NCAA Tournament: Top 3 first round matchups of March Madness

March Madness is here with the official release of the NCAA Tournament bracket on Sunday night. With how incredible this season has been, we should be in store for another great tournament. As expected, the top seeds were given to Duke, Arizona, Michigan, and Florida in a bracket that appears top-heavy but still features plenty of teams that can make some noise.

It’s always fun to look ahead at potential future matchups in the bracket, but those games often never even happen. The first two days of the tournament always produce the most excitement with incredible games and entertainment during what is one of the best days of the sports year. With that in mind, here are the three best matchups in the first round of March Madness.

8. Ohio State vs 9. TCU

The 8/9 games always produce great matchups, and that’s certainly the case here with the first tip off in the Round of 64. These are two teams that not long ago were on the wrong side of the bubble but played their best basketball late in the season and worked their way up to the eight and nine seed lines.

The Buckeyes are back in the tournament for the first time since 2022 and have the guard play you like to see in March with Bruce Thornton and John Mobley Jr. On the other side, TCU has the tournament coaching experience with Jamie Dixon and prefers to use its size to its advantage, which could present problems for Ohio State.

These feel like the top 8/9 seeds that any 1 seed would not want to see in the second round and the winner of this will meet No. 1 overall Duke.

6. Louisville vs 11. South Florida

These are two teams that love to get out and run, with both ranking in the top 20 in points per game this season. Louisville is an extremely guard-led team that has experienced its fair share of ups and downs throughout the year. The Cardinals have been without star freshman Mikel Brown Jr. for the last four games, but signs are pointing toward him returning for the tournament.

USF enters as winners of 11 straight games and champions of the American Conference. However, the Bulls don’t look like your typical mid-major team. They have great size and length, along with a head coach in Bryan Hodgson who is a fast-rising star from the Nate Oats coaching tree and will likely soon be leading a power-conference program. One player to watch for the Bulls is guard and Division II transfer Wes Enis, who is a major impact player on both ends of the floor. He’s the type of player who could become a star and a household name during this tournament

The Bulls will likely be a trendy upset pick against the Cardinals as Pat Kelsey searches for his first ever NCAA Tournament win, and with the second highest total of the first round at 165.5, expect plenty of fireworks on the offensive end in this matchup.

7. Kentucky vs 10. Santa Clara

This is a great matchup that may look like a David vs Goliath in terms of program history and resources, but it should be a very competitive game on the court. Kentucky had an extremely disappointing season in terms of the talent they brought in and the money spent on the roster this offseason. As a result, the pressure is on for head coach Mark Pope to make a run in this tournament before a potential do-or-die season next year.

Standing in their way is a Santa Clara team making its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 30 years, thanks in large part to two big wins over WCC foe Saint Mary’s. The difference in spending between Kentucky and Santa Clara’s roster is likely enormous, but the Broncos have a solid core of players who have spent multiple years in the program. Herb Sendek’s team has an extremely efficient offense and one of the top defenses in the country when it comes to forcing turnovers and creating steals. 

An interesting note is that this will be the first game of Friday’s slate, making it a 9:15 a.m. local tip for Santa Clara. The Broncos will need to avoid a slow start against a Kentucky team that can be extremely dangerous when playing at its best.