The bracket for the 2024 NCAA Tournament is set. Broadly speaking, I think the selection committee did a fine-enough job selecting the teams because that truly was a difficult job after five bid-stealers shrunk the bubble. But the seeding? The seeding was ridiculous -- most obviously with how the committee made Iowa State the fourth No. 2 seed even though Iowa State had a resume worthy of the fourth No. 1 seed.
The Cyclones have the same overall record of the school that actually got the fourth No. 1 seed -- North Carolina. But Iowa State has more Q1 wins than the Tar Heels, three fewer losses outside of Q1 than the Tar Heels, and ISU has accomplished all of this against a schedule that rates more difficult than North Carolina's. Regardless, the committee gave UNC a No. 1 seed and Iowa State a No. 2 seed. I'll forever believe that was a mistake just like I'll forever believe the committee giving Utah State a No. 8 seed was a mistake.
A No. 8 seed?
I'm sure the committee would point to some predictive metrics that don't love Utah State to justify the No. 8 seed. But Utah State is an outright champion of a conference that placed six schools into the NCAA Tournament. The Aggies are 8-6 in the first two quadrants with four Q1 wins, only one loss outside of Q1 and zero losses in Q3/Q4. That means they have twice as many Q1 wins as Florida Atlantic and five fewer losses outside of Q1 than Florida Atlantic. And yet, somehow, the committee reached the conclusion that those two teams with those two bodies of work deserve the same seed in the NCAA Tournament.
It's so goofy.
Anyway ...
UConn will enter the NCAA Tournament No. 1 in what is the final update of the CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings of this season. Iowa State is No. 4 to reflect where I believe the committee should've had the Cyclones. And Utah State is No. 14, which should illustrate just how off I believe the committee was in its evaluation of the Aggies.
The next update of the Top 25 And 1 will come April 8. That'll be a look at next season.
In the meantime, enjoy the tournament.
Final Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Tristen Newton is averaging a team-high 15.2 points and 6.0 assists for Dan Hurley's Huskies. UConn is the No. 1 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 2 |  | Zach Edey is averaging a team-high 24.4 points and 11.7 rebounds for Matt Painter's Boilermakers. Purdue is the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-1 |
| 3 |  | L.J. Cryer is averaging a team-high 15.3 points and 2.3 rebounds for Kelvin Sampson's Cougars. Houston is the No. 1 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 2-1 |
| 4 |  | Keshon Gilbert is averaging a team-high 13.8 points and 4.3 assists for T.J. Otzelberger's Cyclones. Iowa State is the No. 2 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 3-0 |
| 5 |  | RJ Davis is averaging a team-high 21.4 points and 3.8 rebounds for Hubert Davis' Tar Heels. North Carolina is the No. 1 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 2-1 |
| 6 |  | Dalton Knecht is averaging a team-high 21.1 points and 4.7 rebounds for Rick Barnes' Vols. Tennessee is the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 7 |  | Kam Jones is averaging a team-high 16.8 points and 2.5 assists for Shaka Smart's Golden Eagles. Marquette is the No. 2 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 5-0 |
| 8 |  | Caleb Love is averaging a team-high 18.1 points and 4.7 rebounds for Tommy Lloyd's Wildcats. Arizona is the No. 2 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 2-1 |
| 9 |  | Ja'Kobe Walter is averaging a team-high 14.2 points and 4.4 rebounds for Scott Drew's Bears. Baylor is the No. 3 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 3-1 |
| 10 |  | Baylor Scheierman is averaging a team-high 18.4 points and 9.0 rebounds for Greg McDermott's Bluejays. Creighton is the No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 11 |  | Johni Broome is averaging a team-high 16.2 points and 8.3 rebounds for Bruce Pearl's Tigers. Auburn is the No. 4 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 12 |  | Terrence Shannon Jr. is averaging a team-high 22.6 points and 4.1 rebounds for Brad Underwood's Illini. Illinois is the No. 3 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 3-0 |
| 13 |  | Kevin McCullar Jr. is averaging a team-high 18.3 points and 6.0 rebounds for Bill Self's Jayhawks. Kansas is the No. 4 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 5-0 |
| 14 |  | Great Osobor is averaging a team-high 18.0 points and 9.2 rebounds for Danny Sprinkle's Aggies. Utah State is the No. 8 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 15 |  | Kyle Filipowski is averaging a team-high 17.1 points and 8.2 rebounds for Jon Scheyer's Blue Devils. Duke is the No. 4 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 3-1 |
| 16 |  | Antonio Reeves is averaging a team-high 20.0 points and 4.2 rebounds for John Calipari's Wildcats. Kentucky is the No. 3 see in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 17 |  | Jaxson Robinson is averaging a team-high 13.8 points and 2.5 rebounds for Mark Pope's Cougars. BYU is the No. 6 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 18 |  | AJ Storr is averaging a team-high 16.9 points and 3.9 rebounds for Greg Gard's Badgers. Wisconsin is the No. 5 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 5-0 |
| 19 |  | Meechie Johnson is averaging a team-high 13.8 points and 4.2 rebounds for Lamont Paris' Gamecocks. South Carolina is the No. 6 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 2-2 |
| 20 |  | Pop Isaacs is averaging a team-high 15.9 points and 3.5 assists for Grant McCasland's Red Raiders. Texas Tech is the No. 6 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 21 |  | Mark Sears is averaging a team-high 21.1 points and 4.1 assists for Nate Oats' Crimson Tide. Alabama is the No. 4 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 3-1 |
| 22 |  | Jaedon LeDee is averaging a team-high 21.1 points and 8.4 rebounds for Brian Dutcher's Aztecs. San Diego State is the No. 5 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 2-1 |
| 23 |  | Isaac Jones is averaging a team-high 15.4 points and 7.4 rebounds for Kyle Smith's Cougars. Washington State is the No. 7 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-1 |
| 24 |  | Aiden Mahaney is averaging a team-high 13.9 points and 2.5 assists for Randy Bennett's Gaels. Saint Mary's is the No. 5 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 25 |  | Graham Ike is averaging a team-high 16.5 points and 7.2 rebounds for Mark Few's Zags. Gonzaga is the No. 5 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
| 26 |  | Jarod Lucas is averaging a team-high 17.8 points and 2.8 rebounds for Steve Alford's Wolf Pack. Nevada is the No. 10 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament. | -- | 4-0 |
