Must-see 1st rd games: Best matchups, upset alerts, Cinderellas in the wings and stats/facts to know before finishing your bracket

JOIN THE EYE ON BRACKET GAME! Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander preview Thursday and Friday of the 2026 NCAA Tournament! Which Round 1 matchups are most intriguing? Where are the upsets waiting to happen? All that and more on the doorstep of the madness! (0:00) Intro + the tournament starts today! (4:00) Games to watch on Thursday (4:30) Ohio State vs. TCU (8:01) North Carolina vs. VCU (12:45) Georgia vs. Saint Louis (17:00) Nebraska vs. Troy (19:00) Duke vs. Siena (23:15) Arkansas vs. Hawaii (27:30) Games to watch on Friday (28:00) Kentucky vs. Santa Clara (33:30) Texas Tech vs. Akron (36:00) UConn vs Furman (38:30) Arizona vs LIU (44:00) Alabama vs Hofstra (48:20) Kansas vs. Cal Baptist (52:45) DraftKings Upset Alert (59:45) Sling TV Game to Watch: you gotta watch Miami on Wednesday night (1:08:30) Norlander’s nuggets ahead of the tournament Theme song: “Timothy Leary,” written, performed and courtesy of Guster Eye on College Basketball is available for free on the Audacy app as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify and wherever else you listen to podcasts. Follow our team: @EyeonCBBPodcast @GaryParrishCBS @MattNorlander @Boone @DavidWCobb @TheJMULL_ Visit the ⁠betting arena on CBSSports.com⁠ for all the latest in ⁠sportsbook reviews⁠ and ⁠sportsbook promos⁠ for ⁠betting on college basketball⁠. You can listen to us on your smart speakers! Simply say, “Alexa, play the latest episode of the Eye on College Basketball podcast,” or “Hey, Google, play the latest episode of the Eye on College Basketball podcast.” Email the show for any reason whatsoever: [email protected] Visit Eye on College Basketball’s YouTube channel: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeFb_xyBgOekQPZYC7Ijilw⁠ For more college hoops coverage, visit ⁠https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/⁠ To hear more from the CBS Sports Podcast Network, visit ⁠https://www.cbssports.com/podcasts/