Seeding The NCAA Tournament Field 1-68 In 3 Different Categories

The NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Committee released its 1-68 seed list on Sunday.

The Student Section is going to release three 1-68 seed lists based on categories that might not necessarily capture the imagination… but should certainly get your attention. This is very much a discussion-starting device and not a discussion-ending mechanism. The NCAA tournament is what generally ends discussions, especially on the second weekend more than the first.

Before the round of 64 gets underway, let’s be sure to frame the stakes — and maybe start a debate or 23 — on the teams that have made their way to Bracketville:

One final note: You’re not going to see 68 numbers (that would be part of a laborious, drawn-out process). You’re going to see clusters of teams bunched together based on similar placements on these adjusted seed lists:

*

A SEED LIST BASED ON EXPECTATIONS FOR EACH PROGRAM

1. Kentucky – winning the championship

2 – 4. Duke, Villanova, Virginia – making the title game (because they’re on the other side of Kentucky’s bracket)

5 – 6. Wisconsin and Arizona – making the Final Four (because they’re on Kentucky’s side of the bracket in the national semifinals)

7 – 14. Notre Dame, Wichita State,* Kansas**, Baylor, Louisville, Michigan State, Iowa State, Gonzaga – making the Elite Eight.

* = Just beating Kansas would be great.

** = We got jobbed with this draw; let’s at least beat Wichita, though.

15 – 29. West Virginia, Maryland, Texas, Butler, Arkansas, North Carolina, Xavier, Northern Iowa, Providence, Oklahoma, Utah, Stephen F. Austin, Georgetown, Iowa, Davidson – making the Sweet 16

30 – 55. Cincinnati, Purdue, Buffalo, Valparaiso, Indiana, Oregon, Oklahoma State, Wofford, Harvard, BYU, Ole Miss, VCU, Ohio State, LSU, North Carolina State, Wyoming, Albany, Dayton, Boise State, Georgia, Belmont, San Diego State, Saint John’s, Eastern Washington, SMU, UCLA – making the round of 32

56 – 64. Northeastern, New Mexico State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia State, Texas Southern, Lafayette, UC Irvine, UAB, North Dakota State – play well in the round of 64, hoping for the best

65 – 68. Hampton, Manhattan, North Florida, Robert Morris – win the First Four

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A SEED LIST BASED ON THE PRESSURE FACING THE PROGRAM THIS MARCH — NOT NECESSARILY TO MAKE THE FINAL FOUR OR WIN THE TITLE, BUT TO DO WELL

1. Kentucky

2. Gonzaga

3. Villanova

4. Arizona

5. Virginia

6. Wisconsin

7. UCLA

8. Texas

9. North Carolina

10. Duke

11. Indiana

12. Notre Dame

13. Oklahoma

14. Georgetown

15. Iowa State

16. Saint John’s

17. Kansas

18. Louisville

19. Wichita State

20. Arkansas

21. Utah

22 – 23. LSU and North Carolina State

24. Oklahoma State

25. Iowa

26. Baylor

27. Michigan State

28. Maryland

29. West Virginia

30. Northern Iowa

31. Oregon

32. Ohio State

33. Ole Miss

34. BYU

35. Georgia

36. San Diego State

37. Xavier

38. Providence

39. Butler

40. Dayton

41. VCU

42. Cincinnati

43. SMU

44. Purdue

45. Boise State

46. Davidson

47 – 68. Every team seeded 12 or lower, in descending order

*

A SEED LIST BASED ON THE LIKELIHOOD OF GETTING TO THE SECOND WEEKEND OF THE TOURNAMENT

1 – 2. Kentucky, Duke

3. Arizona

4. Wisconsin

5. Villanova

6. Iowa State

7. Baylor

8. Utah

9. North Carolina

10. West Virginia

11. Notre Dame

12. Gonzaga

13. Virginia

14 – 15. Kansas, Wichita State

16. Michigan State

17 – 18. Oklahoma, Providence

19 – 20. Maryland, Arkansas

21 – 22. Xavier, Butler

23 – 24. Louisville, Northern Iowa

25 – 26. Iowa, Davidson

27. Stephen F. Austin

28. Texas

29 – 30. LSU, North Carolina State

31 – 32. SMU, UCLA

33. Georgetown

34 – 35. Wofford, Harvard

36. Albany

37. Oregon

38. Dayton

39. BYU

40. Indiana

41. Ole Miss

42. Ohio State

43. VCU

44. Wyoming

45. Buffalo

46 – 47. San Diego State, Saint John’s

48. Boise State

49. Georgia

50. Oklahoma State

51 – 52. Cincinnati, Purdue

53. Eastern Washington

54 – 55. Valpo and UC Irvine

56 – 58. Northeastern, UAB and Georgia State

59 – 62. New Mexico State, Texas Southern, Belmont, North Dakota State

63 – 68. Coastal Carolina, Lafayette, Robert Morris, North Florida, Manhattan, Hampton

About Matt Zemek

Editor, @TrojansWire | CFB writer since 2001 |

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