It’s time for the return of the NCAA Tournament, as the Sweet 16 will commence on Thursday and we will be able to get back to watching arguably the best sporting event in the world.
NCAA Tournament 2015: Schedule for March Madness Sweet 16 games
March Madness has come back into our lives.
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Following an entertaining and eventful opening weekend, the tournament will tip off the second weekend on Thursday with four Sweet 16 matchups. There will be no shortage of star power on Thursday wither with two of the remaining three No. 1 seeds -- and arguably the two favorites to win it all -- both in action. That includes Wisconsin which will attempt to make it back to the Elite Eight for the second straight season. The Badgers lost in the Final Four last season. In order to do so, Wisconsin will have to get by No. 4 seed North Carolina. The Tar Heels are playing some of their best basketball of the season with five wins in their last six games. That includes wins against Virginia and Louisville. Wisconsin may pose an even bigger challenge in what should be a good matchup.
The other matchups on the day include Kentucky vs. West Virginia, which features two gifted offensive rebounding teams and two top coaches in Bob Huggins and John Calipari. Louisville vs. N.C. State should also be another entertaining bout. The opposing guard tandems of Terry Rozier and Quentin Snider and Anthony “Cat” Barber and Trevor Lacey are as good as it gets. Oklahoma vs. Michigan State should be a great game to finish off the Sweet 16. An imposing Oklahoma frontcourt, plus guards Buddy Hield and Jordan Woodard, face the phenomenal coaching of Tom Izzo and the trio of Travis Trice, Denzel Valentine and Branden Dawson.
Here are the pairings for the Sweet Sixteen:
Thursday, March 23
Midwest Region: No. 3 Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. No. 7 Wichita State Shockers, 7:15 p.m. ET, CBS (Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Len Elmore and Lewis Johnson)
West Region: No. 1 Wisconsin Badgers vs. No. 4 North Carolina Tar Heels, 7:47 p.m. ET, TBS (Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Rachel Nichols)
Midwest Region: No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats vs. No. 5 West Virginia Mountaineers, approx. 9:45 p.m. ET, CBS (Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Len Elmore and Lewis Johnson)
West Region: No. 2 Arizona Wildcats vs. No. 6 Xavier Musketeers, approx. 10:15 p.m. ET, TBS (Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Dan Bonner, Rachel Nichols)
Friday, March 24
South Region: No. 2 Gonzaga Bulldogs vs. No. 11 UCLA Bruins, 7:15 p.m. ET, CBS (Jim Nantz, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill and Tracy Wolfson)
East Region: No. 4 Louisville Cardinals vs. No. 8 North Carolina State Wolfpack, 7:37 p.m. ET, TBS (Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel and Allie LaForce)
South Region: No. 1 Duke Blue Devils vs. No. 5 Utah Utes, approx. 9:45 p.m. ET, CB (Jim Nantz, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill and Tracy Wolfson)
East Region: No. 3 Oklahoma Sooners vs. No. 7 Michigan State Spartans, approx. 10:15 p.m. ET, TBS (Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel and Allie LaForce)
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