One of the best days on the sports calendar gets underway on Thursday at sites across the country, with 16 teams looking to advance past the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Plenty of storylines emerge as the race to the Final Four in Indianapolis begins.
The first game of the round features No. 9 seed TCU against No. 8 seed Ohio State (12:15 p.m. ET, CBS), with the winner advancing to face the winner of No. 1 overall seed Duke and No. 16 seed Siena. Another intriguing early matchup has No. 4 seed Nebraska seeking its first NCAA Tournament win in program history against No. 13 seed Troy (12:40 p.m. ET, truTV).
Duke, led by presumptive National Player of the Year Cameron Boozer, is aiming for a return to the Final Four after losing in last season’s national semifinals to Houston. Another elite freshman will be on display later in the day when No. 6 seed BYU faces No. 11 seed Texas (7:25 p.m. ET, TBS). The Cougars are led by star forward AJ Dybantsa, the nation’s leading scorer.
The late window offers more intrigue, including No. 3 seed Illinois against No. 14 seed Penn (9:25 p.m. ET, TNT). Penn is led by first-year coach Fran McCaffery, who has extensive history against Illinois after spending 15 seasons as Iowa’s coach. Let’s get into some of the big storylines to know for Thursday’s first-round action.
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Stars make their NCAA Tournament debuts
The biggest storyline of this season has been this star-studded freshman class. This has arguably been the best and deepest collection of talent college basketball fans have ever seen. Thirteen of the 68 teams in this year’s NCAA Tournament have a freshman as their leading scorer. That is far and away the most in NCAA Tournament history, with the previous record of eight coming in 2008.
Fifteen freshmen on NCAA Tournament teams are averaging at least 15 points per game. Some of the players who will make their NCAA Tournament debut on Thursday are Boozer (Duke), Dybantsa (BYU), Darius Acuff Jr. (Arkansas), Keaton Wagler (Illinois) and Kingston Flemings (Houston). All of those players will have an opportunity to leave their mark early.
Is this the year for Nebraska?
Nebraska opened the season 20-0 before going 6-6 down the stretch. Still, if there is a year for the Cornhuskers to secure their first NCAA Tournament win, this might be it. Nebraska remains the only high-major program in Division I men’s basketball without a victory in the NCAA Tournament. The Cornhuskers are 0-8 all-time, most recently losing to Texas A&M in 2024.
Since 2000, Nebraska has reached the NCAA Tournament three times, including this season. Earning that first win will not come easy. The Cornhuskers face a dangerous Troy team in the first round. The Trojans are 22-11 and captured the Sun Belt title with a 77-61 win over Georgia Southern.
It has already been a breakthrough season for Nebraska. The question now is how far it can go — whether that’s one win or a deeper run.
Will there be more upsets than last year?
One of the overarching themes of last year’s NCAA Tournament was the lack of upsets. Could that change this year? Time will tell, but the top seeds appear even stronger than they were a year ago. One of the biggest first-round surprises last year came when No. 12 seed McNeese knocked off No. 5 seed Clemson. No. 12 seed Colorado State also advanced to the second round with a win over No. 5 seed Memphis.
There are several potential upsets to watch this year. Troy, mentioned above, could emerge as a Cinderella candidate. Another team to monitor is No. 11 seed South Florida, which opens against No. 6 seed Clemson and has the potential to make a run. McNeese, which pulled off an upset last year, is back in the field and faces No. 5 seed Vanderbilt.
Thursday’s NCAA Tournament streaming schedule
Games played at KeyBank Center (Buffalo), Bon Secours Wellness Arena (Greenville), Paycom Center (Oklahoma City) and Moda Center (Portland)
