For the past two days, I have been writing about what this Final Four run by the 2025-2026 Fighting Illini means to me as an Illinois alum and a dedicated fan of the men's basketball program for nearly 30 years. After writing through the night, up until seven in the morning, and crafting 22 pages in a Word Document, here's what I have got for you. Make the jump to read my reflections on the Illini's improbable run to the Final Four in Indianapolis, where the mighty Connecticut Huskies are next. 

And then there were four! The Final Four of the 2026 NCAA Tournament is set, with #3 Illinois and #2 UCONN set to rematch a Black Friday game from earlier this season and #1 Michigan and #1 Arizona squaring off in what some pundits are saying is the "De Facto National Championship Game," though I wouldn't go that far with a Dan Hurley team still standing and an Illinois team believing it can win it all. While Illinois is the lowest seed remaining, UCONN is the most surprising team to reach Indianapolis, considering that the Huskies were down 19 points in the second half yesterday and needed an all-time blunder by Duke (HOLD THE BALL AND TAKE A FOUL!) to get off Braylon Mullins' miracle three. Ultimately, UCONN's improbable, gutty comeback makes this Final Four field feel much more balanced and difficult to predict, and sets up what should be two outstanding national semifinals on Saturday. Make the jump to see the tip times and read some initial observations about this year's Final Four. 

Oh my goodness! UCONN steals this one, on a Braylon Mullins three from just inside the logo off a needless Duke turnover with 0.4 seconds left! What an all-time tournament moment! 

Somehow, someway, UCONN secures the last Final Four bid. The Huskies had not led since the game was 2-0. After starting the game 1/18 from three, the Huskies got four big threes late in the game, Silas Demary with two, Alex Karaban with one in the last minute, and Mullins' miracle finish that just saved this Elite Eight from being an overall clunker. There is a lot to break down from this game in due time, though if it isn't clear by now, a Dan Hurley team is hard to kill during the NCAA Tournament. 

The Final Four is set with #3 Illinois vs. #2 UCONN the opener and #1 Michigan vs. #1 Arizona the nightcap this Saturday in Indianapolis. Make the jump to see the game's final stats. 

Michigan came out early in the second half looking to put its foot down on Tennessee's throat, and the Wolverines were off to a promising start before Morez Johnson, Jr. and Yaxel Lendeborg got into some unnecessary drama on the court. Michigan clearly has the best roster in the nation. There is no team that poses so many match-up problems. When the Wolverines are playing this type of defense and able to push the ball off misses, this team is a juggernaut. Amazingly, Michigan is not even playing its best ball. This team is that talented. Yaxel Lendeborg dominated today's game, with 27 points on 10-for-19 shooting, and has seemingly made the conscious decision to start looking for his offense. That is a scary thought. With that said, Lendeborg needs to be a better leader on the court for the Wolverines. He too often looks down at its opponents, and he justifiably got punked on a nasty Ja'Kobie Gillespie dunk in the second half. It is okay to play with an edge and have some grace while doing it. Ultimately, Michigan has been able to overwhelm its tourney opponents with its defense and scoring bursts so far. With Arizona next, Michigan is going to need more emotional maturity as the Wildcats are as big and tough and will not be bullied. For Michigan to win the national championship, the Wolverines must maintain better composure, especially against teams that are at their level, Arizona and Duke (most likely). For Head Coach Dusty May, that has to be the teaching point this week heading to the Final Four. It's never been a question about Michigan's talent. The Wolverines don't always show ideal character when blowing teams out. How will they respond when the going gets tough in a tight Final Four or National Championship game that may come down to a few possessions? That is my one concern with the Wolverines, which need to lock in emotionally to win its first national title since 1989. Make the jump to see the game's final stats. 

The Elite Eight continues tomorrow, with #6 Tennessee taking on #1 Michigan and #2 UCONN battling #1 Duke. Who will join Illinois and Arizona in Indianapolis? Tomorrow I plan on watching these games for enjoyment, providing predictions, halftime recaps and final game reviews. Tonight is all about celebrating as my alma mater, Illinois, and one-time favorite college basketball team, Arizona, have advanced to the Final Four after long absences for both programs.  

Arizona imposes its will in the second half and advances to the Final Four for the first time since 2001! The Wildcats return to the city (Indianapolis) where Arizona won its only national championship back in 1997! That 1997 Arizona team with Miles Simon, Mike Bibby, Michael Dickerson, Jason Terry, and Head Coach Lute Olson made me fall in love with the NCAA Tournament and is a major reason why this site exits. Make the jump to see the final stats for Arizona's Elite Eight victory against Purdue. 

