Men’s March Madness Friday takeawaysESPNMultiple AuthorsMar 20, 2026, 07:48 PM ET
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The first round of the 2026 men’s NCAA tournament continues Friday — and we’re tracking how every game was decided.
As every winner’s second-round matchup is set, ESPN’s reporters will also break down each team’s keys for advancing to the Sweet 16.
Go to: Live tracker
(6) Tennessee 78, (11) Miami (Ohio) 56
How Tennessee won: “He missed one. Thank God.” That was a Miami (Ohio) fan’s reaction to a rare misfire by Ja’Kobi Gillespie in Tennessee’s convincing 78-56 win. Gillespie took care of the bulk of the scoring (29 points) and the Volunteers handled their business on the boards (42-25) and on defense, limiting the RedHawks to just 35% shooting. Miami senior guard Peter Suder poured in 27 points, the most since Wally Szczerbiak in 1999, but no one else on the team reached double digits. — Tim McManus
Tennessee’s second-round opponent: Virginia
How the Volunteers can advance to the Sweet 16: Rick Barnes’ team ended Miami (Ohio)’s fairy tale on Friday. They outscored Travis Steele’s squad 40-16 in the paint to advance — and they did it despite projected NBA draft lottery Nate Ament going 0-for-3 in the game. The Vols will need Ament to look more like the player who scored 27 points in an SEC tournament win over Auburn to reach the Sweet 16. Ja’Kobi Gillespie continues to be the glue guy who makes this group soar. If he gets to his spots, Ament plays to his potential and the Vols dominate the offensive glass, they will have the offensive tools they need to win. But nearly 50% of Virginia’s field goal attempts are 3-pointers, and the Cavaliers are a top-10 offensive rebounding team. They can play Tennessee’s game, too. The Vols will have to play it better. — Myron Medcalf
(9) Utah State 86, (8) Villanova 76
How Utah State won: In short: MJ Collins Jr. Down 10 points to Villanova early in the second half, the Aggies did not fold. Instead, they stuck to their game plan, attacked the paint and got to the free throw line over and over (37 times!). They got it back to a tie with 3:56 left and that’s when Collins took over. The senior guard scored nine points as part of a 14-1 Utah State run, including an acrobatic, behind-the-back three-point play, as well as a key steal and dunk that put the exclamation point on the victory. — Paolo Uggetti
Utah State’s second-round opponent: Arizona
How the Aggies can advance to the Sweet 16: The key to Utah State advancing past Arizona, a team with just two losses, will demand another clutch effort from MJ Collins and Mason Falslev — one of the best guard duos in America who combined for 42 points against Villanova. In the second half of Friday’s game, the pair got hot thanks in part because they’re so good off ball screens and backdoor cuts to the basket. They have to find their spots to have a chance against Arizona, too. On defense, there are only two blueprints that offer clues on how to beat Arizona: Kansas refused to relent to Arizona’s bruising frontcourt, and Texas Tech needed a combination of 31 points from JT Toppin and perimeter pressure that held the Wildcats to a 4-for-16 clip from 3. That reported, the Wildcats are diverse, so Utah State will need 6-foot-10 Zach Keller and 6-foot-9 Adlan Elamin to protect the paint. The Aggies will also need their guards to corral an Arizona team that has been hot from beyond the arc in recent weeks. — Myron Medcalf
(4) Alabama 90, (13) Hofstra 70
How Alabama won: Without their second-leading scorer and their best 3-point shooter, Aden Holloway — who was arrested Monday on felony drug charges — the Crimson Tide were forced to rely on sophomore guard Labaron Philon Jr. He responded, putting up 29 points with eight rebounds and seven assists in the 20-point victory. The Pride did not go quietly, though, with freshman guard Preston Edmead putting up 24 points and going 5-of-10 from behind the arc, with four rebounds and four assists. — Jenna Laine
Alabama’s second-round opponent: Texas Tech
How the Crimson Tide can advance to the Sweet 16: Similar to Tech’s keys, Alabama has to win the perimeter battle. The Crimson Tide shoot the ball at an incredible volume from beyond the arc, but are not quite as accurate as the Red Raiders — and the Tide have lost four of the six games in which they have made fewer than 10 3s. Moreover, Alabama’s 3-point defense is far worse than Texas Tech’s 3-point defense. Without Aden Holloway, Alabama has fewer players who can get their own shot off the bounce, making them more reliant on Labaron Philon Jr. to have another big game. As one of the elite playmakers and shotmakers in the sport, Philon is likely up for the task. But he’ll be going against a fellow All-American and first-round pick in Christian Anderson. Who wins that matchup? That’s the key. — Jeff Borzello
