NCAA Tournament 2021: Biggest winners and losers through first 2 rounds

Winner – Pac-12

Take a bow Pac-12. After months of mocking and being left behind compared to the rest of the power conferences, this league has shown up in the biggest way in the NCAA Tournament. They had five teams make the dance, including a bid thief in Oregon State who had to win the Pac-12 Tournament just to get in.

They’ve taken complete advantage, beating both Tennessee and Oklahoma State to make it to the Sweet 16. Three other teams from the Pac-12 also made the Sweet 16, including USC, Oregon, and UCLA from the First Four.

Considering that the Big Ten and Big 12, who had a combined 11 teams get a 4 seed or better when the brackets came out, got just two total teams to make it to the second weekend, that just makes things look all the better for the Pac-12, who’ll have at least one team in the Elite 8 with Oregon and USC facing off.

Loser – Iowa Hawkeyes

The biggest concern with the Hawkeyes always was their defense or lack thereof. And that came through in a massive way in the Round of 32 loss to Oregon, giving up 95 points on 56% shooting from the field. The No. 2 seed Hawkeyes was the latest disappointment in the Big Ten this postseason, who was on track for a potential rematch against Gonzaga in the Elite 8.

What makes it even more disappointing is that we saw the last of Luka Garza in NCAA Basketball. The two-time Big Ten Player of the Year and likely 2021 National Player of the Year scored 35 points to lead all scorers, doing everything he could to keep Iowa in the game.

Garza has been one of the most prolific scorers in the modern-day era and every game he’s in is must-see television. So the loss of the Hawkeyes isn’t just bad for them, who likely won’t be as high as a 2 seed again for a long time, but for the rest of us fans as well.