Friday, March 16
Thursday was doomsday for the Big Ten. Friday, it was the ACC's turn. Gonzaga and Butler continued their recent tradition of great play in the NCAA Tournament by sinking favorites Virginia and Wake Forest.

The Big XII hasn't had an easy time of it either. Texas and Oklahoma both went down Friday.

For the second day in a row, the No. 1 seeds made it through with ease, but after that it was anybody's ball game. First-round madness continues ...

MIDWEST REGION
Notre Dame 83, Xavier 71: The Irish played with great balance and were paced in the first half by David Graves and Matt Carroll hitting the threes. They played tough defense and are marching on.

This club is very dangerous going into its game against Ole Miss. If the Irish are shooting well from the perimeter, they stretch the defense, and Mr. Murphy is allowed to do his thing.

Syracuse 79, Hawaii 69: Six hundred wins for Jim Boeheim! It's time they named the court at the Carrier Dome after him.

Damone Brown played very well, and Preston Shumpert was great from the perimeter. The only concern going into a second-round matchup with Kansas is that the Syracuse starters spent an awful lot of time on the court. That lack of depth might hurt against a big Jayhawk team that can also shoot.

Kansas 99, Cal State-Northridge 75: The Jayhawks had a battle on their hands for most of the first half until a 15-0 run broke the game open. It was simply a matter of Kansas' front line being too strong. The trio of Nick Collison, Kenny Gregory and Drew Gooden dominated, combining for 61 points and 28 rebounds. Cal State-Northridge fought hard, but in the end Roy Williams' team was just too strong.

Mississippi 72, Iona 70: This turned out to be a great ballgame that went to the wire. Iona got a tough break when, with a shot to pull the game out, the Gaels lost possession of the ball in the final seconds.

Ole Miss came through thanks to Emanuel Wade. He averages four points a game but stepped up with 19 big ones to lift Rod Barnes' team into the second round. The third seed survived, but it was not easy.

Charlotte 70, Tennessee 63: It was a disappointing ending for the Volunteers, who sprinted to a 16-1 record at the start of the season. Tennessee's inability to shoot the three in the second half was costly. Tony Harris scored just four points and didn't have an assist for 20 minutes.

Charlotte showed great balance with seven players scoring between eight and 12 points.

Tennessee is one of the biggest disappointments of the season, running neck-and-neck with Wake Forest.

Arizona 101, Eastern Illinois 76: Loren Woods and Michael Wright dominated the interior, combining for 34 points. Eastern Illinois did not have an answer to Arizona's physically superior front line.

Arizona moves on to meet Butler, who the Wildcats beat earlier this year 72-60 in Tucson, although the game was close with five minutes left. Gilbert Arenas struggled in that game, but you can bet Arenas will show up to play Sunday. He's been playing as well as any shooting guard in America down the stretch.

Butler 79, Wake Forest 63: What an absolute embarrassment for the ACC and the Demon Deacons. The halftime deficit of 43-10 was humiliating. They shot 3-for-25 against a tenacious Bulldog defense.

Butler had a bunch of kids who flat-out knew they belonged in the field, especially after taking Florida to the wire last year. The Bulldogs got balanced scoring from LaVall Jordan and Thomas Jackson. They led Butler to a huge win for the Midwestern Collegiate Conference.

Illinois 96, Northwestern State 54: This was a total M&Mer -- a mismatch. Illinois has to be excited that Brian Cook bounced back from his recent slump with 15 points. On the interior, Marcus Griffin was sensational. The Illini had balanced defense and just too much talent as they overwhelmed Northwestern State.

The other good news for the Illini was that Cory Bradford found his jump shot. It has been missing in action, baby, but he found it and knocked down four trifectas. They're going to need that from Bradford as they look to their matchup in the next round with Charlotte.

SOUTH REGION
Fresno State 82, California 70: This was a quality win for Tark and the Bulldogs. The team has three home-grown players and one of them, Demetrius Porter, had a sensational game. Chris Jefferies gives Fresno a transition player, Tito Maddox is a solid point guard and Melvin Ely can block shots. Watch out, Michigan State!

Michigan State 69, Alabama State 35: This was a tale of two halves. In the first half Alabama State hung tough going to the locker room down just four points. Imagine what Tom Izzo said at halftime because Alabama State was held to just 10 points in the second half.

Andre Hutson was a perfect 7-for-7 from the floor and solid on the boards. One concern for Izzo's team, Charlie Bell continued his shooting slump being held to seven points. He has to come alive for the Spartans to make a run at their second consecutive title.

Penn State 69, Providence 59: A total team effort for the Nittany Lions again. Give Jerry Dunn's team credit as many people tabbed Providence to win this game.

The Crispins, Joe and Jon, came through in the second half. Remember, Penn State beat two No. 1s (Michigan State and Illinois) and a No. 2 (Kentucky). When this team is on, it can be very dangerous.

Indiana State 70, Oklahoma 68: It was shock city for Kelvin Sampson's team as Indiana State rallied back from a double-digit deficit. For those who overstate the importance of momentum, the Sycamores came into the game 4-6 in their last 10 games. But Royce Waltman's squad came through in overtime.

Matt Renn came through when Michael Menser struggled a bit. Kelley Newton was sensational for the Sooners, but it wasn't enough.

Florida 69, Western Kentucky 56: Give Billy Donovan's team a lot of credit. They've fought through injuries all year long. Udonis Haslem was super in the matchup against 7-foot-1 sophomore Chris Marcus. Brett Nelson also hit some big threes as Florida came back from an 11-point first-half deficit.

Watch out for the Gators. They have enough talent to make a run, though the next game against Temple will be very interesting, with Nelson and Teddy Dupay going against Lynn Greer and Quincy Wadley in the backcourt.

Temple 79, Texas 65: Does anybody doubt that John Chaney, out of the City of Brotherly Love, deserves to be in the Hall of Fame?

Playing with a limited bench, he took on Texas and got a brilliant performance from his backcourt tandem of Lynn Greer and Quincy Wadley. They combined for 45 points, and Greer was a Bo Derek, 10-for-10 from the free-throw line. The Temple matchup zone was really able to shut down Maurice Evans. He was 1-for-9 from behind the arc.

Gonzaga 86, Virginia 85: The Cinderella of two years ago is no longer a Cinderella. The Zags can flat-out play. With Dan Dickau in the lineup, Gonzaga is 19-2. He was sensational with 29 points, and he distributed the rock brilliantly. Casey Calvary scored the winning bucket and had a double-double on the day. He's an underrated star in America.

Virginia got a great effort out of Roger Mason, who knocked down 30, but it wasn't enough as the ACC went down for the second time in the tournament.