March is inching closer, and the NCAA Tournament’s madness is on the horizon. As usual during this time of the season, the selection committee has released its top-16 seeds in preparation for the men’s NCAA Tournament. The 16-team reveal is a tradition that began back during the 2016-17 season when the committee’s list featured the Villanova Wildcats as its No.1 overall seed.
The in-season peek isn’t necessarily a ranking of which 16 teams are the most likely to win a national championship. Rather, it serves as an up-to-date look at where each team would likely be seeded if the season were to end at the date of the committee’s release.
Here’s what the selection committee released today:
The current #MarchMadness Top 16 seeds! 👏
1. Gonzaga
2. Auburn
3. Arizona
4. Kansas
5. Baylor
6. Kentucky
7. Purdue
8. Duke
9. Villanova
10. Texas Tech
11. Tennessee
12. Illinois
13. Wisconsin
14. UCLA
15. Providence
16. Texas#BracketPreview pic.twitter.com/VGznafe71y— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 19, 2022
There aren’t many surprises here. The four No. 1’s are spot on, and the rest of the field seems about right — although, I’m sure not every fan base feels the same way. USC and Ohio State have a case for cracking these 16, and so do teams like Wisconsin and Houston. But that’s the beauty of college basketball — one good or bad week could change the outlook on your season.
With the conference tournaments still a couple of weeks away, there’s still quite a bit of basketball to be played that could reshape how the bracket ultimately turns out. It’ll be interesting to watch unfold.
