This year’s March Madness tournament has certainly breezed by as there is now just one game from the Final Four. The two teams battling it out for a spot in the Final Four are the Arizona Wildcats and the Purdue Boilermakers 

It only made sense for the West Region to come down to the One and Two seeds of the West Bracket. According to the NCAA Top 25, Arizona is the second-best team in the country, and Purdue is eighth.  

Arizona is making it to the Elite Eight for the twelfth time in school history, and this is its first showing since 2015. The Wildcats are 34-15 in Top 25 matchups under head coach Tommy Lloyd. Their win over Arkansas tied the school’s record in wins for a single season.  

Arizona Head Coach Tommy Lloyd said this about Purdue, “Obviously we’re playing a program that’s been elite for a long time, but especially the last few years. And they obviously have a championship culture and a great coach and great players. “  

On the other hand, Purdue is looking to make it to the Final Four for the second time in three seasons. The Boilermakers are coming off a win against Texas, where Trey Kauffman-Renn put in a shot with 0.7 seconds left. Purdue has a history that says that they might struggle in this matchup. All-time, Purdue is 0-9 against No. 1 seeds in the tournament.  

Head Coach Matt Painter said, “Our guys have worked really hard to get in that position. We know we’re playing a very talented, athletic, skilled, physical team in Arizona. One of the best teams in the country, if not the best team in the country.”  

Purdue leads the all-time series between them and the Wildcats 8-5. The Boilermakers are also on a three-game winning streak against Arizona. This is also their third matchup in the NCAA tournament, with the other two being in 1975 and 2007.  

This matchup is set to be one that will certainly get the popcorn out as we see who is taking a flight to Indianapolis for the Final Four.