{"id":215189,"date":"2026-03-22T07:05:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-22T07:05:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/215189\/"},"modified":"2026-03-22T07:05:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T07:05:09","slug":"ncaa-tournament-takeaways-day-3-big-ten-reigns-supreme-cinderella-texas-and-an-extra-edge-for-houston","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/215189\/","title":{"rendered":"NCAA tournament takeaways, Day 3: Big Ten reigns supreme, ‘Cinderella’ Texas and an extra edge for Houston"},"content":{"rendered":"

We are through the first round of the NCAA tournament<\/a>, and eight teams booked a spot in the Sweet 16 on Saturday, including four from the Big Ten.<\/p>\n

Top-seeded Duke looked a bit more confident in its second-round win over No. 9 TCU to advance to the Sweet 16. Joining it: No. 1 Michigan, No. 2 Houston, No. 3 Michigan State, No. 3 Illinois, No. 4 Nebraska, No. 4 Arkansas and No. 11 Texas. Who else win join them with a win on Sunday?<\/p>\n

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Big Ten books 4 spots in Sweet 16<\/p>\n

The Big Ten got off to a rough start at the NCAA tournament with two losses (Ohio State and Wisconsin) in the first four games on Thursday.<\/p>\n

But since then, it\u2019s been smooth sailing as each of its seven other entrants advanced to the second round.<\/p>\n

The Big Ten then punched the first two tickets to the Sweet 16 on Saturday, courtesy of the state of Michigan. No. 1 seed Michigan cruised past No. 9 St. Louis<\/a> in the first game of the day. No. 3 Michigan State then topped No. 6 Louisville<\/a> to claim its spot.<\/p>\n

In the evening slate, No. 4 Nebraska won a thriller over No. 5 Vanderbilt in one of the best games of the tournament, surviving a near-miracle in the process<\/a>. And No. 3 Illinois cruised past No. 11 VCU to join their Big Ten counterparts next weekend.<\/p>\n

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That makes the Big Ten 4-0 in Sweet 16 chances Saturday. And it will have three more on Sunday when Purdue (vs. Miami), Iowa (vs. Florida) and UCLA (vs. UConn) take the court.<\/p>\n

Is Texas really a Cinderella?<\/p>\n

By seeding alone, there\u2019s no question about.<\/p>\n

No. 11 Texas toppled No. 3 Gonzaga on Saturday<\/a> to crash the Sweet 16 as the first double-digit seed to do so. Remove the name brand, and that\u2019s the definition of a Cinderella story.<\/p>\n

But can a power conference program \u2014 especially one as prominent and well-funded as Texas \u2014 truly be considered a Cinderella<\/a>? That\u2019s a matter for college basketball philosophers to settle.<\/p>\n

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But there\u2019s no doubt that Texas-Gonzaga made for some of the most compelling basketball so far of the NCAA tournament.<\/p>\n

Texas squeaked into the tournament field as one of the last four in and was relegated to the First Four. Since then, it\u2019s edged NC State in the First Four, vanquished No. 6 BYU and AJ Dybantsa in the first round and now won a second-round thriller over Gonzaga that required a late 3 from previously scoreless Camden Heide to seal the deal.<\/p>\n

True Cinderella or not, Texas has been a fun watch and gets at least one more chance to put on a show this tournament. Up next is the winner between No. 2 Purdue and No. 7 Miami.<\/p>\n

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Houston goes home for Sweet 16<\/p>\n

With Kelvin Sampson guiding Houston to a seventh straight Sweet 16 and adding All-America freshman Kingston Flemings to a lineup featuring three starters from last year\u2019s national semifinalist, the Cougars are one of the most dangerous teams to advance to the tournament\u2019s second weekend.<\/p>\n

And they\u2019ll have an added advantage once they get there after steamrolling Texas A&M<\/a> Saturday in the second round.<\/p>\n

The South Regional semifinals and finals will be played in Houston, less than three miles from the university\u2019s campus. Florida\u2019s the No. 1 seed in the South and needs to get past Iowa Sunday to advance to the Sweet 16. If it does and eventually faces a regional final against Houston, it will do so as a road team.<\/p>\n

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Houston\u2019s seeking its first-ever national championship after repeated deep runs under Sampson. Will a path to the Final Four at home help push them to a title?<\/p>\n

