No. 1 Florida Falls
Florida became the first No. 1 seed eliminated from the 2026 men’s tournament after Iowa upset them 73-68 on Sunday — a seismic bracket-killer that landed in the Round of 32 (Mar. 22). The Sweet 16 field is now set and the Big Ten stamped its authority with six teams advancing — bracket maps and highlights are rolling across recap packages and live takeaways. (cbssports.com) (nytimes.com) (youtube.com)
Alvaro Folgueiras drilled a go-ahead 3-pointer on Iowa’s final possession, a shot that produced the lead change with 3.0 seconds remaining and stood as the game-winner. (espn.com, foxsports.com) (espn.com) Folgueiras finished with 14 points and a perfect 6-for-6 line from the free-throw line off the bench for Iowa, while Tavion Banks led the Hawkeyes with 20 points. (sports-reference.com) (sports-reference.com) Florida’s Alex Condon scored 21 points and Thomas Haugh added 19 for the Gators in the loss, according to the official box score. (usatoday.com, freeplays.com) (sportsdata.usatoday.com) Both teams totaled 27 rebounds, Iowa shot 51% from the field and Florida 50%, and the teams committed 10 and 11 turnovers respectively in a game played at Benchmark International Arena before an announced crowd of 14,717. (espn.com) (espn.com) Iowa advances to face No. 4 Nebraska in the Sweet 16 on Thursday, March 26 at 7:30 p.m. ET on TBS/truTV, per the official NCAA bracket. (ncaa.com) (ncaa.com) The Big Ten now has six teams in the Sweet 16 — Michigan, Purdue, Illinois, Michigan State, Nebraska and Iowa — a conference record for the program going into the second weekend. (sportingnews.com) (sportingnews.com) Ben McCollum, who was hired as Iowa’s head coach last year, brought several transfers including Folgueiras to Iowa; McCollum’s March roster construction and the upset have been highlighted in postgame coverage. (hawkeyesports.com, espn.com) (hawkeyesports.com) It is Iowa’s first trip back to the Sweet 16 in 27 years, a milestone noted by team and fan coverage after Sunday’s upset. (sports.yahoo.com) (sports.yahoo.com)
