The Sweet 16 will be rounded out on Sunday when the NCAA men’s tournament completes its round of 32 while the women’s tournament enters its second round of action.
The Sunday schedule is back loaded again but offers plenty of intrigue throughout the day. The women’s tournament takes center stage early in the day, with Juggernauts South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Maryland and Iowa all making their picks before 5pm ET. Then the men’s tournament comes into focus with five games in a six-hour window, including No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson, who made history Friday night when he picked up the second upset of a No. 1- Seed provided tournament. Have your remote ready.
Here’s your complete guide to Sunday’s action. All times Easter.
SUNDAY AFTERNOON
men’s schedule
12:10 p.m. – No. 3 Xavier vs. No. 11 Pitt | CBS
2:40 p.m. – No. 3 Kansas State vs. No. 6 Kentucky | CBS
5:15 p.m. – No. 2 Marquette vs. No. 7 Michigan State | CBS
women’s schedule
1 p.m. – No. 1 South Carolina vs. No. 8 South Florida | ABC
3 p.m. – No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 10 Georgia | ABC
3:30 p.m. – No. 3 Notre Dame vs. No. 11 Mississippi State | ESPN
5 p.m. – No. 1 Virginia Tech vs. No. 9 South Dakota State | ESPN2
5:30 p.m. – No. 2 Maryland vs. No. 7 Arizona | ESPN
Worth seeing: Every time Caitlin Clark plays it’s a must-watch on TV. Clark flirted with a triple-double against Southeast Louisiana on Friday before finishing with 26 points, 12 assists and seven rebounds in 29 minutes. She has four triple-doubles this season and ten in her career.
Must be skipped: South Carolina failed to cover the margin in their opening round win over Norfolk State. This spread was of course a whopping 50.5 points. Not needing to strain themselves, the Gamecocks took their foot off the pedal and played 14 players in a 70-42 win. They are favored in their second-round matchup against No. 8 South Florida by 25.5 points, who won an OT thriller against Marquette. South Florida and South Carolina both excel on the boards, ranking in the top four in overall rebound rate. Expect a fresh South Carolina team to kick the Bulls out of the gym and book your first ticket to the women’s Sweet 16.
Most likely potential upset: There’s been a lot of talk about Notre Dame’s injury woes, and with good reason. The Irish lost key player Dara Mabrey to a season-ending knee injury in January, then it was announced on Thursday that star guard Olivia Miles (14.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 6.9 assists per game) will end the season tournament would miss. No injury prevented the Irish from a first-round blowout win over tournament newcomers Southern Utah, but the competition heats up significantly from here. Notre Dame is favored by 6 over a Mississippi State team who throttled No. 6 Creighton (81-66) in the opening round after winning their First Four matchup against Illinois. The Bulldogs are only 39th in the NET rankings but have played against elite competition in the SEC and Jessika Carter can pick up a game if needed.
Player to watch: Oscar Tshiebwe has struggled to find a rhythm offensively at times this season, but he influences the game in many ways. He had a remarkable 25 rebounds – 11 on offensive glass – in Kentucky’s 61-53 win over Providence on Friday. He has played in seven games this season in which he has at least three steals. The 2022 National Player of the Year faces another small team in Kansas State on Sunday and should eat up the boards in what could be a crucial game for his coach.
SUNDAY EVENING
men’s schedule
6:10 p.m. – No. 4 UConn vs. No. 5 Saint Mary’s | TNT
7:10 p.m. – No. 3 Baylor vs. No. 6 Creighton | TBS
7:45 p.m. – No. 9 Florida Atlantic vs. No. 16 FDU | truTV
8:40 p.m. – No. 4 Indiana vs. No. 5 Miami (Fla.) | TNT
9:40 p.m. – No. 3 Gonzaga vs. No. 6 TCU | TBS
Evening program for women
7 p.m. – No. 2 Utah vs. No. 10 Princeton | 7 p.m. | ESPN2
7:30 p.m. – No. 3 LSU vs. No. 6 Michigan | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN
9:30 p.m. – #1 Stanford vs. #8 Ole Miss | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN
Worth seeing: Look, we’re not saying this game doesn’t have the potential to get ugly, but when a No. 16 tees off a No. 1 in the NCAA men’s tournament for the second time in history, you should probably follow along. After edging out top seed Purdue on Friday, Fairleigh Dickinson continues his march through the madness against No. 9 Florida Atlantic. The Owls controversially escaped a tilt with No. 8 Memphis in the first round, but the C-USA champions aren’t here by accident. They are now 32-3 on the season and have a 13 NET ranking. Fairleigh Dickinson is a 14.5 point underdog.
Must be skipped: The Hoosiers hobbled into the NCAA tournament after losing four of their last eight and didn’t exactly blast doors in a first-round win over Kent State. The Hurricanes needed a rally in the closing minutes to break an eight-point deficit in an unconvincing win over No. 12 Drake. One of those teams will be at the Sweet 16. But there are better ways to spend your Sunday evening.
Most likely potential upset: UConn has been a bit of an analytics darling this season, but the Huskies haven’t been great against top tier competition (7-6 vs Quad 1 teams). Granted, the Gaels have had their own struggles against teams like Houston and Gonzaga, but they also have a top-five scoring defense that could screw them up. The huskies are favored with 3.5 points.
Player to watch: Angel Reese is a living, breathing 20-20 menace every time she’s on the court. The Tigers will go as far as their 6-foot-3 star carries them, and that seems pretty far. The Wolverines are outside the top 50 in terms of rebound rate and haven’t seen much of an approach to Reese’s talent this season, meaning she should have a comfortable day at the office on Sunday.
