March Madness: The biggest winners and losers of the Sweet 16 and Elite 8

Pauline Vu
·Senior Reporter
·4 min read
18

After an eventful Sweet 16 and Elite Eight, here are the highlights and lowlights of the last two rounds in the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

For only the second time ever, all four top seeds — Auburn, Duke, Florida and Houston — won their regions to advance to the Final Four, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished since 2008. And they all beat 2nd- and 3rd-seeded teams to get there. This just wasn’t the year for Cinderellas.

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The Blue Devils had a dominant performance in the East regional, easily cutting through opponents en route to the Final Four. In their Elite Eight game, they shredded No. 2 Alabama's top-ranked offense to win by 20 points, 85-65, despite an off-night by freshman sensation Cooper Flagg. Duke is a favorite to win the national championship.

Cooper Flagg #2 of the Duke Blue Devils reacts after scoring a three point basket to end the first half against the Arizona Wildcats in the East Regional Sweet Sixteen round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Prudential Center on March 27, 2025 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Cooper Flagg #2 of the Duke Blue Devils reacts after scoring a three point basket to end the first half against the Arizona Wildcats in the East Regional Sweet Sixteen round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Prudential Center on March 27, 2025 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

Out of all the No. 1 seeds, Houston had the most difficult road to the Final Four. After beating No. 16 SIU Edwardsville, the Cougars faced a tough No. 8 Gonzaga squad that almost tied the game in the final seconds, and then edged No. 4 Purdue 62-60 before beating No. 2 Tennessee 69-50 in the Elite Eight. But Houston will be rewarded with near-home game advantage when the Final Four takes place in San Antonio.

J'Wan Roberts #13 and Ja'Vier Francis #5 of the Houston Cougars celebrate after defeating the Tennessee Volunteers 69-60 in the Midwest Regional Elite Eight round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 30, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
J'Wan Roberts #13 and Ja'Vier Francis #5 of the Houston Cougars celebrate after defeating the Tennessee Volunteers 69-60 in the Midwest Regional Elite Eight round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 30, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

While No. 6 Ole Miss fell to No. 2 Michigan State 73-70 in the Sweet 16 on Friday, Pedulla scored 24 of the Rebels’ points, while the rest of his team combined for 46 points. It was only the second time that Ole Miss reached the Sweet 16, and Pedulla shined.

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The No. 2 Volunteers lost 69-50 to No. 1 seed Houston in the Elite Eight, giving them a dubious new distinction: Tennessee is now tied with Xavier for the school with the most NCAA tournament wins (31) without a Final Four appearance

Trey Kaufman-Renn #4 of the Purdue Boilermakers is dejected after the last second loss to the Houston Cougars at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 28, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Trey Kaufman-Renn #4 of the Purdue Boilermakers is dejected after the last second loss to the Houston Cougars at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 28, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

The No. 4 Boilermakers were so close to forcing overtime against No. 1 Houston in their Elite Eight game on Saturday. Purdue’s Camden Heide hit a game-tying 3-pointer with 35 seconds left. They seemed to have the momentum.

But with 2.8 seconds left on the clock, Houston got the out-of-bounds call under its own basket. Point guard Milos Uzan inbounded the ball to Joseph Tugler, who passed it right back to Uzan — as Purdue defenders had left the inbounder uncovered. Thank to the Boilermakers' mistake, Uzan’s bucket in the final second ended up being Houston’s game-winning shot.

Just last week we named Calipari a winner for helping his team upset No. 2 St. John’s. But the No. 10 Razorbacks blew a 13-point lead with less than 5 minutes remaining in their Sweet 16 game against No. 3 Texas Tech on Thursday. In overtime, Tech took a 85-83 lead with 7.3 seconds left, and Calipari controversially opted not to use his final timeout to set up a play. Instead, his team went on offense and guard DJ Wagner’s final jumper went off the rim, ending the Razorbacks' season.

Despite being one of the power conferences, the Big Ten failed to get a team to the Final Four for the fourth time in the last five tournaments, and a Big Ten team hasn’t won the national championship since 2000, when Michigan State did it. Compare that to the SEC, which got 14 teams into the tournament, seven into the Sweet 16, and has two in the Final Four (Auburn and Florida).

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