TODAY’S GAMES

No. 1 Illinois vs. No. 9 Nevada

* Site: Indianapolis. Time: 2:40 p.m. PST.

* How they got here: Illinois def. No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson, 67-55; Nevada def. No. 8 Texas, 61-57.

* The Buzz: Illinois did not look like a top-seeded team in the first round, and the Illini must play a lot better today. Illini guards Dee Brown, Luther Head and Deron Williams are going to get their points, but that trio needs some offensive help from forwards Roger Powell and James Augustine. Illinois was outrebounded by 12 by Fairleigh Dickinson, and Nevada has a good frontcourt. The Wolf Pack edged Texas despite a subpar game from star forward Nick Fazekas. If Fazekas does his usual star turn, gets help from forward Kevinn Pinkney and the Wolf Pack can avoid turning it over more than 15 times, this could get interesting. Nevada is awful (27%) from three-point range, but some three-pointers would go a long way toward an upset.

No. 4 Boston College vs. No. 12 Wisconsin Milwaukee

* Site: Cleveland. Time: 2:30 p.m.

* How they got here: Boston College def. No. 13 Penn, 85-65; Wisconsin Milwaukee def. No. 5 Alabama, 83-73.

* The Buzz: Boston College will be much more diligent pounding the ball inside against Wisconsin Milwaukee’s smallish frontcourt than was Alabama, which seemed content to shoot from the perimeter. BC’s inside duo of Craig Smith and Jared Dudley has pulverized foes all season and must continue to do so. UWM plays solid defense, but the Panthers haven’t seen a 1-2 punch like Dudley and Smith. UWM was on fire from three-point range against the Tide -- 10 in the first half -- and that needs to continue today. That puts the onus on Boo Davis and Ed McCants to make their shots. BC is better defensively than Alabama, so open looks are going to be harder to come by.

No. 3 Arizona vs. No. 11 Alabama Birmingham

* Site: Boise, Idaho. Time: 2:50 p.m.

* How they got here: Arizona def. No. 14 Utah State, 66-53; Alabama Birmingham def. No. 6 Louisiana State, 82-68.

* The Buzz: Alabama Birmingham beat LSU far more easily than the score indicates, helped immensely by LSU’s bad backcourt. Arizona doesn’t have a bad backcourt. Indeed, sharpshooting guard Salim Stoudamire can expect some wide-open looks because of UAB’s style of defense. In addition, Wildcat center Channing Frye should be able do some damage down low against UAB’s smallish frontcourt. UAB’s defensive goal is to make opponents play faster than they want. That’s hard to do with Arizona, which thrives in an up-tempo game. To pull off the upset, UAB needs to force at least 20 turnovers and use its depth to wear down the Wildcats. The Blazers have been here before, though: They beat top-seeded Kentucky in the second round last season.

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Compiled by Mike Huguenin of the Orlando Sentinel.