NCAA Tournament 2024: Kansas-Gonzaga, Creighton-Oregon lead best March Madness games today

The first two days of the 2024 NCAA Tournament have been exciting in each region of the bracket. Oakland's thrilling upset of Kentucky in the South region, Duquesne's upset of BYU in the East region, and Oregon's double-digit win over a better ranked and seeded South Carolina squad made for a thrilling start to March Madness.

Saturday's slate of NCAA Tournament games is set with eight matchups spread out over the four regions. Of the eight, here are five that stand out as the best matchups ordered by their starting time:

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No. 4 Kansas vs. No. 5 Gonzaga, 3:15 p.m. ET, CBS

The second game of the day features two of the top-scoring teams from the first round. Kansas put up 93 points in a controversial finish against Samford Thursday. Gonzaga shook off any concern after their loss in the WCC tournament final with an 86-65 blowout against McNeese State.

With Kansas' leading scorer Kevin McCullar Jr. out for the tournament, Jayhawks center Hunter Dickinson stepped up in the first round to the tune of 19 points, 20 rebounds, five assists, and four blocks. He'll be the key for the Jayhawks again against a Gonzaga team that gave up 34 points in the paint to McNeese State.

On the other end, the Bulldogs shot 10-for-21 from three-point range on Thursday. Kansas let Samford shoot 16-of-37 from beyond the arc; that's the most three-pointers the Jayhawks have allowed all season. Two men's college basketball powerhouses meet in a must-watch game.

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No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 9 Michigan State, 5:30 p.m. ET, CBS

Speaking of powerhouses, two programs that've won eight combined NCAA Tournament titles meet in the second round in the West region. Both squads were in control of their first round games; North Carolina pulled away in the second half to win 90-62 over Wagner and Michigan State jumped to an early lead and didn't look back in a 69-51 win over Mississippi State.

The two teams looked dominant to start so this game will be a big test for each side. North Carolina's duo of Armando Bacot and RJ Davis rolled to 42 combined points and Jae'lyn Withers provided a spark off the bench with 16 points and 10 rebounds. On defense, the Tar Heels limited Wagner's seven-player rotation to 39.7% shooting from the field. Michigan State will be a tougher opponent after shooting 50% from the field Thursday - including 10-of-23 from three-point range.

Mississippi State outscored Michigan State 26-24 in the paint in the first round despite the 18-point loss. Bacot is a force down low and will be a challenge for the Spartans and coach Tom Izzo. It's fun to watch two blue bloods face off in March Madness and this game likely won't disappoint.

No. 11 NC State vs. No. 14 Oakland, 7:10 p.m. ET, TBS

Oakland became the darlings of day one after an unlikely upset powered by Jack Gohlke's heroics from beyond the arc. Oakland beat Kentucky 80-76 to win the program's first March Madness game. NC State rode a five-game winning streak to the ACC tournament title and continued that streak with an 80-67 upset win over No. 6 seed Texas Tech.

It's unusual to see two double-digit seeds face off in round two but this should be a fun one featuring two different focuses on offense. Oakland's Gohlke was the spark for his team, making 15-of-31 from outside in the win over Kentucky. NC State's DJ Burns Jr. and Ben Middlebrooks powered the Wolfpack to 42 points in the paint over Texas Tech.

NC State's defense held Texas Tech to one of its worst three-point shooting performances of the season. But can they do that against Oakland? The South region likely won't disappoint with its sole matchup of the day.

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No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 7 Texas, 8:00 p.m. ET, CBS

The Midwest region has a stacked Saturday slate. After Gonzaga-Kansas in the early afternoon, two future SEC foes continue the fun in Charlotte. Both teams won by double digits on Thursday: Texas beat Colorado State 56-44 and Tennessee blew out St. Peter's 83-49.

Texas lived in the paint and on the foul line in the Longhorns' first-round win, going 21-for-41 from two-point range and making 11-of-17 free throws. Tennessee boasted one of the top interior defenses in the country during the regular season, allowing teams to shoot just 44.1% from inside the arc, and kept that up against St. Peter's. The Volunteers held the Peacocks to just 16 points in the paint and 12-of-31 shooting from two-point range.

Tennessee enjoyed one of its best games of the season from three-point range against St. Peter's, going 11-of-24 from deep. Texas held Colorado State to just 6-of-24 shooting from beyond the arc in the first round. If they keep that up against Tennessee, that could even the playing field on offense.

These two teams will get a preview of what's to come starting next season - when Texas joins the SEC -on the best stage of men's college basketball. Count us in.

No. 3 Creighton vs. No. 11 Oregon, 9:40 p.m. ET, TBS

Saturday's action wraps up in the Midwest region with a matchup between the Bluejays and the Ducks. Oregon upset South Carolina 87-73 behind former Gamecock Jermaine Couisnard's 40 points, a school NCAA Tournament record. Creighton pulled away in the second half to beat Akron 77-60 as all five starters scored in double figures.

The Ducks picked a perfect time to set a season-high in field goal percentage, making 59.6% of their shots from the field. Couisnard and center N'Faly Dante led the way in going 16-of-22 from two-point range. But they could run into trouble against the Bluejays' center Ryan Kalkbrenner who's averaging three blocks per game and had that many against Akron.

Creighton's starters scored all of the points in the win over the Zips in the first round. But they did turn the ball over 14 times, the third-most in a game this season. Akron managed just five points off those turnovers but the Ducks will likely take more advantage of that. Oregon scored 11 points off 10 turnovers against South Carolina.

Dante versus Kalkbrenner in the paint and Couisnard versus Creighton's All-Big East guard Baylor Scheierman are the matchups college basketball fans love to see in March Madness. The last game of the Saturday slate should be worth staying up for.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NCAA Tournament: Kansas-Gonzaga top 5 best March Madness games today