Sweet 16 2017: Updated Bracket and TV Info for Remainder of NCAA Tournament

An entertaining slate of Sweet 16 games on Thursday leaves us with just 12 teams vying for the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament championship.

Here's a look at the latest bracket and schedule information, as well as previews and picks for Friday night's Sweet 16 games.

Bracket

Schedule

Sweet 16
Date	Region	Matchup	Time (ET)	TV
Friday, March 24	South	No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 4 Butler	7:09 p.m.	CBS
Friday, March 24	East	No. 3 Baylor vs. No. 7 South Carolina	7:29 p.m.	TBS
Friday, March 24	South	No. 2 Kentucky vs. No. 3 UCLA	9:39 p.m.	CBS
Friday, March 24	East	No. 4 Florida vs. No. 8 Wisconsin	9:59 p.m.	TBS
Elite Eight
Date	Region	Matchup	Time (ET)	TV
Saturday, March 25	West	No. 1 Gonzaga vs. No. 11 Xavier	6:09 p.m.	TBS
Saturday, March 25	Midwest	No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 3 Oregon	8:49 p.m.	TBS
Sunday, March 26	South	UNC/Butler winner vs. UK/UCLA winner	2 p.m. or 4:55 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, March 26	East	Baylor/SC winner vs. Wisconsin/Florida winner	2 p.m. or 4:55 p.m.	CBS
Final Four		Matchup	Time (ET)	TV
Saturday, April 1		East winner vs. West winner or South winner vs. Midwest winner	6 p.m.	CBS
Saturday, April 1		East winner vs. West winner or South winner vs. Midwest winner	8:30 p.m.	CBS
Championship		Matchup	Time (ET)	TV
		Final Four winners	9 p.m.	CBS

North Carolina vs. Butler

Butler will face two big problems in its matchup with North Carolina on Friday.

First, the Tar Heels play at a much faster tempo, ranking 52nd in Division I compared to Butler's mark of 288th, per KenPom.com.

Second, UNC out-rebounds its opponents by 13.1 boards per game. That fact helps mask other deficiencies the Tar Heels may have on a given night. For example, UNC struggled all game against Arkansas in the second round before going on a game-ending 12-0 run to beat the Razorbacks 72-65.

The Hogs' bench outscored the Heels' bench 33-20, and UNC only shot 38.1 percent from the field. But the Tar Heels were able to control the glass, corralling 45 boards to Arkansas' 32. That proved to be the difference.

If UNC is hot early, then this could get ugly quick. That being said, Butler beat defending champion Villanova twice and NCAA tournament participants Arizona, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, Cincinnati once each in non-conference play. Therefore, the Bulldogs know how to beat tough opponents.

Butler should stay within striking distance, but UNC will pull away down the stretch and advance to the Elite Eight.

Pick: North Carolina

Baylor vs. South Carolina

South Carolina senior guard Sindarius Thornwell has been a one-man show this season, as he leads the Gamecocks in scoring (21.4 points), rebounds (7.3), assists (2.9) and steals (2.2) per game.

However, he had a little help from his friends in the Gamecocks' second-round matchup against Duke. The Gamecocks scored 65 points in the second half (an average of 3.25 points per minute) en route to an 88-81 victory over the Blue Devils. Thornwell led all scorers, with 24 points, but 6'9" sophomore forward Chris Sliva pitched in 17 points and 10 boards. Three other Gamecocks also scored in double figures.

Silva is the key to this game, however, as he'll likely do battle with Baylor's star forward, 6'10" junior Johnathan Motley. The Houston native nearly averages a double-double (17.3 points and 9.9 rebounds) and put up a 30-20 game this year, scoring 32 points and grabbing 20 boards against Texas.

Much like the UNC-Butler game, rebounding will be the difference. Baylor is second in the country in rebounding differential (9.1), and that should pose an issue for a South Carolina team that only out-rebounds its opponents by an average of 1.1 boards per game.

Pick: Baylor

Kentucky vs. UCLA

On paper, this looks set to be the most entertaining game of the entire tournament. Will it live up to the hype?

As many as five freshmen playing in this game could be picked in this summer's NBA draft. UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball and forward TJ Leaf and Kentucky guards De'Aaron Fox and Malik Monk and forward Bam Adebayo are listed in the first round of DraftExpress' latest mock draft.

If you like watching track meets, this game is for you. UCLA is first in Division I in scoring, with 90.2 points per game, and it is also ranked second in adjusted offensive efficiency (and 14th in tempo) per KenPom.com. Kentucky is ninth in scoring (85.2 points per game), 12th in adjusted offensive efficiency and 22nd in tempo.

This game is hard to call. It could easily go either way. In fact, OddsShark notes that some sportsbooks have the game as a pick'em, while others have UCLA favored by just one.

Therefore, a coin has been flipped, and a box score from the early-season game between these teams has been reviewed. The gut feeling here is that Kentucky is going to shoot better than it did in December, when it shot only 41.2 percent from the field and missed nine of its 28 free throws. UK will win a game that goes down to the final possession.

Pick: UK

Florida vs. Wisconsin

This game should play out much like the Gonzaga vs. West Virginia game did on Thursday. In other words, expect a physical, defensive slugfest with the first team to 60 points likely winning.

Florida is ranked third in adjusted defensive efficiency on KenPom.com, while Wisconsin sits eighth.

Both teams are coming off fantastic defensive performances in the second round. The Gators held Virginia to just 39 points and a 29.6-percent shooting in a 65-39 win. Wisconsin slowed down defending champion Villanova, who shot just 41.2 percent in a 65-62 Badgers win.

The difference should be the fantastic offensive play of Wisconsin's top trio of senior guard Bronson Koenig, senior forward Nigel Hayes and sophomore forward Ethan Happ. Koenig is particularly deadly from beyond the arc, making 11 of his 23 three-point attempts in the NCAA tournament.

If he happens to go cold, Hayes and Happ can still dominate down low. Hayes showcased a variety of low-post moves against Villanova in a 19-point, eight-rebound effort, including a fantastic fake spin to score the winning bucket for Wisconsin.

Happ hasn't seen the floor as much as he'd have liked to in this tournament, as he's been caught in foul trouble, but he has still managed to score 11 points and grab eight rebounds in 25 minutes per game.

One or all of those three will be too much for Florida to handle Friday. Take the Badgers in a low-scoring contest.

Pick: Wisconsin