NCAA Tournament 2018: Friday's Sweet 16 Scores, Updated Bracket and Schedule

After an eventful start Thursday, the Sweet 16 continued Friday with eight teams looking to keep their national championship hopes alive. 

Unlike the West and South regions—featuring two No. 9 seeds (Florida State, Kansas State) and a No. 11 seed (Loyola-Chicago)—the Midwest and East regions have been conventional through the first two rounds.

Powerhouse schools like Villanova, Duke, Kansas and Purdue are looking to extend their seasons. 

No. 11 Syracuse is the only team seeded lower than fifth still playing Friday. The Orange can hardly be considered a Cinderella as an ACC team with one of the greatest coaches in the history of college basketball. 

Here are the updated results from Friday's Sweet 16 games as they go final as well as a look at the bracket and upcoming games. 

Thursday Scores/Schedule

Midwest Region: No. 1 Kansas def. No. 5 Clemson, 80-76

East Region: No. 1 Villanova def. No. 5 West Virginia, 90-78

Midwest Region: No. 2 Duke def. No. 11 Syracuse, 69-65

East Region: No. 3 Texas Tech def. No. 2 Purdue, 78-65

Duke 69, Syracuse 65

Duke got the better of Syracuse, 69-65, in an all-ACC matchup in the Sweet 16. 

The patented 2-3 zone defense by the Orange caused Duke all sorts of problems. The Blue Devils shot just 39.3 percent overall, including 5-of-26 from three-point range. 

Head coach Mike Krzyzewski was able to get Duke to overcome that shortcoming by creating extra opportunities. His team grabbed 16 offensive rebounds, with Marvin Bagley III accounting for six by himself. 

Bagley also showed off his dominance by casually calling for an alley-oop from Grayson Allen, even with Syracuse defenders lined up to stop him:

Duke's defense was also relentless in forcing Syracuse into committing 16 turnovers. That's been one big change for this team as the season has gone on. 

Per Sports Illustrated's Dan Greene, the Blue Devils went from outside of the top 50 nationally in points allowed per possession in February to among the top 10 in that category by the time the NCAA tournament began. 

Given Duke's offensive fire power with Bagley, Allen, Wendell Carter Jr. and Gary Trent Jr., if it keeps up this defensive effort, another national title for Coach K seems well within reach. 

Texas Tech 78, Purdue 65

The rise of Texas Tech hit a new high with its first trip to the Elite Eight after a 78-65 win over Purdue on Friday. 

Texas Tech's quartet of Keenan Evans, Justin Gray, Zhaire Smith and Zach Smith combined for 55 points and 13 rebounds in the victory. 

Zach Smith, in particular, was a warrior off the bench. After averaging six points per game in the regular season, the senior forward scored 14 points in 24 minutes against Purdue. 

The Red Raiders also used an aggressive game plan to hold a substantial 18-6 advantage over Purdue in free-throw attempts. That helped make up for going just 5-of-17 from three-point range. 

This was the first time in the tournament when Purdue clearly missed star center Isaac Haas, who was still out with a fractured elbow. His size in the paint could have provided enough defense to halt Texas Tech from attacking the paint to generate fouls. 

Haas was also a key piece of the starting lineup for head coach Curtis Painter. He averaged 14.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. It's a bitter end for the Boilermakers, who can take some solace in winning 30 games in a season for the first time in program history. 

Since taking over for Tubby Smith prior to the 2016-17 season, head coach Chris Beard has led a rapid turnaround for the Red Raiders in just two years. They hadn't won more than 20 games in a season or made the NCAA tournament since 2006-07. 

Now, Beard will have to get Texas Tech ready to face No. 1 overall seed Villanova on Sunday with a trip to the Final Four on the line. 

Kansas 80, Clemson 76 

Kansas weathered a late Clemson rally in an 80-76 victory to reach the Elite Eight for the third straight season. 

After Gabe DeVoe's jumper brought Clemson to within one with 9:18 remaining in the first half, the Jayhawks went on a 31-12 run over the next 11 minutes to open up a 20-point lead.  

Silvio de Sousa Dunk

Udoka Azubuike continues to be a matchup problem for teams. The sophomore center showed no lingering effects from the knee injury that limited him to three minutes in the round of 64 against Penn. He followed up his 10-point showing against Seton Hall with 14 points and 11 rebounds Friday. 

Mark Donnal, who was giving up three inches in size to Azubuike, looked helpless on defense when the Kansas big man threw down this slam in the first half:

Kansas' offensive attack was balanced throughout the game with four players reaching double figures in scoring. Devonte' Graham struggled with his shot, going 4-of-12 from the field, but he contributed with five rebounds and four assists in the win. 

Clemson closed its deficit to four points at 80-76, but it came with 4.5 seconds remaining and no timeouts left. The clock eventually struck midnight on the Tigers' remarkable season. Their 25 wins in 2017-18 tied for the second-most in program history. 

The Jayhawks need to clean up their end-of-game defense if they hope to advance to the Final Four, but this was a largely dominant showing for 37 minutes. All that matters at this point in the season is winning, regardless of how pretty or ugly it looks. 

Villanova 90, West Virginia 78

Facing its toughest test of the NCAA tournament thus far, top-seeded Villanova pulled away late with a 90-78 win over West Virginia. 

The Mountaineers were taking it to Villanova in the second half, opening up a 60-54 lead with 11:08 remaining. 

After Jay Wright called timeout, the Wildcats responded by going on a 24-8 run over the next eight minutes that put them up by 10 points. Jalen Brunson led all scorers with 27 points, his first time cracking the 20-point barrier in the NCAA tournament. 

ESPN's Dick Vitale was quite taken with what he saw from Brunson in this game:

Wright's offense remains an unstoppable force this season. After leading Division I with 86.9 points per game in the regular season, the Wildcats have scored at least 81 points in each of their three tournament wins and shot 54.2 percent from three-point range Friday. 

The much-anticipated head-to-head showdown between Brunson and West Virginia's Jevon Carter turned out to be one-sided. Carter shot 5-of-16 to finish with 12 points, though he did dish out a game-high eight assists. 

This game turned into a perfect example of what makes Villanova so dangerous and why it is the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament. It took the best punch from a worthy opponent, bounced off the ropes and responded with a knockout haymaker in the blink of an eye. 

In a tournament that's been full of upsets, the Wildcats look like the safest bet to reach the Final Four in San Antonio next weekend.