NCAA Bracketology 2016: No. 1 Seeds Could See Shake-Up After Villanova’s Loss, North Carolina’s Win


The 2016 NCAA Tournament bracket is almost out, and the bracketology could point to a shake-up among the No. 1 seeds.

With just one more series of championship games before Selection Sunday kicks off, there are plenty of upsets that have pushed the bottom of the bracket as well as the top. The biggest came on Saturday, when Seton Hall knocked off Villanova in the Big East Tournament.

The bracketology is a bit more clear regarding the other No. 1 seeds. Kansas is the unanimous pick as the top overall seed going into the 2016 NCAA Tournament. Virginia and Michigan State also took care of business, likely locking down No. 1 seeds barring some crazy twist from the selection committee.

Many had Villanova pegged as a No. 1 seed, but that could be in question now. Seton Hall was in control of Saturday’s contest early, leading by 11 points at halftime before Villanova crawled back into the contest. But Seton Hall closed out the contest, and with it may have dashed Villanova’s hopes of a No. 1 seed.

If they’re falling down the bracket, Villanova isn’t sweating it too much right now. After the game, coach Jay Wright was nothing but complimentary of Seton Hall and their start-to-finish strong performance.

“Great college basketball game. Just awesome to be a part of it. The Garden was rocking,” Wright said (via ESPN). “We just got beat by a team that played better than us tonight. They played a great first half. We played a great second half, and then down the stretch, they made the plays and we didn’t. Some of the reasons we didn’t is because they made some great defensive plays.”

There is now plenty of debate over whether Villanova deserves a No. 1 seed. CBS Bracketology expert Jerry Palm believes that their resume is still strong enough, slipping them down to the No. 2 seed behind North Carolina. That was likely solidified by Oregon’s blowout win in the Pac-12 title game.

“At least for the moment, Villanova will remain on the top line of the bracket as the fourth No. 1 seed despite a 68-67 loss to Seton Hall in the championship game of the Big East Tournament.

“The Wildcats’ position is vulnerable though, especially to results from the ACC and Pac-12 tournaments played later Saturday night.”

But Joe Lunardi of ESPN disagrees. He has moved Villanova out of the No. 1 spot, replacing them with North Carolina.

And the Tar Heels certainly looked the part on Saturday, taking down Virginia in the ACC Tournament title game. As ESPN noted, the win could create quite a shake-up at the top line of the NCAA Tournament.

“Now comes the NCAA Tournament and an all-but-certain No. 1 seeding that often feels like a birthright for the kids who wear Carolina blue. UNC hasn’t been to the Final Four since winning its second national title under Williams in 2009 — which would not seem all that long ago for most schools but feels like a lifetime to the folks from Chapel Hill.

“Virginia would have been a No. 1 with a victory Saturday, it seems clear, but now who knows where the Cavaliers will end up when the brackets come out Sunday?”

The 2016 NCAA bracketology questions will all be answered soon enough, with the selection committee releasing brackets Sunday at 6 p.m.

[Picture by Mike Storbe/Getty Images]

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