Biggest Winners From The 2018 NCAA Tournament's First Weekend

The first weekend of the 2018 NCAA Tournament is in the books and boy was it crazy. Here’s a look at the biggest winners from the first two rounds of this year’s tournament.

Sister Jean

Yeah, sure Loyola-Chicago has been one of the biggest stories of the tournament with its Sweet 16 run, but Sister Jean was the real winner this weekend. The team’s 98-year-old chaplain is the program’s biggest fan and has become the star of the tournament so far.

UMBC Athletics Twitter

While UMBC pulled off the biggest upset in college basketball history against Virginia, the school’s athletics twitter account was on fire.

John Calipari

John Calipari complained about Kentucky’s placement in this year’s tournament and seems to find something to whine about every year. But this time around it worked out for the Wildcats. Kentucky’s bracket has completely opened up and the path to a Final four is now clear.

The fifth-seeded Wildcats are now the highest seed left in the South Region. Hey, chaos is always good for someone. I can totally picture Calipari giving this speech to his team after Sunday night’s games:

Deandre Ayton

Look I know it was disappointing for DeAndre Ayton to lose in the first round, but now he can get the hell away from the disaster that is Arizona’s basketball program. Ayton’s sole focus will now turn to the 2018 NBA Draft, where he’s certain to be a high pick.

Wearing sports jackets over t-shirts

Marshall head coach Dan D'Antoni had some odd wardrobe choices that actually kind of worked. He went with the sports jacket over a t-shirt look and may have inspired a trend. The 13th-seeded Thundering Herd upset Wichita State in the opening round but got hammered by in-state rival West Virginia in the Round of 32. Still, at least D’Antoni looked comfortable the whole time.

Jordan Poole

Jordan Poole had the quote the weekend. The Michigan freshman hit the biggest shot of the tournament so far. Poole scored just 6.2 points per game this season, but put in the biggest three points of the year for the Wolverines.

Rob Gray

Houston’s man-bun-sporting guard Rob Gray was incredible in the tournament. The 6’1″ senior dropped 39 while grabbing eight rebounds in the opener against San Diego State, then had 23 points and 10 rebounds against Michigan. A phenomenal shot-maker, Gray was just flat-out fun to watch.

Jim Boeheim

I’m not speaking out of turn when I say Jim Boeheim is one of the most profoundly unlikable coaches in all of sports. Despite that, the man knows how to win. His Syracuse squad spent the first week of the tournament going 3-0, beating Arizona State, TCU and Michigan State to reach the Sweet 16.

As always, Boeheim’s 2-3 has had opponents looking flummoxed in the tournament. Say what you want about the guy (and I certainly have), but he’s now reached the Sweet 16 six times since 2009. He’s also got two Final Four trips in that span.

His next test will come Friday night as his 11th-seeded team takes on second-seeded Duke.

Zach Norvell Jr.

Zach Norvell redshirted last season after a knee injury delayed the start to his collegiate career. Now he’s clearly trying to make up for missing Gonzaga’s run to the finals. A sturdy 6’5″ guard from Chicago, Norvell won the Bulldogs’ opening-round game against UNC-Greensboro with a clutch 3-pointer, then led them to a 90-84 win over Ohio State.

Against the Buckeyes, Norvell set career-highs in points (28), rebounds (12) and minutes (39). He seems to be getting better every game, which will help the Zags moving forward.