[1] KANSAS VS. [16] WESTERN KENTUCKY
8:50 p.m. Friday in Kansas City, Mo. • TNT
JAYHAWKS (29-5)
Coach: Bill Self.
Entry: Big 12 champion.
Player to watch: Jeff Withey (13.6 ppg, 8.4 rpg).
Notable: The Jayhawks lead the nation with 13 victories over the RPI top 50 but also have curious losses, notably a 62-55 loss Feb. 6 to TCU, ranked 237 in the RPI.
HILLTOPPERS (20-15)
Coach: Ray Harper.
Entry: Sun Belt champion.
Player to watch: T.J. Price (15.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.4 apg).
Notable: The Hilltoppers lost nine of 12 games at one point but have lost only once since falling Feb. 16 at Florida International.
[8] NORTH CAROLINA VS. [9] VILLANOVA
6:20 p.m. Friday in Kansas City, Mo. • TNT
TAR HEELS (24-10)
Coach: Roy Williams.
Entry: ACC at-large.
Player to watch: James Michael McAdoo (14.4 ppg, 7.4 rpg).
Notable: Going small is a decision that saved UNC's season, and led to a six-game winning streak towards the end of the season..
WILDCATS (20-13)
Coach: Jay Wright.
Entry: Big East at-large.
Player to watch: JayVaughn Pinkston (13.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg).
Notable: The Wildcats beat three top-five teams in Louisville, Syracuse and Georgetown but defended the three-point arc poorly (222 threes against).
[5] VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH VS. [12] AKRON
8:45 p.m. Thursday in Auburn Hills, Mich. • Ch. 4
RAMS (26-8)
Coach: Shaka Smart.
Entry: Atlantic 10 at-large.
Player to watch: Treveon Graham (15.5 ppg, 6.0 rpg).
Notable: The pressure defense of the Rams forces 19.2 turnovers a game, but it's a team that has had a tough time against big guards.
ZIPS (26-6)
Coach: Keith Dambrot.
Entry: MAC champion.
Player to watch: Zeke Marshall (13.0 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 3.7 bpg).
Notable: The Zips' 26 victories tied a school record. Demetrius Treadwell heads into the NCAA tournament with three consecutive double-doubles.
[4] MICHIGAN VS. [13] SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
6:15 p.m. Thursday in Auburn Hills, Mich. • Ch. 4
WOLVERINES (26-7)
Coach: John Beilein.
Entry: Big Ten at-large.
Player to watch: Trey Burke (19.2 ppg, 6.7 apg, 1.6 spg).
Notable: Burke led the Big Ten in assists and the NCAA statistics in assist-turnover ratio (3.41). Michigan averaged the fewest turnovers (8.9) in the country.
JACKRABBITS (25-9)
Coach: Scott Nagy.
Entry: Summit champion.
Player to watch: Nate Wolters (22.7 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 5.8 apg).
Notable: The Jackrabbits are making their second consecutive NCAA tournament appearance behind Wolters, the Summit League Player of the Year.
[2] GEORGETOWN VS. [15] FLA.-GULF COAST
5:50 p.m. Friday in Philadelphia • TBS
HOYAS (25-6)
Coach: John Thompson III.
Entry: Big East at-large.
Player to watch: Otto Porter Jr. (16.3 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 2.7 apg).
Notable: The Hoyas, who give up only 55.7 points per game, won 12 of their final 13 regular-season games behind Porter, the Big East Player of the Year.
Eagles (24-10)
Coach: Andy Enfield.
Entry: Atlantic Sun champion.
Player to watch: Sherwood Brown (15.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg).
Notable: The Eagles, who average 73.1 points per game and give up 66.7, played an ambitious nonconference schedule that included a 21-point loss at Duke.
[7] SAN DIEGO STATE VS. [10] OKLAHOMA
8:20 p.m. Friday in Philadelphia • TBS
AZTECS (22-10)
Coach: Steve Fisher.
Entry: Mountain West at-large.
Player to watch: Jamaal Franklin (16.7 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 3.2 apg).
Notable: Fisher has led the Aztecs to their fourth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance and 20 or more victories for eight years in a row.
SOONERS (20-11)
Coach: Lon Kruger.
Entry: Big 12 at-large.
Player to watch: Romero Osby (15.8 ppg, 7.0 rpg).
Notable: The Sooners head into the NCAA tournament with three losses in their past five games and will obviously need to pick things up.
[6] UCLA VS. [11] MINNESOTA
8:57 p.m. Friday in Austin, Texas • truTV
BRUINS (25-9)
Coach: Ben Howland.
Entry: Pac-12 at-large.
Player to watch: Shabazz Muhammad (17.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg).
Notable: Jordan Adams, the team's second-leading scorer (15.3 ppg.), will miss the NCAA tournament with a broken toe suffered last week.
GOPHERS (20-12)
Coach: Tubby Smith.
Entry: Big Ten at-large.
Player to watch: Trevor Mbakwe (10.0 ppg, 8.7 rpg).
Notable: The Gophers lost 11 of their last 16 games after a 3-0 start in conference play but were first in the Big Ten with a plus-8.2 rebound margin.
[3] FLORIDA VS. [14] NORTHWESTERN STATE
6:27 p.m. Friday in Austin, Texas • truTV
GATORS (26-7)
Coach: Billy Donovan.
Entry: SEC at-large.
Player to watch: Kenny Boynton (12.3 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.9 apg).
Notable: The Gators were the top defensive team in the SEC, giving up 53.7 points per game, and also led the SEC in three-point field-goal percentage defense.
DEMONS (23-8)
Coach: Mike McConathy.
Entry: Southland champion.
Player to watch: DeQuan Hicks (14.1 ppg, 5.8 rpg).
Notable: The Demons, who are making their first NCAA tourney appearance since 2006, are the nation's top scoring team at 82.4 points per game.