NCAA Tournament 2011: Breaking Down Last Night's Sweet 16 Tournament Action

Half of the Elite Eight is now in place. 

While the Connecticut Huskies, Florida Gators, Arizona Wildcats and Butler Bulldogs celebrate their impressive victories, four teams are left wondering what went wrong in the Sweet 16. 

Last night's tournament action was filled with memorable individual performances, great team efforts and a couple of minor upsets. Even after a great opening weekend of basketball, last night proved to all of us that the tournament's best games are still ahead. 

This slideshow will rank each of the eight teams' performances last night, along with determining the best and worst individual performances.

8. Duke Blue Devils

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ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 24: Kyle Singler #12 of the Duke Blue Devils looks at a cut on his elbow while playing against the Arizona Wildcats during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011

A lot of arguments will surface in the upcoming days that Kyrie Irving's return to the Blue Devil's line-up threw off the chemistry that Duke had developed during the season. 

I do not buy this for one second. 

In last night's loss to Arizona, Irving scored 28 of their 77 points. If he wasn't on the floor, the Wildcats would have won by 30. 

It is always disappointing to return most of your guys back from a National Championship team, only to get knocked out in the Sweet 16 the following year. The Blue Devils had all the right pieces, but they seemed ill-prepared to handle Derrick Williams and the deep Wildcats squad. 

This was not a big time upset. The Wildcats look extremely dangerous right now, and they may have the best player in the country in Williams. However, the Blue Devils should have been able to win this game, or at least challenge, if they played to their full capacity.

7. Wisconsin Badgers

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NEW ORLEANS, LA - MARCH 24: Jon Leuer #30 of the Wisconsin Badgers reacts after being called for a foul against the Butler Bulldogs during the Southeast regional of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at New Orleans Arena on March 24, 2011 in New O

Wisconsin desperately needs to learn how to put the ball in the basket.

With just under 12 minutes to go in the second half, the Badgers had 27 points. Twenty-four of those had come in the first half.

Bo Ryan needs to spend a week with Gregg Popovich learning that it is possible to change his offensive strategy without overhauling his roster, becoming undisciplined or sacrificing defensive intensity. Until the Badgers find a way to pair good offense with their always elite defense, they will continue to have bitter Sweet 16 losses. 

The Badgers made a late surge in this game, overwhelming Butler with an effective full-court press, but all of this sudden offense came far too late.

6. San Diego State Aztecs

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ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 24: Billy White #32 of the San Diego State Aztecs walks off the court after losing against the Connecticut Huskies during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011 i

San Diego State did not play a bad game. They simply ran into Kemba Walker on another monster night. 

When Walker goes off for 36 points, there are very few teams in the country who can beat the Huskies. When Jeremy Lamb adds 24 of his own, Connecticut is unbeatable. 

The Aztecs held the rest of the Huskies to a combined 14 points. San Diego State only lost by seven, and they finished the year with an impressive 34-3 record. 

5. Brigham Young University Cougars

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NEW ORLEANS, LA - MARCH 24: Jimmer Fredette #32 of the Brigham Young Cougars reacts during their 74 to 83 loss to the Florida Gators in the Southeast regional of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at New Orleans Arena on March 24, 2011 in New Orle

Jimmer Fredette scored 32 points.

They pushed the No. 2 seed Florida to overtime.

They did this all without their best post presence, Brandon Davies, who could have slowed down Alex Tyus. 

Most people expected Gonzaga to upset BYU, so the fact that they reached the Sweet 16 was an achievement. Fredette proved that he was worth the hype, and in the end, they just ran out of gas against a better team. 

4. Butler Bulldogs

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WASHINGTON - MARCH 19: Ronald Nored #5 of Butler University celebrates with teammate Shelvin Mack #1 following their game against Pittsburgh in the third round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Verizon Center on March 19, 2011 in Washington

Butler had an impressive performance against Wisconsin until the last two minutes of the game. 

In the first eight minutes of the second half, Butler held Wisconsin to three points. In the next twelve, the Badgers scored 27. 

The problem with the way Butler finished, is it looked like they were just trying to fast-forward and get out of the gym alive. If a full court press from Wisconsin can cause this much havoc, I can't imagine what would happen with a more athletic team like Florida. 

Matt Howard had another impressive night and Shelvin Mack continues to hit big shots. It's hard to believe Butler is only one win away from another trip to the Final Four.

3. Florida Gators

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NEW ORLEANS, LA - MARCH 24: Vernon Macklin #32 of the Florida Gators celebrates durig their 83 to 74 win over the Brigham Young Cougars during the Southeast regional of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at New Orleans Arena on March 24, 2011 in N

Last night, the Florida Gators put their exceptional, balanced scoring on display. 

Four players scored over 15 points for Billy Donovan's squad. Alex Tyus was an absolute man down low scoring 19 points and hauling down 17 rebounds. 

What was most impressive about the Gators was how they finished the game. Unlike Butler, the Gators didn't shrivel up in the closing minutes, but instead played their best basketball of the night in overtime. They outscored BYU 15-6 in the extra five minutes. 

This Florida team is not at the same level as the Joakim Noah, Al Horford squad, but they definitely still have a chance to win it all.

2. Connecticut Huskies

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ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 24: Kemba Walker #15 of the Connecticut Huskies reacts after a play against the San Diego State Aztecs during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011 in Anaheim, C

San Diego State is a tough defensive team. They shut down nearly every player on the Huskies and made it as hard as possible for Connecticut to score. 

All of this didn't matter for Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lamb. The two sensational guards combined for 60 points and basically carried their team to the Elite Eight. 

Connecticut will need more than two scorers to go further in the tournament. However, every game from here on out, they will have the best guard on the floor.

1. Arizona Wildcats

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ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 24: Derrick Williams #23 of the Arizona Wildcats reacts after defeating the Duke Blue Devils during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011 in Anaheim, California.

I was tempted to just title this slide, "Derrick Williams."

Williams was absolutely incredible in last night's victory. He scored 32 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and hit five of six threes. On the season, he is shooting a ridiculous 60 percent from behind the arc.

No team left in the tournament has a player who can guard this 6'8, 241 pound small forward. His dunks last night looked like Blake Griffin's and his shooting range was J.J. Redick-esque. 

Arizona looked more athletic, better conditioned and more talented than Duke. So far on their journey, they have beaten a good Memphis team, a really good Texas team and the defending champion Blue Devils.

Best Individual Performance

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ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 24: Derrick Williams #23 of the Arizona Wildcats dunks the ball against the Duke Blue Devils during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011 in Anaheim, California.

There were several great performances to choose from last night.

Kemba Walker, Jimmer Fredette and Alex Tyus all made a case for best individual performance.

However, there was only one player who looked like he belonged on an NBA court rather than in the NCAA Sweet 16. Derrick Williams played a phenomenal game, and if he continues to improve, we will see him for years to come in NBA All-Star games.

Worst Individual Performance

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ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 24: Nolan Smith #2 of the Duke Blue Devils looks on against the Arizona Wildcats during the west regional semifinal of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Honda Center on March 24, 2011 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by

Duke needed much more than eight points from Nolan Smith.

The senior leader shot 21 percent from the field and led his team with six turnovers. This was a tough ending on what was otherwise a very high-level college career.