March Madness: NC State’s Cinderella run highlights Sunday action of Elite 8
The Elite 8 round of the NCAA Tournament is here and Mackenzie Salmon previews Sunday’s slate of games.
Men’s March Madness continued Sunday with the final slate of Elite Eight games, and now the Final Four is set.
In the first of two matchups, Zach Edey and No. 1 seed Purdue faced off against No. 2 seed Tennessee. Purdue pulled away late in the second half to beat the Volunteers 72-66, and the Boilermakers advanced to their first Final Four since 1980 and just the third in school history.
In the final Elite Eight game of the tournament, No. 11 seed North Carolina State continued the magical run that began in the ACC Tournament. The Wolfpack dominated the second half rival against Duke behind big man D.J. Burns Jr. to defeat the No. 4 seeded Blue Devils 76-64. With the win, NC State advanced to its first Final Four since winning it all in 1983.
USA TODAY Sports recaps today’s games, providing the latest news, scores, analysis and more all day. Follow along.
No. 1 Purdue 72, No. 2 Tennessee 66
No. 11 North Carolina State 76, No. 4 Duke 64
For the first time since the legendary image of Jim Valvano waving his arms, looking for somebody to hug after his North Carolina State Wolfpack won the 1983 national championship, NC State is going back to the Final Four.
The 11th-seeded Wolfpack surged past No. 4 seed Duke in the second half to win the all-ACC Elite Eight tilt 76-64 and set up a date with the Purdue Boilermakers next Saturday in the Final Four.
“I just know Jimmy V’s smiling up there,” CBS announcer Bill Raftery said.
NC State outscored Duke 55-37 in the second half and made 19 of 26 field goals . The Wolfpack, after scoring 21 points in the first half, finished shooting 46.7% from the field compared to Duke’s 32.2% mark.
D.J. Burns played the role of lovable big man who has become the poster for the upstart NC State team that won nine in a row to win the ACC Tournament and now reach the Final Four. He finished with a 29 points and went 13-for-19 from the field. Throughout the game’s final minutes, Burns flashed smiles and could only laugh as the Wolfpack’s magical run became even more of a fairytale.
DJ Horne contributed 18 points and played nearly the entire game. Stanford transfer Michael O’Connell grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds, drilled a clutch 3-pointer and added five assists – also a team high.
Duke forward Kyle Filipowski fouled out as NC State pulled away, and the former five-star recruit finished with 11 points on 3-of-11 shooting. Duke didn’t make a three in the second half until the game was out of reach, but Jared McCain poured in a game-high 32 points – thanks to some garbage time scoring.
Guards Jeremy Roach added 13 points. The Blue Devils also lost the turnover battle 9-4. They will have to wait at least another year to make the program’s 18th Final Four.
With NC State facing Purdue in the national semifinal, it sets up a delicious post matchup between Burns and Purdue center Zach Edey. – Chris Bumbaca
Duke will have to pull off a comeback without one of its best players. Kyle Filipowski fouled out with 4:52 remaining, and he finished with 11 points and nine rebounds. He was 3-for-11 from the field, missed all three of his 3-point attempts and had three turnovers in 30 minutes.
Duke is shooting 28% from the field for the game (compared to the Wolfpack’s 44% shooting percentage) and is 0-for-8 from beyond the arc in the second half.
NC State has begun to pull away late and lead 58-46 at the final media timeout (3:54 to play). – Chris Bumbaca
NC State head coach Kevin Keatts cost his team two points when referees whistled him for a technical foul, and Jared McCain made both free-throw attempts with 8:03 remaining to bring the Blue Devils back within six.
McCain turned it over on Duke’s next possession, however, and Michael O’Connell – a transfer from Stanford – made a 3-pointer from the left wing to give NC State a 51-42 advantage with 7:03 remaining.
The play triggered a review because officials whistled a foul on Duke, which allowed the Wolfpack to retain possession. D.J. Burns played bully ball in the post and NC State was up by 11 – the largest deficit the Blue Devils faced all tournament – with less than seven minutes to go. – Chris Bumbaca
With 9:49 to play, NC State’s Ben Middlebrooks drew a foul on Kyle Filipowski – the fourth on the Duke forward – and hit both free throws to give the Wolfpack their largest lead to that point. NC State made seven of eight shots when D.J. Burns went to work in the post to make it 46-40, and D.J. Horne hit a shot to give NC State its largest lead of the game at 48-40 with 8:19 to play.