(2) Iowa State 108, (15) Tennessee State 74
How Iowa State won: Take your pick from any number of ways that Iowa State rolled Tennessee State. The Cyclones dominated in virtually every category, though the discrepancy on the glass was particularly notable. At one point late in the second half, Iowa State had more offensive rebounds than Tennessee State had defensive rebounds. Another telling stat: Iowa State scored the game’s first 45 bench points. Looking ahead to Sunday’s game against Kentucky, that depth could be the difference given how reliant the Wildcats were on Otega Oweh in their dramatic first-round win. That depth might also be needed if Joshua Jefferson remains out with a left leg injury — he left early in the first half and eventually sat out the rest of the game with a boot. — Ben Baby
Iowa’s State’s second-round opponent: Kentucky
How the Cyclones can advance to the Sweet 16: A miraculous recovery for Joshua Jefferson would help, but his availability is unclear after he was helped to the locker room following a lower leg injury and was later shown in a boot. The Cyclones are 21.8 points per 100 possessions better with Jefferson on the floor, according to CBB Analytics. Even without him, though, Iowa State has enough to beat Kentucky. The Cyclones have the individual perimeter defenders to slow down the trio of Oweh, Collin Chandler and Denzel Aberdeen — particularly Tamin Lipsey and Killyan Toure — and could have success forcing turnovers. Kentucky also doesn’t have an answer for Milan Momcilovic, who has a case to make as the best shooter in the country and stands at 6-foot-8. The Wildcats will likely have to guard him with 6-4 Oweh or 6-5 Chandler, so Momcilovic should have the edge there. Without Jefferson, TJ Otzelberger could opt to go with a smaller lineup that features Momcilovic at the 4, which might create a tougher individual matchup but would also space out the Kentucky defense and remove some of its shot-blockers from the paint. — Jeff Borzello
(3) Virginia 82, (14) Wright State 73
How Virginia won: Virginia escaped a scare and advanced to the second round with a come-from-behind win. Senior guard Jacari White took over down the stretch, scoring 15 of his season-high 26 points in the second half, using his gravitational pull to create easy baskets for his teammates. Those 26 points are the most by a Virginia player in an NCAA tournament game since De’Andre Hunter had 27 in the 2019 championship game against Texas Tech, per ESPN Research. White’s six made 3-pointers also tied London Perrantes (2016 Elite Eight) for most by a Virginia player in an NCAA tournament game. — Tim McManus
Virginia’s second-round opponent: Tennessee
How the Cavaliers can advance to the Sweet 16: This isn’t Tony Bennett’s team anymore. The Cavaliers make it rain from the 3-point line and also score with a rugged game in paint. They’re also a top-25 defense team. They’ll need all of those tools against a Tennessee team that’s No. 1 in the country in offensive rebounding rate. That’s where they’ll have to start — they can’t allow the Vols to dominate with second-chance points — and they’re equipped to do that with top-five defense inside the arc. They’ll also have to limit the touches projected NBA draft lottery pick Nate Ament gets. The fewer opportunities he has to impact the game will matter — Tennessee is 2-3 in its last five games when he shoots nine or fewer shots inside the arc. They also have to pressure Ja’Kobi Gillespie (11 turnovers in last four losses). From there, the 3-point barrage — the Cavaliers made 13 against Wright State — must continue. They probably can’t win without a big game from Thijs De Ridder, but they will struggle if they go cold from the 3-point line. — Myron Medcalf
(1) Arizona 92, (16) Long Island 58
How Arizona won: Arizona’s first-round matchup against 16-seeded Long Island proved to be a tepid warmup for the Wildcats, who dominated every facet of the game on their way to a commanding victory. It’s striking how big they are in person, and they used every bit of their size to their advantage, outrebounding the Sharks 52-31 and scoring 50 points in the paint while adding 10 blocks to boot. Ivan Kharchenkov waltzed his way to a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double while on the perimeter. And freshman Brayden Burries brought the firepower, leading all scorers with 18 points on 4-of-5 shooting from 3. It was the ideal start for a team with hopes (and expectations) for a deep tournament run. — Paolo Uggetti
