NCAA Tournament 2019: Ranking the upcoming Sweet 16 matchups

The opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament is complete and we are down to 16 teams. Which Sweet 16 matchups have the potential to be the most exciting?

Now that opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament is complete, there are 16 teams remaining in the running for the national title. And considering there were not many upsets in the first two rounds, almost all of the initial favorites to cut down the final nets are still alive. This includes every team on the No. 1, 2, and 3 seeds as well as the scorching hot Oregon Ducks and Auburn Tigers. Because of this, every single team seems like a legitimate threat to win the entire tournament and the second weekend of the Big Dance should be absolutely incredible.

On Thursday and Friday of this week, there will be eight absolutely incredible matchups featuring these elite teams. And while every single game has the potential to be the best of the entire tournament, I tried to break down which of the matchups will be the most exciting of the opening weekend. With regards to the criteria involved in this piece, I attempt to put into perspective what fans are looking for in each game. This means that I put a little extra emphasis on those games that have the potential to be close (obviously), high-scoring, fast-paced, and engaging with several storylines.

So, without any further ado, let’s dive into ranking the eight Sweet 16 matchups that are approaching in the next few days. Each of these has the potential to be special and I can’t wait to get into watching these elite teams battle it out for the chance to reach the Final Four by the end of the weekend.