NCAA Bracket 2017: Predictions, Odds Tips for Sunday's Elite 8 Schedule

Many folks expected North Carolina and Kentucky to face off in the South Regional final, but very few people (and probably no one outside of SEC country) thought Florida and South Carolina would fight for the right to go to the Final Four.

Both games are rematches of earlier contests this season (Florida and SC will actually be facing off for a third time).

Let's take a look back at those games and see if they provide any foreshadowing for Sunday's matchups.

First, here's a look at the latest bracket and the schedule for Sunday's games.

Bracket

Matchup	Regional	Time (ET)	Television	Odds
No. 4 Florida vs. No. 7 South Carolina	East	2:20 p.m.	CBS	Florida (-3.5)
No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 2 Kentucky	South	5:05 p.m.	CBS	UNC (-2.5)

Florida vs. South Carolina

Lost in the shuffle of Florida junior guard Chris Chiozza's game-winning, buzzer-beater that gave the Gators an 84-83 overtime win over Wisconsin in the Sweet 16 is the fact that UF sophomore KeVaughn Allen poured in 35 points.

Allen has produced some great games this year, including a 26-point effort in an 81-66 win over South Carolina in Gainesville. But he also has some poor games on his resume, including a one-point effort against the Gamecocks in which he played only 18 minutes and committed four fouls. Florida lost that one, 57-53.

Here's why Florida seems to have the advantage based on past results: The team only lost by four points to South Carolina in Columbia despite missing all 17 of its three-point attempts.

You read that correctly: The Gators went 0-of-17 from three-point range, and they shot just 35.2 percent from the field.

Impressively, the Gators held the Gamecocks to just 29.4 percent shooting that day and then limited SC to 39.3 percent shooting in the rematch.

Although South Carolina's swarming defense has been fantastic recently, Florida's defense has been even better this season, as it ranks fourth in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom.com.

Provided the Gators don't get shut out from the three-point line again, expect them to win this one and beat the 3.5-point spread thanks in part to a solid game from Allen.

Pick: Florida

North Carolina vs. Kentucky

The best men's college basketball game of the season took place in December when Kentucky beat North Carolina, 103-100 behind 47 points from freshman guard Malik Monk.

Both teams made over 50 percent of their field goals and three-pointers and, most impressively, both combined for only 19 turnovers despite the warp-speed pace of this game.

It's hard to imagine them having as much offensive success as they did the last time around, and it's even harder to fathom Monk going for close to 50 points again, even though he's proved that he's a stone-cold lock to be picked in the top 10 of this summer's NBA draft.

What's hardest to imagine, however, is North Carolina losing the battle of the boards again. UK out-rebounded UNC, 39-35 in that contest, but for the season, UNC out-boards its opponents by a margin of 13.1 rebounds per game, which is first in Division I.

Kentucky is a solid rebounding team as well—its margin is 5.1—but no team is in UNC's rebounding class.

Expect the rebounding edge to shift toward UNC in this game and for the Tar Heels to use its control of the glass to win a close classic by a couple of buckets.

Pick: North Carolina