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Dusty May explains Big Ten rise throughout March Madness
Dusty May displays on the Big Ten’s evolving id and dominance throughout this 12 months’s March Madness match.
As all the time, March Madness has delivered in 2026.
The 2026 males’s NCAA Tournament has had upsets, back-and-forth thrillers and buzzer-beater game-winners, all earlier than the Final Four has even began. There’s an opportunity this listing might change much more as soon as No. 2 UConn, No. 3 Illinois and No. 1s Arizona and Michigan begin the ultimate weekend of the season.
From the primary spherical to the Elite Eight, here is a take a look at our top-five ranked video games of the NCAA Tournament thus far, following UConn’s thrilling win over top-seeded Duke for a spot within the Final Four:
March Madness prime video games thus far, ranked
5. Kentucky vs. Santa Clara, West Region first spherical
Kentucky general upset on the NCAA Tournament primarily based on its requirements, however its first-round win over Santa Clara stored Wildcats followers from spiraling even additional. Star guard Otega Oweh hit a 32-foot 3-pointer from close to midcourt on the buzzer to ship the sport to additional time, earlier than Kentucky received 89-84.
Oweh’s shot got here after Santa Clara’s Allen Graves buried a would-be game-winner with lower than 5 seconds left. It was a profession efficiency for Oweh, who scored 35 factors with eight rebounds and 7 assists within the win.
4. Kansas vs St. John’s, East Region second spherical
An unlikely hero emerged for St. John’s within the second spherical towards Kansas, when guard Dylan Darling drove to the lane and made a contested game-winning layup with 3.9 seconds left. Those have been Darling’s solely two factors of the sport.
The recreation featured two legendary coaches in St. John’s Rick Pitino and Kansas’ Bill Self, each of whom have received a number of nationwide championships. Ultimately Pitino got here out on prime, profitable 67-65 to advance to the Sweet 16.
3. Iowa vs Florida, South Region second spherical
Perhaps the most effective upset for any crew within the NCAA Tournament, No. 9 Iowa shocked No. 1 Florida, the defending nationwide champions, within the second spherical.
Alvaro Folgueiras’ 3-pointer with 4.5 seconds left gave Iowa a 73-72 win after Florida was unable to get a closing shot off earlier than the buzzer. It was the Hawkeyes’ first Sweet 16 look since 1999, and got here beneath a first-year coach in Ben McCollum.
Iowa’s run did not cease there, because it then defeated darlings Nebraska within the Sweet 16 earlier than shedding to Illinois within the Elite Eight.
2. Nebraska vs Vanderbilt, South Region second spherical
Nebraska’s Braden Frager hit a go-ahead layup with 2.2 seconds left to finally ship Nebraska to the Sweet 16 for the primary time ever in a 74-72 win, though Vanderbilt star Tyler Tanner practically made a half-court heave on the buzzer because the ball went via the rim and in some way bounced out.
Not solely was the ultimate stretch wild, however the recreation was back-and-forth all through the second half. Nebraska followers additionally took over the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, giving the Cornhuskers a digital house ambiance over six hours from the varsity’s campus.
It’s an unlucky finish to school for Tanner, ought to he go for the NBA draft. Tanner scored 27 factors with two rebounds and 4 assists, together with 4 steals within the loss.
1. Duke vs UConn, East Region closing
One of the most effective Elite Eight video games in years, UConn accomplished a 19-point comeback towards Duke after true freshman Braylon Mullins hit a game-winning 3-pointer from 35 toes out with 0.4 seconds left. The Huskies outscored the top-seeded Blue Devils 44-28 within the second half for the 73-72 win.
UConn began the sport 1-of-18 from 3-point vary, earlier than making 4 of its final 5 pictures from distance in crunch time. Mullins’ game-winning shot solely got here after Cayden Boozer’s go with lower than 10 seconds left was deflected by Silas Demary Jr., with Mullins ultimately regaining possession and hitting the shot after passing it off to and getting it again from Alex Karaban.
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