2019 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight: Two Regional Finals Set for Today

Yesterday, the Duke Blue Devils managed to survive again. Their next opponent will be the Michigan State Spartans tomorrow and I think the Spartans will be just too good to allow Duke to scrape by.

Meanwhile, the North Carolina Tar Heels lost to the Auburn Tigers and became the first #1 seed to lose in this year’s tournament. As a result, the Tigers will play the Kentucky Wildcats next. But, that’s for tomorrow.

Let’s talk about today’s Elite Eight games.

In the first game, the Gonzaga Bulldogs face the 3-seed Texas Tech Red Raiders in the West Regional Final this afternoon. The Zags are in the Elite Eight for the third time in five years.

Meanwhile, Chris Beard has the Red Raiders back in the Elite Eight for the second season in a row. While Beard is still only in his fourth season of Division I college basketball, his teams have played well. Back-to-back Elite Eights are the reason that his name has been connected to UCLA’s vacancy.

Ultimately, I think the Zags take this game, but it’s going to be a hard-fought battle.

Today’s second game has Tony Bennett’s Virginia Cavaliers playing the Purdue Boilermakers. If defense wins championships, this game belongs to the Cavaliers, who held Oregon to less than 50 points on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Purdue knocked off Tennessee and scored 99 points while allowing the Vols to put up 94. That sounds reminiscient of Steve Alford’s defensive style and it’s why I think Virginia wins this game.

Here’s today’s broadcast info:

This is your 2019 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight, Day One open thread.


Go Bruins!