NCAA Tournament 2017: 10 best moments from opening weekend

Mar 19, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Wichita State Shockers guard Daishon Smith (2) controls the ball against Kentucky Wildcats guard Dominique Hawkins (25) during the first half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

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Mar 19, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Lonzo Ball (2) shoots over Cincinnati Bearcats forward Gary Clark (11) during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

2. South Region’s Top-Four Seeds Stay Alive

Back when there were still 68 teams alive following the bracket being released on Selection Sunday, much of the buzz was focused on the South Region. There is quality in every region, sure, but it seemed as if the committee absolutely stacked the South for whatever reason.

Much of the reasoning behind that belief decidedly came from the pedigree of the top four seeds in the South. In order from Nos. 1-4, the North Carolina Tar Heels, Kentucky Wildcats, UCLA Bruins and Butler Bulldogs reads like a murderer’s row for college basketball in recent years. However, it went beyond that as well, with the likes of the Dayton Flyers and Wichita State Shockers playing in the 7-10 matchup and a veteran Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders team in the 12-seed after they knocked off Tom Izzo’s group one year ago.

Even with the depth of the region, though, the ultimate hope was that the Sweet 16 would pit those stellar top-four seeds against one another in the Sweet 16 and then in some capacity come the Elite Eight. Thankfully, that’s what we got.

Wichita State gave Kentucky everything that they could handle on Sunday afternoon in the Second Round, but John Calipari and company survived. Meanwhile, many would argue that North Carolina should have lost following a controversial pair of calls (or no-calls) at the end of their game against Arkansas. Then UCLA and Butler moved on at least mildly comfortably. Now fans will get what should be an all-time great Regional Semifinal and Final, which makes all four teams advancing a combined best moment.

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