Round of 32 Day 2 Predictions

Zak Drapeau
4 days ago
2 min read

by Zak Drapeau

Sportz Nation - 3/22/2026

2Miami vs

7Purdue

Prediction: Purdue

Purdue is still my favorite to make it out of the West and after rolling on Queens in the first round and Miami barely making it past Missouri, this one should be in the 90-70 range for the Boilermakers.

2Iowa State vs

7Kentucky

Prediction: Iowa State

The Cyclones had an easy First Round but will have to deal with Otega Oweh and Mouhamed Dioubate this time around. After Oweh's heroic First Round he will be getting all of Iowa State's focus and as long as they game plan for him, they should be able to outscore the Wildcats in a very high-scoring affair.

Photo by Charles Wenzelberg/ New York Post

4Kansas vs

5St. John's

Prediction: St. John's

Kansas is the Darryn Peterson show this year and even though he'll be the best player on the court, St. John's has one of the best defenses and the best defensive player in the Nation in Zuby Ejiofor. As long as they shut down Peterson, this one should be a gritty but comfortable win for the Red Storm.

3Virginia vs

6Tennessee

Prediction: Tennessee

1 of my 2 upset picks for today, I originally had Virginia in this matchup but they didn't come into their First Round matchup the same way Tennessee did and I think the momentum will carry over.

1Florida vs

9Iowa

Prediction: Florida

Iowa had a good win last round but Florida is one of the most complete teams in the country. Their frontcourt between Handlogten and Chinyelu should dominate the boards against Iowa and help Florida coast.

1Arizona vs

9Utah State

Prediction: Arizona

Arizona has some of the best unselfish ball movement this year and multiple shooters who will knock down the shot. Utah State had a great game but their perimeter won't be able to defend the entire court and Arizona should get the dub albeit a pretty high-scoring game from both teams.

2UConn vs

7UCLA

Prediction: UCLA

My 2nd upset pick for today and one that I had on my bracket all along. UCLA's defense was on fire last round and UConn just doesn't seem to have it right now no matter how much I want to root for Dan Hurley.

4Alabama vs

5Texas Tech

Prediction: Texas Tech

If Labaron Philon doesn't go off there's a very small chance Alabama walks away with the win. Tech's win over Akron was much more team based and the deeper we get into the tourney the more I will rely on great teams over superstars.