With just hours left to go in the second round of MTV's Musical March Madness tournament, we've got a fantastic finish brewing down in the South Region, where the battle between Ed Sheeran and Muse is looking like it's gonna come down to the wire.

And that's fitting, considering the matchup has been going back and forth all week long, with neither act able to build a formidable lead. And in a contest that's seen more than 500,000 votes cast, right now, it's Sheeran with the slight advantage. But can he hold on? Well, with polls set to close at noon ET, this one is still anybody's to win ... but let's just say if he does hold off a late rally from Muse, well, it'll mean a little something more than just a birth in the Sweet 16. Because this one's personal.

"I like Muse; I don't know if Muse like me though. The bassist said something [about me]," Sheeran said. "I was watching Wimbledon with my dad, and Andy Murray had said he'd just been listening to my album in the dressing room, and I think on the screen it came up that Muse's bassist said something like 'That's probably why he lost the game' or something."

So, let's just say Sheeran's not going to feel sorry for dashing Muse's championship dreams. After all, settling old scores is what Musical March Madness is all about, anyway. And though he's not sure he can [article id="1703661"]topple Tokio Hotel[/article] or [article id="1704350"]pummel Paramore[/article] in the tournament's later rounds, he knows that a victory over Muse is about as sweet as it can get.

"To be honest, I checked out the tournament, and saw Muse was winning, and then I was like 'I don't know if I can be bothered, because all I'm going to do if I get through that round is just get beaten by someone like Paramore,'" he said. "But you said I'm quite close with Muse, I'm ready to go. Because they can be beaten."

MTV's Musical March Madness tournament rolls on! Voting is now open in all second-round matchups and polls close Monday, April 1 at noon ET, at which point we'll move on to the Sweet 16. All winners are determined by your votes, so if your favorite act made the cut, it'll be up to you to guide them to glory! You can spread the word on Twitter using the hashtag #MMM -- but get ready, it's gonna be a war.