Sunday of Selection: Tennessee receives the No.3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. On Selection Sunday, Tennessee was given a smack in the face after rushing unimpeded through the field to win. The committee seeded Tennessee as the No.3 team in the tournament, with Longwood as the No.14 seed.
- Almost the entirety of the college basketball press was in agreement: Tennessee got screwed.
- Tennessee is the third-seed.
- There are NOT eight more impressive resumes than the Volunteers’.
- That is an error.
- Gary Parrish (@GaryParrishCBS) on Twitter Thursday marked the Volunteers’ arrival in the South, beginning in Indianapolis.
They are placed in a region with No.1 seed Arizona, whom they have previously defeated, and, whom they have previously lost to. Illinois placed fourth, while Houston placed fifth. Quick review: Despite Tennessee’s misfortune, this is a rather winnable territory for the Volunteers.
A cursory glance at Tennessee’s next schedule reveals a favorable game versus Michigan or Colorado State, followed by a probable rematch with Villanova. Arizona appears to have an easy path to the Sweet 16 and then the Elite Eight. This week, there will be a substantial amount of new information on Tennessee’s landing site.
Update: Kentucky and Auburn both receive No.2 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, while Tennessee receives the No.3 seed.
How many three seeds have won the NCAA Championship?
In the first round, No.3 seeds are 122-22 overall after going 3-1 in 2021 and winning all four games in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament. In the last 13 years, just seven No.3 seeds have failed to progress to the second round. In the 2015 NCAA Tournament, two No.3 seeds lost in the same year for the first time since 1986, when Baylor fell to Georgia State and UAB defeated Iowa State.
| Year | Winner | Loser | Score | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Florida | South Alabama | 76-50 | 26 |
| 2011 | Connecticut | Bucknell | 81-52 | 29 |
West Virginia’s shocking loss to Stephen F. Austin in the first round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament was the fourth consecutive tournament in which at least one No.3 seed lost in the first round. In 2019, each of the four No.3 seeds won their initial game by an average of 15.5 points.
- However, Houston’s 29-point victory over Georgia State somewhat skews these results.
- Michigan, Duke, Syracuse, and Pittsburgh have each earned the No.3 seed at least five times.
- The Wolverines earned a No.3 seed for the sixth consecutive year in 2018 and advanced to the national championship game, where they were defeated by Villanova.
With their defeat to Mercer in 2014, Duke is the only team in that group to have lost an opening-round game as the No.3 seed. Both Michigan and Syracuse have won national titles as the No.3 seed, with Michigan winning in 1989 and Syracuse in 2003. In their respective years, Michigan avoided Xavier by five points in the first round, while the Orange defeated Manhattan with relative ease, 77-63.
In the 1989 national championship game, Michigan used overtime to upset fellow No.3 seed Seton Hall. The Wolverines were victorious by a score of 80-79 due to Rumael Robinson’s clutch free throws in the dying seconds. Carmelo Anthony’s performance of 20 points and 10 rebounds helped Syracuse win the national title in 2003 over Kansas.
The 1985 NCAA Tournament first-round game between No.3 Kansas and No.14 Ohio was one of the lowest-scoring in tournament history. While Kansas won by a score of 11 points, both teams combined for only 87 points. Since that game, only 1995 Purdue has failed to score at least 50 points against a No.14 seed, though Texas got close in 2021 with 52 points against Abilene Christian.
Tennessee Vols a 3-seed in NCAA Tournament and why that’s a joke |Vols Podcast
There are two distinct tables listed below. The first table displays the frequency with which each seed has reached the last four. The percentage is computed by dividing the total number of times a specific seed has reached the final four by the total number of teams to reach the final four.
The second table contains a list of the Final Four teams and their seeds, as well as the champion and runner-up. The NCAA did not begin seeding teams until 1979, therefore for all years before to then, just the teams who competed are included. The tables are current through the conclusion of the 2022 season.
There have been 172 appearances in the Final Four. See also the percentages of NCAA Tournament Champions by Seed and NCAA Tournament Upsets by Seed.
