NCAA Tournament favorites took a beating Sunday, as high seeds were beaten four times in eight games ahead of the Sweet 16, with a number of other games going down to the wire. North Carolina trailed No. 7 Washington in the first half of their game before coming back to win by a score of 86-83; Duke beat No. 8 Michigan 73-71. Illinois, unfortunately, could not get in sync with the stereotypically March Madness atmosphere, losing to favored Kansas by a score of 73-59, including a 40-30 second half. I can only imagine this is a painful NCAA Bracket Update for some, but I have no choice but to continue. Keep your red pens handy.
No. 11 VCU had the most decisive victory of the night, scoring 52 in the second half to take a game against No. 3 Purdue 94-76. Fellow 11 Marquette topped another number three, stopping Syracuse 66-62. And Florida State stopped No. 2 Notre Dame cold, allowing just 23 points in the first half on the way to a 71-57 victory.
Three number one seeds remain alive and well in the Sweet 16, but the Southwest regional is down to just one single-digit team out of four, with Richmond, VCU, and Florida State still around. That could be good news for Kansas, or it could be the part in the zombie movie where the strongest guy realizes he's run out of bullets and is overrun by the horde.