Tennessee made sure nobody's perfect for at least another year.
At about 8:35 EDT when the Volunteers knocked off Virginia to advance to the Sweet 16 for the fourth consecutive season, it became official that there would be no perfect brackets in this year's NCAA tournament.
IT’S OVER 🚨
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 23, 2026
ALL BRACKETS HAVE BUSTED 🙂↔️#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/kkteRqc7FI
Even though there have been claims that upsets don't happen in the tournament as often as they used to and the Cinderella stories are quickly dying, a perfect bracket is still hard to obtain. The Volunteers, who were a No. 6 seed in the Midwest Region, were the odds favorites Sunday night agaionst the No. 3 seed Cavaliers, but I suppose we can say they pulled off the figurative upset to move on to Chicago.
Tennessee's triumph ends quest for a perfect bracket
And while the Volunteers' upset might not have been a HUGE upset, it showed that surprises still happen. Iowa beat defending champion Florida to become the first No. 9 seed to reach the Sweet 16 since Florida Atlantic did it in the 2023 tournament. And a few other lower seeds won over the weekend, with Texas being the only double-digit seed left in the tournament.
Tennessee has made it to the Sweet 16 as a four-seed in 2023 and advanced to the Elite Eight as a two-seed in 2024 and 2025. Unfortunately, the Volunteers weren't able to advance to the Final Four in any of those years, so maybe being the lowest seed remaining in the region will be an advantage. Many fans clearly think that Tennessee is playing with house money at this point, since so few picked them in their bracket pools.
Who will Tennessee face in the Sweet 16?
The Volunteers will have a tough test in Chicago against No. 2 seed Iowa State after the Cyclones beat the tar out of Kentucky on Sunday. Expect T.J Otzelberger's squad to be eagerly awaiting the chance to knock off another SEC team and keep Tennessee from reaching the Elite Eight for a third straight year.
Fans should plan to stay up late Friday night because tip-off is scheduled for 10:10 p.m.