NCAA Tournament 2016: TV Schedule and Picks for 1st-Round Contests

You still have time to fill out another bracket. What will it be? Your 10th, 12th, 20th?

Obviously, you can never have enough brackets, and we are going to offer some last-second picks on the 32 games that will be played Thursday and Friday.

The first weekend of the NCAA tournament is a heavenly time for college basketball fans. It's wall-to-wall basketball on Thursday and Friday, and two more days of heavy action on Saturday and Sunday. If you can't get enough basketball, this is your time of the year.

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There are several games worthy of extra attention as basketball fans prepare to settle in for their feast. They don't involve No. 1 seeds Kansas, North Carolina, Oregon or Virginia. Top-seeded teams have never lost a first-round game, and while many observers have downgraded this group of elite-level seeds, we don't see any of them going home before the round of 32.

Matchup	Time (ET)	Network	Prediction
Duke vs. UNC-Wilmington	Noon	CBS	Duke
Texas Tech vs. Butler	12:30 p.m.	truTV	Butler
Colorado vs. Connecticut	1 p.m.	TNT	UConn
Iowa State vs. Iona	1:30 p.m.	TBS	Iowa State
Baylor vs. Yale	2:30 p.m.	CBS	Baylor
Virginia vs Hampton	3 p.m.	truTV	Virginia
Kansas vs. Austin Peay	3:50 p.m.	TNT	Kansas
Purdue vs. UALR	4:20 p.m.	TBS	Purdue
Miami vs. Buffalo	6:45 p.m.	TNT	Miami
Indiana vs. Chattanooga	7 p.m.	CBS	Indiana
North Carolina vs. FGCU	7:15 p.m.	TBS	North Carolina
Utah vs. Fresno State	7:15 p.m.	truTV	Utah
Arizona vs. Wichita State	9:15 p.m.	TNT	Wichita State
Kentucky vs. Stony Brook	9:30 p.m.	CBS	Kentucky
USC vs. Providence	9:45 p.m.	TBS	Providence
Seton Hall vs. Gonzaga	9:55 p.m.	truTV	Seton Hall

The first game that gets our attention is No. 5 seed Indiana (25-7) meeting No. 12 seed Chattanooga (29-5) at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa, at 7:10 p.m. ET. This East region matchup should belong to the Hoosiers, who won the regular-season Big Ten title.

However, Tom Crean's team did not fare as well in the Big Ten conference tournament. The Hoosiers were beaten in their first-round game by Michigan. That did not sit well with the home fans, who had finally given Crean a little breathing room because of the team's regular-season showing.

If the Hoosiers have an early exit from the NCAA tournament, the fans will voice their displeasure and make it a long offseason for Crean.

Yes, there is pressure on the Hoosiers, but they have an excellent group of players that has functioned well as a team. Yogi Ferrell has had his best season, averaging 17 points per game and connecting on 45.9 percent of his shots from the field.

Ferrell has gotten plenty of help from Troy Williams, who is averaging 13.1 points per night and coming down with 5.9 rebounds per game. Thomas Bryant is contributing 11.6 points per game.

The Mocs are not just any opponent, as indicated by their stellar record. Casey Jones and Tre' McLean form an excellent duo for Chattanooga, and they should be able to keep the Mocs in the game well into the second half.

If Indiana can handle the pressure of playing an opponent that is not going to disappear, the Hoosiers should find a way to win. However, if they get into a dogfight in the first half and the Indiana players lose their poise, it could get ugly. 

Still, Indiana is the selection.

One game that should not be missed Thursday night is the matchup between eighth-seeded USC (21-12) and ninth-seeded Providence (23-10) in Raleigh, North Carolina, at 9:50 p.m. ET.

This is another East region game, and these are two evenly matched opponents.

The Trojans are led by Jordan McLaughlin, who is averaging 13.4 points and 4.7 assists per game. McLaughlin gets plenty of help from Nikola Jovanovic, who is a force inside with 12.1 points and seven rebounds per game.

Providence is led by guard Kris Dunn, who is likely to be one of the top choices in the NBA draft this summer. Dunn has incredible ball-handling skills, and he excels at creating scoring opportunities for himself and his teammates. Dunn is averaging 16 points per game and 6.4 assists, and he is also an exceptional defensive player.

Ben Bentil is another key contributor for the Friars, as he has turned into a major force this season, averaging 21.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.

Providence is a tough, feisty team that can turn up the defensive pressure. They are going to out-execute the Trojans down the stretch and find a way to advance to the second round.

Matchup	Time (ET)	Network	Prediction
Dayton vs. Syracuse	Noon	CBS	Syracuse
Vlllanova vs. UNC-Asheville	12:30 p.m.	truTV	Villanova
Oregon State vs. VCU	1 p.m.	TNT	Oregon State
California vs. Hawaii	1:30 p.m.	TBS	California
Michigan State vs. Middle Tennessee State	2:30 p.m.	CBS	Michigan State
Iowa vs. Temple	3 p.m.	TBS	Temple
Oklahoma vs. CSU-Bakersfield	3:50 p.m.	TNT	Oklahoma
Maryland vs. South Dakota State	4:20 p.m.	TBS	Maryland
Wisconsin vs. Pittsburgh	6:45 p.m.	TNT	Pittsburgh
West Virginia vs. Stephen F. Austin	7 p.m.	CBS	West Virginia
Texas A&M vs. UW-Green Bay	7:15 p.m.	TBS	Texas A&M
Oregon vs. Holy Cross	7:15 p.m.	truTV	Oregon
Xavier vs. Weber State	9:15 p.m.	TNT	Xavier
Notre Dame vs. Michigan	9:30 p.m.	CBS	Michigan
Texas vs. Northern Iowa	9:45 p.m.	TBS	Northern Iowa
St. Joseph's vs. Cincinnati	9:55 p.m.	truTV	St. Joseph's

The Friday afternoon meeting between 10th-seeded Temple (21-11) and seventh-seeded Iowa (21-10) at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn could be a compelling South region matchup.

The Hawkeyes led the Big Ten for much of the regular season after a spectacular start to the conference season that saw them beat Michigan State twice. However, Iowa has not been strong in recent weeks, and they lost their one Big Ten conference tournament game to lowly Illinois.

Peter Jok and Jarrod Uthoff are the Hawkeyes' leaders, and they are both excellent players capable of carrying Iowa to victory. Uthoff is averaging 18.9 points per game and connecting on 45.2 percent of his shots, while Jok is contributing 16.2 points per game and shooting an impressive 86.3 percent from the free-throw line.

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

Temple will come after the Hawkeyes with an aggressive and effective brand of defense. The Owls are holding opponents to 67.4 points per game and a 41.7 shooting percentage. Quenton DeCosey is a big-time scorer who is averaging 15.6 points and six rebounds per game.

This is a game that could come down to the last possession. Look for Temple's tight defense to make the difference.