A look at the eight matchups, with each school’s likely starters and analysis from Globe sports editor Joe Sullivan.
Regional: South. Time: 12:15 p.m. Seed, record/last 10: 4. Michigan (27-7/6-4); 5. VCU (27-8/7-3)
| No. | VCU | Ht. | PPG | RPG |
| 10 | Darius Theus | 6-3 | 7.0 | 1.6 |
| 11 | Rob Brandenberg | 6-2 | 10.5 | 2.7 |
| 15 | Juvonte Reddic | 6-9 | 14.6 | 8.2 |
| 21 | Treveon Graham | 6-5 | 15.2 | 5.9 |
| 30 | Troy Daniels | 6-4 | 12.4 | 3.1 |
| Michigan | ||||
| 1 | Glenn Robinson III | 6-6 | 11.0 | 5.4 |
| 4 | Mitch McGary | 6-10 | 6.4 | 5.6 |
| 3 | Trey Burke | 6-0 | 18.8 | 3.0 |
| 10 | Tim Hardaway, Jr. | 6-6 | 15.0 | 4.7 |
| 11 | Nik Stauskas | 6-6 | 11.4 | 3.2 |
Analysis: VCU’s full-court press is a challenge, but Michigan has great ball-handling guards, especially Burke. It comes down to this: When VCU forces 20 or more turnovers, it is undefeated; when it doesn’t, it usually loses. Michigan has simple needs: Don’t turn it over, get some shots, and make them.
Regional: Midwest. Time: 2:45 p.m. Seed, record/last 10: 3. Michigan St. (26-8/6-4); 6. Memphis (31-4/9-1)
| No. | Memphis | Ht. | PPG | RPG |
| 4 | Adonis Thomas | 6-7 | 11.9 | 4.5 |
| 5 | Shaq Goodwin | 6-9 | 7.6 | 4.5 |
| 30 | D.J. Stephens | 6-5 | 7.7 | 6.7 |
| 1 | Joe Jackson | 6-1 | 13.7 | 3.2 |
| 55 | Geron Johnson | 6-3 | 10.2 | 4.7 |
| Michigan St. | ||||
| 11 | Keith Appling | 6-1 | 13.6 | 3.6 |
| 14 | Gary Harris | 6-4 | 12.8 | 2.5 |
| 5 | Adreian Payne | 6-10 | 10.3 | 7.4 |
| 25 | Derrick Nix | 6-9 | 9.9 | 6.5 |
| 22 | Branden Dawson | 6-6 | 9.3 | 6.0 |
Analysis: Las Vegas placed Memphis as an underdog in its opening game vs. Saint Mary’s, but the Tigers led from start to finish and got some great play from Jackson and their intimidating big men, Goodwin and Tarik Black. Michigan State rolled over Valparaiso and looks ready to advance. Memphis can match Michigan State physically, so this has a chance to be a close game.
Regional: Midwest. Time: 5:15 p.m. Seed, record/last 10: 1. Louisville (30-5/10-0); 8. Colorado St. (26-8/6-4)
| No. | Louisville | Ht. | PPG | RPG |
| 20 | Wayne Blackshear | 6-5 | 8.1 | 3.3 |
| 21 | Chane Behanan | 6-6 | 9.9 | 6.4 |
| 10 | Gorgui Dieng | 6-11 | 10.0 | 9.8 |
| 2 | Russ Smith | 6-1 | 18.2 | 3.5 |
| 3 | Peyton Siva | 6-0 | 9.9 | 2.3 |
| Colorado St. | ||||
| 4 | Pierce Hornung | 6-5 | 8.6 | 9.1 |
| 44 | Greg Smith | 6-6 | 11.1 | 5.1 |
| 45 | Colton Iverson | 6-10 | 14.4 | 9.9 |
| 10 | Wes Eikmeier | 6-3 | 12.7 | 1.7 |
| 22 | Dorian Green | 6-2 | 13.2 | 2.5 |
Analysis: Louisville did exactly what a top seed should do, squash a 16 seed. The Cards will press full court and try to create the chaos in which they flourish. Colorado State played a tremendous game, maybe its best of the season, in beating Missouri Thursday. The Rams are the country’s leading rebounding team and they crushed Missouri on the boards, 42-19 — and Mizzou was the third-ranked rebounding team. The Rams’ guards are experienced, too. Louisville must be prepared for a tough fight.
Regional: West. Time: 6:10 p.m. Seed, record/last 10: 6. Arizona (26-7/6-4); 14. Harvard (20-9/7-3)
| No. | Arizona | Ht. | PPG | RPG |
| 3 | Kevin Parrom | 6-6 | 8.5 | 5.0 |
| 44 | Solomon Hill | 6-7 | 13.3 | 5.3 |
| 35 | Kaleb Tarczewski | 7-0 | 6.6 | 6.1 |
| 2 | Mark Lyons | 6-1 | 15.0 | 2.0 |
| 13 | Nick Johnson | 6-3 | 11.7 | 3.5 |
| Harvard | ||||
| 25 | Kenyatta Smith | 6-8 | 5.6 | 4.3 |
| 0 | Laurent Rivard | 6-5 | 10.6 | 3.8 |
| 1 | Siyani Chambers | 6-0 | 12.6 | 2.6 |
| 15 | Christian Webster | 6-5 | 8.4 | 2.9 |
| 23 | Wesley Saunders | 6-5 | 16.5 | 4.1 |
Analysis: Harvard will need another stellar coaching job from Tommy Amaker, who used his smaller, quicker lineup to his advantage in the Crimson’s upset over New Mexico. The Crimson won’t have a quickness advantage against Arizona, and the Wildcats attack the boards. The Crimson need to shoot a high percentage and not get killed on the boards to have another chance at an upset.
