Sweet 16 Preview: Power programs ready to rumble as men's March Madness rolls on

Maybe March Madness will arrive late this year.

Or maybe we've just entered a new era of the NCAA men's basketball national championship tournament.

For the second year in a row, upsets in the first full two rounds were just a bit more common than snow in late April in Toronto (it happens, but not often). Also missing in action were, apart from a few exceptions (hello, Maryland buzzer-beater), the wild finishes that tend to define the tournament.

Perhaps the rather predictable nature of the first week is a sign of things to come. With name, image and likeness (NIL) cash becoming more of a factor with each passing year, it feels like the gap between power conferences and mid-majors might get even wider.

"There's still obviously room for upsets. They've had upsets in the tournament. You're going to have upsets every year," said Alabama coach and former Buffalo coach Nate Oats, whose Crimson Tide are in the Sweet 16.

"My guess would be you're still going to have some upsets. But I did see somebody made the point, like, anybody that gets really good at mid-major level, it seems like, there's just a lot more rev share, NIL money up at the higher levels ... I don't know that I would have been able to keep my whole team together at Buffalo in today's day and age."

Despite the lack of upsets, hope is not lost for major drama this year. With 16 proud programs, all from power conferences, still in the bracket, there is real potential for some epic heavyweight clashes.

No. 10 Arkansas — which isn't exactly a trademark plucky underdog — is the only double-digit seed remaining. All four top seeds (Auburn, Duke, Florida and Houston) and three second seeds (Tennessee, Michigan State and Alabama) are still alive heading into tip-off of the Sweet 16 on Thursday night.

And if you want memories of days gone by, numerous mid-major standouts have transferred into programs in the Sweet 16, including three players from the stunning 2023 Florida Atlantic Final Four team — Johnell Davis (Arkansas), Alijah Martin (Florida) and Vladislav Goldin (Michigan)

Here's a look at some of the storylines to follow the next four days as we take the final steps on the road to the Final Four.

Dangerous Duke

Cooper Flagg was easily the marquee player heading into the tournament and will remain that way until Duke either wins the national championship or is eliminated.

But it's becoming clear that getting by Duke will require more than simply holding the presumptive No. 1-overall pick in this year's NBA Draft to reasonable numbers.

The freshman had plenty of help from teammates in the first two games, most notably Australian-born Tyrese Proctor, who led the Blue Devils in scoring in blowout wins over Mount St. Mary's and Baylor.

Freshman Kon Knueppel also was a force in the round of 32 against Baylor, scoring 12 points on four-of-five shooting from the field.

The competition gets stiffer Thursday against No. 4 Arizona. The Wildcats are led by a guy who enjoyed a huge outing against Duke back in the 2022 Final Four.

Caleb Love, then playing for North Carolina, scored 28 points, including a huge three to win it, as the Tar Heels beat the Blue Devils in a showdown between the fierce rivals on the biggest stage in the sport.

Love, who transferred to Arizona before the 2023-24 season, now gets another shot at Duke.

Nice coaching moves

The coaching carousel, as usual, did its fair share of spinning last off-season.

Three coaches who changed places — and are linked — have every right to smile.

Start with John Calipari bolting from Kentucky, where he figured to be set for life, to take the job at Arkansas. After an 0-5 start in the brutally tough Southeastern Conference, the injury-riddled Razorbacks looked like they'd be toast in Calipari's first season. But Arkansas did enough to get in the tournament and pulled off a pair of upsets last week, including Saturday's showdown against fellow glamour coach Rick Pitino and No. 2 St. John's. A date with No. 3 Texas Tech now awaits in San Francisco on Thursday.

Mark Pope filled Calipari's shoes at Kentucky, where expectations are always sky high, after five years at BYU. Pope is also taking his new team to the Sweet 16 after knocking off a talented Illinois squad last week. The third-seeded Wildcats, in the second weekend for the first time since 2019, tangle with No. 2 Tennessee Friday in an all-SEC Sweet 16 fixture. Seven of the conference's record 14 tournament entrants remain in the hunt.

Meanwhile, BYU hired former Phoenix Suns associate coach Kevin Young to take Pope's role. National No. 1 recruit AJ Dybantsa is heading to BYU next season, but the Cougars aren't waiting to make a championship push. BYU battles No. 2 Alabama in the Sweet 16 opener on Thursday in Newark, N.J.

Battle of Michigan?

Atlanta will be Michigan South on Friday as the Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans play separate games in the Sweet 16 in Georgia.

No. 5 Michigan, riding the momentum of a Big Ten tourney win, squares off with No. 1 overall seed Auburn, while coach Tom Izzo will guide the No. 2 Spartans in the Sweet 16 for the 16th time against No. 6 Ole Miss.

If both Michigan and Michigan State win, they'd meet for a Final Four berth on Sunday.

Michigan has orchestrated a tremendous turnaround under first-year coach Dusty May, who took Florida Atlantic to the Final Four in 2023.

May cleaned up Juwan Howard's mess (8-24 last season) to put his team in title contention. Michigan is the only team in the NCAA starting two seven-footers — Danny Wolf and Vladislav Goldin.

Feeling right at home

After losing two-time reigning player of the year Zach Edey of Toronto to the NBA, the Purdue Boilermakers could have taken a step back this season easily in the aftermath of a run to the national final.

While they're not a favourite like the last two years, Purdue is proving to be a scrappy bunch.

With junior veterans Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn taking over the spotlight from the seven-foot-six Edey, Purdue has put itself in a nice spot. The Indiana team, a No. 4 seed, should have the majority of fans on its side in Indianapolis on Friday against No. 1 Houston. It takes a little over an hour to drive from Purdue's campus to Lucas Oil Stadium.

Canadian connection

It's a bit of a down year for Canadians with no players born in Canada advancing to the second week of the men's tournament.

However, a couple of players with Canadian ties could play key roles.

Emanuel Sharp, son of former University of Toronto star and Hamilton native Justine Ellison, is one of the top players on a Houston team that is in the Sweet 16 for the sixth time in a row. The guard averaged 10 points in the first two games of the tournament.

Meanwhile, dual citizen Aden Holloway averaged 8.5 points in Alabama's two victories. Holloway's grandfather is Canadian Football Hall of Famer Dave Raimey.