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The Breakfast Buffet — March Madness Edition

Who’s hungry for college basketball?

Here’s today’s installment of “The Breakfast Buffet”, a daily column that can be found here every single morning getting you caught up to date on everything that’s happened from the day/night before and everything that’s going to happen in the next 24 hours.

Mangia!

Things To Sample

The final meeting between Coach K and Tom Izzo
These two coaching titans will square off for the final time tonight as Michigan State plays Duke (5:15 ET, CBS) in the Round of 32. Mike Krzyzewski has a career record of 12-3 against his Hall-of-Fame counterpart, but just a 3-2 mark in the NCAA Tournament. The big thing to keep in mind entering this game? If Michigan State beats Duke later today, Izzo will have handed Krzyzewski the final two NCAA Tournament losses of his career. The Spartans beat the Blue Devils in the 2019 Elite Eight. Duke did not qualify for the 2021 NCAA Tournament. There was no NCAA Tournament in 2020 due to COVID.

Hubert Davis makes a statement
There were many people during the regular season who questioned whether or not Davis was the right person to succeed Roy Williams at North Carolina. Those questions have quickly been answered. The Tar Heels’ 93-86 overtime win over Baylor on Saturday put this program into the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019. Davis has now led North Carolina to more NCAA Tournament wins (two) than it had last season in the Tar Heels’ final year under Williams. North Carolina lost to Wisconsin last March in the Round of 64.

St. Peter’s is on an all-time March run
The Peacocks aren’t the first 15 seed to advance to the Sweet 16, but they’re definitely the most unexpected. Two days after beating Kentucky in overtime, St. Peter’s controlled its Round of 32 game against Murray State from tip to finish, beating the Racers 70-60 to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament’s second weekend. Remember: Iona — not St. Peter’s — was expected to win the MAAC Tournament and make this type of a run in March. The Peacocks are the first team from New Jersey to reach the Sweet 16 since Seton Hall in 2000. The point guard on that team? Shaheen Holloway — St. Peter’s head coach.

Remy Martin is getting back to being Remy Martin
Remember this guy? The Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year is starting to play like the player that we remember from Arizona State. Slowed by knee issues all season, Martin finally has more bounce in his step along with vintage cheetah like speed in the open floor. Through two NCAA Tournament games, the 6-foot Martin is averaging 17.5 points, four rebounds, and four assists. His 20-point outing on Saturday against Creighton was the first time all season that he’s scored 20 points in a game.

Purdue’s offense versus Texas’ defense
Great contrasts in styles are part of what makes intriguing matchups in the NCAA Tournament. This game is one of those matchups. According to KenPom, Purdue is second nationally in offensive efficiency, but just 89th nationally in defensive efficiency. Texas meanwhile, is 14th in defensive efficiency and 27th in offensive efficiency. Chris Beard is 2-0 against Matt Painter in the NCAA Tournament, with one win coming while he was at Arkansas Little Rock and the other coming while he was at Texas Tech. Tip off for this game is at 8:40 PM ET on TBS.

Leftovers