The second round of the men’s NCAA tournament begins on Saturday while the first round of the women’s NCAA tournament continues.
The schedule of the second round makes it much more conducive to flipping between the two tournaments on Saturday afternoon. Just two of the eight men’s games tip off before 5 p.m. ET while 10 of the 16 women’s games begin in the afternoon.
Here’s the complete schedule for all 24 of Saturday’s games and what you need to know. (All times are Eastern.)
Men’s schedule
12:10 p.m. — No. 4 Purdue vs. No. 12 McNeese (CBS)
2:40 p.m. — No. 2 St. John’s vs. No. 10 Arkansas (CBS)
Women’s schedule
Noon — No. 6 Iowa vs. No. 11 Murray State (ESPN)
1 p.m. — No. 2 UConn vs. No. 15 Arkansas State (ABC)
1:30 p.m. — No. 5 Alabama vs. No. 12 Green Bay (ESPN2)
2 p.m. — No. 2 NC State vs. No. 15 Vermont (ESPN)
2 p.m. — No. 6 West Virginia vs. No. 11 Columbia (ESPNEWS)
2:30 p.m. — No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 14 Florida Gulf Coast (ESPNU)
3 p.m. — No. 1 USC vs. No. 16 UNC Greensboro (ABC)
3:30 p.m. — No. 7 Oklahoma State vs. No. 10 South Dakota State (ESPN2)
4 p.m. — No. 4 Maryland vs. No. 13 Norfolk State (ESPN)
4:30 p.m. — No. 3 North Carolina vs. No. 14 Oregon State (ESPNU)
Full women’s basketball schedule on Saturday, March 22. (Bruno Rouby/Yahoo Sports)
Must-see: We have to go with a battle of Hall of Fame coaches in Providence as John Calipari’s Arkansas and Rick Pitino’s St. John’s meet. The national champions have a long history together and have already met each other four times in the NCAA tournament. They’re the only two coaches who have taken three different schools to the Final Four.
Must-skip: Players like UConn’s Paige Bueckers and USC’s JuJu Watkins are certified stars. We’re not advocating that you ignore them on Saturday. But their teams should also have no trouble in their first-round matchups. You can feel free to flip around to more competitive games.
Most likely potential upset: Can Will Wade’s McNeese magic continue for another game before he heads to NC State? The Cowboys held Clemson to a staggering 13 points in the first half of their matchup on Thursday. Purdue started a little slowly, but comfortably held off High Point in the second half. Purdue is a 6.5-point favorite.
Player to watch: West Virginia’s JJ Quinerly is the Mountaineers’ go-to player. She leads the team with 20.6 points per game and has taken 174 more shots than anyone else on the roster. The offense runs through her and backcourt mates Jordan Harrison and Sydney Shaw. West Virginia has never been past the second round of the women’s NCAA tournament. Could this be the year?
Men’s schedule
5:15 p.m. — No. 4 Texas A&M vs. No. 5 Michigan (CBS)
6:10 p.m. — No. 3 Texas Tech vs. No. 11 Drake (TNT)
7:10 p.m. — No. 1 Auburn vs. No. 9 Creighton (TBS/TruTV)
7:45 p.m. — No. 3 Wisconsin vs. No. 6 BYU (CBS)
8:40 p.m. — No. 1 Houston vs. No. 8 Gonzaga (TNT)
9:40 p.m. — No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 7 UCLA
Women’s schedule
7:15 p.m. — No. 8 Illinois vs. No. 9 Creighton (ESPNEWS)
7:45 p.m. — No. 6 Florida State vs. No. 11 George Mason (ESPN2)
9:45 p.m. — No. 1 Texas vs. No. 16 William & Mary (ESPN2)
10:15 p.m. — No. 3 LSU vs. No. 14 San Diego State (ESPN)
Complete men’s basketball schedule for Saturday, March 22. (Taylar Sievert/Yahoo Sports)
Must-see: Houston vs. Gonzaga is a fantastic matchup of styles with tournament precedent on the line. Gonzaga is one of the best offensive teams in the country and is also one of the fastest teams in men’s college basketball. Houston, meanwhile, is one of the toughest teams to score against and loves a slower pace. Houston is a No. 1 seed for the third straight season and is looking to advance past the Sweet 16 after losing in the third round in each of the past two seasons. Gonzaga, meanwhile, has made the Sweet 16 in the previous nine NCAA tournaments.
Must-skip: Much like in the afternoon, there’s too much good basketball on Saturday evening to worry about Texas. The Longhorns shouldn’t have any trouble with William & Mary and there will likely be a competitive game or two on at the same time.
Most likely potential upset: Gonzaga has a fantastic chance to pull an upset but we’ve already talked about the Bulldogs. Auburn can’t afford to play like it did in the first half against Alabama State on Saturday vs. Creighton. The Bluejays blitzed Louisville on Thursday as Auburn struggled for much of the first half before opening a quick 10-point lead before halftime.
Player to watch: LSU forward Aneesah Morrow is a double-double machine. She’s the team’s second leading scorer behind Flau’jae Johnson at 18.5 points per game and leads women’s college basketball with 13.6 rebounds per game. It’ll be a surprise if she doesn’t have a double-double against the Aztecs.