Over the previous four minutes, NC State went on a 12-2 run. Burns is up to 18 points and has missed one shot since the game’s opening minutes, while Horne has 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting. – Chris Bumbaca
North Carolina State star D.J. Horne drilled a three-pointer from the left wing with two Blue Devils in his face to make it a one-point game with about 13 minutes left.
Horne then took a fast-break attempt to the lane and drew a foul with 12:59 to go and made both of his free throws to give the Wolfpack a 36-35 lead. Kyle Filipowski answered with an and-one layup to give the Blue Devils a two-point advantage, and Mohamed Diarra picked up his fourth foul and went to the bench.
D.J. Burns then tied the game for N.C. State with 12:27 to go, and Ben Middlebrooks then drew a charge on Filipowski. Horne gave the Wolfpack another lead with a layup and Duke head coach Jon Scheyer called timeout with 11:39 to go.
Duke had not been whistled for a foul for the first seven minutes of the half but were called for three within a minute. – Chris Bumbaca
Both teams struggled to score and ended the half on 1-of-8 stretches from the field.
“Completely disjointed,” head coach Jon Scheyer said in his halftime interview.
Jared McCain did his damage from the free throw line in the first half, scoring seven of his 12 points from the charity stripe. He was 2 for 8 from the field, with both of his makes being 3-pointers.
NC State center D.J. Burns leads the Wolfpack with eight points but has missed multiple looks near the rim and is shooting 50% (4 for 8) from the field. NC State was 1 of 7 from three and Duke was not much better at 2 for 7. – Chris Bumbaca
Fans of offensive basketball, this was not your half.
Duke and NC State both struggled to connect shots on disjointed possessions, though it’s the Blue Devils who are taking a 27-21 lead into the half.
Both teams have combined to hit just 3 of 14 (21.4%) of their 3-point tries and are a stunning 17 of 60 (28.3%) from the field, overall. Where Duke has been able to get an early edge is on free throws: the Blue Devils are a perfect 9 for 9, while NC State has attempted just three attempts.
Despite the lack of scoring, the game has been played well defensively. Duke has five turnovers to NC State’s two, but both teams have been physical and active with their hands and ball denials. Essentially, nothing is coming easy for either offense.
NC State had missed 8 of 9 shots deep in the first half, but an and-one conversion from junior guard Jayden Taylor helped give NC State some momentum and closed the margin headed into the half.
Duke freshman guard Jared McCain has been the bright spot, scoring a game-high 13 points. The only issue: he went 2 of 8 from the floor, but made all seven of his free throws. – Lorenzo Reyes
It’s not just contested shots, both these teams are missing open looks.
Duke and NC State have combined to go just 12 of 37 (32.4%%) from the floor, but the Blue Devils have found a little more consistency on the offensive end. Duke is on a 6-0 run and is up 21-14 with 6:52 to play in the first half.
The Blue Devils have done an excellent job with their help defense in the low block, rotating to get clean contests under the basket; NC State failed to convert any of its first six layups. NC State has gone without a point in the last 2:16. – Lorenzo Reyes
Duke is struggling to shoot from the field, but it’s the free throws that are carrying the offense to a 12-9 lead with just under 12 minutes left in the first half.
The Blue Devils are 2 for 9 from the field and haven’t made a field goal in nearly three minutes, but they’ve shot seven free throws already, and they’ve all been made. On the other side, NC State is 1 for 2 from the charity stripe.
Jared McCain has shot five of those free throws for Duke and he has eight points to lead all scorers. – Jordan Mendoza
DJ Burns Jr. has been the star for NC State during its NCAA Tournament run, and he’s cooking early against Duke in the Elite Eight.
Burns has scored six of the first eight points for the Wolfpack, who hold an 8-7 lead after the first media timeout. It’s been a relatively slow pace to start the game, and Duke has been struggling to make much to start out. It went five minutes without a made field goal and is 2 for 8 to start. – Jordan Mendoza
NC State looks to keep dancing, as the 11th-seeded Wolfpack squares off against the No. 4 seed Blue Devils for the final spot remaining in the Final Four. The winner faces off against Purdue and Zach Edey next Saturday night.
Who needs a ladder when you’re 7-foot-4?
Zach Edey was able to cut the nets at Little Caesars Arena after his monster 40-point game to send Purdue to the Final Four. But the big man didn’t need to climb the ladder to cut the nets like every other player does. Edey just reached up with the scissors to cut the net, just another reminder of how tall he is.
