Currently, the conference breakdown in the Sweet 16 is as follows (competitors playing tomorrow are in parentheses):
- Big East: Connecticut, Villanova (Louisville, Pittsburgh, Marquette, Syracuse)
- Big XII: Oklahoma (Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma State)
- Big Ten: Purdue (Wisconsin, Michigan State)
- ACC: North Carolina, Duke
- Conference USA: Memphis
- West Coast Conference: Gonzaga
- Pac-10: None (Arizona State, Arizona, Southern California)
- SEC: None
- Atlantic-10: None (Xavier, Dayton)
- MAAC: None (Siena)
- Horizon: None (Cleveland St.)
First up on Sunday is a matchup in the South regional between our #6 Arizona State Sun Devils and the #3 Syracuse Orange.
We will have more coverage in the buildup to 9:10 AM PST... Get out your pajamas, Devils fans, because we need to go to bed early tonight.
Sunday's White Knight: Pittsburgh Panthers.
After embarrassing themselves in a bumbling performance against ETSU on Friday, Pittsburgh will be looking to assert themselves as a title contender when they take on Oklahoma State at 11:50 AM PST.
Look for a strong performance from DeJuan Blair, a 6'7", 265 pound beast who averages 16 points and 12 rebounds a game.
Just a sophomore, he will be looking to put his mark on the game early on, teaming up with senior Sam Young to make a potent inside-outside combination.
We have seen Pittsburgh win far too many games this season to be as bad as they looked on Friday. That aberration will be a distant memory when Pittsburgh is playing in Boston next weekend against Xavier.
Sunday's Dark Horse: USC Trojans.
The unexpected Pac-10 Champs are playing Michigan State, the Big Ten regular season champs who flamed out against Ohio State in their conference tournament.
USC has been playing with a swagger and an air of confidence since they stepped on the court in Los Angeles for the Pac-10 Tournament. They beat California, UCLA and ASU on successive days, proving that they can beat NCAA Tournament-quality teams.
Watch DeMar DeRozan and Taj Gibson wreck havoc on an unexpecting Spartan team. USC developed their young talent over the season, and is ready for the Sweet 16.
Tomorrow's Best Game: Louisville vs. Siena.
What a matchup this will be. The overall #1 seed against the MAAC champs. It certainly doesn't sound like a game we would expect to be competitive, but Siena showed a lot of passion against Ohio State in their 2OT thriller.
Siena might be tired, but that won't stop them from giving the Cardinals all they can handle. I expect Louisville to win this game, but not until the last two minutes.