UNITED STATES—Well, March Madness is about to come to an end in about a week, the first week had some epic games, and so did week 2, but if I’m being honest I think week 2 of the NCAA 2026 Tournament might have been more shocking. How so? Well, another #1 seed bit the dust in a thriller of a game, while another #1 seed just dominated its way to the Final Four.
I was heartbroken Friday night to see the Michigan State Spartans lose to UConn by a mere 4 points. They were so cold to start the game and when you are playing a team like UConn you can’t have that happen. So, the Spartans didn’t make the Elite 8 in 2026, as UConn moved forward and we will talk more about them.
Another game that had me scratching my head is Iowa State losing to Tennessee. This game baffled me because Tennessee was a #6 seed, while Iowa State a #2 seed just fumbled. They didn’t play their best, and Tennessee took advantage of them, more on them later. Why? They tackled the Michigan Wolverines, who just dominated both of their games this past weekend. They dominated Alabama, and the game between Tennessee was over after like the first 10 minutes of the first quarter.
Sorry, not to take anything away from the Michigan Wolverines, but the games were not exciting at all to watch. That is the same way I felt about watching Arizona’s games, as they punched their ticket to the Final Four. Now that game between Purdue and Texas was a nailbiter that gave Purdue the edge, by only 2 points. Two bad for Purdue because they found themselves ousted by Arizona by 15 points.
Duke was a #1 seed, but they had trouble with St. John’s just beating the team by a mere 5 points, and that game was close, and a mistake here or there would have given St. John’s the victory. Then they tackle UConn. Here’s the interesting thing about that Elite 8 matchup. Duke was leading the game most of the game. Then in the second half the Huskies starting to claw back and claw back and claw back. To the point that it was literally a 2-point game. With mere seconds left, Duke looked like they were on the way to another Final Four appearance.
Then out of nowhere, instead of holding the ball, gosh what was Cayden Boozer thinking? He threw the ball, that was blocked and UConn took control and Braylon Mullins delivered a 3-pointer that was all that was needed giving them the 1-point lead. Talk about screaming at the TV and not believing what was just witnessed, it was incredible. I loved every minute of it. Just like that Duke is out and UConn is in. So, our final four is set, UConn, Illinois, Arizona and Michigan.
We have 2 #1 seeds going toe-to-toe in Michigan and Arizona, while we have a #3 seeded in Illinois doing battle with #2 seed UConn. Hate to say it, but UConn is looking like the underdog. I think we could potentially see a UConn and Michigan championship game. Is it what I want to see? No? I was hoping for a Duke vs. Michigan re-match, but you don’t always get what you wish in the NCAA Tournament.
