March Madness 2015: Updated Odds and Latest Predictions for Sweet 16

March Madness still has a lot of craziness left as Thursday represents the beginning of the Sweet 16 round.

The NCAA tournament is less than halfway through its six rounds, which means there are still a number of excellent matchups to look forward to in the coming weeks. Most importantly, only the teams playing at their highest levels remain in the hunt for a national championship.

This is certain to create some exciting battles in the upcoming round. Here is a look at predictions against the spread with a breakdown of the closest calls.

	Thursday
	Friday			Friday
Time (ET)	Matchup	TV	Pick	ATS*
7:15 p.m.	No. 3 Notre Dame vs. No. 7 Wichita State	CBS	Notre Dame	ND +1
7:47 p.m.	No. 1 Wisconsin vs. No. 4 North Carolina	TBS	Wisconsin	WISC -5.5
9:45 p.m.	No. 1 Kentucky vs. No. 5 West Virginia	CBS	Kentucky	WVU +13.5
10:17 p.m.	No. 2 Arizona vs. No. 6 Xavier	TBS	Arizona	AZ -11
7:15 p.m.	No. 2 Gonzaga vs. No. 11 UCLA	CBS	Gonzaga	UCLA +8.5
7:37 p.m.	No. 4 Louisville vs. No. 8 North Carolina State	TBS	NC State	NCST +2.5
9:45 p.m.	No. 1 Duke vs. No. 5 Utah	CBS	Duke	DUKE -5
10:07 p.m.	No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 7 Michigan State	TBS	MSU	MSU -2

Closest Calls

No. 1 Wisconsin vs. No. 4 North Carolina

Charlie Neibergall/Associated Press

Wisconsin might have had a close game against Oregon, but this is a team that will always remain composed when it matters most. The experienced lineup full of competitors who reached the Final Four a year ago always seems to make the right play at all times.

Frank Kaminsky has obviously been great all year, but the Badgers could be even better if Sam Dekker plays to his potential, as Seth Davis of CBS Sports described:

The forward has been almost invisible at times this year, but he can be a game-changer along with Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig in an incredibly dangerous offense.

North Carolina has some talented low-post players, although none of them are capable of sticking with Kaminsky and Dekker when Wisconsin spreads out to the three-point line.

Additionally, the Tar Heels strength of offensive rebounding will be neutralized by the Badgers' ability to control the defensive glass. This should lead to a relatively easy win for the top seed.

No. 2 Arizona vs. No. 6 Xavier

During the week, the big storyline of this game will be Arizona head coach Sean Miller competing against his former team and its coach, Chris Mack.

Mack explained the emotion involved in this one, via Joe Kay of The Associated Press:

"

As far as playing Sean, it's really tough. I don't think it's tough for [the players] because they don't really know Sean. But Sean gave me a heck of an opportunity to come back to my alma mater. He put a lot of responsibility and trust in me. He ultimately really pushed for me to become the head coach, and for that I'm eternally grateful. 

It's hard to play against one of your best friends in the business. But it really won't matter to our guys, nor will it matter to Arizona because they don't know me from a bucket of paint.

"

Of course, that last part is important. It's the players who will compete in this game, and in that case the game will heavily slant toward Arizona.

Xavier has plenty of talent, but the Wildcats have the defensive ability to slow down just about every facet of their opponents' game plan. T.J. McConnell will frustrate Dee Davis as the catalyst of the Musketeers attack, and the frontcourt will limit any points in the paint.

This game will be close for a while, but Arizona will be able to pull away late.

No. 3 Notre Dame vs. No. 7 Wichita State

This is one of the toughest calls of the round. Both teams have shown plenty of talent up to this point and have given impressive performances to pull out close wins.

Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight gives a lot of credit to No. 7 Wichita State going in:

The Shockers beat Kansas with impressive performances on both ends of the court. They used their length and quickness to disturb shooters defensively, while great passing led to an efficient day on offense.

Unfortunately, Wichita State hasn't seen an offensive force quite like Notre Dame this season. The Irish are known for their shooting, but they also score inside with great consistency due to their ability to always find the open man.

Even without a dominant performance during the first weekend, Notre Dame should be able to keep winning and advance to the Elite Eight.

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