Illinois advances to the Final Four, with its size and physicality wearing out the smaller Hawkeyes. The game turned in the last eight minutes with Illinois finally getting downhill and scoring inside at will after trying to dribble through Iowa for too much of the second half. The Illini had a 44 to 12 advantage in points in the paint (the Illini were only 3 for 17 from three). Tomislav Ivisic was huge in the second half, scoring 11 of his 13 points and hitting two big baskets with just under six minutes to go to turn the game in favor of Illinois. The Illini were led by freshman guard Keaton Wagler (25 points) and Andrej Stojakovic (17 points). Illinois played an Iowa game, and it was quite ugly for the first 32 minutes offensively. Illinois finally got some rhythm late after a sluggish and tight first half. Ultimately, Illinois won this game with its defense and rebounding, with a 32 to 18 advantage on the boards. By the end of the game Bennett Stirtz looked completely gassed, finishing with 24 points in 40 minutes. History shows that it is just never easy for the Illini during the Elite Eight, and tonight was a tough and, at times, infuriating game. Simply put, Illinois had the bigger dudes and better athletes when it mattered. Iowa's incredible run comes to an end, and Illinois advances to Indianapolis to play either Duke or UCONN. Life is good! Make the jump to see the game's final stats and read my live running reactions throughout this Elite Eight victory for the Illini. 

From 68 to 8 teams, that is where we stand as the 2026 NCAA Tournament enters the Regional Final round tonight and tomorrow. The Big Ten is well-represented, with four of the eight teams still standing. Left from the Big Ten are the expected (Michigan and Purdue), the somewhat expected (Illinois) and the definitely unexpected (Iowa). The ACC, Big East, Big Twelve and SEC all have one team remaining in the field, in the form of #1 Duke, #2 UCONN, #1 Arizona and #6 Tennessee, respectively. Make the jump to see the tip times for Saturday and Sunday's Elite Eight games and to relive an Elite Eight memory for each school that is still alive and dreaming of the Final Four. 

Rick Barnes has the Volunteers in the Elite Eight for the third straight year. Tennessee dominates the glass, with a 43 to 22 advantage in rebounding. The Volunteers upset a depleted Iowa State team without Joshua Jefferson and will now face #1 seed Michigan on Sunday. Tennessee has never been to a Final Four, and the task on Sunday will be quite tall, literally and figuratively, against Michigan and its mammoth front line. With that in mind, Tennessee does bring a physicality and defensive mindset that could give Michigan issues, though the Wolverines are clearly the favorite. As for Iowa State, the Cyclones lose again in the Sweet Sixteen, where the program is 1-7 all time! The focus now is whether or not Cyclones' Head Coach T.J. Otzelberger will get poached by North Carolina or another blue blood (my money says he stays in Ames). Make the jump to see the game's final stats and read my live running reactions of the end of Tennessee's victory against Iowa State. 

UCONN hangs on, with Alex Karaban and Tarris Reed, Jr., hitting four free throws in the last minute. Michigan State had a chance to tie the game at 65 in the final 20 seconds, but the Spartans did not get a good shot during a discombobulated possession. Tom Izzo should have called a timeout to reset the offense there. The Huskies rode a hot start that led to a 19-point lead in the first half. Michigan State rallied at the end of the half and was right there in the second half, thanks to a heroic final game by senior Carson Cooper, who had 14 points. Michigan State did not get Coen Carr involved for way too long in the second half. Reed leads UCONN with 20 points while the ultimate winner  Karaban adds 18 points. Love or hate him, UCONN Head Coach Dan Hurley is so good in the NCAA Tournament, running such a beautiful offense that gets open shots whereever he wants, whether it be from the three or in the post. After limping into the tournament, UCONN is showing its championship mettle, which will need to be on display against Duke in the Elite Eight on Sunday. Izzo did a lot with one of his least talented teams this season, with tonight's loss exactly what I expected this game to be, going down to the wire. Make the jump to see the game's final stats and read my live running reactions throughout UCONN's gritty victory against the always tough Michigan State Spartans. 

