The First Four is Back in Dayton
TJ Thompson | Sports Editor
The tradition continues as the first four games of the NCAA basketball tournament will be played at UD Arena. The games played on Tuesday March 18 and Wednesday March 19 will kick off March Madness and the race for the NCAA championship.
The first game will tip off at 5:40 and will be between St Francis PA (16-17) and Alabama State (19-15). St Francis PA is the 20th team with a losing record to ever make the tournament. The Red Flash and the Hornets both won their conference tournaments and secured their spots in the NCAA tournament. Alabama State is currently the favorite to win, but the winner of the game will go on to face the Number one overall seed Auburn Tigers (28-5).
Then at 8:10 the North Carolina Tar Heels (22-13) and San Diego State Aztecs (21-9) will tip off for their chance to continue their tournament run. Both these teams received an at large bid after not winning their respective conference championships. The Tar Heels are one of the more controversial picks to make the tournament. They only had one Quad 1 win, which is when you play against the better teams in the country, and many analysts believed they should have been left out. The winner of this game will face off against Ole Miss (22-11) Friday.
Kicking off the second set of games on Wednesday is Mount St. Mary’s (22-12) and American (22-12). American put together a great season and won their conference championship with ease securing their spot in the tournament. Mount St. Mary’s also won their respective conference championship but faces a tough task going against the Eagles in the first round. The winner of this game will go on to face Duke (31-3) Friday.
The second game on Wednesday is between Texas (19-15) and Xavier (21-11). This is the fourth matchup between these teams in the NCAA tournament. Their most recent meeting resulted in an 83-71 Longhorn win in the Sweet 16 in 2023. Texas was another controversial pick, but after defeating No. 14 Texas A&M (22-10) in the SEC tournament the committee believed that the Longhorns earned a spot in the dance. Xavier is the favorite to win, but the winner of the game will go on to face Illinois (21-12) on Friday.
This is the 24th year UD Arena will be hosting the First Four, and last year UD announced they will host through 2028. People have often said that these games don’t matter and the teams playing aren’t good, but there has been only one time when none of the First Four winner advanced past their second game.