Arizona’s second-round opponent: Utah State
How the Wildcats can advance to the Sweet 16: Arizona doesn’t have to tweak anything to its gameplan in order to reach its third consecutive Sweet 16. Big 12 Player of the Year Jaden Bradley scored just 7 points against LIU on Friday, and the Wildcats still managed to put up 92 points. If they continue to rely on that depth, they’ll be difficult to stop if Utah State can’t focus on one player; five Arizona players scored at least eight points in the win over Long Island. Plus, this Wildcats team — the same team that has been criticized after making just 33% of their 3-point attempts in Big 12 play — has made 39% of their shots from beyond the arc over their current 10-game winning streak. They’re different now. To stop Utah State’s offense, Arizona will have to defend well against the flurry of ball screens and cuts Jerrod Calhoun’s team uses to put MJ Collins and Mason Falslev in positions to score. The Aggies will probably attack 7-foot-2 Arizona center Motiejus Krivas more than anyone else on those ball screens, and attempt to use their speed to set up big plays for their top guards. Overall, Utah State will need a magical effort to beat Arizona. — Myron Medcalf
(5) Texas Tech 91, (12) Akron 71
How Texas Tech won: Akron closed the gap to four points midway through the second half, but Texas Tech — playing without All-American and Big 12 Player of the Year JT Toppin — shot better than 75% in the second half to run away with it. (Forward LeJuan Watts, who led with six rebounds, also fouled out with under 10 minutes to go.) Freshman guard Jaylen Petty put up a career-best 24 points (5-of-7 from 3), and the Raiders held the Zips’ top-10 scoring offense that had averaged 88.4 points per game during the regular season to just 71 points. — Jenna Laine
Texas Tech’s second-round opponent: Alabama
How the Red Raiders can advance to the Sweet 16: Texas Tech is one of the few teams in America that can keep up with Alabama from the perimeter. While the Crimson Tide lead the country in 3-point attempt rate and made 3-pointers per game, the Red Raiders aren’t far behind — they’re third nationally in 3-point shooting percentage and fifth in made 3-pointers per game. They’ve leaned into it even more heavily since JT Toppin was lost to a season-ending injury, with a 3-point attempt rate above 51% in four of its last five games. At the other end, can Tech keep Labaron Philon Jr. from getting into the lane at will? He is a bit bigger than Christian Anderson, but Donovan Atwell has shown promise as an individual defender and could draw the assignment. — Jeff Borzello
(7) Kentucky 89, (10) Santa Clara 84
How Kentucky won: Add what Otega Oweh did to the list of great performances in Kentucky’s tournament history. Oweh scored a career-high 35 points to send the 7-seed Wildcats to the next round. Oweh’s midcourt prayer that banked through the net at the buzzer sent the game into overtime and helped the Wildcats avoid the upset. Oweh fueled Kentucky’s offense and held off a balanced Santa Clara attack that was led by Elijah Mahi and Allen Graves. Graves thought he had the game winner with two seconds left. But Oweh made sure he and the Wildcats had the last word. — Ben Baby
Kentucky’s second-round opponent: Iowa State
How the Wildcats can advance to the Sweet 16: It starts with taking care of the ball. Iowa State thrives when it can force turnovers and get out in transition for easy baskets. The Cyclones are fourth in the country in defensive turnover percentage and in points off turnovers per game. Kentucky was 12th in the SEC in turnover percentage, although the Wildcats have tightened things up lately, giving it away just 46 times in their last five games. Still, they’ve had issues against teams applying aggressive ball pressure, including against Vanderbilt and Texas A&M, the most turnover-prone defenses in the SEC. They will also need to make shots from the perimeter — they shoot better than 37% from 3 in wins compared to just 29% in losses. Iowa State can guard the 3, but Kentucky’s trio of Otega Oweh, Denzel Aberdeen and Collin Chandler have to get going. — Jeff Borzello
