The 2017 NCAA tournament field is set. The bracket was released Sunday evening. Villanova is the top overall seed, followed by Kansas, North Carolina and Gonzaga on the top line.
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The Wildcats will be the 1-seed in the East regional after capping off a 31-3 season with Big East regular-season and tournament titles. Villanova is the defending national champion, and with five key players back from last year’s squad, Jay Wright’s team looks like a prime contender to repeat.
Kansas will head to the Midwest regional as the second 1-seed. The Jayhawks won a 13th-straight Big 12 regular season title, topping the conference standings by a whopping four games. If they advance to the Sweet 16, they’ll be accompanied by a large contingent of their own fans in Kansas City.
North Carolina claimed the third 1-seed despite an ACC semifinal loss to Duke. The Tar Heels, however, won the regular season crown by two games, and went 27-7 overall against an extremely tough schedule. Wins over Duke, Louisville, Virginia, Notre Dame, Florida State and Wisconsin kept UNC on the top line over other contenders.
The fourth No. 1 went to Gonzaga despite competition from Duke and Arizona. The Bulldogs very nearly completed an unbeaten regular season, but lost their final game to BYU. They rebounded to bulldoze their way through the West Coast Conference tournament, though, and the committee felt their body of work merited a second 1-seed in five years.
Duke’s late charge failed to earn it a No. 1-seed. The Blue Devils won four games in four days at the ACC tournament in Brooklyn, beating Louisville, North Carolina and Notre Dame along the way. They stayed on the 2-seed line, however, and will head to the East region where they could match up with Villanova in the Elite Eight.
Below are all the matchups. The East champion will meet the West champion in the Final Four, while the South champion will meet the winner of the Midwest.
EAST REGION (Upper left quadrant)
1. Villanova
16. Mount St. Mary’s/New Orleans
8. Wisconsin
9. Virginia Tech
5. Virginia
12. UNC Wilmington
4. Florida
13. East Tennessee State
6. SMU
11. Providence/USC
3. Baylor
14. New Mexico State
7. South Carolina
10. Marquette
2. Duke
15. Troy
MIDWEST REGION (Upper right quadrant)
1. Kansas
16. North Carolina Central/UC Davis
8. Miami
9. Michigan State
5. Iowa State
12. Nevada
4. Purdue
13. Vermont
6. Creighton
11. Rhode Island
3. Oregon
14. Iona
7. Michigan
10. Oklahoma State
2. Louisville
15. Jacksonville State
SOUTH REGION (Bottom right quadrant)
1. North Carolina
16. Texas Southern
8. Arkansas
9. Seton Hall
5. Minnesota
12. Middle Tennessee
4. Butler
13. Winthrop
6. Cincinnati
11. Kansas State/Wake Forest
3. UCLA
14. Kent State
7. Dayton
10. Wichita State
2. Kentucky
15. Northern Kentucky
WEST REGION (Bottom left quadrant)
1. Gonzaga
16. South Dakota State
8. Northwestern
9. Vanderbilt
5. Notre Dame
12. Princeton
4. West Virginia
13. Bucknell
6. Maryland
11. Xavier
3. Florida State
14. Florida Gulf Coast
7. St. Mary’s
10. VCU
2. Arizona
15. North Dakota
The rest of the bracket will be unveiled shortly. This story will be updated with the full 68-team field as the teams, matchups and seedings are revealed. The selection show is currently airing live on CBS.
Kansas and Villanova both claimed 1-seeds. (Getty)
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