Game of the day
No. 2 Memphis vs. No. 3 Missouri
West Regional, 7:37 p.m., KCNC-4: Missouri thrives by forcing turnovers and scoring in transition. Mizzou struggles in a half-court game. Missouri has good depth, with nine guys averaging at least 12 minutes, so it will press all game. Memphis, a good rebounding team, has six players who are at least 6-feet-6 and play double-digit minutes. Memphis is shooting just 32.9 percent this season from 3-point range, but has been on fire (21-of-47, 44.7 percent) in the tournament.
Also
WEST REGIONAL
No. 1 Connecticut No. 5 Purdue
5:07 p.m., KCNC-4: UConn will look to push the pace against the Boilermakers, who don’t have the firepower to hang with the Huskies if the game gets into the mid-70s. UConn also will look to use its frontcourt depth against the smallish Boilermakers. Purdue has no chance if it’s simply shooting jumpers, though the Boilermakers do have guys who can hit 3-pointers.
EAST REGIONAL
No. 1 Pittsburgh vs. No. 4 Xavier
5:27 p.m.: This will be a grind-it-out affair with a lot of banging and bumping in the paint. Xavier would rather the game finish in the 60s; Pitt wants it at least in the low 70s. Pitt was 2-3 when scoring fewer than 70 points this season, and Xavier allows just 61.9 points per game. Pitt’s starting frontcourt of DeJuan Blair, Sam Young and Tyrell Biggs is large and physical, but there are no big guys on the bench. Xavier has better frontcourt depth.
No. 2 Duke vs. No. 3 Villanova
7:57 p.m.: Both teams like to score in transition, but each can run half-court sets. Duke has had trouble against penetrating guards, and in Scottie Reynolds and reserve Corey Fisher, the Wildcats have two distributors who can get into the lane. The insertion of freshman guard Elliot Williams into the starting lineup has improved Duke’s defense, but Villanova’s guards — on the whole — are quicker. The inside matchup between Duke’s Kyle Singler and Villanova’s underrated Dante Cunningham, left, will be a good one.
Mike Huguenin, Yahoo! Sports
