Aliyah Boston and South Carolina face North Carolina in the Sweet 16 at 7 p.m. EDT Friday on ESPN. Photo courtesy of South Carolina Athletics
MIAMI, March 25 (UPI) — The Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds of the men’s and women’s college basketball tournaments, a PGA Tour golf tournament and a trio of NASCAR races lead the weekend sports schedule.
A Formula 1 race, tennis tournament and the NBA, NHL and soccer regular seasons also air from Friday through Sunday.
But March Madness continues to plug the TV networks as more than two dozen combined teams remain active in the respective 68-team men’s and women’s basketball fields.
The NCAA Division I tournaments run through the first week of April.
Men’s tournament
The second wave of men’s Sweet 16 matchups airs Friday on CBS and TBS. No. 15 seed Saint Peter’s takes on No. 3 Purdue in the first of four games. That game tips off at 7:09 p.m. EDT and airs on CBS.
No. 1 Kansas then battles No. 4 Providence at 7:29 p.m. on TBS. No. 8 North Carolina takes on No. 4 UCLA in the next game at 9:39 p.m. on CBS. No. 10 Miami battles No. 11 Iowa State in Friday’s nightcap at 9:59 p.m. on TBS.
The men’s tournament continues with two Elite Eight games on Saturday and another two on Sunday. The men’s Final Four is April 2, and the National Championship game is April 4.
Women’s tournament
The women’s tournament continues with the first wave of Sweet 16 games Friday. No. 1 South Carolina faces No. 5 North Carolina in the first game of the weekend at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
No. 2 Texas plays at the same time in another Sweet 16 game against No. 6 Ohio State on ESPN2.
No. 4 Maryland faces No. 1 Stanford at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN. No. 3 Iowa State battles No. 10 Creighton at the same time on ESPN2.
The final wave of women’s Sweet 16 games air Saturday. No. 1 North Carolina State faces No. 5 Notre Dame in the first game at 11:30 a.m. on ESPN.
No. 2 UConn then faces No. 3 Indiana at 2 p.m. on ESPN. No. 1 Louisville faces No. 4 Tennessee in the third game at 4 p.m. on ESPN2. No. 3 Michigan then battles No. 10 South Dakota at 6:30 p.m. on the same network.
The women’s Elite Eight airs Sunday and Monday. The Final Four and National Championship game air April 1 and 3, respectively.
NASCAR
The NASCAR season continues with a trio of weekend races at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.
Truck Series drivers take the track first for the XPEL 225 at 1 p.m. EDT Saturday on FS1. The Xfinity Series Pit Boss 250 follows at 4:30 p.m. Saturday on FS1.
Cup Series drivers will compete in the weekend finale when they race in the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at 3:30 p.m. Sunday on Fox.
Cup Series standings leader Chase Elliott, Kyle Larson, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Chase Briscoe and A.J. Allmendinger are among the favorites to win the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix.
Weekend schedule (all times EDT)
Friday
Tennis
Miami Open at 11 a.m. on Tennis Channel
Golf
WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play from 2 to 8 p.m. on Golf Channel
College basketball
Men’s
Saint Peter’s vs. Purdue at 7:09 p.m. on CBS
Providence vs. Kansas at 7:29 p.m. on TBS
North Carolina vs. UCLA at 9:39 p.m. on CBS
Iowa State vs. Miami at 9:59 p.m. on TBS
Women’s
North Carolina vs. South Carolina at 7 p.m. on ESPN
Ohio State vs. Texas at 7 p.m. on ESPN2
Maryland vs. Stanford at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN
Creighton vs. Iowa State at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2
Soccer
Friendly: France vs. Ivory Coast at 4:15 p.m. on ESPN2
World Cup Qualifying: Argentina vs. Venezuela at 7:30 p.m. on beIN Sports
NHL
Capitals at Sabres at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Penguins at Rangers at 7 p.m. on NHL Network
Blue Jackets at Jets at 8 p.m. on ESPN+
Flyers at Avalanche at 9 p.m. on ESPN+
Coyotes at Flames at 9 p.m. on ESPN+
NBA
Warriors at Hawks at 7:30 p.m. on NBA TV
76ers at Clippers at 10:30 p.m. on NBA TV
Saturday
Soccer
Friendly: Croatia vs. Slovenia at 10 a.m. on ESPN+
Friendly: Ireland vs. Belgium at 1 p.m. on ESPN+
Friendly: England vs. Switzerland at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN+
Friendly: Spain vs. Albania at 2:45 p.m. on ESPN+
Friendly: Germany vs. Israel at 3:45 p.m. on ESPN+
MLS: Cincinnati at Charlotte at 5 p.m. on TUDN and Twitter
MLS: Salt Lake at Kansas City at 7 p.m. on TUDN and Twitter
Golf
WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Golf Channel; from 2 to 6 p.m. on NBC
Tennis
Miami Open at 11 a.m. on Tennis Channel
College basketball
Men’s
Elite Eight on TBS
Women’s
Notre Dame vs. NC State at 11:30 a.m. on ESPN
Indiana vs. UConn at 2 p.m. on ESPN
Tennessee vs. Louisville at 4 p.m. on ESPN2
South Dakota vs. Michigan at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN2
NHL
Islanders at Bruins at 12:30 p.m. on NHL Network
Lightning at Red Wings at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN+
Blackhawks at Golden Knights at 3 p.m. on ABC
Maple Leafs at Canadiens at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Panthers at Senators at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Devils at Capitals at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Canucks at Stars at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Blue Jackets at Wild at 8 p.m. on ESPN+
Oilers at Flames at 10 p.m. on ESPN+
Kraken at Kings at 10:30 p.m. on ESPN+
Ducks at Sharks at 10:30 p.m. on ESPN+
NASCAR
Truck Series XPEL 225 at 1 p.m. on FS1
Xfinity Series Pit Boss 250 at 4:30 p.m. on FS1
NBA
Nets at Heat at 8 p.m. on NBA TV
Sunday
Tennis
Miami Open at 11 a.m. on Tennis Channel
Soccer
MLS: Orlando at Portland at 4 p.m. on ESPN
World Cup Qualifying: USMNT vs. Panama at 7 p.m. on FS1
Golf
WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Golf Channel; from 3 to 7 p.m. on NBC
Formula 1
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at 12:55 p.m. on ESPN
College basketball
Men’s
Elite Eight on CBS
Women’s
Elite Eight on ESPN
NHL
Lightning at Islanders at 2 p.m. on TNT
Sabres at Rangers at 5 p.m. on ESPN+
Red Wings at Penguins at 5 p.m. on ESPN+
Flyers at Predators at 6 p.m. on ESPN+
Avalanche at Wild at 6 p.m. on ESPN+
Panthers at Maple Leafs at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Canadiens at Devils at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
Coyotes at Jets at 7 p.m. on ESPN+
NASCAR
Cup Series EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at 3:30 p.m. on Fox
NBA
Jazz at Mavericks at 7:30 p.m. on NBA TV