March Madness takeaways: Chicago Loyola making strong case for Final Four

Because of the nature of the state of the world still very much in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s NCAA Tournament was promised to be one like none other.

And, boy, were they not kidding.

After an unprecedented Rounds of 64 and 32 with upsets galore unless you’re the reincarnation of Nostradamus himself there’s a good chance your bracket’s been completely torn to shreds.

But while that may not help your wallet or any cred you may have with your buddies and/or co-workers you’re in a pool with, it’s made for a remarkably fun, unpredictable tournament that maybe — just maybe — has managed to soften the blow of everyone’s brackets getting decimated over the past four days.

Here are a few takeaways from the tournament’s opening rounds, plus a check-in on the Canadians remaining.

It’s Cinderella’s tournament

As mentioned before, this has been a tournament of upsets so far.

Between the Rounds of 64 and 32, the lower seed won 16 times out of 48 matchups — exactly one-third of the games played. And to make matters even nuttier, four teams — No. 11 UCLA, No. 11 Syracuse, No. 12 Oregon State and No. 15 Oral Roberts — have all made it to the Sweet 16.

The NCAA Tournament is usually advertised as an event where “anything can happen” but rarely does the marketing and reality align. This year, however, Cinderella’s defying the midnight curfew and dancing up a storm all through the night.

Chicago Loyola can ramble on all the way to the Final Four again

Of all the upset darlings that made it to the Sweet 16, Chicago Loyola’s big win over Illinois in the Round of 32 looked to be the most impressive and is good evidence that the Ramblers can once again reach the Final Four after last doing so in 2018.

Chicago Loyola was an under-seeded team heading into the tournament and the possibility of them taking out Illinois was always going to be there because of the smothering defence they play. This season they allowed teams to score just 55.7 points per game, and pretty much shut down the Illini to par, holding them to just 58 points on 44.9 per cent shooting from the field.

Seeing the Ramblers lock up Illinois like that is an encouraging sign they’d be able to do so against just about any other team, and that’s why you shouldn’t be surprised if they make another Final Four appearance.

Cade has faded, but Suggs and Mobley are still destination viewing

One of the downsides of the upsets is the fact that projected No. 1 overall draft pick Cade Cunningham’s college season has come to an end with his Oklahoma State Cowboys falling to Oregon State in the Round of 32.

Cunningham very nearly willed the Cowboys back with some clutch shot-making near the end of their 80-70 defeat, but it just wasn’t to be.

But even though Cunningham is gone, for those interested in the tournament to watch top NBA prospects, there are still two other big names to keep an eye on: Jalen Suggs of No. 1 Gonzaga and Evan Mobley of No. 6 USC.

Both the Zags and Trojans are playing out of the West Region and we could very well see the two teams square off in the Elite Eight, particularly with how well both teams are playing offensively.

It wouldn’t be a duel in the full sense as Suggs and Mobley play different positions, but seeing these two square off with a Final Four berth on the line would be spectacular.

Canadians left in the tournament

When the field of 68 teams was announced, a total of 25 Canadians were taking part of the tournament.

Now, with the Sweet 16 beginning this coming Saturday, that number has whittled down to eight.

The most notable names remaining are Gonzaga’s Andrew Nembhard, Chris Duarte and Eugene Omoruyi on Oregon and Alabama’s Joshua Primo.

Duarte and Omoruyi, in particular, should be destination viewing for fans of Canadian hoops. They’re the Ducks’ two best players and both showed out in their Round-of-32 game against Luka Garza and Iowa, with Duarte scoring 23 points and seven assists while going on 9-of-12 from the floor, and Omoruyi pouring in 17 points, six rebounds and five assists of his own.

Oregon will have a tough matchup against USC in the Sweet 16 in a battle between the Pac-12’s two top teams during the regular season, a matchup that will surely entertain given how familiar the two squads are with each other already.