers per game.

It'll be interesting to see VCU's smashmouth press try to combat Ohio State's high-paced offense. The Buckeyes' attack isn't all about pace, as they finished 16th nationwide in efficiency at 114.1 points per 100 possessions—in no small part due to Russell's 19.3 points, 5.1 assists and 5.6 rebounds a night.

Big Ten Network's Tom Dienhart labeled this particular matchup the best chance at an upset in the conference, offering this insight:

"

Both of these teams are athletic, but the Buckeyes have more size—and they also have a super star in D’Angelo Russell, who can win a game himself. Plus, I like Ohio State seniors Shannon Scott and Sam Thompson. VCU, coached by Shaka Smart, has a better seed than OSU but a worse BPI. This could be a shoot-em-up game with lots of points and full-court action.

"

If VCU comes out on top, its senior guard and leading scorer Treveon Graham will have a lot to do with it. He's put up 16 points on average to go along with seven rebounds, while knocking down 38 percent of his threes. Graham most recently led VCU to an A-10 title, recording 20 points and 13 boards against Dayton on Sunday.

The 6'6" guard will likely need his best performance of the season if he and the Rams hope to outshine Russell and Ohio State.

Prediction: Ohio State 81, VCU 78

(8) Cincinnati vs. (9) Purdue

If you tend to favor hardcore, slug-it-out grindfests, boy, will you enjoy Cincinnati taking on Purdue.

The Boilermakers play big, with a pair of platooning 7-footers at their disposal, each averaging a double-double per 40 minutes. A.J. Hammons has put up 11.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.9 blocks over his 24 minutes, while Isaac Haas posts 7.6 points and 4.0 boards over 14.8 minutes.

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Cincinnati plays a similar game, without a 7-footer but with more athleticism. They finished the season ranked 15th in defensive efficiency at 92 points per 100 possessions to Purdue's 98.4, which ranked 102nd. 

Starting 6'10" center Octavius Ellis will be a nice counter to Purdue's Hammons. Not as massive as the Purdue middle man, Ellis brings wiry athleticism and 7.3 rebounds per game, which is the highest mark of any player on either team. 

Travis Miller from Hammer and Rails offered the following about this close matchup:

"

This game should be evenly matched because both teams are so similar. Both average 13 turnovers per game and shoot 45.3% from the field. It comes down to who has the better defense? What is the difference that the size of Haas and Hammons inside? This is going to be a tough, hard-fought game where neither team is going to be able to pull away. Cincinnati has more experience having been a tournament regular of late while Purdue has only Jon Octeus with tournament experience.

"

Both teams shot the same percentage from the field this season. The Bearcats finished 22-10, while Purdue went 21-12. Both play an ugly, drawn-out, slow-paced style. This one may not grab many headlines going in, but Cincy-Purdue may be the most closely contested matchup we'll get in the round of 64. 

Prediction: Cincinnati 53, Purdue 52