ESPN staffMar 30, 2025, 04:43 PM ET
The Houston Cougars opened Sunday's Elite Eight action with a decisive win over Tennessee to join fellow 1-seeds Duke and Florida in the men's Final Four next Saturday.
Now the Auburn Tigers will try to hold off Tom Izzo's Michigan State Spartans (5:05 p.m. ET) as this round closes out in Atlanta.
We'll be tracking all the action, so follow along as we enter the final stretch of March Madness.
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(2) Tennessee vs.
(1) Houston
Final: Houston defeated Tennessee 69-50
How Houston won: The defining theme of this college basketball season has been the dominance of the SEC, which became the first conference to have four teams in each regional final after setting a record with 14 NCAA tournament bids. But on Sunday, Houston showed Tennessee and the SEC that the Big 12 can still play the role of bully. The Cougars threw a defensive haymaker in the first half and rendered the Vols' offense overwhelmed and impotent. Any embers of life they showed the second half were extinguished by Emanuel Sharp, who hit a trio of key 3-pointers in the final minutes to prevent Tennessee from cutting the lead to single-digits. Houston is headed to its seventh Final Four -- its six appearances without a national title is the most of any program in college basketball. -- Pete Thamel
