March Madness: 2024 NCAA tournament bracket picks and results

1

Cinderella, Schminderella.

A long shot is not going to win the NCAA men’s basketball championship.

Don’t believe the hype. Don’t be suckered by the song. There is no glass slipper. There is no dancing into the Final Four. One shining moment casts a narrow glow.

As you fill out your brackets, go ahead, inaugurate James Madison, camp out in Grand Canyon, brush hard with Colgate, embrace all kinds of double-digit dreamers throughout the opening weekend.

Feel free to play the annual lock of at least one 12-seed beating a 5-seed, bank on at least half of the nine-seeds beating the eight-seeds, go crazy with one of the play-in winners to stun the world for the opening two rounds.

But end it there. Reserve the next two weeks for the big guys. Ride only the top-four seed heavyweights into the Final Four. Realize that despite all the legend and lore and heart-stirring music, this tourney filled with Davids is ultimately a grab for Goliath.

There have been 38 national champions crowned since the tournament expanded in 1985. Of those, 24 were No. 1 seeds. That’s 63%, a figure that grows to 75% when one considers that 12 of the last 16 champions were No. 1 seeds.

Admittedly, last year, no No. 1 seed even made the Final Four. But it was the first time in a dozen years and only the fourth time in 44 years. A fluke. And look who won — a fourth-seeded team from UConn that was hardly an underdog.

No seed lower than eight — and only three seeds below the top four — have ever won a championship.

When filling out your bracket, use your head, not your heart, and understand that March Madness is really a March from Madness, the tourney growing more predictable by the day.

Based on these truths, my bracket is mostly Cinderella free yet completely un-bustable.

Check it out. Apologies for all the pumpkins.

2

East Regional

Connecticut guard Tristen Newton, left, drives to the basket against DePaul guard Elijah Fisher during a game on Feb. 14.

Connecticut is attempting to become the first team to win consecutive titles since Florida 17 years ago. The tournament’s top seed is missing two stars from last year’s championship but they return the one mandatory piece for a Final Four contender — a veteran point guard. He is Tristen Newton, and he should be able to navigate the Huskies out of potential Auburn trouble in the Sweet 16 and lead them on a seemingly inevitable journey to Glendale, Ariz., and State Farm Stadium for the Final.

Hold up…

The Huskies will lose in the Elite Eight to the quietly elite Iowa State. The second-seeded Cyclones are devoid of superstars, but they have a bunch of solid players who ranked second in the country in defense and who just won the tournament championship of easily the toughest conference in the country, the Big 12. They beat Houston twice, they beat Kansas, and they will beat Connecticut.

First Round

Connecticut def. Stetson — Friday, 11:45 a.m.| CBS

Northwestern def. Florida Atlantic — Friday, 9:15 a.m. | CBS

Alabama Birmingham def. San Diego State — Friday, 10:45 a.m. | TNT

Auburn def. Yale — Friday, 1:15 p.m. | TNT

Brigham Young def. Duquesne — Thursday, 9:40 a.m. | TruTV

Illinois def. Morehead State — Thursday, 9:15 a.m. | TruTV

Washington State def. Drake — Thursday, 7:05 p.m. | TruTV

Iowa State def. South Dakota State — Thursday, 4:35 p.m. | TruTV

Second Round

Connecticut def. Northwestern

Auburn def. Alabama Birmingham

Brigham Young def. Illinois

Iowa State def. Washington State

Sweet 16

Connecticut def. Auburn

Iowa State def. Brigham Young

Elite Eight

Iowa State def. Connecticut

3

West Regional

North Carolina's RJ Davis in-bounds the ball in front of the Duke student section during a game on March 9.

This region, which will finish at Crypto.com Arena, is a battle for redemption.

The top seed is North Carolina, which blew a double-digit lead to Kansas in the championship game two years ago and collapsed last year. The Tar Heels are led by that mandatory star guard — RJ Davis — and they have a strong veteran presence in Armando Bacot, who has seemingly been at UNC for a decade.

On the other side of the bracket is Arizona and, well, West Coast types know all about Arizona. Great talent, loud fans, zero fortitude. The Wildcats lost in the first round in three of their previous five NCAA tournament appearances and were recently knocked out of a Pac-12 tournament they should have dominated. This team, however, has one asset those other teams didn’t — Caleb Love, a North Carolina transfer who almost single-handedly knocked UCLA out of the tournament two years ago. In front of the thousands of Arizona fans who will descend upon downtown Los Angeles, with his sights set on playing in front of a similar crowd in the Final Four, he will deliver the same crushing blow to his former school.

