NCAA Tournament Predictions: Why Favorites Should Hold Strong on Sunday

Upsets are coming, but don't grab the rebuild-a-bracket just yet. 

Sunday is likely to follow the Saturday second-round action with more chalk taking their game to the Sweet 16.

Here's a look at our NCAA Tournament picks for the final second-round games on Sunday.

Purdue -7 over Miami

The Boilermakers go with a senior-heavy starting lineup and can score fast, slow, inside and out. Miami is a bit of a wildcard and both Malik Reneau and Tre Donaldson are capable of a big scoring game.

Trey Kaufman-Renn is a sneaky candidate for 20-plus points (+140) and has a streak of hitting double figures as the primary pick-and-pop option with assist machine Braden Smith. It's the floor-spreading threats the Boilermakers feature that makes Kaufman-Renn, a widebody and under-the-rim scorer, more dangerous. Purdue has the safety net of Smith (-260 for 8-plus assists) when things get tight, and the Boilermakers are money at the line in close games if the Hurricanes land more punches than expected.

Virginia +1.5 over Tennessee

The Cavaliers hadn’t won an NCAA Tournament game since the 2019 national final until Friday's win over Wright State.

But Virginia's resume is strong, including the challenge of No. 1 Duke in the ACC tournament title game, when the Cavaliers made getting to the rim a challenge. Tennessee wants to slash and kick, and the Virginia defense is built to slow this type of game to their advantage.

Both teams count on freshmen (Nate Ament for Tennessee, Thijs De Ridder of Virginia) who should be more like themselves after a first taste of March Madness.

Arizona -12.5 over Utah State

Size matters in this one, and specifically the Wildcats deep and wide list of options in the frontcourt. 

The rebounding advantage is where Arizona can take away the threat of an Aggies upset out of the equation. With 10 victories in a row, we're not anticipating a serious test from No. 9 seed Utah State unless Arizona falls asleep at the wheel. MJ Collins and Mason Falslev are capable competitors but there's not enough around them to deal with the Wildcats' multitude of options.