March Madness Updates

Image courtesy of the NCAA Final Four Twitter Account

By Noelia Veras

March Madness is a staple in the American sports industry. For many, this is a time of heartbreak, but for lucky fans, this can also be a time to actually feel fulfilled in sports betting. Unsurprisingly, March Madness has been quite a thrill for college basketball lovers.

This past weekend some exciting and decisive games took place between the Sweet Sixteen, deciding which teams were part of the Elite Eight. 

The teams that have advanced to this next round were Baylor University, The University of Arkansas, Oregon State University, The University of Houston, Gonzaga University, The University of Southern California (USC), The University of Michigan, and The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

On Saturday, the Southern teams that went head to head were Baylor and Villanova as well as Arkansas and tournament underdog Oral Roberts. Baylor took the win with 61-52, while Arkansas won 72-70.

The Midwest teams also played Saturday: Loyola Chicago played Oregon State and Syracuse competed with Houston. Oregon State won 65-58 and Houston won 62-46. 

On Sunday, the Western teams played, as Gonzaga went up against Creighton and USC played the University of Oregon. Frontrunner Gonzaga defeated The Creighton Bluejays 83-65, and USC beat the University of Oregon 82-68.

Eastern teams also played Sunday, with Michigan going head to head against Florida State and UCLA later playing Alabama. Michigan defeated Florida 76-58, while UCLA defeated Alabama 88-78.

This year’s Elite Eight comes as a shock to many, however. According to an article from the NCAA, six of the coaches of these teams had never even been a part of the Final Four in all of their careers. For many teams it has been a long time since they too have been in the Final Four. According to the same article, Baylor’s last time in the Final Four was in 1950; for USC it was 1954, and for Oregon State it was 1963, for Houston it was 1984, and for Arkansas it was 1995. Therefore, only Michigan, UCLA, and Gonzaga have been in the Final Four within the past 25 years, but none of those teams won.

During this past week, the games that took place decided which teams would reign as the top four. The Final Four are Baylor, Houston, UCLA, and Gonzaga.

Currently, many believe that Gonzaga is the clear winner because the team has had an undefeated record so far.