We were so close. Purdue had Houston tied up in the final seconds before the inbounds play heard all ’round Texas and completely missed by the team from Indiana. Arkansas led Texas Tech by 13 points late. Michigan led Auburn 48-39 in the second half. Ole Miss led Michigan State 48-39 in the second half. Arizona even pushed Duke, kind of.
We were so close. So close to not having the most excellent outcome possible.
And if we have trouble agreeing that’s what this — a men’s NCAA Tournament Elite Eight with a No. 1 vs. a No. 2, a No. 1 vs. a No. 2, a No. 1 vs. a No. 2 and a No. 1 vs. a No. 3 — is, then I’m going to need someone to show me the other sports in the world where the best teams playing each other at the most important times is a problem.
The best TV ratings in more than 30 years for the first weekend, with more good news for the NCAA and its television partners likely forthcoming, would suggest these are the loud complaints of a few.
That doesn’t invalidate complaints or concerns. The transfer portal. No Cinderella at a time when mid-majors don’t have the funds to keep their best players. Bloated leagues. Stupid talk of expanding the tournament. Greed, shortsightedness, coaches feeling it’s their right to swear in the sacred media area known as the tunnel. All the things, all valid.
But come on already. The Sweet 16 made up for a first weekend that came up short on classic games with Texas Tech somehow managing to beat Arkansas in overtime; the Cougars pulling off a nifty-if-too-easy inbounds play to stun the Boilers; Michigan State and Auburn roaring back to repel upset bids; and spectacular performances, from Cooper Flagg’s methodical dissection of the Wildcats, to Mark Sears hitting 10 of Alabama’s record 25 3-pointers on BYU, to Tennessee catalyst Zakai Zeigler’s 18-point, 10-assist dismissal of rival Kentucky.
NO WAY 🤯
HOUSTON TAKES THE LEAD IN THE FINAL SECOND 😱 #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/L2wCPQ34gD
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 29, 2025
And the Elite Eight is simply the best of the best, going at each other for the top prize. It’s eight of the top nine teams in KenPom (Gonzaga being the exception) still playing. It’s tied for the lowest seed total (adding the seed numbers together) since seeding began in 1979. The total of 13 matches the 2007 tournament — the same year development began on Tim Burton’s depiction of what used to be the world’s most famous portal, the one in “Alice in Wonderland.”
Maybe someone should send some flowers to the selection committee. Have we forgiven them for North Carolina?
You’ve got East No. 1 Duke and No. 2 Alabama, the most fearsome team still playing — not just because of Flagg — against the fastest, long-bomb-launchingest bunch since the St. Louis Rams’ “Greatest Show on Turf.”
You’ve got Midwest No. 1 Houston and No. 2 Tennessee, which might look like a different sport than Duke and Alabama, because the over/under on points in this game and pints of blood needed for the combatants afterward are in the same range.
You’ve got West No. 1 Florida and No. 3 Texas Tech. There’s our Cinderella. A freaking No. 3 seed. The way the Gators can cook makes you wonder if this is the one that ends up forgettable. But that would be forgetting what Grant McCasland’s Red Raiders just did, and have done all year, and do because they are so freaking tough.
You’ve got South No. 1 Auburn and No. 2 Michigan State, a delightful matchup of the champions of the SEC and the Big Ten. It’s an opportunity for Bruce Pearl to get back at Tom Izzo for losing to him 15 years ago with a chance to take Tennessee to the Final Four. It’s an opportunity for each of them to reach the Final Four for the first time since 2019.
And it brings a theme to mind. More specifically, Pearl did, jumping around and yelling with his players during the CBS postgame interview after winding up with a 78-65 win over Michigan. It was all chaos, no formalities. It ended with the bunch of them chanting: “SEC! SEC! SEC!”
Did anyone else see Rodney Dangerfield in that moment? If you’ve enjoyed the 1980 comedy “Caddyshack,” in which Dangerfield plays a developer named Al Czervik who tries to horn his way into an exclusive golf club and at one point blasts a Journey song out of the stereo implanted in his golf bag and yells, “Let’s dance!” while everyone on the fairway dances, then you know exactly what I’m talking about.
If not, it’s not important. Just think new money vs. old money. And check the matchups again. Duke with its 25 Elite Eights, 17 Final Fours and five national championships against Alabama with its three, one and zero. Nate Oats has two of the Elite Eights and the one Final Four, last year.
Michigan State has 15 Elite Eights, 10 Final Fours and two national championships. Auburn, like rival Alabama, has three, one and zero. Pearl, like Oats, has two of the Elite Eights and the only Final Four.
Florida’s next in line after Duke and Michigan State with 10 Elite Eights, five Final Fours and those back-to-back national titles in 2006 and 2007 under Billy Donovan. Texas Tech has three Elite Eights, all since 2018, and one Final Four.
Even Houston can boast eight Elite Eights, two now under Kelvin Sampson, with six Final Fours — one for Sampson, five for the late Guy Lewis, whose incredible Phi Slamma Jamma teams should have won at least one championship. Tennessee has three Elite Eights, the aforementioned 2010 run under Pearl, and two in a row now under Rick Barnes. No Final Fours.
Now all we need Sunday is an extra-long replay review in Atlanta so Izzo can put his hands on his hips and bark at the officials: “Well … we’re waiting!”
Three of those party crashers come from the same place, of course. The SEC continues to back up its historically dominant regular season in the tournament. After placing a record seven teams in the Sweet 16, it has matched the 2009 Big East and 2016 ACC by claiming half of the Elite Eight.
But those leagues did not have one team in every game, as the SEC does this year. San Antonio and the Final Four might actually be the site of an SEC Tournament semifinals do-over, except with the matchups switched — it would be Florida vs. Auburn and Tennessee vs. Alabama in the national semifinals.
Perish the thought, SEC haters. And forget Al Czervik. May as well go all Ricky Bobby and enjoy this basketball feast with some KFC and Taco Bell.
(Photo of Bruce Pearl and Auburn: Brett Davis / Imagn Images)