Tennessee went cold down the stretch, scoring just eight points in the final 5 1/2 minutes — with six coming inside the final minute-and-a-half — and Purdue pulled away.
So the Boilermakers, for the third time in program history, are headed to the Final Four.
Purdue leaned on star center Zach Edey, whose 16 drawn fouls, career-high 40 points and 16 rebounds completely controlled the game. Edey was even dominant in his availability; he rested only 33 seconds on the bench. Fourteen of his points came on free throws.
The Volunteers matched Edey’s greatness with the play from guard Dalton Knecht, who dropped 37 points on 14-of-31 (45.2%) shooting, though he struggled to hit shots down the stretch. Tennessee’s primary problem was that it did not get other players to step up; Knecht was the lone player to score double figures.
Purdue held a massive edge on points in the paint (40-24) and rebounds (47-26), and will now face the winner of the South Regional, No. 4 Duke or No. 11 NC State. –Lorenzo Reyes
It is the Dalton Knecht-Zach Edey show in Detroit.
Both Tennessee and Purdue are being led by their stars, though it’s the Boilermakers with a slim, 59-58 margin with 4:36 left to play in the game, with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
Knecht, a guard for the Vols, has poured in 31 points on 12-of-25 shooting, including 6 of 10 from 3-point range. Edey, a center for the Boilermakers, has 32 on 12 of 20 and has converted 8 of 12 free throws. He also has 16 rebounds. – Lorenzo Reyes
Though it’s only five points, Purdue has opened what feels like a substantial lead over the Volunteers.
The Boilermakers are up 51-46 with 11:39 left to play in the game, as Tennessee’s perimeter shooting touch has cooled some.
The Volunteers are just 2 of 6 (33%) from beyond the arc in the second half. On the other end of the floor, Purdue center Zach Edey has been a foul magnet, drawing 10 fouls thus far, and he’ll be at the line with two free throws coming out of this media break.
Tennessee simply has not had any player other than guard Dalton Knecht step up. The Vols actually went a span of 14 minutes of game time in which Knecht was the only player to record a field goal. On defense, the Volunteers simply have not found an answer for Edey or defending the paint, getting outscored there 32-12. – Lorenzo Reyes
The 2024 men’s Final Four comes to you live next Saturday, April 6, from State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Alabama (4) and UConn (1) are set to square off, with the winners of Tennessee-Purdue and NC State-Duke set to tip off against one another.
The first half was truly an example of opposites.
Purdue is dominating the paint, walking the ball up the floor to establish position and draw fouls. Tennessee is swinging the ball and pushing the tempo to create open perimeter shots.
Thus far, advantage Purdue.
The Boilermakers closed the first half on a15-2 run to take a 36-34 lead.
Although it has been contrasting styles, it has been a back-and-forth game of runs and droughts.
This is the crux of the matchup: Tennessee has hit 7 of 13 (53.8%%) of its shots from beyond the arc – compared to just 1 of 8 (12.5%) for Purdue – and the Boilermakers have a 24-8 advantage in points in the paint.
Tennessee guard Dalton Knecht leads the Vols with 18 points on 7 of 14 (50%) shooting and has made four of his five threes.
The Boilermakers simply have not gotten production from players other than center Zach Edey and guard Braden Smith, who combined for 28, or 77.8% of the team’s points.
Edey already has a double-double with 19 points and 10 boards. – Lorenzo Reyes
Talk about a conflict of styles: Tennessee guard Zakai Zeigler stands at 5-foot-9, quite the difference from the 7-foot-4 Zach Edey. Zeigler weighs in at 171 pounds, according to Tennessee.
Much like Purdue did in the Sweet 16, the top seed in the Midwest Regional is relying on its size in the pick-and-roll. It is still down midway through the first half.
Purdue scored all five of its field goals in the paint, but Tennessee has rained a steady stream of 3-pointers to open a 17-14 edge with 11:22 left to play in the half.
Volunteers senior guard Dalton Knecht came out on fire, draining four of his first six shots – including both 3-point tries – to pour in 10 early points.
While the Boilermakers have been proficient down low, they have missed wide open looks, going 0 for 6 from beyond the arc. Star center Zach Edey leads Purdue with eight points on 3-of-6 shooting and three rebounds. – Lorenzo Reyes
Purdue’s Zach Edey is a tall, tall task for any team to try and defend. Standing at 7-foot-4, the Boilermakers big man is one of the biggest players in college ball. Here’s what to know about him.
