Below is a look at some key matches in tonight's Session II, which gets underway at 6:30 p.m. CT.
125: Alan Waters had trouble handling David Thorn (Minnesota) in the first round, a compliment to the Gopher wrestler, but also a possible indication of how Waters will wrestler early. To that point, watch the match between No. 9 Trent Sprenkle (NDSU) and No. 8 Matt Snyder (Virginia) to give Waters trouble. Both are funky, big-point wrestlers with unique styles that could endanger the Tigers' title run.
133: The matchup to meet No. 2 Tony Ramos (Iowa) will be between No. 7 Jon Morrison (Oklahoma State) and No. 10 Scotti Sentes (CMU). While the 7/10 matchup is always entertaining, Sentes is also a two-time All-American. Watch to see if either of these guys is showing something exceptional, because they'll need it to beat Ramos in Iowa (He has a banner of I-80!)
141: The weight's No. 3 Mike Mangrum (Oregon State) had to battle to get past Nick Hucke (Missouri) in the first round, using a challenge en route to an overtime win. That's compelling in how it might effect the winner of the second-round match between Virginia Tech's Zach Neibert who beat No. 11 Mike Nevinger Ugi (Citadel) in a second-round matchup that could give the Hokie a winnable match. Ugi won their first meeting 3-1, but look for Neibert to give him a battle and work from top.
149: The marquee second-round matchup will be Drake Houdashelt (Missouri) versus No. 5 Dylan Ness (Minnesota). The Gopher wrestler squeaked by Daniel Young (Army), while Houdashelt looked complete in upsetting No. 11 Andrew Alton (Penn State). The winner will face Kevin Tao (American) who upset No. 3 Donnie Vinson (Binghamton) in the first round.
157: The matchup that's five years in the making, No. 1 Jason Welch (Northwestern) versus Scotty Winston (Rutgers). The duo have met twice in college, splitting their matches with Welch winning their 2009 NCAA matchup 9-1. Since then Welch has placed the past two seasons at the NCAA tournament, while Winston has been the face of Rutgers' frustrations at the Big Show. Could be interesting considering their history. Also keep an eye on Georgi Ivanov (Boise State) versus Taylor Walsh (Indiana), who upset No. 3 Joey Napoli, and No. 5 James Fleming versus No. 12 Jedd Moore. The winner of that bout will face whoever comes out of the former No. 4 seed helped by James Green (Nebraska) who lost first round.
165: The No. 12 and No.5 matchup is always the upset in NCAA men's basketball. Could it happen at 165 pounds Taylor Massa, the No. 12 from Michigan, has caught fire at the end of the year and was a stud in the first round. He'll be facing Steven Monk of North Dakota State who is salty on his feet and a backpack on the mat.
174: There were a few upsets in the first round (No. 9 - No. 12), but nothing was as surprising as No. 1 Chris Perry's awful mat wrestling against Cody Weishoff (Oregon State) in the first round. He'll face Jonathan Fausey (Virginia) in the second round. Fausey won a convincing 3-0 decision against Stephen West (Columbia) in the first round. Interesting matchup because Perry and Fausey split in high school postseason all-star events as seniors, and Fausey is a hammer on top.
184: Watch Ed Ruth wrestle lonely and perfect on his own planet on dominance. Poetry.
197: Iowa State's No. 6 Kyven Gadson and Oklahoma State's No. 11 Blake Rosholt will meet in the second round, who the Cyclone has beaten three times this season. Gadson recently lost his father and as a strong No. 6 seed would be an emotional favorite to get past Wilps and Wright to make the finals.
285: The top four are secure, so the interesting matches will be in the middle seeds where No. 9 Zac Thomusseit (Pitt) meets No. 8 Mike McClure (Michigan State). The winner will take on Dom Bradley in the first session tomorrow morning.
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