Sweet 16 2018: Complete Schedule, Updated Bracket and Predictions
After stepping away from the 2018 NCAA men's basketball tournament for a few days, the event returns with the start of the Sweet 16 on Thursday.
While it's going to be hard to match the madness from the first weekend of the tournament, the 16 teams remaining are going to try to do just that with spots in the Final Four in sight.
Thursday's action kicks off in Atlanta, as No. 7 Nevada faces No. 11 Loyola-Chicago in a battle of mid-major teams.
TOP NEWS
NCAA Tournament Expansion Official 🚨
.png?w=256 "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship")
UConn's STACKED Schedule ☠️
Report: Biggest Spenders in Men's CBB 🤑
No. 4 Gonzaga and No. 5 Kentucky headline Thursday's late action, as the perennial powers try to advance to the Elite Eight.
No. 1 Kansas, No. 1 Villanova and No. 2 Duke enter the spotlight Friday, with games being played in Boston and Omaha.
Updated Bracket
Sweet 16 Schedule
Thursday, March 22
No. 7 Nevada vs. No. 11 Loyola-Chicago (7:07 p.m., CBS)
No. 3 Michigan vs. No. 7 Texas A&M (7:27 p.m., TBS)
No. 5 Kentucky vs. No. 9 Kansas State (9:37 p.m., CBS)
No. 4 Gonzaga vs. No. 9 Florida State (9:59 p.m., TBS)
Friday, March 23
No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 5 Clemson (7:07 p.m., CBS)
No. 1 Villanova vs. No. 5 West Virginia (7:27 p.m., TBS)
No. 2 Duke vs. No. 11 Syracuse (9:37 p.m., CBS)
No. 2 Purdue vs. No. 3 Texas Tech (9:59 p.m., TBS)
All Times ET. Bold indicates predicted winners.
Predictions
Chalk Holds After Tournament Full of Upsets
While the first weekend of the NCAA tournament was about upsets, the second weekend is going to feature the big-name programs of the sport.
With Kansas, Villanova, Duke and Kentucky still alive, fans have plenty of recognizable faces to associate with, and they'll get a chance to see all of them on two occasions in the next four days.
Kentucky appears to be in the best shape of the blue bloods since the South region was blown to shreds by Cinderella teams, and its games Thursday and Saturday will be played in Atlanta, a city Wildcats fans have been known to dominate for years.
On paper, the road to the Elite Eight looks easy for Kansas and Duke, but you can't completely count out No. 5 Clemson and No. 11 Syracuse.
Clemson flew under the radar in the ACC, and there's a chance it hands the Jayhawks a challenge, but much like Kentucky in Atlanta, Kansas holds a significant home-court advantage in Omaha that should help push it into the Elite Eight.
Duke must not fall into the same trap against Syracuse's zone that Michigan State suffered from in the round of 32.
Although the Orange's zone defense can be tricky to handle, Duke has experience from playing against it late in the regular season, and it contains a roster chock full of freshmen talent that should be able to find the gaps in Jim Boeheim's team.
Villanova faces an intriguing guard battle with No. 5 West Virginia, but few teams have the depth at the position to challenge Jay Wright's team for 40 minutes.
While Gonzaga doesn't have the same championship-winning history as the other programs, it's been a player on the national stage for quite some time.
The Bulldogs are on a collision course with Michigan in the West region, and they'll set up an Elite Eight showdown that could be one for the ages, especially down low with Killian Tillie battling with Moritz Wagner.
Of the eight teams predicted to win in the Sweet 16, only Nevada lacks a storied basketball history, but credit must go to head coach Eric Musselman for rewriting the history books in the desert.
Mid-Major Showcase Could Provide The Most Entertainment in Sweet 16
Normally at this stage of March Madness, Cinderella teams run into a road block in the form of a powerhouse program ranked in the top-four seeds.
That isn't the case for Nevada and Loyola-Chicago Thursday, as the two mid-major darlings of the tournament square off with a spot in the Elite Eight on the line.
The champions of the Mountain West and Missouri Valley brought their own unique style of drama to the Big Dance in the first two rounds.
Nevada battled back in overtime to knock off No. 10 Texas in the first round and erased a 22-point deficit against No. 2 Cincinnati in the round of 32.
The Ramblers used the first dramatic game-winning shot of the competition to down No. 6 Miami in the round of 64 before upsetting No. 3 Tennessee in a tight affair Saturday.
The opening game on Thursday's slate features some of the best mid-major players you've never heard of, with the Martin brothers and Jordan Caroline starring for Nevada and Clayton Custer leading the charge for Loyola.
Nevada plays an intriguing style of basketball, as Musselman lives and dies with a small rotation headlined by Caleb and Cody Martin, who are two of the top-three scorers on the roster.
The run into the Sweet 16 by the Mountain West champion is even more remarkable when you consider it lost its point guard Lindsey Drew to a ruptured Achilles in February, an injury dubbed as devastating by Mussleman when it occurred, per Chris Murray of the Reno Gazette-Journal.
Loyola is playing in its first NCAA tournament since 1985, but it still has a decent history in the event, as it won a pair of games 33 years ago against Iona and SMU before falling to Georgetown.
In addition to Custer, the Ramblers have an impressive starting lineup that boasts Donte Ingram, who made the game-winning shot against Miami, Marques Townes and freshman big man Cameron Krutwig.
Since both teams have already exceeded expectations by reaching the Sweet 16, they should come out loose, which could lead to an entertaining affair.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
Statistics obtained from ESPN.com.
.png?w=480 "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship")
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
