For those wondering why Drake and Lamar have been going viral this week alongside the NCAA college basketball tournament this March Madness season, rest assured it has nothing to do with the superstar rappers' notorious beef that has gripped the nation over the past year. It's simply a minoooor coincidence. Although ironically, the headlines could still indirectly reignite or even escalate their feud, and maybe even figure into future diss-track lyrics.

Confused? Well step this way as I catch you up. College basketball fans and astute internet sleuths have been taking to social media ever since the March Madness tournament brackets were taking shape last week.

You may have missed the men's basketball Southland Conference tournament championship between the top-seed McNeese State University Cowboys and the second-seeded Lamar Cardinals. You'd be forgiven — it was an ugly, cold-shooting game that was never really in doubt for McNeese. But the great takeaway from this one is that McNeese automatically clinched an NCAA tournament bid by virtue of winning the Southland title, and the second-place challenger Lamar University narrowly missed out.

Now let's take our attention over to the Missouri Valley Conference, where Drake University — which the Ringer proclaims has the best story in men's college hoops this season — matched up against No. 2-seed Bradley in the title game. Drake won impressively 63-48, to claim the midwestern crown delightfully known as “Arch Madness” for the third consecutive season.

That's where the fun begins, because hardcore college hoops fans who were busy watching those conference championship battles couldn't help but notice that Drake had emerged victorious, while Lamar did not.

This fun fact was begging to be shared far and wide for its pop cultural reverberations. An X/Twitter user who goes simply by “Barry,” and who boasts 192.1K followers, has a penchant for comedic-themed basketball tweets and set the internet ablaze on Sunday when he posted: “Notice how Drake made the NCAA Tournament but Lamar didn't. Shows you who really won the beef.”

Related NewsArticle continues below
Bearcats forward Dillon Mitchell (23) dunks during the second half against the Iowa State Cyclones at T-Mobile Center.
St. John’s Rick Pitino lands another transfer portal addition
Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer looks on against the Houston Cougars during the second half in the semifinals of the men's Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome.
Duke, Michigan basketball finalizing massive 2026 showdown in Washington D.C.
Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer reacts after a play against the Houston Cougars during the second half in the semifinals of the men's Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome.
Duke basketball returns two more key players despite Cooper Flagg departures

That comment seems to have tickled the funny bone of a nation, and has been viewed 1.5 million times (and counting). It's also been posted, shared and re-posted again on pretty much every college basketball-themed account and/or fan page.

It's sure to get more attention today when Drake matches up against Missouri in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

And given that both Drake and Kendrick Lamar are big basketball fans who regularly work hardcourt-themed lyrics into their songs (and even their beefs), it's fair to wonder if the rappers will somehow work their college basketball namesakes into the feud.

Kendrick Lamar has certainly gotten the better of Drake thus far, and the OVO founder could use a win. Whether he takes the bait of his eponymous team making the NCAA tournament but his rival's narrowly missing out remains to be seen. But if he does, it could spell March Madness indeed.