First Round

North Carolina def. Wagner — Thursday, 11:45 a.m. | CBS

Mississippi State def. Michigan State — Thursday, 9:15 a.m. | CBS

Saint Mary’s def. Grand Canyon — Friday, 7:05 p.m. | TruTV

Alabama def. Charleston — Friday, 4:35 p.m. | TruTV

New Mexico def. Clemson — Friday, 12:10 p.m. | TruTV

Baylor def. Colgate — Friday, 9:40 a.m. | TruTV

Nevada def. Dayton — Thursday, 1:30 p.m. | TBS

Arizona def. Long Beach State — Thursday, 11 a.m. | TBS

Second Round

North Carolina def. Mississippi State

Saint Mary’s def. Alabama

Baylor def. New Mexico

Arizona def. Nevada

Sweet 16

North Carolina def. Saint Mary’s

Arizona def. Baylor

Elite Eight

Arizona def. North Carolina

4

South Regional

Houston's Jamal Shead celebrates during a game against Kansas on March 9.

Houston is the deserved top seed here and the beneficiary of the tournament’s easiest path. It is the best defensive team in the nation, leading in both opponents’ points per game and field-goal percentage, and there’s nobody in this bracket who can outscore the Cougars.

The Cougars may struggle with big-rebounding Texas A&M, streaking James Madison, or hot-shooting Kentucky. But for 40 minutes, no other team in the country can match their combination of smart coaching in Kelvin Sampson and savvy playmaking in Jamal Shead.

Oh, and No. 2-seeded Marquette? A nice team, but the Golden Eagles can’t survive the oblique injury that is nagging star Tyler Kolek.

First Round

Houston def. Longwood — Friday, 6:20 p.m. | TNT

Texas A&M def. Nebraska — Friday, 3:50 p.m. | TNT

James Madison def. Wisconsin — Friday, 6:40 p.m. | CBS

Duke def. Vermont — Friday, 4:10 p.m. | CBS

Texas Tech def. N.C. State — Thursday, 6:40 p.m. | CBS

Kentucky def. Oakland — Thursday, 4:10 p.m. | CBS

Colorado def. Florida — Friday, 1:30 p.m. | TBS

Marquette def. Western Kentucky — Friday, 11 a.m. | TBS

Second Round

Houston def. Texas A&M

James Madison def. Duke

Kentucky def. Texas Tech

Marquette def. Boise State/Colorado

Sweet 16

Houston def. James Madison

Kentucky def. Marquette

Elite Eight

Houston def. Kentucky

5

Midwest Regional

FILE - Purdue center Zach Edey (15) sets a pick for guard Braden Smith, left, on Samford guard Dallas Graziani.

Purdue can’t keep collapsing, can it? The Boilermakers have been knocked out by a 13-seed, a15-seed and a 16-seed in each of their last three NCAA tournaments. This year, as a No. 1 seed with giant defending Wooden Award winner Zach Edey in the middle and veterans everywhere, they are surely choke-proof, no?

They are 7-0 against top-25 opponents, Edey leads Division I in scoring, they have the requisite star point guard in Braden Smith and they carry the harsh memories of last season’s landmark first-round loss to 16th-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson.

Remember several years ago when Virginia became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a 16-seed when they were defeated by University of Maryland-Baltimore County? Remember what happened the following year? Yeah, Virginia won the national title, and the same turnaround could be happening with Purdue.

The Boilermakers’ biggest test will come in the Elite Eight against one of the tournament’s most complete teams, a Creighton squad that beat UConn by 19.

Kansas? Too injured. Tennessee? Don’t trust coach Rick Barnes in a big game. Gonzaga? Their run is done.

First round

Purdue def. Grambling State — Friday, 4:25 p.m. | TBS

Utah State def. Texas Christian — Friday, 6:55 p.m. | TBS

McNeese def. Gonzaga — Thursday, 4:25 p.m. | TBS

Kansas def. Samford — Thursday, 6:55 p.m. | TBS

South Carolina def. Oregon — Thursday, 1 p.m. | TNT

Creighton def. Akron — Thursday, 10:30 a.m. | TNT

Texas def. Colorado State — Thursday, 3:50 p.m. | TNT

Tennessee def. St. Peter’s — Thursday, 6:20 p.m. | TNT

Second round

Purdue def. Utah State

Kansas def. McNeese

Creighton def. South Carolina

Tennessee def. Texas

Sweet 16

Purdue def. Kansas

Creighton def. Tennessee

Elite Eight

Purdue def. Creighton

6

Final Four

Arizona guard Caleb Love dunks against Arizona State on Feb. 17.

Houston has the toughness to overcome Purdue’s size, and the defensive ferocity to rattle its veterans. The Cougars constantly force turnovers, and pound the boards for offensive rebounds until those turnovers become points. Edey will be neutralized, and the quicker Cougars will dominate.

With Love and Oumar Ballo and Pelle Larsson, Arizona has a veteran starting core worthy of a spot in the national title game. Iowa State may slow them, but the Cyclones can’t score enough on them, and the Wildcats will use their home-state advantage to roll into the ultimate Monday night.

Houston def. Purdue

Arizona def. Iowa State

7

National Championship

Houston teammates Jamal Shead, left, and J'Wan Roberts celebrate after a win over Cincinnati on Feb. 10.

Houston has spent much of the season as the best team in the best conference with the best player and the best defense. In the final game of the season, even amid a Glendale crowd that will be roaring for Arizona, the Cougars will be the best once more.

Houston def. Arizona | Tiebreaker Score: 70-60