NCAA Tournament 2015: Saturday's Elite 8 Scores, Updated Bracket and Schedule

The Elite Eight of the 2015 NCAA tournament kicks off on Saturday with a pair of high-profile matchups. The winners of the West and Midwest are the first to punch their tickets to the Final Four in Indianapolis.

Of course, any time Kentucky takes the floor during the event, it's a special attraction. The Wildcats entered the day with an unblemished 37-0 record. Three more wins will give them a national title and a special place in college basketball history.

Let's check out the results from the day's games along with a look at the bracket and a recap of the latest March Madness action.

Saturday's Elite Eight Scores

Region	Team	Team	Score
West	No. 1 Wisconsin	No. 2 Arizona	85-78 WIS
Midwest	No. 1 Kentucky	No. 3 Notre Dame	68-66 KEN

2015 NCAA Tournament Bracket

Saturday Recap

Wisconsin 85, Arizona 78

Harry How/Getty Images

Wisconsin entered the locker room at halftime down by three. The Badgers used a second-half surge to quickly erase that deficit and then slowly, but surely, pull away from Arizona. As a result, they are the sole survivors from the West Region.

It was the Frank Kaminsky show early and often for Wisconsin. The Naismith Player of the Year finalist was a force on the offensive end, showing a wide variety of moves to create open looks. It was exactly what a team needs from its star at this stage of the tournament.

Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress evaluated the forward's performance:

Jeff Goodman of ESPN highlighted the clutch shooting of Sam Dekker:

Wisconsin celebrated the victory:

Mike Wise of ESPN thinks the Badgers could give Kentucky some trouble:

Kaminsky had 29 points and six rebounds. Dekker added 27 thanks to going 5-of-6 from beyond the arc, including a couple of key makes late. Brandon Ashley and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson both had 17 in a losing effort for the Wildcats.

Arizona's season comes to a close with a 34-4 record. It was a successful campaign but one that comes up a couple of wins short of the Wildcats' ultimate goal. They will have to do some retooling during the offseason, but the foundation is strong.

Wisconsin advances to face the winner of the clash between Kentucky and Notre Dame. Assuming the Wildcats avoid the upset, it will be interesting to see how Kaminsky performs against their star-studded front line. The Badgers would need him to shine to have a chance.

Kentucky 68, Notre Dame 66

David Richard/Associated Press

It almost happened. It actually almost happened.

The undefeated Kentucky Wildcats were on the ropes the entire game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish but somehow managed to escape with a 68-66 victory. Incredibly, the Fighting Irish led for the majority of the second half but lost the game in the final minutes.

Andrew Harrison clinched the victory for the Wildcats with two free throws with six seconds remaining, but Notre Dame’s Jerian Grant had a chance to win it at the buzzer. His three-point attempt sailed over the rim, and the Wildcats streamed onto the court in both celebration and relief.

The Fighting Irish had a chance on the possession before Harrison's free throws to establish the lead with less than a minute remaining but committed a back-breaking shot-clock violation.

While Harrison made the game-winning free throws, it was Karl-Anthony Towns who carried the Wildcats and kept them in the game when it was in doubt. Towns finished with 25 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block and was a dominant force, as ESPN College Basketball pointed out:

"

Karl Towns finished with a career-high 25 Pts for Kentucky. He had more FGs than rest of Wildcat starters combined. pic.twitter.com/p6HqrooFxh

— ESPN College BBall (@ESPNCBB) March 29, 2015"

Three Notre Dame players ended up in double figures in the scoring department, including Zach Auguste, who had 20 points and nine rebounds and battled the Kentucky bigs until the final moments. 

Nicole Auerbach of USA Today praised the Fighting Irish for their impressive effort:

Unfortunately for Notre Dame, there are no moral victories in the NCAA tournament. This one will certainly sting for quite a long time, especially because it was the better team for the majority of the second half outside of Towns’ domination. Ultimately, the Fighting Irish didn’t have enough size to deal with the potential No. 1 pick in the upcoming NBA draft, and it cost them the upset of a lifetime.

Next up for the Wildcats is a showdown with Wisconsin in the Final Four. It is a rematch of last season’s thrilling Final Four matchup in which Aaron Harrison hit a game-winning three-pointer with seconds remaining to propel Kentucky to a one-point win.

Here’s to a rematch that is just as exciting.