Some late-season magic had Duke on the edge of being a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament. But this year's team has done more than enough to prove itself to the selection committee and make history. The highest seed that Marquette has ever gotten in the NCAA Tournament was the No. In the Big East's preseason coaches' poll, Marquette was picked to finish ninth in one of the best conferences in the country but managed to silence all the doubters as it had one of the best seasons in program history. 4 seed by most experts as well-en route to a 65-51 win, a scoreline that doesn't reflect how dominant the Golden Eagles were for 40 minutes. Marquette bulldozed its way through Xavier-who was projected as a No. 2.īut after a regular season conference title and a dominant performance in the Big East Championship game, there's no question at all that coach Shaka Smart's team should be at least a No. Lunardi barely had the Golden Eagles as a top-four seed while Bennett had them all the way up as a No. Marquette was one of those teams that experts couldn't seem to pin down where to put on the bracket. 1 seed.Īs for Kansas, its shot at the top-overall seed may be in jeopardy following the blowout loss. The two wins over the Jayhawks to close out conference play is as good a resume as any for a No.
Interim coach Rodney Terry and his team are projected as a No. The Longhorns are riding a four-game win streak after winning the tournament title. Texas took a slim lead into the locker room before deftly outplaying Kansas in the second half for a 75-59 win. The game was nearly identical to the tournament championship. Texas' win could have some big-picture implications, especially considering how it ended the regular season when it welcomed the Big 12 regular-season champions to Austin.
The Jayhawks still have the most Quad 1 wins of any team in the country and cruised to the championship game before they were outmatched by the Longhorns. The Jayhawks had the most impressive resume out of the other teams in contention for the honor.īut following Kansas' 76-56 loss to Texas in the tournament final, it'll be interesting to see just how much the result affects the Jayhawks in the eyes of the selection committee, if at all. Make your picks: Play the NCAA March Madness Men's Bracket Challenge and Tournament Run.Īdam Davis/Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesĪhead of the Big 12 Tournament championship game, both Lunardi and Bennett were looking at Kansas as the favorite to be the top-overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Here is some interesting insight on the potential top four seeds. The results of this weekend's games are the difference between a 4-5 matchup in the second round compared to potentially having to face a No. There are also teams that had a rough time in their conference tournament or championship game-I'm looking at you, Xavier and Indiana-that may have done themselves more harm than good and will likely slip down a couple of seeds. While they both have most of the same teams as top-four seeds, it is interesting to see how teams with great conference tournament performances, like Marquette, Texas and Duke, may have put themselves in a better position going into Selection Sunday. Selection Sunday has arrived following a wild championship week that is sure to have a profound effect on who makes it into the NCAA Tournament and what seed they'll be.Īnd as much as people will be paying attention to the bubble teams who will or won't make it into the Big Dance, the weekend's results were of equal importance to teams fighting for better seeding, particularly those wanting a top-four seed.īracketology experts like ESPN's Joe Lunardi and The Athletic's Brian Bennett were locked in throughout championship week, updating their brackets every day as conference tournaments unfolded. Bryan Lynn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
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