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NCAA Tournament Sweet 16

Mar 25, 2013, 5:37 PM | Updated: 10:45 pm

BY MITCH TERRELL/ARIZONA SPORTS

No. 1 Louisville
Coach Rick Pitino and the Cardinals enter the Sweet 16 on a 12-game winning streak where they've won by an average of nearly 18-points per game. In Louisville's two victories in the NCAA tournament, the Cardinals have won by an average of 28.5 points per game. Junior guard Russ Smith leads all Cardinals in the tournament with 22 points, five steals and two assists per game. Louisville will head to Indianapolis for the Sweet 16 matchup with No. 12 Oregon on Friday at 4:15 p.m.

No. 1 Indiana
The Hoosiers entered the NCAA tournament coming off a big semi-final loss in the Big Ten Tournament to Wisconsin. That didn't faze them, as they pummeled No. 16 James Madison by 21 points in the second round. No. 9 Temple led Indiana at the half, 29-26, but the Hoosiers closed the game on a 10-0 run to win 58-52. Junior guard Victor Oladipo hit a 3-pointer with 14 seconds remaining to seal the deal, and leads the Hoosiers in the tournament with 27 points, 14 rebounds and four assists. Indiana squares off with No. 4 Syracuse on Thursday at 6:45 p.m.

No. 1 Kansas
The Jayhawks are advancing to their 30th Sweet 16 appearance in school history after a 64-57 victory over No. 16 Western Kentucky and a eliminating No. 8 North Carolina, 70-58. Guard Travis Releford has totaled 33 points with 11 rebounds and four steals, while fellow senior teammate Jeff Withey also has 33 points with 22 rebounds and 12 blocks. The two will once again team up to take on No. 4 Michigan on Friday at 4:37 p.m.

No. 2 Miami
For only the second time in school history and first time since 2000, the Hurricanes have reached the Sweet 16. Miami made quick work of No. 15 Pacific, 78-49, before facing off with No. 7 Illinois in round three. The Illini kept the game close the entire game, but the Hurricanes leading scorer, Shane Larkin, hit a late 3-pointer to put Miami ahead for good. The Canes will take on No. 3 Marquette on Thursday at 4:15 p.m.

No. 2 Ohio State
As one of four teams from the Big Ten, the Buckeyes cruised past No. 15 Iona with a 95-70 victory in round two. No. 10 Iowa State gave Ohio State a run for their money in round three before Buckeye point guard Aaron Craft hit a 3-pointer with under a second left in the game to win it, 78-75. But it's been junior forward Deshaun Thomas that's been the Buckeyes leading scorer, putting up 46 points through two games along with eight rebounds. Ohio State faces off with the Wildcats on Thursday at 4:47 p.m.

No. 2 Duke
For the seventh time in the last 10 years, Mike Krzyzewski and Duke advance to the Sweet 16. The Blue Devils cruised through their first two rounds with two consecutive double-digit victories over No. 7 Creighton and No. 15 Albany. Senior point guard Seth Curry is averaging just over 21 points, five rebounds and two steals per game. Duke will take on No. 3 Michigan State Friday night at 6:45 p.m.

No. 3 Florida
The Gators enter their Sweet 16 matchup with No. 15 Florida Gulf Coast coming off of two victories by a total of 46 points over No. 14 Northwestern State and No. 11 Minnesota. Senior forward/center Erik Murphy and redshirt senior guard Mike Rosario lead the Gators with 33 points each. Murphy has 12 rebounds with two steals and assists. The battle for the state of Florida begins at 6:57 p.m. Friday.

No. 3 Michigan State
The Spartans made fine work of their road to the Sweet 16 with a 11-point win over No. 14 Valparaiso and a 22-point blowout of No. 6 Memphis. Tom Izzo's senior forward Derrick Nix has totaled 40 points, 23 rebounds and six steals through those two games. This will be the Spartans' fourth Sweet 16 appearance in the last five seasons. Michigan State will take on No. 2 Duke Friday at 6:45 p.m.