Regional: Midwest. Time: 7:10 p.m. Seed, record/last 10: 4. Saint Louis (28-6/9-1); 12. Oregon (27-8/7-3)
| No. | Oregon | Ht. | PPG | RPG |
| 1 | Dominic Artis | 6-1 | 8.7 | 2.3 |
| 14 | Arsalan Kazemi | 6-7 | 9.4 | 9.8 |
| 21 | Damyean Dotson | 6-5 | 11.0 | 3.6 |
| 25 | EJ Singler | 6-6 | 11.5 | 4.9 |
| 55 | Tony Woods | 6-11 | 9.3 | 3.7 |
| Saint Louis | ||||
| 1 | Grandy Glaze | 6-6 | 3.1 | 2.7 |
| 21 | Dwayne Evans | 6-5 | 14.0 | 7.7 |
| 51 | Rob Loe | 6-11 | 7.0 | 3.5 |
| 3 | Kwamain Mitchell | 5-10 | 10.3 | 2.4 |
| 11 | Mike McCall Jr. | 6-0 | 9.5 | 2.5 |
Analysis: Oregon proved its point with a big 13-point victory over Oklahoma State: The Ducks should have been a better seed than 12. The Ducks had good inside play from big man Kazemi and good outside play from freshman point guard Artis. However, the Ducks have never faced anything like Saint Louis’s defense. The Billikens are suffocating, and they hounded New Mexico State in their 64-44 victory. The Bills will dictate terms and win this comfortably.
Regional: East. Time: 7:45 p.m. Seed, record/last 10: 3. Marquette (24-8/7-3); 6. Butler (27-8/7-3)
| No. | Butler | Ht. | PPG | RPG |
| 21 | Roosevelt Jones | 6-4 | 10.2 | 5.7 |
| 23 | Khyle Marshall | 6-6 | 9.8 | 4.6 |
| 44 | Andrew Smith | 6-11 | 11.1 | 6.0 |
| 3 | Alex Barlow | 5-11 | 2.2 | 2.7 |
| 15 | Rotnei Clarke | 6-0 | 16.7 | 2.8 |
| Marquette | ||||
| 10 | Juan Anderson | 6-6 | 2.9 | 3.0 |
| 42 | Chris Otule | 6-11 | 5.1 | 3.5 |
| 5 | Junior Cadougan | 6-1 | 8.6 | 2.9 |
| 13 | Vander Blue | 6-4 | 14.4 | 3.2 |
| 22 | Trent Lockett | 6-5 | 7.0 | 4.9 |
Analysis: This will be another grinder, as many of Thursday afternoon’s games were. Marquette is lucky to be here with its unlikely 59-58 victory over Davidson. Marquette is a poor outside shooting team and Davidson capitalized on that; Butler will probably do it better. Butler could struggle to score, as it did against Bucknell. Figure this game to be in the 50s unless both teams shoot well.
Regional: West. Time: 8:40 p.m. Seed, record/last 10: 1. Gonzaga (32-2/10-0); 9. Wichita St. (27-8/7-3)
| No. | Gonzaga | Ht. | PPG | RPG |
| 20 | Elias Harris | 6-8 | 14.6 | 7.5 |
| 30 | Mike Hart | 6-6 | 1.9 | 3.6 |
| 13 | Kelly Olynyk | 7-0 | 17.6 | 7.3 |
| 4 | Kevin Pangos | 6-2 | 11.6 | 2.7 |
| 5 | Gary Bell Jr. | 6-1 | 9.3 | 2.2 |
| Wichita St. | ||||
| 22 | Carl Hall | 6-8 | 12.7 | 7.1 |
| 21 | Ehimen Orukpe | 7-0 | 2.8 | 4.5 |
| 2 | Malcom Armstead | 6-0 | 10.7 | 3.7 |
| 31 | Ron Baker | 6-3 | 7.7 | 2.6 |
| 32 | Tekele Cotton | 6-2 | 6.3 | 3.9 |
Analysis: What a contrast on Thursday. Wichita was one of the most impressive of the day in dominating Pitt with its smothering defense and patient offense. Meanwhile, Gonzaga almost became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a 16 seed. The Zags survived, but it was ugly. They hadn’t played since March 11 and it looked like it. Expect a complete turnabout and big offensive effort.
Regional: East. Time: 9:40 p.m. Seed, record/last 10: 4. Syracuse (27-9/5-5); 12. California (21-11/8-2)
| No. | California | Ht. | PPG | RPG |
| 35 | Richard Solomon | 6-10 | 8.5 | 6.6 |
| 45 | David Kravish | 6-9 | 8.0 | 7.0 |
| 1 | Justin Cobbs | 6-3 | 15.4 | 3.5 |
| 3 | Tyrone Wallace | 6-4 | 7.0 | 4.5 |
| 23 | Allen Crabbe | 6-6 | 18.7 | 6.1 |
| Syracuse | ||||
| 43 | James Southerland | 6-8 | 13.7 | 5.1 |
| 5 | C.J. Fair | 6-8 | 14.4 | 7.0 |
| 20 | Brandon Triche | 6-4 | 13.9 | 3.3 |
| 1 | Michael Carter-Williams | 6-6 | 11.8 | 4.9 |
| 25 | Rakeem Christmas | 6-9 | 5.4 | 4.7 |
Analysis: Syracuse looked like it is getting back in form while vaporizing Montana Thursday. Southerland has caught fire from behind the arc and forward Fair is hard to stop. Cal played one of its best games of the season in handling UNLV and the Bears will need a repeat to have a chance. They have to control the pace and figure out how to score against Syracuse’s zone.