The Great 8 tournament is here for the Class 3A, 2A and 1A teams and the journey to capture state championship glory will culminate on March 15 in each class.

These tournaments are full of favorites and teams with upsets in mind. That’s why they call it March Madness.

Well, the Madness is here and here is a sample of some games on Thursday that are plenty intriguing and may set the stage for the rest of the tournament

Class 3A

The eight-team state tourney consists of top-seeded Resurrection Christian, Windsor Academy, Strasburg, Yuma, Centauri, Highland, SkyView Academy, and Forge Christian.

All these teams are worthy of being in this state tourney dance.

However, the first round features a key matchup with No. 4-seeded Yuma (20-5) and No. 5 Centauri (25-0) at 8:30 p.m., Thursday at Denver University.

Yuma is the reigning 3A state champion, and the Outlaws are coming off a dramatic 47-46 win over Liberty Common on March to move on the Great 8.

Yuma is led by Brody Sheffield (22.1 ppg), Jonathan Thomson (13.2 ppg) and Alex Pensado (11.6 ppg).

Sheffield and Thomson had 19 and 16 points in the win over Liberty Common.

Centauri will counter with Carson Bagwell (15.1 ppg), Troy Sowards (14.3 ppg) and Jace Haslett (10.7 ppg). The Falcons are coming off a 61-32 victory over Bayfield on March 8.

Class 2A

The 2A tourney will take place at Blue Arena in Loveland. The field consists of No. 1 Simla vs. No. 8 Sanford; No. 4 Byers vs. No. 5 Plateau Valley; No. 2 Crowley County vs. No. 7 Golden View Classical Academy; No. 11 Sedgwick County (16-8) vs. No. 3 Bishop Machebeuf (20-4).

There are plenty of questions that will be answered this weekend. One of the key questions is whether Sedwick County can continue down the victory path. SC is coming off a 56-55 win over No. 27-ranked Merino on March 8.

SC’s leading scorer is Tate Renquist (16.9 ppg), Joshua Palic (13.2 ppg, 12.4 rpg) and Jace Ehmke (11.6 ppg). Bishop Machebeuf is fueled by Miles Edgar-Parchman (14.1 ppg), Jack Menke (12.9 ppg) and John Menke (11.2 ppg).

Bishop made it into the Great 8 by defeating reigning state champ Limon (56-47) on March 8.

Class 1A

The 1A tournament will take place at the University of Northern Colorado’s Bank of Colorado Arena in Greeley. The field consists of No. 1 McClave vs. No. 9 Elbert; No. 4 Stratton vs. No. 5 Primero; No. 2 Otis vs. No. 7 Flatirons Academy; No. 6 Kim/Branson vs. No. 3 Cheyenne Wells.

If No. 1 McClave wants to claim a state crown it starts against Elbert. A year ago, McClave saw its dream season end with a nightmare when it was trounced by Cheyenne Wells (55-36) in the state finals.

This year McClave (22-3) counters with Tuff Kelley (17.3 ppg), Mason Barr (9.9 ppg), and Myles Northrup (8.0 ppg). The Cardinals are fresh off a 65-43 victory over De Beque on March 8.

McClave is riding a 6-game winning streak. Upset-minded Elbert (19-6) has Ethan Tesman (16.1 ppg), Caleb Cornell (14.9 ppg) and Eli Cornell (11.7 ppg).

Elbert is in the Great 8, thanks to a 51-36 win over No. 8 Sierra Grande on March 8.