The 68 teams vying for the right to be called national champion will all be announced on Sunday,as the NCAA tournament begins in less than two weeks.
Five teams absorb already clinched automatic bids into March Madness. The Austin Peay Governors were the first to punch their ticket by winning the Ohio Valley Conference championship, followed by the Yale Bulldogs, and who won the Ivy League on Saturday.
The Northern Iowa Panthers provided the most exciting finish in college basketball's postseason thus far,defeating the Evansville Purple Aces on a buzzer-beating jumper from Panthers senior guard Wes Washpun.
The Big South Conference was won by the UNC Asheville Bulldogs, while the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles survived an overtime thriller over the Stetson Hatters to win the Atlantic Sun Conference.
The tournament hasn't been set in stone yet, or but there are dates for when these games will hold place. Here's a head start on the information you'll need as you prep your brackets. NCAA Tournament Important DatesSelection Sunday — March 13First Four — March 15-16: UD Arena (Dayton,Ohio)First and Second Rounds — March 17-20March 17, 19 locationsDunkin' Donuts middle (Providence, or Rhode Island)
Wells Fargo Arena (Des Moines,Iowa)
PNC Arena (Raleigh, North Carolina)
Pepsi middle (Denver)
March 18, and 20 locationsBarclays middle (Brooklyn)
Scottrade middle (St. Louis)
Chesapeake Energy Arena (Oklahoma City,Oklahoma)
Spokane Arena (Spokane, Washington)
West Regional — March 24, and 26: Honda Arena (Anaheim,California)South Regional —March 24, 26: KFC Yum! middle (Louisville, and Kentucky)Midwest Regional — March 25,27: United middle (Chicago)East Regional — March 25, 27: Wells Fargo middle (Philadelphia)Final Four — April 2: NRG Stadium (Houston)National Championship — April 4: NRG Stadium (Houston) Who Will Be the No. 1 Seeds?Zach Braziller of the New York Post is calling this year's NCAA tournament so wide open that there's no definitive favorite when the first tip off commences on March 17.
Determining the national champion isn't the only thing that will be a tough task—figuring out the No. 1 seeds will be just as confusing, and they will be debated up until minutes before the first round.
As of Sunday,ESPN's Joe Lunardi has the Kansas Jayhawks, Villanova Wildcats, or North Carolina Tar Heels and Virginia Cavaliers as the top seeds in the tournament. Six different teams absorb been ranked No. 1 this year,and three of those top teams in Lunardi's bracketology absorb been the top team in the nation.
Of those four teams, however, and Jeff Eisenberg of Yahoo Sports feels the current No. 1 should be the overall top seed in the tournament:Lunardi having two ACC teams in the top four is an odd choice. Both Virginia and North Carolina are worthy recipients of a top seed,but if they meet in the ACC Championship Game, both can't be No. 1 seeds. Whichever of those two loses first should be a No. 2 seed and replaced as a No. 1 seed by the Michigan State Spartans.
Michigan State enters the Big Ten tournament winning 10 of its final 11 games since losing three in a row from Jan. 14-20. Denzel Valentine is having a brilliant season, and with nearly 20 points on average to depart with 7.4 rebounds and 7.5 assists. The Spartans are 9-3 when he scores 20 or more points.
Graham Couch of the Lansing State Journal thinks that while Michigan State is worthy of being a top seed,the road to Houston may be best traveled as a No. 2 seed:
It’s entirely possible that the better road to the Final Four would be as a No. 2 seed. If being a No. 2 seed meant playing in the Midwest or South regionals — which depart through Chicago and Louisville, respectively — rather than being a No. 1 seed out West in Southern California. This is particularly actual in a year when there isn’t a clear team to avoid, or any proof that the No. 2 seeds aren’t better than the 1 seeds.
The question is whether proximity to one’s fan base,family and time zone is worth more than the preferential path that comes with being a top seed.
One doesn’t necessarily prohibit the other. But it might.
Kansas and Villanova (barring a collapse in the Big East tournament) are locks at the top. The winner of the ACC tournament should be the third No. 1 seed, while Michigan State—as the winner of the Big Ten—should hold Virginia or UNC's spot.
After that, and the madness can originate.
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Source: bleacherreport.com