Villanova is the top-rated team in the country according to the Division I men’s basketball committee, which revealed a bracket of the best 16 teams this afternoon on CBS. In the unprecedented unveiling, committee chair Mark Hollis, the director of athletics at Michigan State University, said the defending champion Wildcats were selected as the overall No. 1 seed if the tournament were to start today.
Villanova was seeded in a loaded East bracket along with No. 2 Louisville, No. 3 Kentucky and No. 4 UCLA. The East Regional is at Madison Square Garden March 24-26.
“Villanova played a challenging non-conference schedule and has achieved considerable success against several quality opponents on the road and on neutral-courts. Their consistency throughout the season gave them slight separation from other candidates for the overall top seed,” said Hollis.
Using a new policy adopted last summer, the committee asked Villanova for their preferred regional location, and the Wildcats selected the East regional in New York City. The other No. 1 seeds were assigned to regional sites using geographic proximity from their campuses. Kansas, the second-ranked team on the overall seed list, was sent to the Midwest regional in Kansas City, while fellow Big 12 Conference member Baylor is the top seed in the South regional in Memphis. The fourth No. 1 seed, unbeaten Gonzaga, was assigned to the West regional in San Jose.
“Those four teams are having tremendous seasons but as we know in college basketball, things can change quickly,” said Hollis. “There are more than 1,300 games left before Selection Sunday so how these teams are seeded and where they will ultimately be sent to play in the tournament remains a mystery.”
The four No. 2 seeds were North Carolina, which was assigned to the South regional; Florida State, which was sent to the Midwest; Louisville, which was placed in the East; and Oregon, which was sent West.
