We are more than halfway through the 2024 NCAA Tournament in terms of games played, as from 68 teams we are down to 32. So let’s take a look at what we’ve seen so far as we enter the Second Round of March Madness beginning on Saturday, March 23.
Top seeds dominate
We did not have a massive 16>1 or 15>2 upset this year as all No. 1 and No. 2 seeds advanced to the Round of 32. All of these teams won their respective games by double digits, with the biggest victory being Houston’s 86-46 pummeling of Longwood on Friday.
We’ll see if any of these top seeds get bounced over the weekend. Or if we’re in for a chalky tournament the rest of the way.
Cinderellas
While the top teams did dominate, we did have a few double-digit mid-majors who broke through into round two. That list includes No. 11 Duquesne, No. 12 James Madison, No. 13 Yale, and No. 14 Oakland, all of whom pulled off big upsets to advance in the bracket. If you want to extend the Cinderella tag out to power conference teams, No. 10 Colorado, No. 11 Oregon, and No. 11 NC State also kept their respective seasons alive by pulling off upsets.
Keep an eye out for these squads as they try to ruin more brackets.
The Pac-12… is not dead yet!
The Pac-12 was incredibly mediocre in its final season, but still managed to get four teams into the NCAA Tournament. As of now, all four teams are still dancing into round two. Arizona, Washington State, Colorado, and Oregon all won their respective first-round contests to advance in the tournament
This is a nice development as the league is going out swinging on a national stage like it did in football last fall. Wazzu and Oregon State in particular are loving this run, as both schools will split $2 million units for each Pac-12 victory in the Big Dance.
The SEC underwhelms
The SEC had a less than ideal showing through the first two days of the tournament, going 3-5 as a conference in the first round. On Thursday, Kentucky once again suffered an embarrassing first-round loss, this time against Oakland. On Friday, it was Auburn that was stunned when falling in a two-point loss to Yale. Tennessee, Texas A&M, and Alabama were the only teams from the conference to advance as they each opened the tourney with their own blowout victories.
Hey Greg Sankey, if you’re going to shamelessly stump for more power conference teams in the NCAA Tournament, make sure your own teams are handling their business on the big stage.
The MWC struggles
The Mountain West Conference was the best mid-major league in the nation this season, but man did they eat it first round. Out of the six teams that made the cut, only San Diego State and Utah State were able to make it throug. Boise State, Colorado State, Nevada, and New Mexico all saw their respective seasons come to an end through the first two days of the tourney.
The MWC falling on its face in the first round has become a yearly trend, as no team besides SDSU has gotten past the first round since Nevada in 2018. So once again they’ll look to the Aztecs to carry the banner for the league. We’ll have to wait until next year to see if more teams can make it into round two and beyond.
Are the refs even watching? Where’s all the foul calls?
The NCAA Tournament used to be a goldmine for over bettors, particularly in the early rounds when the whistles came fast and furious as the stripes tried to set a tone. But that has changed in recent years, with a huge tick down in last season’s tournament.
Though we’ve seen plenty of contact that isn’t getting called, and players like DJ Burns frustrated with the inconsistency on the low block, the whistles overall so far this season are up a bit this season. And that’s despite the amount of contact allowed near the rim appearing to be higher than ever.
Total personal fouls called in NCAA Tournament First Round
2024: 32.8 per game
2023: 30.9 per game
2022: 32.6 per game
2021: 32.5 per game
2020: No Tournament
2019: 32.8 per game
2018: 35.9 per game
2017: 35.1 per game
2016: 37.1 per game
The officials certainly don’t have an easy job. And when they’re determining the outcome of games due to terrible calls late, that’s always bad for the sport. But they are actually calling more fouls than previously, and with teams playing defense as physically as ever, it looks like things have ticked back up from last year’s nadir.
