March Madness 2017: Top Social Media Highlights for Saturday's Round of 32

The round of 32 is halfway completed as eight games went in the books on Saturday.

The Cinderella story being authored by Northwestern has come to an end, while defending champion Villanova will not win back-to-back titles. Both sets of Wildcats go home disappointed, as Northwestern was done in by Gonzaga and Villanova had a late lead but could not close out against Wisconsin.

Here's a look at some of the key highlights from the games played Saturday.

West Virginia vs. Notre Dame

West Virginia played a steady game and got the best of the Fighting Irish by an 83-72 margin. Jevon Carter scored 24 points to lead the Mountaineers.

West Virginia jumped out to an early lead, and that allowed the Mountaineers to take control from the start.

Villanova vs. Wisconsin

The defending champions and top-seeded Villanova Wildcats had a second-half lead, but Jay Wright's team could not dispose of the Wisconsin Badgers when the game was on the line in the final minutes

Wisconsin refused to fade away and senior Nigel Hayes scored the winning basket in the late going, and the Badgers have advanced to the Sweet 16.

Gonzaga vs. Northwestern

Gonzaga was determined not to let Cinderella enjoy the ball any longer. The Bulldogs came out with a purpose and dominated Northwestern in the first half and built a lead that would grow to 22 points. 

While the Wildcats mounted an impressive second-half comeback, Gonzaga did just enough to hold onto the lead and record a 79-73 victory, with the help of a key non-goaltending call late in the game.

Florida State vs. Xavier

Who said lower seeds can't win key games in this year's NCAA tournament? While the higher seeds have dominated, 11th-seeded Xavier did not get the memo. The Musketeers dominated the third-seeded Florida State Seminoles 91-66 in their round-of-32 victory.

Guard Trevon Bluiett was razor sharp, as he scored 29 points and led a versatile Xavier attack. Bluiett got plenty of help from freshman forward Tyrique Jones.

Butler vs. Middle Tennessee

The Butler Bulldogs were not in a charitable mood toward underdog Middle Tennessee. They showed that with a smothering defense that prevented the Blue Raiders from mounting a consistent offense in their round-of-32 game. Butler advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2011 with its 74-65 victory.

Kelan Martin led the way for the Bulldogs with 19 points and Andrew Chrabascz added 15 points.

Arizona vs. St. Mary's

The Arizona Wildcats held off stubborn St. Mary's and advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 69-60 victory. The Gaels were game and put up a fight, but every time the seventh-seeded team would try to surge, the second-seeded Wildcats had an answer.

Lauri Markkanen made a huge contribution to the victory with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Florida vs. Virginia

One of the games that figured to be the closest in the round of 32 was the showdown between fourth-seeded Florida and fifth-seeded Virginia. However, the Gators would have none of it and pounded the Cavaliers by a 65-39 margin

Justin Leon had a huge day for the Gators with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and the Florida defense held Virginia to 30 percent shooting from the field.

Purdue vs. Iowa State

The Iowa State Cyclones mounted a brilliant second-half comeback that saw them take a late lead, but the Purdue Boilermakers would not fold. They had a late 7-0 run and held off the Cyclones by an 80-76 margin. Big Ten player of the year Caleb Swanigan came up with a huge game, scoring 20 points, pulling down 12 rebounds and dishing out seven assists.

The Boilermakers got hot at the end of the first half, and that streak enabled them to seize control of this round-of-32 game.