LAGUNA NIGUEL, Ca. – The 68-team bracket for the 2021 NCAA Tournament is set to be unveiled on March 14, just less than three weeks from now.
Though conference tournament playoffs are still to be contested, the top seeds have been a forgone conclusion.
Even factoring in a first losses for both teams, the current 1-2 teams in the BurlisonOnBasketball Top 25 will be the top two seeds.
And a heavy dose of representation from the Big Ten and Baylor’s Big 12 conference will make up the rest of the first 16 seeds.
The Big Ten’s Michigan, Ohio State, Illinois and Iowa are in the No.’s 3, 4, 8 and 9 slots in the Top 25 with Oklahoma (5), West Virginia (11), Oklahoma State (12), Kansas (14) and Texas (15) joining Baylor among the Big 12 in the Top 16.
Alabama (6), Villanova (7), Florida State (10) the top reps from the Southeastern, Big East and Atlantic Coast conferences, respectively, among the Top 10.
Among the “power” conferences, the Pac 12’s hopes for a team earning a Top 16 seed (at least a No. 4 in any of the four regions) likely lies in either USC, Oregon, UCLA or Colorado winning out until March 14 – including a conference title in Las Vegas.
The Trojans and Ducks meet Monday night (6 o’clock PT) in USC’s Galen Center in a game that could play a significant part in determining the regular-season champion and No. 1 seed going into Las Vegas.
USC and Oregon are in this week’s Top 25’s final two slots.
Top 25 (records as of Feb. 21)
- Gonzaga 22-0
Key wins: Kansas, West Virginia, Iowa, BYU (2) and Pepperdine (2).
- Baylor 17-0
Key wins: Illinois, Oklahoma, TCU, Texas Tech, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Auburn and Texas.
- Michigan 16-1
Key wins: Maryland (2), Northwestern, Minnesota, Wisconsin (2), Purdue and Ohio State.
Loss: Minnesota.
- Ohio State 18-5
Key wins: Notre Dame, UCLA, Rutgers (2), Northwestern, Wisconsin, Penn State, Michigan State, Iowa, Indiana and Maryland.
Losses: Purdue (2), Northwestern, Minnesota and Michigan.
- Oklahoma 14-5
Key wins: TCU (2), West Virginia (2), Kansas, Texas and Alabama.
Losses: Xavier, Texas Tech (2), Baylor and Kansas.
- Alabama 18-5
Key wins: Tennessee, Florida, Auburn, Kentucky (2), Arkansas, LSU (2) and Mississippi State.
Losses: Stanford, Clemson, Western Kentucky, Oklahoma and Missouri.
- Villanova 14-3
Key wins: Arizona State, Texas, Marquette (2), Seton Hall (2), Providence, Georgetown and Connecticut.
Loss: Virginia Tech, St. John’s and Creighton.
- Illinois 16-5
Key wins: Duke, Minnesota (2), Indiana, Purdue, Northwestern (2) and Iowa.
Losses: Baylor, Missouri, Rutgers, Maryland and Ohio State.
- Iowa 17-6
Key wins: North Carolina, Purdue, Northwestern (2), Rutgers (2), Maryland, Minnesota, Michigan State, Wisconsin and Penn State.
- Florida State 13-3
Key wins: Indiana, Florida, Georgia Tech, North Carolina State, North Carolina, Louisville, Clemson, Miami, Wake Forest and Virginia.
Losses: University of Central Florida, Clemson and Georgia Tech.
- West Virginia 15-6
Key wins: VCU, Western Kentucky, Georgetown, Richmond, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech (2), Kansas and Texas.
- Oklahoma State 14-6
Key wins: Marquette, Wichita State, Texas Tech, Kansas, Arkansas and Texas.
Losses: TCU (2), Texas, West Virginia, Baylor and Kansas.
- Houston 18-3
Key wins: Boise State, Texas Tech, Wichita State, Tulsa, SMU and Cincinnati.
Loss: Tulsa, East Carolina and Wichita State.
- Kansas 17-7
Key wins: Kentucky, Creighton, Texas Tech, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and TCU (2).
Losses: Gonzaga, West Virginia (2), Oklahoma State, Butler, Oklahoma and Tennessee.
- Texas 13-6
Key wins: Indiana, North Carolina, Oklahoma State, Kansas and West Virginia.
Loss: Villanova, Texas Tech, Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and West Virginia.
- Creighton 16-5
Key wins: Xavier, Providence, Seton Hall (2), Connecticut (2), Marquette, Georgetown and Villanova.
Losses: Kansas, Marquette, Butler, Providence and Georgetown.
- Virginia 15-5
Key wins: Notre Dame (2), Clemson, Georgia Tech (2), Syracuse and North Carolina.
Losses: San Francisco, Gonzaga, Virginia Tech, Florida State and Duke.
- Purdue 15-8
Key wins: Liberty, Ohio State (2), Notre Dame, Maryland, Michigan State (2), Indiana and Northwestern.
Losses: Clemson, Miami-Fla., Iowa, Rutgers, Illinois, Michigan, Maryland and Minnesota.
- Missouri 14-6
Key wins: Oregon, Wichita State, Liberty, Illinois, Arkansas, Texas A&M, TCU, Kentucky and Alabama.
Losses: Tennessee, Mississippi State, Auburn, Mississippi, Arkansas and Georgia.
- Texas Tech 14-7
Key wins: Oklahoma (2), Texas and LSU.
Losses: Houston, Kansas (2), Oklahoma State, Baylor and West Virginia (2).
- Virginia Tech 14-4
Key wins: Villanova, Clemson, Miami (2), Notre Dame (2), Duke and Virginia.
Losses: Penn State, Louisville, Syracuse and Pittsburgh.
- Wisconsin 16-8
Key wins: Louisville, Michigan State, Minnesota, Indiana, Rutgers, Northwestern (2), Maryland and Penn State.
Losses: Marquette, Maryland, Michigan (2), Ohio State, Penn State and Illinois.
- Arkansas 17-5
Key wins: Auburn (2), Mississippi State, Kentucky, Missouri and Florida.
Losses: Missouri, Tennessee, LSU, Alabama and Oklahoma State.
- USC 18-4
Key wins: BYU, Arizona, Arizona State (2), Stanford, Washington State (2) and UCLA.
Losses: Connecticut, Colorado, Oregon State and Arizona.
- Oregon 14-4
Key wins: Seton Hall, Stanford, Utah (2), Arizona, Arizona and Colorado.
Losses: Missouri, Colorado, Oregon State and Washington State.
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