NCAA Bracket 2018: Updated Schedule and Predictions After Wednesday First Four
The final two teams were added to the round of 64 Wednesday night, as No. 16 Texas Southern and No. 11 Syracuse reeled off First Four victories.
While the First Four gave us a taste of the madness of the 2018 NCAA men's basketball tournament, the real drama starts up Thursday.
Over the next 48 hours, brackets are expected to be torn to pieces and the opening chapter of Cinderella stories will be written.
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The round of 64 begins with a clash between No. 7 Rhode Island and No. 10 Oklahoma Thursday and concludes with a intriguing contest pitting No. 5 Clemson versus No. 12 New Mexico State Friday.
Schedule (All Times ET)
Thursday
No. 7 Rhode Island vs. No. 10 Oklahoma (12:15 p.m., CBS)
No. 3 Tennessee vs. No. 14 Wright State (12:40 p.m., truTV)
No. 4 Gonzaga vs. No. 13 UNC Greensboro (1:30 p.m., TNT)
No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 16 Penn (2 p.m., TBS)
No. 2 Duke vs. No. 15 Iona (2:45 p.m., CBS)
No. 6 Miami vs. No. 11 Loyola-Chicago (3:10 p.m., truTV)
No. 5 Ohio State vs. No. 12 South Dakota State (4 p.m., TNT)
No. 8 Seton Hall vs. No. 9 NC State (4:30 p.m., TBS)
No. 1 Villlanova vs. No. 16 Radford (6:45 p.m., TNT)
No. 5 Kentucky vs. No. 12 Davidson (7:10 p.m., CBS)
No. 6 Houston vs. No. 11 San Diego State (7:20 p.m., TBS)
No. 3 Texas Tech vs. No. 14 Stephen F. Austin (7:27 p.m., truTV)
No. 8 Virginia Tech vs. No. 9 Alabama (9:20 p.m., TNT)
No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 13 Buffalo (9:40 p.m., CBS)
No. 3 Michigan vs. No. 14 Montana (9:50 p.m., TBS)
No. 6 Florida vs. No. 11 St. Bonaventure (9:55 p.m., truTV)
Friday
No. 7 Texas A&M vs. No. 10 Providence (12:15 p.m., CBS)
No. 2 Purdue vs. No. 15 Cal State Fullerton (12:40 p.m., truTV)
No. 4 Wichita State vs. No. 13 Marshall (1:30 p.m., TNT)
No. 2 Cincinnati vs. No. 15 Georgia State (2 p.m., TBS)
No. 2 North Carolina vs. No. 15 Lipscomb (2:45 p.m., CBS)
No. 7 Arkansas vs. No. 10 Butler (3:10 p.m., truTV)
No. 5 West Virginia vs. No. 12 Murray State (4 p.m., TNT)
No. 7 Nevada vs. No. 10 Texas (4:30 p.m., TBS)
No. 8 Creighton vs. No. 9 Kansas State (6:50 p.m., TNT)
No. 3 Michigan State vs. No. 14 Bucknell (7:10 p.m., CBS)
No. 1 Xavier vs. No. 16 Texas Southern (7:20 p.m., TBS)
No. 4 Auburn vs. No. 13 Charleston (7:27 p.m., truTV)
No. 1 Virginia vs. No. 16 UMBC (9:20 p.m., TNT)
No. 6 TCU vs. No. 11 Syracuse (9:40 p.m., CBS)
No. 8 Missouri vs. No. 9 Florida State (9:50 p.m., TBS)
No. 5 Clemson vs. No. 12 New Mexico State (9:57 p.m., truTV)
Predictions
More Upsets Occur Thursday
Thursday is lining up to be the more dramatic of the two days featuring first-round action.
With top mid-major teams Loyola of Chicago, South Dakota State and Davidson on the schedule, there could be plenty of upsets through the 12-plus hours of basketball.
In addition to three sides mentioned above, Montana, San Diego State and Stephen F. Austin are dark-horse teams that could ravage any bracket.
There's also the lingering potential of Penn becoming the first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1 seed, as the Quakers have received a ton of hype since winning the Ivy League tournament.
In reality, Penn shouldn't knock off Kansas, but the intrigue entering the game is enough to get us to pay attention to the contest at the start of Thursday's slate.
Star freshmen Collin Sexton of Alabama and Trae Young of Oklahoma should thrust themselves into the spotlight during their respective contests against Virginia Tech and Rhode Island.
Other stars to watch Thursday are Duke's Marvin Bagley III, Seton Hall's Angel Delgado and Kansas' Devonte' Graham.
Friday's slate may not be as thrilling since three No. 2 seeds and a pair of No. 1 seeds play on the second day of the round of 64.
If those games go to chalk, that leaves 11 contests remaining for upsets to occur.
Although Friday's matchups won't experience a ton of upsets, don't be surprised if Marshall, Charleston or Murray State pull off a shock to add to the frenzy from Thursday.
St. Bonaventure Becomes Darling of the First Four
Since the introduction of the First Four in 2011, at least one at-large team that won in Dayton, Ohio, picked up a second March Madness victory in the round of 64.
VCU is the most famous team of the bunch, as it went to the Final Four after opening its tournament with a First Four victory in 2011.
No. 11 seeds St. Bonaventure and Syracuse are the candidates to extend the streak in the first round this season.
The Bonnies knocked off UCLA despite struggles from star guards Jaylen Adams and Matt Mobley, and if the backcourt duo recover against No. 6 Florida, they could easily run past the Gators and work on a surprise trip to the Sweet 16.
One of the final games of the round of 64 features No. 6 TCU against Syracuse, who survived a tight affair against Arizona State Wednesday night.
The Orange are no strangers to making deep NCAA tournament runs as a double-digit seed, as they earned a Final Four berth as a No. 10 seed two years ago.
As it has for years, Jim Boeheim's zone defense causes problems to even the best offenses in men's basketball—if that's the case, the Orange could be bound for a trip to the second weekend.
However, TCU head coach Jamie Dixon carries familiarity with the zone from his time with Pittsburgh.
Given all of the factors involved in the games featuring St. Bonaventure and Syracuse, you would have to think the Bonnies stand the better chance of moving on to the second round.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90
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