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Predicting the Sweet 16 games, including Texas vs Xavier

joey hickey
·4 min read
12

The second weekend of the NCAA Tournament begins Thursday. For the first time since 2008, the Texas Longhorns are participants. The Longhorns reunite with a familiar Sweet 16 foe on Friday night.

Texas faces the Xavier Musketeers who sent Rick Barnes and company home for the 2004 NCAA Tournament. Since the game, Xavier has been a mainstay in college basketball across multiple head coaching hires. The Longhorns are looking to join them as consistent contenders.

Rodney Terry has done well to avoid the minefields that have presented themselves for fellow top seeds. Purdue, Kansas, Marquette and Arizona have already been eliminated as Top 2 seeds. Their absences increase the likelihood that Texas could win it all. They’ll have to get past a difficult test in Xavier to get there.

Here’s a look at how the next round could unfold.

Kansas State 75, Michigan State 72

No. 3 Kansas State and No. 7 Michigan State meet in a heavyweight clash to kick off the round of 16. K-State head coach Jerome Tang brings ingenuity to combat Tom Izzo’s experience and Tournament track record. Ultimately, Kansas State is the better team. Wildcats win a wire-to-wire battle.

Arkansas 70, UCONN 66

For the third straight season, Arkansas is still playing in the Sweet 16. Eric Musselman has the Razorbacks playing well at the right time. They continue their run of good play after wins over Kansas and Illinois.

Tennessee 60, Florida Atlantic 52

Tennessee Volunteers head coach Rick Barnes’ defense suffocated the Duke offensive attack. FAU doesn’t have the greatest speed or athleticism. It could be difficult for Florida Atlantic to get baskets. The Volunteers capitalize.

Gonzaga 76, UCLA 75

In what could be a back and forth battle, I’ll count on the best player winning the game. That player could be Drew Timme. Gonzaga pushes toward yet another Final Four berth.

Alabama 85, San Diego State 74

I’m afraid Alabama is simply too good to lose this game if they show up prepared and bring a strong performance. Alabama wins by multiple baskets.

Houston 87, Miami 81

Miami may pull off an upset, but Houston is due to play better basketball. I think Houston could put everything together on Friday.

Creighton 78, Princeton 68

Princeton’s luck is likely to run out at some point. This time they don’t keep up with Creighton’s offensive attack.

Texas 80, Xavier 71

This Texas basketball team is special. Rodney Terry proved he has what it takes to keep the team afloat when it doesn’t have its best game. Texas lost to Xavier 79-71 in the 2004 Sweet 16. Texas one-ups that performance with a 80-71 win.

Story originally appeared on Longhorns Wire