March Madness 2017 Bracket Update, Schedule, Predictions: Maryland, Minnesota Fall in First Day of the Tournament

By Noriel See, Christian Post Contributor Friday, March 17, 2017

It's the first day of March Madness and two high-seeded teams have already fallen.

No. 11 seed Xavier managed to upset No. 6 Maryland with a score of 76–65 and they will face No. 3 seed Florida State in the second round on March 18, at 6:10 p.m. ET. Florida State beat Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) 86–80 in their matchup in the first round. Campus Insiders has made a bold prediction that Florida State will win against Xavier.

The second upset might look impressive, but a lot of pundits have pointed out that it was a just an upset in terms of the seeding. Many basketball enthusiasts believed that No. 12 Middle Tennessee State shouldn't have been seeded that low in the first place and the Blue Raiders didn't think so either when they knocked out No. 5 Minnesota by score of 81–72.

They will face No. 4 Butler in the next round on March 18, at 7:10 p.m. ET. The Bulldogs beat No. 13 Winthrop 76–64 in the first round. Observers believe Middle Tennessee State will pull off another win against Butler.

All the other higher-seeded teams playing on Thursday managed to escape unscathed, but more could fall in the first round on Friday.

No. 1 Villanova beat No. 16 Mount St. Mary's by a score of 76–56 in their matchup and they will face No. 8 Wisconsin next on March 18, at 2:40 p.m. ET, after the Badgers held off No. 9 Virginia Tech 84–74. Villanova is expected to win this match.

After dispatching No. 16 South Dakota State with a score of 66–46, No. 1 Gonzaga moves on to the next round where they will face No. 8 Northwestern on March 18, at 5:15 p.m. ET. The Wildcats managed to squeak pass No. 9 Vanderbilt with a 68-66 victory. The Bulldogs are favorites against the Wildcats.

No. 2 Arizona beat No. 15 North Dakota 100-82 in the first round and they will face No. 7 St. Mary's on Mach 18, at 7:45 p.m. ET. The Gaels won 85–77 over No. 10 VCU. The Wildcats are favorites to win in this match up.

After holding off No. 13 Bucknell with an 86–80 win, No. 4 West Virginia will face No. 5 Notre Dame on March 18, at 12:10 p.m. ET. The Fighting Irish escaped with a 60–58 win over the No. 12 Princeton, and observers believe they can also get past West Virginia in the next round.

No. 4 Florida defeated No. 13 East Tennessee State by a score of 80–65 in the opening round, but they will have to face a tougher opponent in No. 5 Virginia on March 18, 8:40 p.m. ET. The Cavaliers held off No. 12 UNC Wilmington with a 76–71 win, and they are expected to win again in their matchup against the Gators.

After taking care of No. 13 Vermont in the opening round with a score of 80-70, No. 4 Purdue will face No. 5 Iowa State on Mar. 18, 9:40 p.m. ET. The Cyclones beat No. 12 Nevada 84–73 in their first round matchup, but observers think they will fall to the Boilermakers in the next round.