Here are Friday’s key March Madness 2022 games to watch:
No. 10 Loyola Chicago vs. No. 7 Ohio State: 12:15 p.m., CBS
Loyola may have lost head coach Porter Moser to Oklahoma, but his replacement, 30-year-old Drew Valentine, hasn’t missed a beat. The youngest head coach in Division I, he’s the older brother of former Michigan State star Denzel Valentine and will look to continue the Ramblers’ recent Cinderella history, having reached the Final Four in 2018 and Sweet 16 last year. And yes, 102-year-old Sister Jean will be by their side. Ohio State, meanwhile, is looking to avenge a stunning loss to 15th-seeded Oral Roberts in last year’s first round, just the ninth 15-over-2 upset in tournament history.
No. 11 Virginia Tech vs. No. 6 Texas: 4:30 p.m., TBS
Virginia Tech was last weekend’s conference tournament surprise, stunning the ACC by taking down top-seeded Duke as a No. 7 seed at the ACC tourney in Brooklyn. Hunter Cattoor scored a career-high 31 points in the title-game victory, but he’ll be hard-pressed to repeat that feat against Texas’ stifling defense under Chris Beard, who has the Longhorns in the NCAAs in his first season since leaving Texas Tech for his alma mater.
No. 13 Chattanooga vs. No. 4 Illinois: 6:50 p.m., TNT
The Illini are looking for redemption after failing to advance past the first weekend last year as a No. 1 seed. They’ll be relying heavily on big man Kofi Cockburn, who averaged a dominant 21.1 ppg and 10.6 rpg this year as a junior following a stint at Christ the King in Queens after arriving from his native Jamaica. Chattanooga may have Lady Luck on its side, having reached the Big Dance thanks to a miracle 3-pointer to win the Southern Conference Tournament.
No. 11 Iowa State vs. No. 6 LSU: 7:20 p.m., TBS
Who needs a head coach? LSU will be testing that theory — again — after firing coach Will Wade on Saturday amid an NCAA investigation. It’s not the first time the Tigers have been forced to play without Wade in March, however: He was suspended in 2019, when LSU nevertheless advanced to the Sweet 16 without him.
No. 10 Davidson vs. No. 7 Michigan State: 9:40 p.m., CBS
The matchup itself will be fascinating — a battle of respected coaches in Davidson’s Bob McKillop and Michigan State’s Tom Izzo — but the side bet between star Warriors teammates Stephen Curry and Draymond Green over their alma maters is worth keeping an eye on. If Green’s Spartans get the best of Curry’s Wildcats, Curry will have to come to game dressed as Sparty, Michigan State’s mascot, Green revealed on his podcast.
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