From 68 to 16: March Madness 2017 First Weekend Primer
Pod #2 – Milwaukee, Wisconsin
| Colors | Location | Record | RPI | ||
| #4 | Butler Bulldogs | Blue, White | Indianapolis, IN | 23-8 | 14 |
| #5 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | Maroon, Gold | Minneapolis, MN | 24-9 | 21 |
| #12 | Middle Tennessee St. Blue Raiders | Royal Blue, White | Murfreesboro, TN | 30-4 | 35 |
| #13 | Winthrop Eagles | Garnet, Gold | Rock Hill, SC | 26-6 | 68 |
#4 Butler vs. #13 Winthrop — Thursday, 1:30 p.m., TNT
Line: Butler (-12)
FiveThirtyEight: Butler (89%)
The Bulldogs went 4-0 against top 25 opponents but lost eight games overall. They are not the best rebounding team, but they make 47.8% of their field goal attempts and are led by Kelan Martin, who averages 16.1 points. The Eagles are on an eight-game winning streak, winning both the Big South regular season and tournament championships, and Keon Johnson averages 22.5 points per game.
#4 Minnesota vs. #12 Middle Tennessee State — Thursday, 4:00 p.m., TNT
Line: Minnesota (-1)
FiveThirtyEight: Minnesota (52%)
Middle Tennessee State will look to reprise their stunning upset of Michigan State in last season’s tournament by taking on another Big Ten team. The Blue Raiders score 58 percent of their points on two-point attempts, the highest percentage in the tournament. JaCorey Williams leads MTSU with 17.3 points per game. Richard Pitino guided the Golden Gophers to wins in nine of their last 11 games and Minnesota averages 40 rebounds per game.
Second Round Outlook
MTSU will likely be a favorite 5 vs. 12 upset pick, which makes sense. No one wants to play the Blue Raiders right now, and they have a chance to upset Butler as well to get to the second weekend. If Minnesota does win, Butler will likely be facing them in the second round, and Minnesota would have an advantage in the paint, but if Butler gets hot, they will probably advance to the Sweet 16.