March Madness 2015 Schedule: TV Info, Live Stream and Friday's Sweet 16 Picks

If the first week of March Madness is all about wall-to-wall action and thrilling upsets, the second week represents the time for championship contenders to separate themselves.  Chalk has largely prevailed outside of the East Region, a trend that held up through Thursday's games, with all four favorites prevailing.

The four games on tap for Friday’s schedule will feature the East and South Regions of the bracket, both of which have seen upsets wreak significant havoc. Headed into the round, Duke and Gonzaga stand out as heavy favorites for an Elite Eight collision course, while perennial contenders Michigan State and Louisville possess the type of pedigree that has much of the public leaning their way.

Of course, that hasn’t meant much to the likes of N.C. State and UCLA, who have emerged as the biggest surprises in a year largely devoid of mid-major power. Indeed, though the lack of a true Cinderella may be disappointing to those in favor of maximum chaos, the chalk-laden field should make for more compelling and higher-quality basketball during the tourney’s second week.

For fans seeking more Madness, check out the full TV schedule and streaming info below, as well as previews and predictions for each of Friday’s contests.

Date	Time (ET)	Matchup	TV	Stream
March 27	7:15 p.m.	(11) UCLA vs. (2) Gonzaga	CBS	March Madness Live
March 27	7:37 p.m.	(8) NC State vs. (4) Louisville	TBS	March Madness Live
March 27	9:45 p.m.	(5) Utah vs. (1) Duke	CBS	March Madness Live
March 27	10:07 p.m.	(7) Michigan St. vs. (3) Oklahoma	TBS	March Madness Live

Game Predictions

(2) Gonzaga over (11) UCLA

This matchup is the only Sweet 16 game pitting teams separated by more than four seeds, making the Zags Friday’s biggest favorite. While the Bulldogs have been notorious March washouts in recent seasons, there’s reason to believe that the 2015 rendition can shed that reputation: 

Indeed, many have labeled this year’s Gonzaga squad as Mark Few’s best. Unlike past seasons, the Bulldogs possess power-conference-level depth, with Byron Wesley and Domantas Sabonis providing scoring support behind aces Kyle Wiltjer and Kevin Pangos. Moreover, imposing 7’1” center Przemek Karnowski has given the Zags an anchor in the paint, an asset that has given them arguably the nation’s best frontcourt outside of Lexington, Kentucky.

UCLA hasn’t typically been a heavy tourney underdog throughout its history, but the Bruins are a young team with just two Top 25 RPI wins on the year, one of which came in the round of 64 against SMU. Moreover, as ESPN’s Peter Keating and Jordan Brenner illustrate, UCLA doesn’t really fit the profile of a typical tournament “Giant Killer”:

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UCLA functions more like a mediocre Giant than a Killer. The Bruins win with offense, as they score more than 110 points per 100 possessions, and play at a pace faster than most Killers utilize (66.1 possessions per game). Again, though, that plays right into the Zags’ hands, as they are quite comfortable going back and forth in a shootout thanks to the nation’s fourth-best offense. Gonzaga’s strength on the boards also prevents extra possessions, and led by the steady hand of Kevin Pangos, the Bulldogs don’t turn the ball over often (16.2 percent of possessions).

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The Bruins probably caught a fortunate break in the round of 32 in facing UAB instead of Iowa State, but it would be surprising to see them advance any further. Look for the Zags to reach their first Elite Eight since their original Cinderella run back in 1999.

(8) N.C. State over (4) Louisville

Having reached their fourth consecutive Sweet 16, most view the higher-seeded and more experienced Cardinals as the favorite in this matchup. In truth, however, the Wolfpack are only a No. 8 seed because of their regular-season inconsistencies. If N.C. State can replicate its form from the past three halves, it’s perfectly capable of taking down Rick Pitino’s squad for the second time this season.

The Wolfpack have become a fairly egalitarian offense this tournament, with the emergence of freshman forward Abdul-Malik Abu providing them a sorely needed interior presence. With Abu complementing the perimeter duo of Trevor Lacey and Cat Barber, N.C. State has more margin for error offensively than it did during the regular season: 

Most importantly, the Wolfpack’s hot-and-cold shooting shouldn’t bite them too badly against Louisville, which itself is one of the worst shooting teams remaining in the field. As SI.com’s David Gardner and Ted Keith opine, an off night from leading scorer Terry Rozier would probably be fatal to the Cards:

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Louisville still has a pancake-thin margin for error. An off night from Rozier, in particular, could be fatal. This team is also Rick Pitino's worst group of three-point shooters ever at Louisville—they make just 30.8% from beyond the arc, 308th in the country. As Villanova showed, an over-reliance on the three-ball can be a team's undoing. If an opponent gets a big lead on Louisville, this group of Cardinals cannot shoot themselves back into the game.

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This year’s N.C. State squad remains a long ways off from the legendary 1983 “Cardiac Pack” national champions. However, look for the Pack to pull off their second consecutive upset and reach their first Elite Eight since the Jim Valvano era.

(1) Duke over (5) Utah

The Dukies may have been a questionable choice as a No. 1 seed, but after steamrolling through the opening week, the Blue Devils are in the familiar position of Final Four favorites. Facing a mostly anonymous Utah program, the Devils are getting more betting action than any squad in this round:

Duke’s starting five is one of the most potent in the nation, with freshmen Tyus Jones and Jahlil Okafor providing a nice inside-outside presence sandwiched around exemplary wing play from Justise Winslow and Quinn Cook. Winslow in particular had a spectacular opening weekend, with Grantland’s Mark Titus labeling him the player of the tournament so far:

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Winslow is an animal right now. He’s got my vote for player of the tournament so far. Speaking of which: What if Winslow really is the best player in the tournament?...If Winslow keeps this up and Duke wins the national title, we have to talk about him going first overall, right?

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In fairness, we shouldn’t overlook the Utes too quickly, as many expected Larry Krystkowiak’s squad to fall against 12^th-seeded Stephen F. Austin in the round of 64. All-American guard Delon Wright has suffered through erratic shooting at times, but his ability to contribute without scoring has allowed Utah to notch two convincing wins over the Lumberjacks and Georgetown.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if the Utes hung within single digits the entire game and provided Duke its first real contest. Still, while the Blue Devils’ lack of depth may haunt them later in the tournament, there’s too much firepower for the Utes unless Wright brings an A-plus-level performance.

(3) Oklahoma over (7) Michigan State

It’s strange calling this an upset given the seeding, but the Sooners were likely over-seeded, whereas Michigan State was under-seeded. Thus, in a virtual toss-up game, Tom Izzo’s squad will hold the edge in the public eye given the disparity in recent tournament showings between the two squads.

But in reality, the game should pit a lot of strength-on-strength and weakness-on-weakness matchups. Oklahoma has been a better rebounding team in the tournament and likes to generally play faster, so tempo could determine the game’s complexion: 

Team	Overall Rank	Adj. Off. Eff.	Adj. Def. Eff.	Adj. Tempo
Oklahoma	11	109.9 (46)	90.3 (6)	67.4 (57)
Michigan St.	17	114.3 (15)	95.5 (47)	63.9 (224)

The matchup between guards Travis Trice and Buddy Hield is one the Sooners’ must-win, especially with Branden Dawson playing so well for the Spartans. The Big 12 Player of the Year has one of the tournament’s defining moments with his game-saving block against Dayton, but Hield has also shot just 10-of-29 over the first two rounds.

That won’t get it done against Michigan State unless the Sooners obliterate MSU on the boards. Hield is likely the best player on the floor, so if he plays up to that status, look for Oklahoma to prove some skeptics wrong against one of the nation’s premier programs.