That was not Michigan's best effort tonight, but the Wolverines win ugly, outscoring Alabama 43-28 in the second half. Michigan ratcheted up the defense in the final twenty minutes after giving up 49 points during the first half. Michigan made Alabama work shot clock and force a lot of difficult shots in the second half, holding the Crimson Tide to its lowest point total in a second half this season. Yaxel Lendeborg stuffed the stat sheet, with 23 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists. Dusty May made a great halftime adjustment, having Lendeborg facilitate offense from the free throw line in. The Wolverines got huge nights off the bench from Trey McKenney (17 points) and Roddy Gayle (16 points). Eliot Cadeau also had 17 points on a night when Aday Mara (8 points) and Morez Johnson, Jr. (7 points) were relatively quiet. Labaron Philon had 35 points for Alabama, though it was much harder for the guard to score in the second half. Michigan only went 8/16 from the free throw line in the second half. The Wolverines were a bit off and still won by 13 points. May is certainly happy to advance though he knows the Wolverines shouldn't rest on their laurels and need to play better. That was a choppy, at times arrogant, performance by the Wolverines, who may get out of the Midwest with such play but will need to be much better to win it all, which this Michigan team is certainly capable of. Make the jump to see the game's final stats and my live running reactions of Michigan's sleepy and uneven win against Alabama. 

The final game of the Sweet Sixteen figures to be a defensive grinder as Rick Barnes' Tennessee Volunteers take on T.J. Otzelberger's Iowa State Cyclones. It is unknown whether Iowa State will be without star forward Joshua Jefferson, who is going to be a game-time decision. Make the jump to read some connections, memories, and a final prediction for Tennessee versus Iowa State. 

In what figures to a physical grinder pitting two of the greatest coaches in NCAA Tournament history, the Michigan State Spartans take on the Connecticut Huskies following St. John's versus Duke in the loaded East region. Which coach will come out on top, MSU's Tom Izzo or UCONN's Dan Hurley? Make the jump  to read some connections, memories, and a final prediction for Michigan State versus UCONN. 

Tonight's second game of the Sweet Sixteen features the powerful Michigan Wolverines versus the dangerous Alabama Crimson Tide. Michigan seems to be rounding into form after dominant victories during the first and second rounds of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. However, the Wolverines better be ready for an Alabama team that will shoot itself into, out of and back into games. This game has a sneaky feel to me. Make the jump  to read some connections, memories, and a final prediction for Alabama versus Michigan.  * Note: I will be doing live running reactions of the Michigan-Alabama game. 

On paper tonight's slate of Sweet Sixteen games look more compelling than last night's games, which were actually quite entertaining. As a recap, Iowa took down Nebraska in the game's final minute, Purdue survived with a last-second tip in against a difficult Texas team, and Illinois "Out-Houstoned" Houston during a gritty and ugly game. With the exception of Arizona's blowout of Arkansas, the Sweet Sixteen has been very nerve-wracking so far.  Expect tonight's games to follow a similar script, with one potential blowout and three tight games. Let's begin with the first game of the evening, St. John's versus Duke. Make the jump  to read some connections, memories, and final predictions for the Johnnies and the Dookies. 

Illinois proves me wrong with the best win in the Brad Underwood-era! While the free-throw shooting was scary late, the Illini hold on, with a great offensive start extending a two-point halftime lead to as many as 18 points in the second half. Cold-shooting Houston got the Illinois lead to no less than seven points! Illinois was just 12/21 from the free throw line, but Houston only took two free throw attempts as Illinois upped its defense to a whole new level. The offensively-renowned Illini pull the upset due to incredible defense and board work, outrebounding Houston 37 to 25 (*it was actually 43-34 in the final box score). Simply put, Illinois beat Houston at the Cougars' style of game, which was not always pretty but certainly effective! That was a tremendous defensive effort by the Illini, which advance to the Elite Eight for the second time in three seasons. Up next is the scary Iowa Hawkeyes. The Illini will need to bring similar defense, physicality and poise against a Hawkeyes' team that is extremely confident at the moment. Don't assume the hard work is done for the Illini as Iowa is going to be an even more difficult game, especially if the score is close in the final minutes. Make the jump to see the game's final stats and read my live running reactions throughout Illinois' impressive victory against Houston in the Sweet Sixteen! 

As expected, Iowa takes the game late. The Hawkeyes get 39 points off the bench. Alvaro Folgueiras finishes with a layup and dunk in the final minute as Nebraska fell asleep on one possession (with only four guys on the court) and did not foul early enough on another. Iowa leads for only 2:08 seconds tonight. The Hawkeyes finish on a 15-6 run. Illinois or Houston does not want to play this team as Ben McCollum is a coaching genius! Iowa won this game with its defense the last five minutes. The Hawkeyes matched Nebraska with 13 made threes. Nebraska needed to hit more threes than the Hawkeyes, and didn't. Nebraska's great season ends in heartbreak while Iowa's incredible tourney run continues. Bennett Stirtz leads Iowa with 20 points while Tate Sage and Folgueiras add 19 and 16 points. Cooper Koch's impact went well beyond his 11 points and 5 rebounds for the Hawkeyes. Nebraska was led by Pryce Sandfort, who scored 25 points and was the only offense for the Cornhuskers in the second half. Make the jump to see the game's final stats and read my live running reactions of the second half of Iowa's victory against Nebraska. Note: Purdue has just survived Texas, 79-77, on a Trey Kaufman-Renn tip in off a missed Braden Smith layup with 0.7 seconds left. The Boilermakers get some sweet Sweet Sixteen karma after losing to Houston on a last-second layup in the same round last year.   

