The first weekend of the 2024 NCAA Tournament is complete and the field has been whittled down to 16 teams. We saw several great individual performances over the last four days as these players fought tooth and nail to keep their team’s national championship hopes alive. So with the first two rounds in the record books, we decided to recognize some of their efforts.
Here is our All-Tournament team ahead of the Sweet 16.
Round 1 and 2 All-Tournament Team
Zach Edey, C, No. 1 Purdue, Midwest Region
Purdue was on a mission to redeem itself after last year’s first-round debacle and did just that with blowout victories over No. 16 Grambling State and No. 8 Utah State. Literally at the center of this domination was Zach Edey, who could not be touched in the paint. The reigning national player of the year put up 30 points and 21 rebounds in round one before delivering 23 and 14 in round two.
We’ll see if he can dominate again when facing No. 5 Gonzaga in the Sweet 16 this Friday.
Jaedon LeDee, F, No. 5 San Diego State, East Region
Jaedon LeDee has been big for San Diego State all year and he was big in the first weekend of the tourney. The senior was a difference maker in their first-round matchup against No. 12 UAB, providing 32 points and eight rebounds. He then followed that up with a 26-point, nine-rebound effort in their blowout win over No. 13 Yale in round two.
What awaits LeDee and the Aztecs is a Thursday night showdown against No. 1 UConn in Boston, a rematch of last year’s national championship game.
DJ Burns, F, No. 11 NC State, South Region
NC State is playing the role of Cinderella this year and the nation has fallen in love with biiiiggg forward D.J. Burns during its magical run through March. The senior put up 16 points against No. 6 Texas Tech in the first round before stepping up with 24 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists in their overtime victory over No. 14 Oakland in round two.
Burns and the Wolfpack will have a chance to create further chaos when matching up against No. 2 Marquette on Friday.
Mark Sears, G, No. 4 Alabama, West Region
Alabama is heading to its third Sweet 16 in four seasons and Mark Sears played a vital role in making that happen over the weekend. The senior point guard dropped 30 on No. 14 Charleston in the first round before doing a little bit of everything against No. 12 Grand Canyon in round two, delivering 26 points, 12 rebounds, six assists, and three steals.
Sears and the Tide will get No. 2 North Carolina in L.A. this Thursday and that should be a fun battle to watch.
Jermaine Couisnard, G, No. 11 Oregon, Midwest Region
Oregon was not able to make it out of the first weekend, but we had to give a shoutout to Jermaine Couisnard here. The fifth-year senior was a scoring machine for the Ducks, dropping 40 against No. 6 South Carolina in round one before delivering 32 in their second-round double overtime loss to No. 3 Creighton on Saturday. Salute to him.
Sixth Man
Jack Gohlke, G, No. 14 Oakland, South Region
We would be remiss if we didn’t mention Jack Gohlke, who became an overnight star during the first weekend of the tourney. He come off the bench and fired off 10 threes in their round-one upset of No. 3 Kentucky, coming up just one short of tying the NCAA Tournament record for most threes in a game. He was effective from downtown once again in their second-round overtime loss to NC State, burying six from downtown.
Oakland did not advance to the Sweet 16, but Gohlke’s performance will be one of primary things that we’ll remember about this year’s tournament.