Although there have been fewer Cinderella runs that college basketball fans have come to expect in this year’s edition of March Madness, the NCAA Tournament so far has been marked by high-level play and some truly elite matchups in the latter stages. While No. 14 seed Oakland and No. 13 seed Yale provided some shock upsets in round one, neither was able to advance past the second round and were sent home before the second weekend. North Carolina State was the only team to make it to the Sweet Sixteen as a double-digit seed and even they could not be considered a truly unexpected team, since they were the ACC Tournament champions. Despite this lack of underdog stories, the 2024 NCAA Tournament has not been lacking in exciting teams to follow thus far, with the University of Connecticut’s (UConn) dominance, Alabama’s team effort and Purdue center Zach Edey’s brilliance all standing out.
The Sweet Sixteen started on Thursday, March 28, with UConn’s 30-point win over San Diego State in a rematch of last year’s championship game. UConn has won every game by at least fifteen points and, as a result, stand as heavy favorites at this point to defend their title. In their next matchup, in the Elite Eight against Illinois, many expected them to face by far their toughest test so far. While it was just a five-point game at halftime, they went on a 30-0 run to blow out the Fighting Illini, becoming the first team to punch their ticket to the 2024 Final Four. Anything can happen in March, but UConn seems unstoppable at this point.
Alabama, a No. 4 seed, will look to topple this UConn run and will certainly not go down without a fight. They played a down-to-the-wire game against No. 1 seed University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) in the Sweet Sixteen to set up a tough matchup against Clemson in the Elite Eight. While UNC was favored, Alabama won by two in one of the most exciting games of the NCAA Tournament so far. Senior forward Grant Nelson led the team with 24 points and 12 rebounds, but it was a complete team effort to secure the win, particularly in the second half. Despite giving up 54 points in the first half, Alabama locked in during the second half and held UNC to just 33 points to secure the victory. In the next round, they beat Clemson by seven to become the second team to reach the Final Four this year. UConn will certainly represent Alabama’s toughest test to this point, but they have caught fire in March and are looking to cause a big upset.
Elsewhere in the bracket, the Midwest region went exactly as expected, with No. 1 seed Purdue facing off against No. 2 seed Tennessee with a spot in the Final Four on the line. Each team is led by a first-team all-American — Zach Edey and Dalton Knecht, respectively — and a solid cast of role players around them. Tennessee survived a valiant upset effort from Texas in the second round to reach this point, while Purdue has gone largely unopposed, similar to UConn, in their run thus far. However, in a back-and-forth game, Purdue beat Tennessee, aided by Edey’s career-high 40 points to reach the Final Four.
The Southern region was decided by an ACC tournament rematch between Duke and North Carolina State (NC State) for the last Final Four spot. NC State is perhaps the most credentialed 11-seed in recent memory due to their ACC tournament championship, as they are gelling at the right time and look unbeatable. Duke had an up-and-down season, but were similarly catching fire at the perfect time, coming off their upset of No. 1 seed Houston. Led by first-year guard and TikTok sensation Jared McCain, they stood out as the only team left in the field with zero starters who are transfers. They looked to lean on this continuity and chemistry as they fought for their first title since Coach K’s retirement, but were upset by local rival NC State in the March 31 Elite Eight matchup.
While UConn is undoubtedly the favorite, this Final Four will be one with no true Cinderella teams, so the talent discrepancy that may have existed in past tournaments is not the case here. Between UConn, Alabama, Purdue and NC State, there are sure to be some competitive games to determine this year’s March Madness Champion.