The Boilermakers and the Volunteers tip off in the first of two Elite Eight matchups on Sunday. Zach Edey gave the Boilermakers an early 2-0 lead with a bucket in the paint.
What time does Elite Eight start?
The first Elite Eight game, between Purdue and Tennessee, tips off at 2:20 p.m. EDT.
What time is March Madness today?
Here is Sunday’s Elite Eight schedule.
- 2:30 p.m.: (1) Purdue vs. (2) Tennessee
- 5 p.m.: (11) NC State vs. (4) Duke
How to watch Elite Eight games 2024
CBS will air both of today’s Elite Eight games. CBS will air the men’s Final Four and championship game.
How to stream March Madness on your phone
You can catch every second by streaming every game through a few different options.
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Elite Eight predictions
Here are USA TODAY Sports expert picks for the final two Elite Eight matchups.
How to turn off ad blocker for March Madness
If you’re struggling to stream the games due to your ad blocker, you are not alone. Here’s what you need to know about how to disable the ad blocker on your device and web browser.
If you trust a site, you can add an exception to allow ads on that site. Here’s how:
- At the top right, click More Settings.
- Click Privacy and security Site Settings.
- Click Additional content settings Ads.
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Here is the men’s schedule:
- First round: March 21-22
- Second round: March 23-24
- Sweet 16: March 28-29
- Elite Eight: March 30-31
- Final Four: Saturday, April 6 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
- NCAA championship game: Monday, April 8 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
Elite Eight schedule and locations
Here is the full schedule for today and where games are being played.
- (1) Purdue vs. (2) Tennessee 2:30 p.m. EDT, Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
- (4) Duke vs. (11) North Carolina State, 5:05 p.m. EDT, American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Here are all the venues hosting tournament games over the next couple weeks.
| Round | City | Venue | Dates |
| Sweet 16 + Elite Eight | Boston | TD Garden | March 28-30 |
| Sweet 16 + Elite Eight | Dallas | American Airlines Center | March 29-31 |
| Sweet 16 + Elite Eight | Detroit | Little Caesars Arena | March 29-31 |
| Sweet 16 + Elite Eight | Los Angeles | Crypto.com Arena | March 28-30 |
| Final Four | Glendale, Ariz. | State Farm Stadium | April 6 |
| National championship | Glendale, Ariz. | State Farm Stadium | April 8 |
As the men’s NCAA Tournament begins, fans may be wondering where Jim Nantz, voice synonymous with one of the most popular events in college sports is.
Nantz decided the 2023 NCAA Tournament would be his last so he could focus on his family and other broadcasting commitments. Nantz didn’t retire from broadcasting; He’s still calling The Masters and serves as the lead play-by-play person for CBS’ NFL coverage alongside Tony Romo. The duo were in the booth for Super Bowl 58 in February. – Jordan Mendoza
We’re nearing the end of the tournament: Just five games in March Madness remain, with the last coming on Monday, April 8. Both games of the men’s Final Four takes place on Saturday, April 6.
Who is Dalton Knecht? Well, he just might be one of the breakout players of March Madness. Knecht (pronounced like “connect”) is the leading scorer for the Tennessee Volunteers – in fact, he was one of the leading scorers in men’s college basketball this season, averaging 21.1 points per game. His impressive 2023-24 campaign helped the Vols snag the Midwest Region’s No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
And this tournament will be his first. Knecht is new in Knoxville, the fifth-year senior having played his college ball until this year in his home state of Colorado. Given that he’s a fresh face to March Madness, here’s everything you need to know about the Tennessee star.
You can’t have the men’s NCAA Tournament without the potential back-to-back national player of the year.
Zach Edey is back and leading Purdue into March Madness again, and is a major reason the Boilermakers are a No. 1 seed for the second straight season. This time, Purdue is hoping for a better outcome than last year – when it was eliminated by a No. 16 seed – and looking to make the Final Four for the first time since 1980. If Purdue does that, Edey will likely be a big reason for the trip to State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Here is everything to know about Purdue center Zach Edey.
One player who is carrying the torch of excellence is sophomore Kyle Filipowski. The seven-foot center had a stellar freshman year last season and opted to return to the Blue Devils instead of following the one-and-done trend. Filipowski continued to have success during his second year in college basketball, improving his draft stock. But he has made headlines for more than just his stats. He is upholding the tradition, which includes heightened scrutiny, that past Duke big men Carroll Youngkin, Cherokee Parks and Christian Laettner established. Here’s everything you need to know about Duke’s Kyle Filipowski.
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