The West has almost been won, and the North Carolina Tar Heels and Arizona Wildcats are both one win away from setting up an epic showdown between Arizona guard Caleb Love and his former teammates.
Love helped the Tar Heels on a magical run to the National Championship game in 2022, knocking out archrival Duke and retiring Mike Kryzewski in the process. But 2023 was a disaster for Love and the Tar Heels, prompting a mutual parting of ways that saw Love land at Arizona before winning PAC-12 Player of the Year.
To make it happen, they'll both have to fend off very worthy opponents, as UNC comes up against fourth-seeded Alabama, and the Wildcats might be catching a red-hot Clemson team at the wrong time.
Alabama showed off its offense against Charleston before winning a weirdly defensive contest against Grand Canyon in the second round, while Clemson defied the trendy upset pick against New Mexico and then punched Baylor in the mouth early on their way to an upset win over the Bears.
As we anxiously await these fantastic matchups on Thursday night, here are our official predictions for which two teams in the South region will square off in the Elite 8.
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(4) Alabama vs. (1) North Carolina
Time: 9:39 PM EST, Thursday
Channel: CBS
How They Got Here: Alabama defeated Charleston, Grand Canyon. North Carolina defeated Wagner, Michigan State.
Odds: North Carolina -4.5
Alabama is absolutely a serious threat to knock off the Tar Heels on Thursday night. Carolina looked like a defensive powerhouse in December and January, but that aspect of their game has regressed a little bit since.
That makes them vulnerable against the Crimson Tide, who under coach Nate Oats run an offense that is both lightning fast and wildly efficient, playing at the 8th-fastest pace in the country per KenPom while almost exclusively shooting three-pointers and twos at the basket.
Fortunately for the Heels, they have center Armando Bacot down low to affect the quality of those close-in looks, and his defensive presence will be one of the big keys to this game.
The Heels will welcome the fast pace, though, as it will only serve to give their offense more cracks at Alabama's much more vulnerable defense. This could be a huge game for UNC's skill players, as ACC Player of the Year R.J. Davis should get plenty of good looks while sharpshooter Cormac Ryan could often find himself wide open in transition.
It will be interesting to see how the Heels opt to defend star Alabama guard Mark Sears in this one, as this iteration of Carolina lacks the type of lockdown on-ball defender that Leaky Black provided in years past.
Regardless, we're trusting Hubert Davis in this one to find ways to come up with enough stops to allow Carolina's own offensive talent to outpace the Crimson Tide's.
The Pick: 88-81, North Carolina
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(6) Clemson vs. (2) Arizona
Time: 7:09 PM EST, Thursday
Channel: CBS
How They Got Here: Clemson defeated New Mexico, Baylor. Arizona defeated Long Beach State, Dayton.
Odds: Arizona -7.5
Arizona has taken care of business so far, handling Long Beach State and winning easily against a Dayton squad that is likely roughly of the same caliber as this Clemson squad.
The Tigers are peaking at the right time, though, and for that reason Brad Brownell and his crew could be a tough out for the Wildcats. Clemson is led by star big man P.J. Hall, whose versatility and touch around the rim make him a huge factor in any game. Syracuse transfer Joe Girard adds strong shooting touch, and Chase Hunter is an athletic guard who can score in a number of ways.
The big problem for Clemson in this one lies in the fact that Arizona, at least on paper, has answers for each and every one of Clemson's strengths.
The Wildcats will rely on Oumar Ballo to limit Hall's impact, and they should have good faith in him doing so, as he just did a good job against Dayton's DaRon Holmes, who is very arguably a better and more dynamic offensive presence than Hall.
Love is a dynamic scorer and a willing defender of the other team's guards, and the Wildcats in general do a very solid job on the defensive end both down low and against the three-ball.
If Clemson is to win, it will be because Brownell did a fantastic job of creating opportunities for his guys with creative sets and looks. That formula worked very well against Baylor, but Arizona presents a whole extra level of a challenge defensively.
The Pick: 75-66, Arizona
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