For the seventh time overall and fifth time at PPG Paints Arena, the NCAA Tournament returns to Pittsburgh.
After the Selection Sunday program on CBS, the eight teams that will battle in Pittsburgh in the tournament’s first round have been revealed.
All four games are scheduled for Thursday.
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— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 17, 2024
No. 3 Kentucky vs. No. 14 Oakland, 7:10 p.m., CBS
Kentucky
Record: 23-9, 13-5 SEC
Coach: John Calipari
Leading scorer: Antonio Reeves (20.0 points per game)
How they got here: Kentucky finished second in the SEC but fell to unranked Texas A&M in the league tournament quarterfinals. A No. 19 NET ranking and several impressive regular-season wins — including over No. 4 Tennessee, No. 13 Alabama, No. 13 Auburn — provided the selection committee with an easy pick for an at-large bid.
Notable: Moon Township’s John Calipari, a Clarion (now PennWest Clarion) grad, returns to familiar ground in hopes of advancing out of the NCAA Tournament’s opening weekend for the first time since 2019.
Oakland
Record: 23-11 (15-5 Horizon League)
Coach: Greg Kampe
Leading scorer: Trey Townsend (16.9 points per game)
How they got here: Oakland won the Horizon League regular-season and conference tournament to snag the league’s automatic bid.
Notable: Kampe, 68, is in his 40th season coaching the Golden Grizzlies, having been at the helm since 1984-85. He is two wins away from 700 in his career.
No. 6 Texas Tech vs. No. 11 NC State, 9:40 p.m., CBS
Texas Tech
Record: 23-10, 11-7 Big 12
Coach: Grant McCasland
Leading scorer: Pop Isaacs (15.9 points per game)
How they got here: The Red Raiders finished fourth in the Big 12 and fell to top-seeded Houston in its conference tournament semifinals.
Notable: The Red Raiders displayed impressive program stabilization in McCasland’s first year as coach. After finishing tied for last place in the Big 12 in 2022-23 Texas Tech improved its total win total by seven.
N.C. State
Record: 22-14 (9-11 ACC)
Coach: Kevin Keatts
Leading scorer: DJ Horne (16.9 points per game)
How they got here: N.C. State shocked the ACC by winning five games in five days to capture the league conference championship, upsetting No. 4 UNC in the title game.
Notable: Putting the “madness” into March Madness, the Wolfpack ended the regular season on a four-game skid and finished 10th in the ACC before catching fire in the league tournament.
No. 6 South Carolina vs. No. 11 Oregon, 4 p.m., TNT
South Carolina
Record: 26-7 (13-5 SEC)
Coach: Lamont Paris
Leading scorer: Meechie Johnson (13.8 points per game)
How they got here: South Carolina’s run in the SEC Tournament ended prematurely with a 31-point thumping at the hands of Auburn.
Notable: Paris formerly served as an assistant coach under Keith Dambrot at Akron. Now in his second season with South Carolina, he has overseen a 15-game improvement from last year with a team picked to finish last in the SEC.
Oregon
Record: 23-11, (12-8 Pac-12)
Coach: Dana Altman
Leading scorer: Jermaine Couisnard (15.4 points per game)
How they got here: The Ducks defeated No. 6 Arizona in the semifinals before topping Colorado in the title game to secure the Pac-12’s automatic bid.
Notable: At the start of the Pac-12 Tournament, Oregon looked to be almost guaranteed to miss the Big Dance for the third straight year, an uncharted regression under Altman.
No. 3 Creighton vs. No. 14 Akron, 1:30 p.m., TNT
Creighton
Record: 23-8 (14-6 Big East)
Coach: Greg McDermott
Leading scorer: Baylor Scheierman (18.4 points per game)
How they got here: Creighton enjoyed top-25 ranking for the majority of the regular season but was upset in the Big East Tournament quarterfinals by seventh-seeded Providence.
Notable: McDermott has led the Blue Jays to 20-plus wins in 10 of his 11 seasons. Last year’s squad advanced to the Elite Eight, Creighton’s deepest NCAA Tournament run since 1941.
Akron
Record: 24-10 (13-5 Mid-American)
Coach: John Groce
Leading scorer: Enrique Freeman (18.6 points per game)
How they got here: The Zips finished second in the MAC but topped Kent State, 62-61, in the conference tournament for the league’s auto bid.
Notable: Groce succeeded Dambrot as head coach at Akron when, after the 2016-17 season, Dambrot left for Duquesne.
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Justin Guerriero is a TribLive reporter covering the Penguins, Pirates and college sports. A Pittsburgh native, he is a Central Catholic and University of Colorado graduate. He joined the Trib in 2022 after covering the Colorado Buffaloes for Rivals and freelancing for the Denver Post. He can be reached at jguerriero@triblive.com.