Let the Madness Commence! Round of 64, Thursday Back 8

#11 VCU Rams v #6 North Carolina Tarheels

6:50 ET, 5:50 GTZ. TNT.

BoilerUp89: UNC isn't as good as they were when Caleb Wilson was healthy and the Rams are coached by Phil Martelli Jr. VCU will be a popular upset pick - perhaps more than they should be. They've won 11 of their last 12.

Kind of...: I don't know how popular of a pick VCU "should" be, but a line of 2/2.5 points tells you plenty. Pretty close to a tossup, as 6/11 games typically are. I don't think Hubert Davis's seat is super hot, but the returns have been of the diminishing variety lately.

#16 Howard Bison v #1 Michigan Wolverines

7:10 ET, 6:10 GTZ. CBS.

BoilerUp89: Buffalo. Bison. The storylines write themselves.

Kind of...: I think Texas/BYU is likely to be gross, but I bet I'll be switching over to it rather quickly anyway.

#11 Texas Longhorns v #6 BYU Cougars

7:25 ET, 6:25 GTZ. TBS.

BoilerUp89: Texas looked like garbage Tuesday night. BYU had A.J. Dybantsa. This could get ugly.

Kind of...: It's going to be ugly, but maybe ugly in a different way that my colleague thinks. BYU has Dybantsa, but is also 4-5 without Richie Saunders (and 7-10 since a 4-0 start to conference play). Away from a pronounced home court advantage, BYU's best wins were over Clemson and Miami back in Nov/Dec. Game is pretty close to a tossup. Having Dybantas is an advantage, but about 20 years ago, Texas had Kevin Durant, and went out in the first weekend.

#10 Texas A&M Aggies v #7 Saint Mary's Gaels

7:35 ET, 6:35 GTZ. truTV.

BoilerUp89: Old friend Bucky McMillan is back in the tournament. He's no longer at Samford, but his team still plays fast, shoots a lot of threes, and does some hockey substitutions. On the opposite side of the court is notable slow pace St. Mary's. The Gaels were actually fast tempo by their standards this season. They cracked the top 300 for the first time in 10 years.

Kind of...: Yes, the stylistic contrast is notable. From February onward A&M finished 4-7 with Kentucky the only good win. Saint Mary's is their normal solid self, but nothing that screams Sweet 16. This feels like the 3rd place game in a November tournament.

#14 Pennsylvania Quakers v #3 Illinois Fighting Illini

9:25 ET, 8:25 GTZ. TNT.

BoilerUp89: A FRANCON WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUE BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FOR GREENVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA.

Penn has a former 5 star recruit in TJ Power.

Kind of...: Power was unbelievable in the Ivy League tournament, but Harvard and Yale don't have Illinois's size. This should not be close.

#9 SLU Billikens v #8 Georgia Bulldogs

9:45 ET, 8:45 GTZ. CBS.

BoilerUp89: I haven't gotten a beat on Georgia all season. They are a .500ish SEC team. This game comes down to can St. Louis take care of the basketball? They are vulnerable to committing too many turnovers but otherwise they are an excellent offense.

Kind of...: Georgia loves to run and is indifferent about defense. Saint Louis was leaking oil down the stretch, but if they were able to get a bit of a reset, they could pick Georgia apart. As the same time, if the Billikens continue to leak oil and play like they did when GMU beat them by 29, Georgia is good enough to thoroughly embarrass them. Choose-your-own-adventure, SLU.

#14 Kennesaw State Owls v #3 Gonzaga Bulldogs

10:00 ET, 9:00 GTZ. TBS.

BoilerUp89: Go ahead and pencil Gonzaga into the Round of 32. They have won their first tournament game every year since 2008!

Kind of...: Kennesaw State is not the sort of team to break that streak either.

#15 Idaho Vandals v #2 Houston Cougars

10:10 ET, 9:10 GTZ. truTV.

BoilerUp89: Pencil Houston into the Sweet 16. They've made it that far each of the past six tournaments.

Kind of...: Idaho is not the sort of team to break that streak either.