2023 March Madness live stream: NCAA Tournament TV schedule, watch basketball streaming online Saturday

Half the field has been eliminated from the 2023 NCAA Tournament series, so now eight spots in the Sweet 16 are on the line when the second round begins on Saturday. It’s a full slate of some of the biggest brands in college sports on a massive stage, but the program also features two of the year’s big upset darlings with 13-seed Furman and 15-seed Princeton looking to establish themselves as true Cinderellas by a ticket for the second weekend of the tournament.

The No. 1 seeds from the West Region (Kansas), Midwest Region (Houston), and South Region (Alabama) all face severe trials with their seasons on the line, and each has their own concerns about being able to perform to the achieve maximum potential. Add to that the sheer reach that comes with programs like Duke, UCLA, Texas and Penn State, AND Saturday’s second round will command the attention of sports fans everywhere, no matter how broken someone’s braces are.

Here are some of the biggest storylines to keep in mind for Saturday’s second round action.

Princeton and Furman try to keep the magical seasons alive

For the third season in a row, a 15-seed upset a 2-seed in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The final two – Oral Roberts in 2021 and Saint Peter’s in 2022 – won the next game and advanced to the Sweet 16. That’s now the challenge for 15-seed Princeton, who broke open the series with its upset victory against 2-seed Arizona on Thursday. Princeton has not reached the Sweet 16 since the expansion of the tournament, with a best result of a Final Four appearance in 1965. The Tigers did play in the Round of 32 in 1983, 1996 and 1998, but lost in each of those games . Head coach Mitch Henderson was a Princeton player for the 1996 and 1998 teams, and now he aims to lead his alma mater to new tournament heights as the Tigers face 7-seed Missouri.

Furman delivered perhaps one of the best shots and most exciting moments we’ll get all tournament with his game-winning steal and 3-pointer in the final seconds against 4-seed Virginia. The Paladins, the 13 seed in the South Region, had not won an NCAA Tournament game since 1974, and before Thursday, that was the only tournament win in the program’s history. Furman’s efforts to reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since the expansion of the tournament will kick off Saturday’s action as the Paladins take on five-place San Diego State.

Availability inquiries for Alabama, Houston and Kansas

All three of the 1 seeds in action on Saturday bring a significant amount of intrigue at best and uneasiness at worst around their teams heading into their second round fixtures. First, there’s No. 1 overall seed Alabama, where All-American freshman Brandon Miller went scoreless in the tournament opener, in part due to a hamstring injury that prevented Nate Oats from using him extensively in Crimson Tide’s 96-75 win against Texas A&M- Corpus Christi. It was the first time Miller had been held scoreless all season, although he only played 18 minutes. Although he is expected to play in Alabama’s second round game against Maryland, he was again limited during Crimson Tide’s practice on Friday. Houston began the tournament with injury concerns surrounding star guard Marcus Sasser, and those concerns came to the fore again when he aggravated his groin injury again in the Cougars’ opening-round victory against Northern Kentucky. Adding insult to injury was a knee injury suffered by fellow guard Jamal Shead, although both players indicated after the game that they plan to play against Auburn on Saturday.

Then we have Kansas, which is not dealing with player availability issues but is wondering if two-time national championship-winning coach Bill Self will return to the sidelines. Self, who underwent heart surgery and missed the entire Big 12 tournament, as well as the Jayhawks’ first-round victory against Howard, is considered “day-to-day” in terms of returning as the team’s in-game coach . . He has been with the team in practice and some meetings, but whether he will coach against Arkansas has yet to be determined.

Game of the Day: (1) Kansas vs. (8) Arkansas

What an absolutely delightful second round contest between the reigning national champion and an Arkansas program that has reached the Elite Eight in consecutive years under Eric Musselman. This will test Kansas’ ability to mix and match lineups, making Self’s availability particularly noteworthy as Norm Roberts may be tasked with orchestrating the substitution patterns against a long and athletic rotation in Arkansas. The Razorbacks’ freshman superstar Nick Smith didn’t even have a particularly strong game in the win against Illinois and the team still went almost wire-to-wire thanks to tenacious defense and strong performances from Ricky Council, Davonte Davis and Anthony Black . Kansas was outstanding in the tournament opener against Howard, with first-year star Gradey Dick flying across the floor for a total of 19 points and 11 rebounds to lead the way. The 96 points scored are the most by Kansas in a tournament game since 2017 and the most scored by a reigning champion in the next tournament game since Florida in 2007 – the first victory of the Gators’ repeat title run.

Ultimately, Kansas’ ability to advance to the Sweet 16 may not lie with the availability of Bill Self, but with the play of key veterans: point guard Dajuan Harris and Big 12 Player of the Year Jalen Wilson. The oddsmakers have spread this point to one of the tightest lines a 1-seed has seen in years in the second round, and if those expectations come true, it will come down to stops and shots in the final minutes.

Check out the full TV and streaming schedule for Saturday’s Second Round NCAA Tournament action below.

Second round

Saturday March 18