March Madness 2015: Predictions, Tips for Saturday Round 3 Schedule

What happened to March Madness?

After a turbulent Thursday filled with massive upsets and down-to-the-wire finishes, Friday appeared poised to deliver some bracket-busting results as well. Not so fast.

Favorites won the first 15 games on Day 2 of the NCAA tournament's second round, many of which ousted lower-seeded teams from the Big Dance with ease. The first—and only—upset stemmed from No. 11 Dayton defeating No. 6 Providence in the day's final contest.

Saturday features the first eight games of the round of 32, and based on the impending matchups, we should get back to some good old-fashioned jaw-dropping finishes. Here's a look at the tournament's updated bracket, Saturday's schedule and the predicted winner against the spread for each game.

Updated Bracket

Saturday Schedule, Odds and Picks

Matchup	Time (ET)	TV	Spread	Pick ATS
No. 11 UCLA vs. No. 14 UAB	12:10 p.m.	CBS	UCLA -6	UAB
No. 1 Kentucky vs. No. 8 Cincinnati	2:40 p.m.	CBS	KU -16.5	Kentucky
No. 2 Arizona vs. No. 10 Ohio State	5:15 p.m.	CBS	ARI -9	Arizona
No. 6 Xavier vs. No. 14 Georgia State	6:10 p.m.	TNT	XAV -7.5	Xavier
No. 1 Villanova vs. No. 8 N.C. State	7:10 p.m.	TBS	Nova -9.5	N.C. State
No. 4 Georgetown vs. No. 5 Utah	7:45 p.m.	CBS	Utah -4.5	Utah
No. 4 North Carolina vs. No. 5 Arkansas	8:40 p.m.	TNT	UNC -4.5	North Carolina
No. 3 Notre Dame vs. No. 6 Butler	9:40 p.m.	TBS	ND -4.5	Notre Dame

Full schedule courtesy of NCAA.com.

Odds courtesy of Odds Shark.

Game to Watch

No. 3 Notre Dame vs. No. 6 Butler

Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

Notre Dame finished the regular season on quite a run and breezed through the ACC tournament, defeating the likes of Louisville, Duke and North Carolina during that span. The Fighting Irish continued their winning streak by defeating Northeastern in Round 2 of the NCAA tournament; however, the 69-65 win wasn't overly impressive.

The Irish continued to take advantage of their highly athletic starting five, feeding the ball inside to Zach Auguste and allowing the shifty Jerian Grant to drive into the lane. The led to many high-percentage shots, and Notre Dame finished the game shooting an impressive 57.4 percent from the floor as a result.

Although, defense was a different story.

After remaining stout on the defensive end of the court through the ACC tournament, Notre Dame struggled to slow down an average Northeastern offense. Utilizing a similar strategy to the Irish, the Huskies relied on forward Scott Eatherton on the inside, while guard David Walker facilitated well, opening up looks for his teammates and himself.

As a result, the Huskies shot 49.1 percent from the floor and found plenty of success in the paint, accumulating 33 boards to Notre Dame's 17. If it wasn't for the 16 turnovers committed by Northeastern, the Irish may have been sent home early.

Needless to say, improvements are necessary before taking on Butler.

Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

The Bulldogs disposed of Texas by a score of 56-48 in the round of 64 thanks to the efforts of guard Kellen Dunham and some stout defensive play. Dunham was the only Bulldog to record double-digit points, racking up a game-high 20. His performance was stellar, but the lack of scoring from his supporting cast is slightly concerning going forward.

Although, Butler hasn't won games this year due to a high-octane offense. It's been winning due to sound defensive play. That continued against a Longhorns team that shot just 34.0 percent from the floor and committed 15 turnovers.

While Butler's defense was solid, the team struggled in the rebound department much like Notre Dame. The Bulldogs came away with just 28 boards in the contest, while Texas racked up 41. The Longhorns' 12 offensive rebounds are especially concerning, as giving a team like the Irish a large amount of second-chance opportunities isn't likely to end well.

Expect both Butler and Notre Dame to take full advantage of each other's weaknesses, keeping this game close for the duration; however, it's difficult to bet against an Irish team that shoots 51.0 percent from the floor on average—even against a good Bulldogs defense.

Prediction: Notre Dame 67, Butler 62