Who is already in the 2018 ncaa tournament

And you're not much of a fan if you weren't on the edge of your seat for first-round gems like Wichita State vs. Marshall, Nevada vs. Texas and Houston vs. San Diego State. For every one of those exciting battles, though, it seems like there are several ugly games like Auburn vs.

College of Charleston, Kentucky vs. Kansas State and pick a Syracuse or Loyola-Chicago game that just happened to be close at the end because neither team could score with any regularity.

In total, there were 26 games decided by five points or fewer, including a trio of overtime affairs. In 11 of those games, the final margin was just one possession. Loyola-Chicago's first three games were decided by a combined total of just four points, and all three featured a clutch bucket by a different Rambler in the final seven seconds. Michigan had the only true buzzer-beater of the tournament when Jordan Poole's game-winner against Houston went in with no time left on the clock, but the Wolverines also had a close call against Florida State in the Elite Eight.

Kansas won three consecutive games by exactly a four-point margin, the last of which was only possible when Grayson Allen's attempted buzzer-beater rolled around the rim twice before falling out and resulting in overtime. Both of Houston's games came right down to the final shot.

Nevada played one overtime game and two others decided by a combined margin of three points in regulation. And who can forget Gonzaga's Zach Norvell Jr. But, please, keep putting quotation marks around the word "experts" when our predictions for this wild tournament aren't percent accurate.

There's a reason no one has ever filled out a perfect bracket, and it's not from lack of research. Auburn was never the same after losing Anfernee McLemore to a nasty leg injury in mid-February.

Prior to that, the Tigers were and flirting with a possible No. After the injury, however, they lost four of their final six games and were a shell of their former selves, particularly on the defensive end without the elite shot-blocker. In the first round, the Tigers survived a hideous game against College of Charleston. They shot Somehow, the Cougars were even worse, committing 21 turnovers and struggling just as miserably from the three-point and free-throw lines in the game that was anything but an instant classic.

It was midway through the second half before Clemson finally called off the dogs. Even with some late scoring to make the final score a not-quite-as-depressing , Auburn shot just This wasn't the biggest blowout in NCAA tournament history. Heck, just last year, No. But it felt like one of the most embarrassing showings from a top-four seed.

In the 13 years since reaching the national championship game with Illinois, Bruce Weber's resume was nothing special. None of those wins came against a team seeded better than No. His teams missed the tournament five times in the span of nine years, which resulted in his termination from the Illini job. Save for maybe Sean Miller, no one needed a critics-silencing run in the tournament more than Weber. Despite being forced to carry on without star big man Dean Wade, Weber did exactly that, winning as many games in this tourney as he did in the last 12 combined.

They had to dig in their heels on defense both against Creighton and Kentucky, somehow holding those teams to season lows in scoring. If the wins didn't shut up the critics, Weber can now afford to pay to silence them. With the exception of Jay Wright at Villanova, no coach has had a more impressive five-year run than Virginia's Tony Bennett.

During that time, they have three outright ACC regular-season championships and two conference tournament titles. They earned No. But even before this season, that success was not translating to the Big Dance.

The Cavaliers were eliminated by a No. In all three seasons, they failed to live up to the expectation of their seed line. Over the previous four years, the Cavaliers cobbled together a combined record of with only one Elite Eight appearance and two Sweet 16s. Losing to a No. Bennett was already battling the stigma of a coach who can't win when it matters most, but this year is going to follow him for the rest of his career. Even if Virginia wins the national championship next season, we will still be reminded every single March of how risky it is to trust this coach, regardless of how successful he is during the regular season.

But there are always a few guys who make a big impression on NBA scouts with their play in March. The former had been the MVP for Kentucky for most of the year, despite coming off the bench for 13 of the first 15 games and in spite of the fact that everyone thought either Kevin Knox or Hamidou Diallo would fill that role. The 6'6" point guard had at least 15 points, five assists and five rebounds in each of his three appearances in the NCAA tournament. Air Force vs. Michigan vs. Watch Now:.

