March Madness Review: Day 4

It's been four days of upsets, buzzer-beaters, controversy and tons of ripped up brackets.  As the dust has settled, 16 teams remain in the running for a national title.  Some, like Florida and Michigan, are expected.  Others, such as Tennessee and Dayton, come as major surprises.  At this point, the only guarantee is that we've got some great games ahead of us.  Before we do that, let's recap the final day of the Tournament's first weekend.

Sunday started out with another major upset when Stanford took out the basketball powerhouse of Kansas.  What made the loss worse for the Jayhawks was the absolutely awful performance of star freshman Andrew Wiggins.  Wiggins was the latest in a growing list of major freshmen who are likely one-and-done players that played poorly in the Tournament.  This will lead to greater scrutiny of the NBA's rule that requires players to be at least one year removed from high school before they can enter the draft.  Meanwhile, Stanford continues a strong showing for the PAC-12, who also has UCLA and Arizona in the Sweet Sixteen.

The one-and-done vs four-year player debate reached fever pitch as undefeated Wichita State prepared to take on Kentucky.  Unlike Duke, Syracuse and Kansas, Kentucky's freshmen are playing lights out in the Dance.  In what was probably the best game of the Tournament so far, the Wildcats ended the Shockers' bid for a perfect season.  Many times during this game, Wichita State appeared to have gained the edge on the young players of Kentucky.  But the Wildcats showed the heart and resolve of seasoned veterans as they matched every run and took a late lead. Next up for Big Blue Nation: arch rival Louisville. Ain't March great!?

The Wildcats were joined in the Sweet Sixteen by conference mate Tennessee. The SEC is undefeated in the Tournament so far, with all three teams advancing to the regional semi-finals.

It wasn't a good day for mid-majors at all.  After Wichita State fell, Mercer, Creighton, Memphis, Gonzaga and Stephen F. Austin all lost on Sunday.  Creighton's loss ended the college career of Doug McDermott, the 5th leading scorer in the history of the NCAA.

Controversy surrounded the end of Iowa State's win over North Carolina.  With the clock starting late after an inbound pass, there was concern whether or not UNC called a timeout before the game clock expired.  Eventually the right call was made, and the Cyclones completed an 8-point comeback victory.

In a weekend filled with upsets and close scores, the nigh cap for Sunday was disappointing as UCLA, Arizona, Virginia and Baylor all cruised to victory.  And now, here are the scores that secured the last 8 spots in the Sweet Sixteen:

(10) Stanford 60
(2) Kansas 57

(8) Kentucky 78
(1) Wichita State 76

(3) Iowa State 85
(6) North Carolina 83

(11) Tennessee 83
(14) Mercer 63

(4) UCLA 77
(12) Stephen F. Austin 60

(6) Baylor 85
(3) Creighton 55

(1) Virginia 78
(8) Memphis 60

(1) Arizona 84
(8) Gonzaga 61