 Thursday's four games were anything but disappointing, unless you were a fan of any of the four teams that lost. (7) Michigan State vs. (3) Kansas State was, in my opinion, the game of the tournament so far up until that point. It was back and forth the entire way in a very high-scoring affair, but K-State's star point guard, Markquis Nowell, proved to be too much for the Spartans in the end. He scored 20 points and tallied an NCAA Tournament record 19 assists. Nowell and Keyontae Johnson combined for 42 of the Wildcats' 98 in an overtime thriller to push Kansas State into their program's 13th Elite 8. The second game lacked intrigue due to the dominance of (4) UConn. The game was never close as they pummeled the 8-seeded Razorbacks of Arkansas by an impressive score of 88-65. The Huskies have looked like one of the best teams in the tournament so far and they're just one game away from their first time since 2014. Four of UConn's five Final Four teams in school history have gone on to win the championship, so they'd be in an excellent position if they can win one more game on Saturday. The third game of the Sweet 16 was a result that anyone who has been following Tennessee basketball for the last two decades fully expected. The 4-seeded Volunteers had the easiest path to their program's first Final Four they could have hoped for, but they choked it away yet again in an important game in March. (9) Florida Atlantic entered last night's game, undersized and under skilled compared to the Vols, yet the Owls out-rebounded Tennessee 40 to 36, including grabbing 12 offensive rebounds against a team known for their rebounding prowess. They also bested Tennessee in points in the paint and second chance points. Despite shooting only 29 percent from three and turning the ball over at twice the rate of their opponent, FAU dominated the second half of the game, going on an 18-2 run to lead them to a 62-55 win. Tennessee's offense had disappeared for long stretches all season, but no one expected their defensive and rebounding efforts to be as poor as they were. In just one trip to the NCAA Tournament, FAU has now achieved more Elite 8 appearances than Rick Barnes has in his eight seasons at UT. The final game of the night rivaled the first game of the night in terms of excitability, though I thought it was even more thrilling than MSU-KSU. (2) UCLA jumped out to a sizable lead early in the first half and held around a 10-point lead for much of the first. However, just like FAU, (3) Gonzaga turned things around in the second half. On the back of Drew Timme, the Bulldogs pulled away down the stretch before the Bruins managed to claw back into it through Gonzaga turnovers, missed free throws, and inexplicable fouls. UCLA trailed 72-62 with just 2:30 left, but managed to go up 76-75 with 13 seconds to play. While the contest was largely a heavyweight bout between Timme and UCLA's Jaime Jaquez, the hero in the end was Gonzaga's Julian Strawther. Strawther drilled a deep three from the logo on the Bulldogs' ensuing possession, which was followed by a Tyger Campbell turnover when the Bruins attempted to tie or take the lead. Despite another missed free throw to give UCLA yet another chance at a tie, Campbell missed a wild three to try to extend the game. The Bulldogs will go to the Elite 8 for the fifth time with a chance at their third Final Four under Mark Few. Last night's games did have major implications on our bracket challenge, as our current leader, Trizzy Tre, lost his champion with Tennessee's defeat. Additionally, last year's bracket challenge champion, Back2Back, lost one of his two championship contenders when UCLA went down. Points remaining for all of us continue to shrink as each round passes, so each game is becoming vital to determine who will become this year's Mega March Madness Matchup Monstrosity champion. Only one bracket picked Kansas State to reach the Elite 8, but the East region is now dead for everyone. No one had either Kansas State or Florida Atlantic in their Final Four. The performance in the West region was much better, as two brackets had both Gonzaga and UConn in the regional final, and three others correctly picked one of those teams to make it. Just three brackets still have the potential to get points for their Final Four team from the West. We have four more games to enjoy tonight, but here's our leaderboard after the first half of the Elite 8 has been set: 1. Trizzy Tre (470 points)
2. winning bracket (460 points)
T3. Back2Back (420 points)
T3. Drew (420 points)
5. Swatson (410 points)
6. Disappointing (360 points)
7. Micah's Bracket (300 points)
I'll provide another update tomorrow morning after the second half of the Sweet 16 games are played tonight. Written by Nick Swatson
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