How to find your NCAA bracket on Yahoo Sports Bracket Mayhem<\/a><\/p>\n

How to watch men’s March Madness 2026<\/p>\n

Dates: March 17 – April 6, 2026
TV channels: CBS, TBS, TNT, TruTV
Streaming: Paramount+<\/a>, DirecTV<\/a>, March Madness Live app and more<\/p>\n

March Madness Saturday resultsLive coverage is over119 updatesSat, March 21, 2026 at 8:53 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Cinderella is officially dead. No. 12 High Point battled all night with No. 4 Arkansas, but Darius Acuff and the Hogs were too much in the end.<\/p>\n

Acuff finished with a tournament-high 36 points and 6 assists for Arkansas. Rob Martin had 30 for High Point. What a game.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:44 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Darius Acuff might\u2019ve just stuck a dagger in High Point. He pulled up from deep for a 3 to give Arkansas a 7-point lead with less than 1 minute to go.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:41 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Darius Acuff is still cooking. He\u2019s up to 30 now after a finish at the rim.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:38 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

On the other side, Rob Martin is feeling it. This and-one is worth a watch:<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:36 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:30 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been an incredibly competitive back-and-forth game in the West region. The Hogs are out in front now, but it\u2019s anyone\u2019s contest with 7 minutes left.<\/p>\n

Rob Martin has 23 and Cam\u2019Ron Fletcher has 21 for High Point. Darius Acuff Jr. has 24 for Arkansas.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:17 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Tyler Tanner score 27 points and came up huge for the Commodores all day. His halfcourt heave at the buzzer NEARLY went down.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:15 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

The Huskers are headed to the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history after a thrilling win. Braden Frager was the hero with the winning shot with 2 seconds left.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:13 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Nebraska\u2019s Braden Frager hits a layup in transition with 2 seconds left to give Nebraska the 74-72 lead!<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:10 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Nebraska briefly took the lead back but Vandy\u2019s AK Okereke answered with a massive 3 to put the Commodores back in front, 70-68. 1:42 to play<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:07 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

There\u2019s just 15 minutes left in the game now and the Panthers are out in front. We may still get a Cinderella in the Sweet 16.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 8:02 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Vanderbilt leads 67-64 with 3:47 to play.<\/p>\n

Another good finish is on the way.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 7:59 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

The Hogs and Panthers are back from the break and Arkansas is still out in front.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 7:54 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Vanderbilt is scorching from deep range right now, hitting 8 of 15 in the 2nd half. Tyler Tanner (25 points) hits another 3 to put the Commodores up 64-60 with 6:35 to go.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 7:49 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

The Commodores have their first lead of the game after a barrage of 3s. Tyler Tanner continues to cook for Vandy, with 22 points.<\/p>\n

Vanderbilt 58, Nebraska 55 | 8:22 to play<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 7:39 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

We could have another photo finish on the way as Nebraska\u2019s lead has dwindled to 50-47 with 12:00 to play.<\/p>\n

After shooting 60% in the first half, the Huskers have slowed down considerably, just 5 of 13 since halftime.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 7:34 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

High Point is right in this one as we head into the break. Cam’Ron Fletcher has 14 points and 6 rebounds for the Panthers. Arkansas’ Darius Acuff has 13 for the Hogs.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 7:26 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

These teams are trading big shots in OKC. Nebraska\u2019s lead is down to 48-44 at the first media timeout of the 2nd half.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 7:20 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Another Cinderella bites the dust. No. 11 VCU simply couldn\u2019t hang with No. 3 Illinois, especially around the rim. The Illini outrebounded the Rams 45-29 and had 36 points in the paint.<\/p>\n

Four different Illinois players had 12 or more points, including Andrej Stojakovic, who led the way for Illinois with 21 points.<\/p>\n

Sat, March 21, 2026 at 7:12 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Not that anyone expected them to, but the Panthers aren\u2019t backing down. The deficit is down to 30-29 with 5 minutes left in the half after a run.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"We are through the first round of the NCAA tournament, and eight teams booked a spot in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":215190,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[13845,56,3116,3109,84056,27,29,28],"class_list":["post-215189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-big-ten","tag-houston","tag-michigan","tag-michigan-state","tag-sweet-16","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/215189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=215189"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/215189\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/215190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=215189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=215189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=215189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}