1 seed in the South Region of the 2016 NCAA Tournament and will open against No. 16 Austin Peay (18-17) in Des Moines.
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Boeheim missed the first nine games of the season, while serving a suspension for committing NCAA violations, but Castiglione said that didn’t much factor into bringing Syracuse in.
Wildcats coach John Calipari’s reaction during an interview on ESPN: “Did we not play a basketball game today?”
Schools all over the country are tuning into a two-hour selection show that’s revealing the 68 teams invited to the tournament.
Villanova head coach Jay Wright calls out to his team during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Seton Hall during the Big East men’s tournament Saturday, March 12, 2016, in NY.
Boeheim seemed relieved that his team’s resume was good enough.
“We’re just playing so well as a team, sharing he ball, defending well”, senior Perry Ellis said. What to watch for Sunday The season has been building to Selection Sunday, and we’re going to be blessed with some huge games on the final day before the Big Dance. We had a really tough stretch in the middle. WVU prides itself on being a defensive-minded team, but that meant nothing to Kansas.
The sixth-ranked Sooners were on pace to be a No. 1 seed, but a last-second loss to West Virginia in the Big 12 semifinals – after a mid-court heave by Hield was overturned upon review – left them at No. 2. The Spartans advanced to at least the Sweet 16 seven times in the last eight years, and last season made the Final Four for the third time in that span and seventh time overall under Izzo. The Final Four is April 2 and 4 in Houston.
Top-ranked Kansas grabbed the No. 1 seed in the South Region, but their bracket includes Villanova, a potential top-seed headed into Sunday. Joe Castiglione, the chairman of the selection committee and Oklahoma’s athletic director, said victories against teams ranked in the top 50 of the RPI boosted the Wolverines and Orange.
“In order to make it a special year you know you’ve got to win in March”, Kansas coach Bill Self said in a television interview. “We’re going to do our best to avoid that this year”.
After finishing the ACC regular season a game behind North Carolina, the Cavaliers advanced to the tournament championship game and lost to the Tar Heels 61-57 on Saturday. Only Kansas (27), the top overall seed in this year’s tournament, and Duke (21) have longer active streaks.
Texas Tech coach Tubby Smith became the second coach to take five different programs to the NCAA Tournament, joining Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger.
No. 8 seed USC plays Providence in the first round. But like Kansas, Oregon will have a hard path through the West Region to the Final Four.
Kentucky beat Texas A&M on Sunday for the SEC Tournament championship.
North Carolina received the top seed in the East, but many eyes were drawn to the possibility of fourth-seeded Kentucky facing fifth-seeded in in the second round.
In the “first four” games, Vanderbilt will face off against Wichita State, Holy Cross will play Southern University, Florida Gulf Coast will battle Fairleigh Dickinson and MI squares off against Tulsa.
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Here’s the complete bracket for the Midwest region.