No. 3 Marquette
The Golden Eagles survived their first two games by the skin of their teeth. Marquette took down No. 14 Davidson 59-58 before getting by No. 6 Butler 74-72. Marquette's junior guard Vander Blue has been lighting it up, averaging 22.5 points, two rebounds and 2.5 steals per game. The Golden Eagles will need that same intensity on Thursday night against the Hurricanes at 4:15 p.m.

No. 4 Michigan
After losing three of their last six regular season games, the Wolverines have found a groove in the NCAA tournament. After two wins by an average of 20 points over No. 13 South Dakota State and No. 5 VCU, Michigan will face No. 1 Kansas in their first Sweet 16 in 20 years. Junior guard Tim Hardaway Jr. and freshman forward Glenn Robinson III lead the Wolverines with 35 points each. Their Sweet 16 game against the Jayhawks will be on Friday at 4:37 p.m.

No. 4 Syracuse
The Orange handled business in round two of the NCAA tournament, blowing out No. 13 Montana 81-34 in the tournament's largest margin of victory. Junior forward C.J. Fair then led Syracuse to a 66-60 victory over No. 12 California in the round of 32. Fair has totaled 31 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two steals through the Orange's two victories. In their fourth Sweet 16 appearance in just five years, the Orange will face No. 1 Indiana on Thursday at 6:45 p.m.

No. 6 Arizona
The Wildcats are one of two Pac-12 teams in the Sweet 16 making a run for the national championship. Arizona quieted all doubts of an upset in round two with a 81-64 victory over No. 11 Bellmont. In round three, the Wildcats removed the Cinderella team -- No. 14 Harvard -- from the ball with a 74-51 victory to advance to their third Sweet 16 in five years. Senior guard Mark Lyons has led the Wildcats in both games, averaging 25 points, 2.5 rebounds and two assists per game. Arizona will face Aaron Craft and No. 2 Ohio State on Thursday at 4:47 p.m.

No. 9 Wichita State
The Shockers may have ruined the most brackets of all NCAA tournament teams after their upsets over No. 8 Pittsburgh and No. 1 Gonzaga. Both upsets could be credited to the bench play of junior forward Cleanthony Early, who averaged 18 points, seven rebounds and just over a block through the two games. Wichita State will now face a lower seed in No. 13 La Salle in an abnormal Sweet 16 matchup at 7:17 p.m. on Thursday.

No. 12 Oregon
The Pac-12 Tournament Champions entered the NCAA tournament under-seeded, as No. 5 Oklahoma State got a tough second round draw in the Ducks. After a 13-point upset, Oregon began to earn some respect heading into their matchup with No. 4 Saint Louis. The Ducks blew out the Billikens by 17 points to advance to their third Sweet 16 in 12 years. Freshman guard Damyean Dotson leads the Ducks, averaging 20 points, two rebounds and just over a steal per game. Oregon will have to dig even deeper for an upset to continue the roll they're on, as the Ducks face No. 1 Louisville on Friday at 4:15 p.m.

No. 13 La Salle
As another team wreaking havoc in March, the Explorers have already played -- and won -- a game more than any other team in the tournament. After beating their fellow-No. 13 seed Boise State to make the field of 64, La Salle found a way to upset No. 4 Kansas State and No. 12 Ole Miss by two points in each game. The Explorers are being led by senior point guard Ramon Galloway, who has 64 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists through three rounds of the tournament. The Explorers will face off with No. 9 Wichita State on Thursday night at 7:17 p.m.

No. 15 Florida Gulf Coast
In only their second year with postseason eligibility, FGCU has raised eyebrows and burned brackets. In round two of the NCAA tournament, the Eagles made a statement with a 10-point bracket-buster of No. 2 Georgetown for their first NCAA tournament victory. Two nights later, the Eagles laid another 10-point upset on No. 7 San Diego State, making them the first No. 15 seed to ever advance to the Sweet 16. Sophomore guard Bernard Thompson is leading his team through two games, averaging 23 points, five rebounds and three steals per game. FGCU will take on No. 3 Florida in an in-state battle at Cowboy Stadium on Friday evening at 6:57 p.m.

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