March Madness 2019: Scores, Updated Bracket for Sweet 16 Round of NCAA Tournament

Zion Williamson, Duke Blue Devils
Zion Williamson, #1 of the Duke Blue Devils celebrates with his teammates after defeating the UCF Knights in the second round game of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Colonial Life Arena on March... Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

The first two rounds of the 2019 NCAA Tournament are now in the history books and the field for the Sweet 16 is set.

The four number one seeds have all reached the third round of the tournament but the progress wasn't always as straightforward as expected and there's been no shortage of upsets elsewhere.

So far, March Madness has lived up to its name and there could be even bigger twists to come.

Here's the state of play ahead of the third round.

The #Sweet16!

Duke
Virginia Tech
LSU
Michigan State
Gonzaga
Florida State
Texas Tech
Michigan
Virginia
Oregon
Purdue
Tennessee
North Carolina
Auburn
Houston
Kentucky#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/Clg1wjzgvu

— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 25, 2019

Which teams are still in?

Duke. Just. The number one overall seed left it very, very late against UCF in the second round. Zion Williamson finished with 32 points and 11 rebounds, while R.J. Barrett had 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists as the Blue Devils won 77-76. However, it could have all been so different for Duke, had Aubrey Dawkins not missed a putback attempt with just two seconds left.

Unfortunately for UCF, his shot traveled across the rim before bouncing out handing the Blue Devils, who had comfortably beaten North Dakota State in the first round, a spot in the Sweet 16.

A finish for the ages. 😱#MarchMADNESS | @DukeMBB pic.twitter.com/nxpMH3G2Bz

— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 24, 2019

Fellow number one seeds Gonzaga, North Carolina and Virginia are also in. The Bulldogs got the better of number nine seed Baylor in the second round, prevailing 83-71, and will now face number four seed Florida State.

The Tar Heels dispatched Iona in the first round before hammering Washington 81-59 on Sunday and will play number five seed Auburn. Meanwhile the Cavaliers put last year's first round elimination behind them with wins over Gardner-Webb and Oklahoma.

Virginia will take on number 12 seed Oregon in the Sweet 16, the lowest-ranked team remaining in the tournament. The Ducks upset number five seed Wisconsin in the first round and then beat UC Irvine 73-54 over the weekend.

Meanwhile, Duke will take on number four seed Virginia Tech, which beat UC Irvine in the second round. Michigan State and LSU go head-to-head in the other East Regional matchup, after the Spartans beat Minnesota 70-50 and the Tigers won a nail-biter against Maryland 69-67.

The second and third seeds also cross path in the South Regional and Midwest Regional. Purdue takes on Tennessee in the former, after the Boilermakers trounced defending champions Villanova 87-61, while the Volunteers needed overtime to beat Iowa after blowing a 25-point lead.

In the latter, Kentucky beat Wofford 62-56 and will now face Houston, who overcame Ohio State 74-59.

Any major upsets?

The top four number one seeds are all safe and anyone who picked the Sweet 16 by selecting the first top four seeds in each region got 87.5 percent of their prediction correct.

That said, just one bracket across those compiled on the NCAA's website, ESPN, CBS, Yahoo, FOX and Sports Illustrated remains intact. So, yes, there have been a few upsets.

Number five seed Mississippi State lost to number 12 seed Liberty in the first round, a fate shared by Marquette against Murray State and by Wisconsin against Oregon. Number four seed Kansas State fared even worse, losing to number 13 seed UC Irvine and three number seven seeds—Louisville, Nevada and Cincinnati—fell at the first hurdle.

Kenny Wooten was EVERYWHERE tonight for @OregonMBB!#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/OCz1ZOHaBp

— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 25, 2019

Updated bracket

East RegionalWashington, D.C.

Duke (1) vs Virginia Tech (4)

LSU (3) vs Michigan State (2)

West RegionalAnaheim, California

Gonzaga (1) vs Florida State (4)

Texas Tech (3) vs Michigan (2)

South RegionalLouisville, Kentucky

Virginia (1) vs Oregon (12)

Purdue (3) vs Tennessee (2)

Midwest RegionalKansas City, Missouri

North Carolina (1) vs Auburn (5)

Houston (3) vs Kentucky (2)

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer


Dan Cancian is currently a reporter for Newsweek based in London, England. Prior to joining Newsweek in January 2018, he ... Read more

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