Men’s Elite Eight set as another No. 1 seed falls

The men’s Elite Eight is set after some thrilling Sweet 16 NCAA Tournament games Friday in Dallas and Detroit.

A second No. 1 seed lost as No. 4 seed Duke held off Houston 54-51 in a South Region semifinal in Dallas. The Blue Devils’ win came one night after top-seeded North Carolina fell to fourth-seeded Alabama in the West semifinals.

Elsewhere Friday, Zach Edey and No. 1 seed Purdue downed Gonzaga; North Carolina State kept its magical March rolling by topping Marquette; and Tennessee outlasted Creighton with defense and the playmaking of Dalton Knecht.

Now, it’s on to the Elite Eight — the regional finals — on Saturday and Sunday, with the four weekend winners advancing to the Final Four the following weekend in Phoenix.

There is intrigue in all four matchups:

• No. 4 seed Alabama and No. 6 Clemson are known as football schools. “Most people would think we’re out here playing in the Rose Bowl,” Alabama coach Nate Oats said Friday. But when the Crimson Tide and Tigers meet in Los Angeles, on a Saturday night, it most definitely will be on the hardwood.

• Top-seeded UConn is trying to repeat as national champion, and the Huskies will be playing No. 3 Illinois in Boston, about 90 miles from their campus in Storrs, Connecticut. They also are riding a streak of nine consecutive double-digit victories in March Madness.

• No. 1 seed Purdue meets No. 2 Tennessee in the only one of the four brackets in which the favorites both made the regional final. Purdue won 71-67 when these teams met in the Maui Invitational back in November, but a lot of basketball has been played since then. Both teams bring star power, with Purdue big man Zach Edey (24.5 points, 12.1 rebounds, 2.3 blocks) and Tennessee guard Dalton Knecht (21.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 39.1% 3PT).

• ACC rivals Duke and North Carolina State play their home games about 22 miles apart in North Carolina. On March 4, in the teams’ lone regular-season meeting, Duke won 79-64 on the road in Raleigh. But more recently, the fourth-seeded Blue Devils and No. 11 seed Wolfpack have been facing off far from home. N.C. State won 74-69 on March 14 in the ACC tournament in Washington, D.C. And on Sunday afternoon, the teams will play a third time this month, this one coming in Dallas.

Here are the matchups, tipoff times and TV channels for the men’s Elite Eight:

Men’s NCAA Tournament Elite Eight

(All times Pacific)

SATURDAY

East Region final

At TD Garden | Boston

(3) Illinois (29-8) vs. (1) UConn (34-3), 3:09 p.m. (TBS)

West Region final

At Crypto.com Arena | Los Angeles

(6) Clemson (24-11) vs. (4) Alabama (24-11), 5:49 p.m. (TBS)

SUNDAY

Midwest Region final

At Little Caesars Arena | Detroit

(2) Tennessee (27-8) vs. (1) Purdue (32-4), 11:20 a.m. (CBS)

South Region final

At American Airlines Center

(11) N.C. State (25-14) vs. (4) Duke (27-8), 2:05 p.m. (CBS)

-- The Associated Press contributed to this report.