Puka Nacua Reveals How Far BYU Will Go In His NCAA Bracket
Mar 19, 2024, 8:15 PM
Former BYU football star Puka Nacua has BYU basketball advancing to the Sweet 16 in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
(Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
OMAHA, Neb. – Former BYU football great Puka Nacua has BYU basketball making a run in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
The Los Angeles Rams star filled out a bracket for the NCAA’s March Madness social media channels.
Nacua has BYU reaching the Sweet 16 in Big Dance. One can only imagine as Puka filled out that bracket, he said, “Go Cougs, baby!”
Puka Nacua's bracket! #MarchMadness
Oregon makes a run 👀
3️⃣ 1-seeds in the Final Four ✍️
Houston wins it all 🏆 pic.twitter.com/NQB5gYrLFS— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 19, 2024
Puka Nacua picks BYU basketball to reach the Sweet 16
In Puka’s bracket, he has BYU defeating Duquesne in the first round. Then Nacua predicts BYU will knock off No. 3 seed Illinois in the Round of 32.
After that, the former BYU star has the Cougars falling to Big 12 Tournament Champion Iowa State in a rubber match in the Sweet 16.
Nacua got a glimpse of BYU in person this season. The BYU alum was at the Marriott Center for Senior Day on March 9 when the Cougars defeated Oklahoma State.
Puka Nacua gets a loud cheer from #BYU fans when he showed up on the big screen.#BYUFootball pic.twitter.com/FX30MdkAso
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) March 10, 2024
Puka didn’t experience the Big 12 during his time with the BYU football program, but the Second-Team All-Pro is all-in on Big 12 basketball in his bracket.
All-Big 12 National Championship
Nacua has two Big 12 teams playing for the National Championship, with the No. 1 seed Houston Cougars taking down the Baylor Bears in Phoenix.
The rest of Puka’s bracket is chalky, with East Region No. 1 seed UConn and Midwest No. 1 seed Purdue rounding out the Final Four.
Nacua has only one double-digit seed reaching the second weekend of the Big Dance: Midwest No. 11 seed Oregon. Puka’s next lowest Sweet 16 pick is BYU, the No. 6 seed in the East.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
