The sports world this past month has erupted as fans would know March brings a crazy element of fandom to basketball in the tournament of March Madness, which has kicked off this year in 2022. Madness ensues as 68 college NCAA teams face off in a single elimination tournament for 7 rounds, in the pursuit of the glory of being crowned atop college basketball. 

Beginning on March 15th, the teams are brought down to 64 and after a play-in game for the 16th seed. Next the remaining teams are split into brackets of 16 to start the games. Fans analytically draft brackets that they predict will play out by the end of the month. 

After many upsets, including the reigning champions of the Baylor Bears as a 1st seed, the teams have dwindled down though the first and second round to present the third round called the Sweet 16. You guessed it, only 16 teams remain in the competitive tournament and their games will be hashed out over the course of March 24th and 25th, later in the week.

One of the many exciting elements of this month-long tournament is the chance for an underdog to captivate the nationwide audience of fans. A couple of years ago you may have heard that the Loyola Chicago Wolves made the run to the Final Four after ranking as the 11th seed, an impossible story that made the nation root for them more than the higher ranking teams left. Personally, I always root for the “Cinderella Story” each March in hopes that a stellar story will play out by the end of the games.

With the Sweet 16 about to begin, turning on the games and rooting for some games will make you a candidate to receive some awesome basketball action. The games that continue this week are as follows.

Sweet 16 games:

Thursday, March 24th-

5 Houston vs. 1 Arizona 

3 Texas Tech vs. 2 Duke 

4 Arkansas vs. 1 Gonzaga

11 Michigan vs. 2 Villanova 

Friday, March 25th-

4 Providence vs. 1 Kansas 

11 Iowa State vs. 10 Miami FL 

8 UNC vs. 4 UCLA 

15 Saint Peter’s vs. 3 Purdue 

Elite 8 will be this weekend after the winners advance. If it’s any incentive, University of Arizona Wildcats are competing for their shot at glory so you can tune in to root for hometown heroes in this basketball showdown.

One of the most watched college tournaments in the world, maybe this is the year you finally have an idea of what is going on and tune in to see underdogs and top ranked teams leave it all on the court, for their shot at the grand title. From the Sweet Sixteen, to the Elite 8, the Final 4, and finally the National Championship, there are plenty of games to catch in this tournament and find an appreciation for college hoops. Maybe next year, you are even a bold enough fan to make a bracket and hope it doesn’t bust, as is tradition for most college basketball fans alike this month.