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March Madness 2017: Friday Early Games Live Thread

Don’t expect a lot of chaos before dinner today.

The Rams and Cowboys are the only underdogs anyone’s really counting on this afternoon.
The Rams and Cowboys are the only underdogs anyone’s really counting on this afternoon.
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Yesterday’s NCAA Tournament action was surprisingly devoid of big upsets, with the exception of the one literally everyone knew was coming. Looking at you, Middle Tennessee.

This afternoon doesn’t appear to offer much hope, either. There are a couple of teams widely expected to score upsets, but neither sits higher than an 11 seed, and that’s not really powerful enough to be called “big”.

But nobody is going to express much surprise if Rhode Island sits Creighton down, and Oklahoma State beating Michigan wouldn’t rattle many cages either. If there’s any real hope for a serious shake-up, you’re going to have to look to Iona, and that’s largely a function of Oregon being questionable at the moment.

Here’s your early schedule. We’ll include the late schedule in the open thread for the very first game of the evening flight, one which includes some felines of the purple persuasion.

Friday Early Men’s Games

Region Team vs Team Site Time (CT) Network Announcers
Region Team vs Team Site Time (CT) Network Announcers
Midwest (7) Michigan vs (10) Oklahoma State Indianapolis IN 11:15am CBS Jim Nantz / Grant Hill / Bill Raftery / Tracy Wolfson
East (3) Baylor vs (14) New Mexico State Tulsa OK 11:40am truTV Kevin Harlan / Reggie Miller / Dan Bonner / Dana Jacobson
South (8) Arkansas vs (9) Seton Hall Greenville SC 12:30pm TNT Brian Anderson / Chris Webber / Lewis Johnson
Midwest (3) Oregon vs (14) Iona Sacramento CA 1pm TBS Spero Dedes / Steve Smith / Len Elmore / Ros Gold-Onwude
Midwest (2) Louisville vs (15) Jacksonville State Indianapolis IN 1:45pm CBS Jim Nantz / Grant Hill / Bill Raftery / Tracy Wolfson
East (6) SMU vs (11) USC Tulsa OK 2pm truTV Kevin Harlan / Reggie Miller / Dan Bonner / Dana Jacobson
South (1) North Carolina vs (16) Texas Southern Greenville SC 3pm TNT Brian Anderson / Chris Webber / Lewis Johnson
Midwest (6) Creighton vs (11) Rhode Island Sacramento CA 3:30pm TBS Spero Dedes / Steve Smith / Len Elmore / Ros Gold-Onwude

But that’s not all. The women’s tournament kicks off today over on the ESPN networks. As usual, upsets will be at a premium, but a pair of Big 12 teams are in action early as Texas and West Virginia take the court.

Friday Early Women’s Games

Region Team vs Team Site Time (CT) Network Announcers
Region Team vs Team Site Time (CT) Network Announcers
Bridgeport (3) Maryland vs (14) Bucknell College Park MD 11:05am ESPN2/WatchESPN Courtney Lyle/Tamika Catchings
Lexington (4) Kentucky vs (13) Belmont Lexington KY 11:10am ESPN2/WatchESPN Beth Mowins/Nell Fortner
Lexington (6) NC State vs (11) Auburn Austin TX 11:10am ESPN2/WatchESPN Roy Philpott/Brooke Weisbrod
Oklahoma City (7) DePaul vs (10) Northern Iowa Starkville MS 11:15am ESPN2/WatchESPN Bob Picozzi/Katie Smith
Lexington (5) Ohio State vs (12) Western Kentucky Lexington KY 1pm ESPN2/WatchESPN Beth Mowins/Nell Fortner
Oklahoma City (2) Mississippi State vs (15) Troy Starkville MS 1pm ESPN2/WatchESPN Bob Picozzi/Katie Smith
Lexington (3) Texas vs (14) Central Arkansas Austin TX 1pm ESPN2/WatchESPN Roy Philpott/Brooke Weisbrod
Bridgeport (6) West Virginia vs (11) Elon College Park MD 1pm ESPN2/WatchESPN Courtney Lyle/Tamika Catchings