NCAA Tournament: Sweet Sixteen Power Rankings

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Mar 18, 2017; Buffalo, NY, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers forward Elijah Macon (45) and forward Nathan Adrian (11) pressure Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward Bonzie Colson (35) in the second half during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at KeyBank Center. West Virginia won 83-71. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports /

Teams 5 and 6

West Virginia Mountaineers. 6. team. 2391. . (4-seed, West).

Sweet Sixteen Appearance: 10th (First since 2015)

Head Coach: Bob Huggins, 227-117 (10th Season)

Top Players: G Jevon Carter: 13.3 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 2.5 spg (Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year); F Nathan Adrian: 9.7 ppg, 6 rpg (Big 12 Defensive Team); G Tarik Phillip: 9.6 ppg, 3.1 apg, 1.8 spg (Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year).

How they got here: West Virginia opened the first round by beating 13-seed Bucknell 86-80. They followed that up with a 83-71 victory over 5-seed Notre Dame in the second round.

Best Case Scenario: West Virginia take Press Virginia to a whole new level in the Sweet 16. First, they smother Gonzaga and then turn Arizona over 20 times on their way to their first Final Four since 2010.

Once in Phoenix, the Mountaineers keep up the pressure. They handle Florida easily and run into the Tar Heels in the Championship game. UNC, having had turnover troubles earlier in the season, can’t hold onto the ball and Bob Huggins brings the banner home to Morgantown.

Mar 19, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard De’Aaron Fox (0) dunks against the Wichita State Shockers during the second half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

Sweet Sixteen Appearance: 42nd (First since 2015)

Head Coach: John Calipari, 248-52 (Eighth Season)

Top Players: G Malik Monk: 20 ppg, 2.4 apg (SEC AP Player of the Year); G De’Aaron Fox: 16.1 ppg, 4.6 apg, 4 rpg (SEC tournament MVP); F Edrice “Bam” Adebayo: 13.3 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.5 bpg (SEC Second Team).

How they got here: Kentucky opened the first round by beating 15-seed Northern Kentucky 79-70. They followed that up with a 65-62 victory over 10-seed Wichita State in the second round.

Best Case Scenario: Kentucky opens up by getting revenge on UCLA in the Sweet 16. They meet up against UNC in the Elite 8 in a rematch of one of the best games of the year. Malik Monk sinks the game-winning three.

The Wildcats go on to beat Oregon in the Final Four. Kentucky falls short of a championship though when Baylor beats them with a Manu Lecomte layup at the buzzer.

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