Today’s Games

AT CHICAGO

Florida vs. Creighton: Creighton hopes to join the club of No. 12s that have pulled off upsets--Tulsa over Marquette, Missouri over Miami--and, guess what, Florida appears to be in disarray. The Gators are sort of to the South what UCLA is to the West--an enigma. Florida, a top-10 preseason pick, enters the regional having lost seven of its last 14 games and its starting guard, Brett Nelson, now having to turn his other cheek(bone). Nelson, the team’s third-leading scorer, is expected to play despite fracturing his cheekbone in a Tuesday practice skirmish with teammate LaDarius Halton.

Illinois vs. San Diego State: An interesting matchup between a team that vastly underachieved this year, Illinois, and one that overachieved in San Diego State. Illinois is playing better after an early-season funk. All fortunes begin and end with guard Frank Williams, who has not had a great season. Williams is shooting only 38% from the field but is capable of performances that can carry a team deep into March. San Diego State claimed its first NCAA bid since 1985 by winning the Mountain West Conference tournament.

Chris Dufresne

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AT DALLAS

Mississippi State vs. McNeese State: This is a matchup of two of the hottest teams in the country. Mississippi State has won its last eight and nine of its last 10. The Bulldogs knocked off favored Florida and Alabama en route to the Southeastern Conference tournament championship. Both teams have stingy defenses, but Mississippi State is a superior rebounding team led by 6-9, 265-pound forward Mario Austin (16 points, 7.6 rebounds). Point guard Derrick Zimmerman (6.2 assists) does a good job running the offense.

Texas vs. Boston College: Texas features fleet freshman point guard T.J. Ford (10.6 points, 8.5 assists), who is trying to became the first freshman in NCAA history to lead the nation in assists. Guard Royal Ivey (11.2 points) is a slasher, not a shooter, but his specialty is defense. He held Stanford’s Casey Jacobsen to nine points in December.

Newsday