Pundits are comparing tonight's fourth and final Sweet Sixteen game between the #3 Illinois Fighting Illini and #2 Houston Cougars to more of an Elite Eight game. Do the Illini have what it takes to upset the Cougars? Or is Houston destined to winning and securing another Final Four appearance, with tonight's game being played at the Toyota Center in Houston? Make the jump to read some connections, memories, and a final prediction for Illinois versus Houston. 

Tonight's third game of the Sweet Sixteen has massive potential for a sneaky upset, with the talented Arkansas Razorbacks taking on the steady Arizona Wildcats at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. When I simultaneously think of Arkansas and Arizona, my mind goes to an underrated Final Four game from the mid-nineties.   Make the jump to read some connections, memories, and a final prediction for the Razorbacks versus the Wildcats. 

In anticipation of the Sweet Sixteen beginning tomorrow night, I thought I would share some connections between the programs competing against each other, and some memories of my favorite Regional Semifinal contests involving each school. This exercise is kind of moot given the NCAA Tournament histories of Thursday night's second game, Iowa versus Nebraska. The Hawkeyes haven't been to a Sweet Sixteen since before Y2K while Nebraska had never won a NCAA Tournament game prior to a week ago. Clearly, this is a Sweet Sixteen matchup few expected, though I will try to write something coherent here. Make the jump to read some connections, memories, and a final prediction for the Hawkeyes versus the Cornhuskers. 

In anticipation of the Sweet Sixteen beginning tomorrow night, I thought I would share some connections between the programs competing against each other, and some memories of my favorite Regional Semifinal contests involving each school. Let's start with the first game on Thursday night, #2 Purdue vs. #11 Texas.  Make the jump to read some connections, memories, and a final prediction for the Boilermakers versus the Longhorns. 

The 2026 NCAA Tournament resumes on Thursday night, with Sweet Sixteen games featuring region favorites Arizona and Houston, dangerous squads Purdue, Illinois and Arkansas, and relative surprises Texas, Iowa and even Nebraska. Friday's slate includes region favorites Duke and Michigan, traditional tourney powerhouses UCONN and Michigan State, and sleeper teams Iowa State, St. John's and Tennessee. Make the jump to review the Sweet Sixteen schedule and determine which games you should prioritize, that is, if you won't be watching multiple television or computer screens at once. :-)

Entering the Sweet Sixteen, 13 of 16 schools are still alive based upon my original predictions for the East, West, Midwest and South regions of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. With that said, I offer my apologies to Iowa, Tennessee and Arkansas, all of which I underestimated. Make the jump to read about some things I am glad, mad and even a little sad about regarding my original projections for the opening weekend. 

Take a breath. The first and second rounds of the 2026 NCAA Tournament are over, with games resuming Thursday night. Similar to recent tournaments, Cinderella is done dancing by the Sweet Sixteen, though #12 High Point came darn close, showing incredible heart, moxie and fearlessness during two thrilling and impressive performances against Wisconsin and Arkansas. For context, the lowest seed remaining is #11 Texas, one of the richest programs in all of college sports. The most shocking moment of the opening weekend came yesterday as defending champion and #1 seed Florida fell to #9 Iowa, which executed a masterful game plan behind the devious duo of Head Coach Ben McCollum and star guard Bennett Stirtz. Make the jump for some quick reflections on the opening weekend of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. 

Here are the times for today's second-round games, with a quick pregame prediction for each game and my halftime and postgame reactions for most games excluding the last slate of contests, during which I fell asleep as a result of succumbing to watching too much basketball in the past six days. In short, the first #1 overall seed has gone down, with defending national champion Florida falling to #9 Iowa during a game that was a coaching clinic of strategy and execution, with Hawkeyes' Head Coach Ben McCollum drawing up a wonderful inbounds play late and doing what I admittedly thought was impossible, coaxing 73 points out of his team while flustering Florida with a methodical pace. The highly-anticipated St. John's - Kansas game was controlled by the Johnnies until a furious rally by Kansas in the last five minutes seemed to have swung the game. However, St. John's was saved by point guard Dylan Darling, who became Dylan Starling on a game-winning layup at the buzzer. Make the jump to recap the final day of the opening weekend of the 2026 NCAA Tournament.