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The Sweet Sixteen kicks off on Thursday and along with those who were expected to make it, there have been some surprises. So the question is, which team will see the biggest benefit to their future recruiting efforts thanks to their March run? National basketball analysts Eric Bossi and Corey Evans, as usual, have Rival Views.

SWEET SIXTEEN RIVAL VIEWS: Which coach has enhanced his profile the most?

What a turnaround for Brad Brownell and Clemson. The head coach entered the 2017-18 season on a pretty hot seat and then he and his program absorbed a pretty strong kick to the midsection when five-star recruit Zion Williamson elected to leave his home state for Duke. In what could have easily turned into a negative situation, Brownell brought his team together and got them to achieve at a high level while making a run to the Sweet Sixteen. Looking ahead to recruiting, the run couldn't have come at a better time.

After the season Clemson has had, Brownell's job status is no longer in question and the Tigers stand to benefit from increased exposure and it's all happening when they are looking to recruit several high level recruits in South Carolina and regionally.

How better to put yourself into better position with five-star guard Josiah James than to make a deep March run? Rumors continue to swirl that another in state five-star prospect - small forward Christian Brown - could be looking to enroll in 2018 rather than with his natural 2019 class. Two of the other main competitors for Brown have been Georgia, which just landed a new coach, and an Auburn program that the Tigers just worked over in the round of 32. It doesn't make Brown a Clemson lock, but the timing sure is great.

If they have any hope of plucking top 30 forward Trayce Jackson-Davis (the son of former Tigers star Dale Davis) then this run would surely play a big part in it. Additionally, the state of South Carolina is home to five other Rivals150 prospects in the class of 2019 and there are a few more Rivals150 targets from nearby North Carolina.

Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, Gonzaga and some of the other programs in the Sweet Sixteen are used to late March exposure and don't need a bump. But at Clemson, the added exposure of a Sweet Sixteen on top of Brownell handling his business at a time when he most needed to has put the Tigers in a very good spot to capitalize on their 2018 run.

What might Chris Beard be able to accomplish with an even more talented roster? We may soon find out as Texas Tech's run to the Sweet 16, its first since 2005, should lead more success on the recruiting trail for Beard and the Red Raiders.

The highest-ranked prospect in Texas Tech’s roster this year? The lightly-used Brandone Francis, ranked No. 35 in the 2014 Rivals150, who originally signed with Billy Donovan's Florida Gators before transferring two years ago. Keenan Evans, the Red Raiders' star and catalyst for the basketball renaissance in Lubbock, was a three-star recruit that held just one other high-major offer from Colorado. Freshman wing Zhaire Smith, a 6-foot-5 athletic freak that has already caught the eye of NBA scouts, was another three-star prospect that didn’t see his stock really take off until the spring of his senior year.

Earlier this winter, Beard received his first top-50 commitment in the form of four-star Khavon Moore. The Red Raiders also snatched the commitment of former Rivals150 guard and junior college standout DeShawn Corprew and three-star scoring guard Kyler Edwards, and for as good of a class as it is, Beard's future classes in West Texas might be even better.

The junior college ranks and transfer wire have treated Beard well during his early goings at Texas Tech. While he will continue to travel down those routes in the years ahead, his exciting playing style, ability to get the best out of his guys and outgoing personality should put the Red Raiders into an even more favorable light with top high school talent.