We're down to less than 24 hours before the official NCAA tournament bracket is revealed. I’ve been traveling today and trying to catch up, so I’ll make this quick.
For Texas fans, clearly, there will be no No. 1 seed. However, based on the strength of the Longhorns' nonconference wins (North Carolina, Illinois, and Michigan State) and a second place finish in the Big 12, including a wins over Kansas, Missouri, and three over Texas A&M, I think Texas sits firmly on the No. 2 seed line.
It is a near certainty that Kansas will be rewarded with the top seed in the San Antonio regional As the NCAA tries to avoid putting teams from the same conference in the same region, it is highly, highly likely that Texas will be slotted in one of the other three regions.
As a reminder, the top teams are gunning for protected seeds in the these four regionals: Newark (East), New Orleans (Southeast), San Antonio (Southwest), and Anaheim (West). Anaheim and New Orleans are Thursday / Saturday regionals; Newark and San Antonio are Friday / Sunday regionals
The second and third round (the NCAA is now considering the play-in games round one) in eight spots across the country. Thursday / Saturday host sites include Washington DC, Tampa, Denver, and Tucson. Friday / Sunday host sites include Charlotte, Cleveland, Chicago, and Tulsa.
Here are my ‘educated’ guesses at the top 20 teams in the NCAA tournament.
No. 1 Seeds: Ohio State, Kansas, Pittsburgh, Duke / North Carolina winner
No. 2 Seeds: Notre Dame, Duke / North Carolina loser, Texas, BYU
No. 3 Seeds: San Diego State, Florida, Connecticut, Purdue
No. 4 Seeds: Wisconsin, Louisville, Syracuse, Kentucky
Next Four: Georgetown, St. John’s, Arizona, West Virginia
Big 12 Bids (6)
Lock: Kansas, Texas, Texas A&M, Kansas State, Missouri
On the Bubble: Colorado
Bubble Burst: Nebraska, Baylor
Thoughts?
Other Sites to Visit: Blogging the Bracket / ESPN’s Bracketology / Bracket Matrix