Kansas won its 14th straight by narrowly beating a tenacious Southern Illinois. Brandon Rush led Kansas to a hard fought victory over Southern Illinois by leading the Jayhawks in points, rebounds, assists, and blocks. The 61-58 win advanced Kansas to the [Elite Eight : 306SR076_s01 00:00:05;00] where they met UCLA, a team they had lost to four out of their last five meeting in the tournament.

UConn won their 12th straight as the Huskies beat the Southern Illinois Salukis 71-59, thus earning it's first berth in the Elite Eight since they won the national championship in 1999. The Huskies' march towards another title was cut short when Maryland knocked them out of the tournament the very next day. Southern Illinois closed out their season with a school-record 28 wins.