2026 March Madness Thread

[London 'Cat]

Or, amazing comeback. It’s always good when Duke loses, sucks when UConn wins though.

What an amazing comeback. I hate Duke more than UConn so I was glad to see it but you can’t argue with UConn’s fight to the buzzer.

[bearcatbret]

I cannot believe that Duke blew that game. Between the lesser of two evils, I would have preferred Duke. There is still a chance at a final game that does not include the B1G 10.

[longtimefan]

Two blowouts today.

Or, amazing comeback. It’s always good when Duke loses, sucks when UConn wins though.

[longtimefan]

Two blowouts today.

[bearcatbret]

Wow, UM did crush Tennessee. So, Arizona and UM get to match up. Probably the hottest two teams right now. We will see if Duke can advance to take on Illinois.

[Rufus]

Many years ago, I used to dream about UC bringing To ick Barnes here to coach mens bball. But after the thumping Michigan just put on Tennessee to advance to the final four I'm glad that dream never materialized.

[bearcatbret]

About both games: How Arizona beat Purdue and Illinois defeated Iowa in Saturday's Elite Eight - ESPN

[longtimefan]

AZ dominated Purdue in the second half after trailing by 7 at halftime, won by 15.

[bearcatbret]

Sometimes it’s just matchups. Sometimes it’s luck, ISU and TTU were both without their best player.

I am not talking about this year but how many times in the past have our coaches and fans complained about having to play in the west? Also complaining about our seed? So, I do believe that your seed and your region do help in your wins. I am not a conspiracy nut but I do think that the powerful do assist in the seeding and locations of their teams. However, you might argue against that because the number 1 seed overall, Duke, has struggled.

BTW, Illinois crushed Iowa tonight. Arizona is down by 2 against Purdue with just over 5 minutes left in the first half.

[Oldtimer_UC_fan]

Sometimes it’s just matchups. Sometimes it’s luck, ISU and TTU were both without their best player.

Exactly right. Plus, the sheer number of Big10 teams in there.

[longtimefan]

No conference besides the Big10 has more than one.

Sometimes it’s just matchups. Sometimes it’s luck, ISU and TTU were both without their best player.

[Oldtimer_UC_fan]

As good as we thought the BIG XII was this year, it was no match for the BIG 10 or the SEC. The proof is in the number of BIG XII teams remaining in the Elite 8. Only Arizona remains from the BIG XII.

No conference besides the Big10 has more than one.

[swilsonsp4]

As good as we thought the BIG XII was this year, it was no match for the BIG 10 or the SEC. The proof is in the number of BIG XII teams remaining in the Elite 8. Only Arizona remains from the BIG XII.

The SEC have one team remaining (TN), exactly the same as the ACC (Duke), BE (UConn), and B12 (AZ).

[leeraymond372@gmail.com]

As good as we thought the BIG XII was this year, it was no match for the BIG 10 or the SEC. The proof is in the number of BIG XII teams remaining in the Elite 8. Only Arizona remains from the BIG XII.

[leeraymond372@gmail.com]

Give them their due. Sometimes it is about matchups and I think that some of the B1G teams got that matchups that favored them.

The Big 10 had 6 (six) teams in the Sweet 16 and has 4 (four) teams in the Elite 8. It is useless to gauge what the best conferences are in the pre-conference season. I always judge what conferences are best based on the Sweet 16 and Elite 8.

The Big 10 clearly is the best conference this year. The Big 10 is a big conference. You do not see many little guards in the Big 10 as you do elsewhere. The Big 10 also has tall big men. Lastly, the Big 10 is a good scoring league. That combination is hard to beat.

However, Duke, Arizona, and UConn are teams outside the Big 10 that can deal with the Big 10. Do not be surprised if one of those teams walks away with the championship trophy.