Day 1 of the second weekend absolutely exceeded the hype, featuring an instant classic that might go down as one of the greatest tournament games ever played. Sure, I was wrong about my MSU pick, but neither team disappointed in a battle that truly could have gone either way. It took an All-Time performance from 5 8’ Point Guard Markquis Nowell, who battled through an ankle injury in his home city to get his Wildcats to the Elite 8. Nowell balled out all night long, and was in complete control of the game setting an NCAA tournament record with 19 dimes.

While 8th seeded Arkansas was absolutely steamrolled by a superior UCONN team, we got our upset with FAU taking down the Tennessee Vols. The Owls overcame a massive size disadvantage up-front and stormed back from a halftime deficit to win convincingly. They certainly belong in this spot, and Saturday's matchup with KSU will be some high-octane, electric Hoops. The nightcap featured another whale of a game between Gonzaga and UCLA. In a back and forth battle, the Zags came up big in the 2nd half behind a monster game from Drew Timme. UCLA established a 13 point lead at one point, but the Zags rallied hard to establish a double digit lead of their own. Mark Few’s group appeared  only to blow a 9 point advantage in the final minute thanks to some horrific free throw shooting. Just as another vintage Gonzaga collapse looked likely, Julian Strawther stepped up and hit a monster three from Curry range to put the Zags back in front for good. The logo three followed by a strip of Tiger Campbell to ice it, send Gonzaga through to set up a high powered. flamethrowing, electrifying matchup with the Connecticut Huskies with a trip to Houston on the line.

If Day 2 can even come close to repeating yesterday’s theatrics, we are in for a treat.