Ranking all 68 tournament teams Matt Norlander 15 min read. Takeaways from Champions Classic Matt Norlander 8 min read. Coach K's farewell tour starts with win Gary Parrish 3 min read. Kansas' Agbaji dominates Spartans Matt Norlander 4 min read.

David Cobb 1 min read. UK adds five-star Wallace, moves to No. I was on hand in Brooklyn to watch UVA complete a historic season. Best defense in the nation. Best coach in the country? The Cavaliers force teams to bend to their will. Yet, there are nights when Brunson doesn't even look like the best guy on his team. Wouldn't be shocking at all.

Wildcats have the No. Their best is better than everyone else's best. But Duke hasn't been at its best for most of the season. This team's rebounding is unnaturally good above the rim. Will Grayson Allen bookend his college career with national titles? How long ago does that Duke title seem? One of the four best teams, even if the seed lines don't reflect that. The Spartans have had plenty of time to rest.

From a physicality and body-to-body standpoint, Michigan State is my choice for the second toughest team to face on defense, only bested by Virginia. The Spartans lead the country in block percentage Hasn't made a Final Four since The Boilermakers have a great shot this season to end the drought because of their veterans, their big men, their well-rounded offense and a steady, pragmatic coach in Matt Painter.

Have a chance to win the national title because of five players that shoot 39 percent or better from 3. This is arguably the greatest season in school history -- yet it's got to get to the Elite Eight to match last year's surprise run. The Musketeers have one of the clutch killers in college basketball in Trevon Bluiett , who's regarded already as a top-five player in program history.

Macura is a long-armed instigator and excellent wingman to for Bluiett. The Bearcats do not get enough respect for how good their program is year over year over year. At , Cincinnati is in its eighth straight tournament. But it must make a deep run to earn mainstream respect. Fortunately, it has the No. Sure it's a 1 seed, but this is not a vintage, dominant Kansas squad.

Good team, but still has to prove it's a great one. Bill Self's done an incredible job guiding this group to a sweep of Big 12 titles. Devonte' Graham is the star point guard, the senior, the guy who's good enough to give us a great March moment. Watch for Killian Tillie , who has breakout star potential this upcoming weekend.

Almost half of their wins cam from Quadrant 1. They're great on the boards. And yet, this team also lost at home to Wofford. Wolverines might be a chic Final Four pick because of the way they ran through the Big Ten tourney. This team is fun because of an ironic reason: It's the best defensive team John Beilein's ever had at a high-major program. If you like to have fun with dark horse Final Four picks, the Mountaineers are as good a pick as any.

Yes, inconsistent at times, but that Press Virginia defensive style is a horrendous scouting assignment for any team on a two-day turnaround. Strangely, WVU's offense rates better than its D, significantly, in the last six weeks.

Jevon Carter might be the best two-way player in the country. What team will bring more curiosity than this one? It's been a controversial season for the Wildcats. At one point, Sean Miller wasn't expected to coach this team ever again, and Deandre Ayton illegal payment allegations and Allonzo Trier failed drug test were up in the air about their eligibility.

Yet all are in action. And they're angry. Now he's got TTU as one of the 15 best teams in the country. Name you must know: Keenan Evans. The senior guard has been an All America-type of player this season.

Find out the secrets to Coach Porter Moser's leadership style. Once a Rambler, always a Rambler Loyola basketball memories are alive and well in Loyolans young and old. As the team continues on in the NCAA Tournament this year, we asked Rambler fans to submit the moments that meant the most to them Read more.

The Loyola community is bursting with pride for men's basketball as the team heads to the Sweet Sixteen. Sideline super fans Loyola diehard fans Bob Haselsteiner and Joe Dlugosz share their decades-long love for Rambler basketball Read more. Louis as they prepare for another trip to March Madness.

Support Ramblers Athletics Donate towards competitive success or reserve your spot to secure your ''22 season tickets. The tournament began with eight teams competing at the First Four in Dayton to round out the team bracket.

In , Villanova captured the program's third national championship and second title in three years. After an early exit the season before, the Wildcats ran the table — winning six games by an average of almost 18 points while not playing a contest decided by single digits. The Terriers became the first No.