BROOKLYN, NY - March 24: The March Madness logo on the floor before a second round NCAA Tournament game between the Connecticut Huskies and the Northwestern Wildcats at Barclays Center on March 24, 2024 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Porter Binks/Getty Images)
For the second straight year, we’re looking at a bracket full of Power-5 teams in the Sweet Sixteen. And while that is a bit of a downer that we don’t have any “real” cinderellas, it does mean that we have a lot of good teams left – and they’ll be playing some good matchups against each other. That’s the give and take of the NCAA Tournament – more chalk produces more good games. Here’s the sweet 16 March Madness power rankings:
1. Michigan
Michigan center Aday Mara (15) shoots a free throw against Howard during the second half of NCAA Tournament First Round at KeyBank Center in Buffalo on Thursday, March 19, 2026.
The Wolverines looked like a complete buzzsaw in the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. If I had to guarantee that one team would make the Final Four from here, it would be Michigan. Their sheer size and athleticism make them very upset-proof, and Aday Mara has a massive impact on the game on both ends. How in the world did he only play 10 minutes per game at UCLA?
2. Arizona
The Wildcats are simply a machine at this point. They know what they’re good at, they know what their job is, and they simply execute it. Koa Peat has been tremendous through two games, and good luck scoring against “Mount Krivas” down low. Their lack of shooting may catch up with them, but not yet.
3. Duke
The Blue Devils certainly looked vulnerable in the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Siena led them by double-digits at the half and took them to the wire, and TCU played a competitive game for 30 minutes. The good news is that they do have Patrick Ngongba back, which should certainly help their interior defense, a glaring weakness from the first two games.
4. Purdue
Braden Smith is now college basketball’s all-time assist leader, and the Boilermaker train is rolling with 6 straight wins. The big secret to success here is that Oscar Cluff has turned into the next great Purdue big man in the long and storied history of great Purdue big men, and he’s been playing north of 30 minutes per game. Keeping him out of foul trouble and on the floor will be a key to success this weekend.
5. Illinois
Mar 21, 2026; Greenville, SC, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini center Tomislav Ivisic (13) reacts in the first half during a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
The non-1-seed that racked up the two most dominant wins this weekend may have been Illinois. The 5-out offense with 5 highly-skilled players who can all shoot 3-pointers is a bad matchup for a lot of the teams left in the bracket. Tomislav Ivisic was outstanding against VCU and could be the x-factor for this team making a Final Four.
6. Houston
Call me crazy, but I don’t think that a 2-seed should get an advantage of playing in their own city limits. That’s exactly what Houston gets this week, playing in the Toyota Center, a venue they have played “neutral site” games at before. This is a distinct competitive advantage. Joseph Tugler has been a menace defensively lately, as he’s been able to stay out of foul trouble.
7. Arkansas
When this team is on, they are must-see TV. I find them as entertaining to watch as any team in the sport. This is partly because Darius Acuff is electric with the ball in his hands, and partly because they play virtually zero defense, and opponents have no trouble scoring against them. I don’t know how long they can survive with this level of defense.
8. Iowa State
It was no Joshua Jefferson, no problem against Kentucky. But I do think that was a favorable matchup for the Cyclones to be playing without their star, as the Wildcats are not super big, great rebounders, or great at taking care of the basketball. A lot of their potential opponents in the next two weeks are all of those things. They need to get their star back if they want to continue this run.
9. Alabama
Mar 22, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide guard Labaron Philon (0) shoots the ball against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the first half during a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Benchmark International Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
It was no Aden Holloway, no problem for the Tide this past weekend, as they thoroughly dominated both opponents for 40 minutes. A big reason why is the new ball-dominance of Labaron Philon, who’s one of the toughest players to guard in the sport. Another big reason why is that the Tide went thermo-nuclear hot from 3-point range, and they will be tough to beat if they can sustain that.
10. Michigan State
Like Bachman-Turner Overdrive, the Spartans were taking care of business in the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Jeremy Fears continues to be one of the best floor generals in the sport. The shooting guard position has been an area of concern for this team, but they got a huge boost from Trey Fort this weekend.
11. St Johns
Of all people, it was Dylan Darling who was the hero against Kansas with a confident, aggressive drive to the hoop as time expired. It was Zuby Ejiofor who was the hero for the first 39 minutes. However, I do have to point out that if Kansas simply remembered how to inbound the basketball, that game would have had a different result, and the Red Storm would not be here.
12. UConn
No heads were turned when UConn went out and got former Dayton guard Malachi Smith in the transfer portal this offseason, but the move paid off this weekend as Silas Demary was injured. Smith stepped into the starting point guard role, and while he didn’t light up the scoreboard, he was a great floor general – composed, great on defense, and making the right decisions. He’s a big reason they’re here – but they likely need Demary to make a deep run.
13. Tennessee
The Volunteers were able to win two games against two teams who entered with a combined 6 losses before they met Tennessee, and they did it with star freshman Nate Ament being hobbled. Ja’Kobi Gillespie carried the scoring load, JP Estrella and Felix Okpara dominated the glass, and glue guy Bishop Boswell made plays that showed up on and off the box score. This is not an easy team to beat because of their ability to win the shot-volume battle with their rebounding.
14. Texas
Mar 17, 2026; Dayton, OH, USA; Texas Longhorns guard Jordan Pope (0) reacts in the second half against the NC State Wolfpack during a first four game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at University of Dayton Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
If you’ve watched this team, you know this is no normal 11-seed. They have 3 elite isolation scorers in Tramon Mark, Jordan Pope, and Dailyn Swain. They have one of the top-10 big men in the nation in Matas Vokietaitis. And they have an experienced head coach in Sean Miller, and he’s pushing all of the right buttons. It would not surprise me at all to see this team get another win.
15. Nebraska
The luckiest team here, in my opinion, is the Nebraska Cornhuskers. They needed EVERYTHING to go their way in the last 40 seconds of the game against Vanderbilt to escape with a win, and that was a virtual home game in Oklahoma City. Fortunately for them, they drew a great Sweet Sixteen matchup against Iowa that should allow Fred Hoiberg to continue to set new standards for Cornhusker basketball.
16. Iowa
I simply don’t understand how this team beat Florida. I still believe that they only have one Power-5 level offensive player (Bennett Stirtz), their bigs get dominated in the paint, and they shot terribly from the free-throw line. And they still beat Florida. Ben McCollum is a wizard. I don’t want to bet against him, but, objectively, this team is the worst left in the bracket.
