The Sportsletter - How Sweet (16) It Is

BY JEFF YODER

MAR. 21, 2022  |  SUBSCRIBE  |  BROWSER VIEW

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The most basketball-filled weekend of the year is in the books, and the brackets are goners. The last perfect brackets were busted by Friday night. Not a single person correctly picked the entire first round, and the Sweet 16 has all the makings of pure chaos. Four double-digit seeds remain, five of the top 12 teams are heading home and the music is still playing for Cinderella. We dance on... 

Letter Rip!

BRACKET LEADERBOARD

The Sportsletter Bracket Pool

1. JPL (50 points) | Champion: Kansas

2. TomescuBB (49 points) | Champion: Duke

T3. Bucs&Bolts (48 points) | Champion: Gonzaga

T3. Pauls Attempt (48 points) | Champion: Villanova

T3. Boricuatri (48 points) | Champion: Duke

T3. BadgerFanAZ (48 points) | Champion: Gonzaga

T7. Buddyboy (47 points) | Champion: Gonzaga

T7. MarkJHenry (47 points) | Champion: Gonzaga

T7. Miarunner (47 points) | Champion: Gonzaga

Special shout out to the three brackets who correctly picked Saint Peter’s to the Sweet 16. You really did it. You're either a genius, an alum or a lunatic. 

Saint Peter's Picks: Judy316, Mustbeach, TheTim

NCAAM

How Sweet (16) It Is

Photo: Stacy Revere / Getty Images

The Sweet 16: One 1-Seed, Two 2s and Two 3s Exit Early in Bracket of Chaos

Zero -- I repeat, zero -- perfect brackets remain. The madness continues! After the first full weekend of the NCAA Tournament, the Sweet 16 is set, and it looks nothing like anyone thought. Among the top storylines were four double-digit seeds advancing to the second weekend, including 15-seed Saint Peter’s winning again. 8-seed North Carolina knocked off 1-seed Baylor for the first top-seed takedown. Two 11-seeds punched out the pair of 3-seeds who won their conference — #3 Tennessee and #3 Wisconsin.

Meanwhile, the Big Ten, who started the tourney with nine teams, is now down to two — #3 Purdue and #11 Michigan. The West Region went chalk, but the East and Midwest Regions became a murky swamp of upset chaos. In the Round of 32, 12 of the 16 games were decided by 10 points or less. All four of the 1-vs-8/9 matchups were decided by single digits, including two overtime thrillers. After the dust settled, only one thing is certain... Chaos.

2nd-Round Highlights

West Region

#1 Gonzaga def. #9 Memphis (82-78)

#4 Arkansas def. #12 New Mexico State (53-48)

#3 Texas Tech def. #11 Notre Dame (59-53)

#2 Duke def. #7 Michigan State (85-76)

East Region

#8 North Carolina def. #1 Baylor (93-86, OT)

#4 UCLA def. #5 Saint Mary’s (72-56)

#3 Purdue def. #6 Texas (81-71)

#15 Saint Peter’s def. #7 Murray State (70-60)

South Region

#1 Arizona def. #9 TCU (85-80, OT)

#5 Houston def. #4 Illinois (68-53)

#11 Michigan def. #3 Tennessee (76-68)

#2 Villanova def. #7 Ohio State (71-61)

Midwest Region

#1 Kansas def. #9 Creighton (79-72)

#4 Providence def. #12 Richmond (79-51)

#11 Iowa State def. #3 Wisconsin (54-49)

#10 Miami def. #2 Auburn (79-61)

Conference Check-In

Through the first weekend, the Big Ten (9 teams) and SEC (6 teams) took a beating. Both conferences have lost 11 of their 15 combined bids, including five teams seeded on the 4-line or higher. The Big 12 and ACC have proven their power thus far with a combined record of 17-5, and that includes two losses against each other.

Records by Conference (Teams Remaining)

Big 12: 10-3 (3)

ACC: 7-2 (3)

Big Ten: 8-7 (2)

Big East: 5-4 (2)

Pac-12: 4-1 (2)

SEC: 5-5 (1)

Other: #1 Gonzaga (WCC), #5 Houston (AAC), #15 Saint Peter’s (MAAC)

Complete Men’s NCAA Tournament Bracket

The Sweet 16 tips off on Thursday!

Additional Storylines

FOX Sports: Top Moments of the 2022 Men’s NCAA Tournament

SI: Saint Peter’s Embodies a First Week That Brought the Best of College Basketball

ESPN: Duke Basketball Faced Down the End of Coach K’s Career — And Grew Up When It Mattered

NCAAW

Half Sweet: 10-Seed Cinderellas

Photo: Icon Sportswire / Getty Images

#10 South Dakota & #10 Creighton Upset 2-Seeds (#2 Baylor & #2 Iowa) to Punch Sweet 16 Tickets

Bust ‘em up in the women’s bracket! The shredder isn’t just for the men’s game. Although much of the women’s tournament usually goes chalk, two 10-seed Cinderellas are alive and well into the Sweet 16. 10-seed Creighton stunned 2-seed Iowa on Sunday in the tournament’s first knockout punch of a top team. Hours later, 10-seed South Dakota handed 2-seed Baylor a double-digit loss. The rest of the teams seeded on the 4-line or higher are still dancing, and the rest of the Sweet 16 gets filled in tonight. Here’s the latest:

Upset Alerts

#10 Creighton def. #2 Iowa (64-62)

#10 South Dakota def. #2 Baylor (61-47)

All 2nd-Round Highlights

#1 South Carolina def. #8 Miami (49-33)

#1 Stanford def. #8 Kansas (91-65)

#1 Louisville def. #9 Gonzaga (68-59)

#2 Texas def. #7 Utah (78-56)

#3 Iowa State def. #6 Georgia (67-44)

#4 Maryland def. #12 FGCU (89-65)

Today’s Schedule (Rest of 2nd Round)

#1 NC State vs. #9 Kansas State (4:00 pm ET)

#3 Michigan vs. #11 Villanova (6:00 pm ET)

#4 Oklahoma vs. #5 Notre Dame (6:00 pm ET)

#4 Tennessee vs. #12 Belmont (7:00 pm ET)

#3 Indiana vs. #11 Princeton (8:00 pm ET)

#3 LSU vs. #6 Ohio State (8:00 pm ET)

#2 UConn vs. #7 UCF (9:00 pm ET)

#4 Arizona vs. #5 North Carolina (10:00 pm ET)

Full Women’s NCAA Tournament Bracket

Additional Storylines

ESPN: South Dakota Snaps Baylor’s 12-Year Sweet 16 Streak

NCAA: Busted! How It Fell Apart for Perfect Brackets in the Women’s NCAA Tournament

NFL / MLB / NHL

The 3-Sport Acquisition Tracker

Photo: Christian Peterson / Getty Images

A Compilation of NFL, MLB & NHL Offseason Moves, Trade Deadline & Free-Agent Signings

With an overload of roster moves across professional sports, I’ve packed all the NFL, MLB and NHL moves into one section. The NHL trade deadline is today. MLB’s hot stove stayed hot with three more big signings. And the NFL saw more trades and contract negotiations, and the next seat was taken in quarterback musical chairs. The Browns snagged QB Deshaun Watson from the Texans in exchange for a haul of picks, including their next three first-rounders. Cleveland then turned around and gave Watson a deal for five years and $230 million guaranteed. Here are all the moves from a busy weekend in three major sports leagues.

NFL News

Browns Acquire QB Deshaun Watson from Texans

Rams Trade WR Robert Woods to Titans

Rams Sign WR Allen Robinson (3 Years, $46.5 Million)

Chiefs Sign WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (1 Year, $10.5 Million)

Rams Give QB Matthew Stafford Extension (4 Years, $160 Million)

MLB News

Twins Sign SS Carlos Correa (3 Years, $105 Million)

Red Sox Sign 2B Trevor Story (4 Years, $140 Million)

Marlins Sign OF Jorge Soler (3 Years, $36 Million)

NHL News

Panthers Acquire Claude Giroux from Flyers

Bruins Acquire Hampus Lindholm from Ducks

Sabres Acquire Robert Hagg from Panthers

Maple Leafs Acquire Matt Giordano From Kraken

Additional Storylines

USA Today: Browns Say They Did Their Research on Deshaun Watson Situation

FOX Sports: Why the Cleveland Browns Went All-In for Deshaun Watson

The Ringer: The Twins Landed MLB’s Best Free Agent. What Does That Mean for the League?

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🎥 OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

🏀 NBA: LeBron James Has Milestone Weekend

The Lakers lost on Saturday night, but LeBron James scored 38 points to pass Karl Malone (36,928 points) for No. 2 on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. He also became the first player in league history to achieve 10K points, 10K rebounds and 10K assists. He trails only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387 points).

🏒 NHL: Ovechkin Ties Gretzky’s 40-Goal Mark

Alex Ovechkin netted his 40th goal of the season on Sunday with a one-timer from the left circle. The Capitals still lost to the Stars (3-2), but Ovi tied Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record for most 40-goal seasons (12).

⚽️ SOCCER: Barca Dominates El Classico

El Clasico was El Blowout Sunday in Spain. Barcelona pounded Real Madrid (4-0) thanks to the boot of their new striker, Pierre-Emerick Aubamayeng. Aubamayeng scored twice and added an assist, and Barcelona kept their La Liga title hopes alive.

⛳️ PGA: Burns Repeats at Valspar Championship

Back-to-back for Sam Burns. The 25-year-old defending champion of the Valspar Championship ran it back on Sunday with a 17-under scorecard to force (and win) a playoff against Davis Riley. It’s Burns’ third career win, and they’ve all come in the last year.

🏒 NCAA Hockey (Frozen Four)

Women’s Championship

Ohio State def. Minnesota Duluth (3-2)

📰 THE HEADLINES

Longtime NFL Insider John Clayton Dies at Age 67

(ESPN)

David Ortiz Reportedly Targeted by Drug Kingpin in 2019 Shooting

(CBS Sports)

MLB Tests New Audio System to Prevent Sign-Stealing & Speed Up Games

(Sports Illustrated)

Brenden Aaronson Injury Could Miss Crucial USMNT World Cup Qualifying Matches

(NBC Sports)

Ex-Cowboys LB Randy Gregory Blasts Team, Fans & Owners on His Way Out of Dallas

(Yahoo! Sports)

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