| Seed | Number of Final Four Appearances | Percentage |
| #1 | 69 | 40.12% |
| #2 | 37 | 21.51% |
| #3 | 19 | 11.05% |
| #4 | 14 | 8.14% |
| #5 | 8 | 4.65% |
| #6 | 6 | 3.49% |
| #7 | 4 | 2.33% |
| #8 | 7 | 4.077% |
| #9 | 2 | 1.16% |
| #10 | 1 | ,58% |
| #11 | 5 | 2.90% |
| #12 | 0 | 0% |
| #13 | 0 | 0% |
| #14 | 0 | 0% |
| #15 | 0 | 0% |
| #16 | 0 | 0% |
table>
Year Winning Team Runner Up Final Four Final Four 2021 Baylor #1 Gonzaga #1 Houston #2 UCLA #11 2019 Virginia #1 Texas Tech #3 Auburn #5 Michigan State #2 2018 Villanova #1 Michigan #3 Kansas #1 Loyola-Chicago #11 2017 N. Carolina #1 Gonzaga #1 Oregon #3 South Carolina #7 2016 Villanova #2 N. Carolina #1 Oklahoma #2 Syracuse #10 2015 Duke #1 Wisconsin #1 Kentucky #1 Michigan St. #7 2014 Connecticut #7 Kentucky #8 Florida #1 Wisconsin #2 2013 Louisville #1 Michigan #4 Wichita St. #9 Syracuse #4 2012 Kentucky #1 Kansas #2 Louisville #4 Ohio St. #2 2011 UConn #3 Butler #8 Kentucky #4 VCU #11 2010 Duke #1 Butler #5 West Virginia #2 Michigan St. #5 2009 N. Carolina #1 Michigan St. #2 Villanova #3 UConn #1 2008 Kansas #1 Memphis #1 N. Carolina #1 UCLA #1 2007 Florida #1 Ohio St. #1 UCLA #2 Georgetown #2 2006 Florida #3 UCLA #2 George Mason #11 LSU #4 2005 N. Carolina #1 Illinois #1 Michigan St. #5 Louisville #4 2004 UConn #2 Ga. Tech #3 Duke #1 Oklahoma St. #2 2003 Syracuse #3 Kansas #2 Texas #1 Marquette #3 2002 Maryland #1 Indiana #5 Kansas #1 Oklahoma #2 2001 Duke #1 Arizona #2 Maryland #3 Michigan St. #1 2000 Michigan St. #1 Florida #5 Wisconsin #8 N. Carolina #8 1999 UConn #1 Duke #1 Ohio St. #4 Michigan St. #1 1998 Kentucky #2 Utah #3 Stanford #3 N. Carolina #1 1997 Arizona #4 Kentucky #1 N. Carolina #1 Minnesota #1 1996 Kentucky #1 Syracuse #4 Umass #1 Miss. St. #5 1995 UCLA #1 Arkansas #2 Oklahoma St #4 N. Carolina #2 1994 Arkansas #1 Duke #2 Arizona #2 Florida #3 1993 N. Carolina #1 Michigan #1 Kansas #2 Kentucky #1 1992 Duke #1 Michigan #6 Indiana #2 Cincinnati #4 1991 Duke #1 Kansas #3 UNLV #1 N. Carolina #2 1990 UNLV #1 Duke #3 Georgia Tech #4 Arkansas #4 1989 Michigan #3 Seton Hall #3 Illinois #1 Duke #2 1988 Kansas #6 Oklahoma #1 Duke #2 Arizona #1 1987 Indiana #1 Syracuse #2 UNLV #1 Providence #6 1986 Louisville #2 Duke #1 LSU #11 Kansas #1 1985 Villanova #8 Georgetown #1 Memphis St. #2 St. John’s #1 1984 Georgetown #1 Houston #2 Kentucky #1 Virginia #7 1983 N.C. State #6 Houston #1 Louisville #1 Georgia #4 1982 N. Carolina #1 Georgetown #1 Houston #6 Louisville #3 1981 Indiana #3 N. Carolina #2 Virginia #1 LSU #1 1980 Louisville #2 UCLA #8 Purdue #6 Iowa #5 1979 Michigan St. #2 Indiana St. #1 DePaul #2 Pennsylvania #9 1978 Kentucky Duke Arkansas Notre Dame 1977 Marquette N. Carolina UNLV UNC-Charlotte 1976 Indiana Michigan UCLA Rutgers 1975 UCLA Kentucky Louisville Syracuse 1974 N.C. St. Marquette UCLA Kansas 1973 UCLA Memphis St. Indiana Providence 1972 UCLA Florida St. N. Carolina Louisville 1971 UCLA Villanova Western Kentucky Kansas 1970 UCLA Jacksonville New Mexico St. St. Bonaventure 1969 UCLA Purdue Drake N. Carolina 1968 UCLA N. Carolina Ohio St. Houston 1967 UCLA Dayton Houston N. Carolina 1966 Texas Western Kentucky Duke Utah 1965 UCLA Michigan Princeton Wichita St. 1964 UCLA Duke Michigan Kansas St. 1963 Loyola (IL) Cincinnati Duke Oregon St. 1962 Cincinnati Ohio St. Wake Forest UCLA 1961 Cincinnati Ohio St. St. Joseph’s (PA) Utah 1960 Ohio St. California Cincinnati NYU 1959 California West Virginia Cincinnati Louisville 1958 Kentucky Seattle Temple Kansas St. 1957 N. Carolina Kansas San Francisco Michigan St. 1956 San Francisco Iowa Temple SMU 1955 San Francisco LaSalle Colorado Iowa 1954 LaSalle Bradley Penn St. USC 1953 Indiana Kansas Washington LSU 1952 Kansas St. John’s Illinois Santa Clara 1951 Kentucky Kansas St. Illinois Oklahoma St. 1950 CCNY Bradley N.C. St. Baylor 1949 Kentucky Oklahoma St. Illinois Oregon St. 1948 Kentucky Baylor Holy Cross Kansas St. 1947 Holy Cross Oklahoma Texas CCNY 1946 Oklahoma St. N. Carolina Ohio St. California 1945 Oklahoma St. NYU Arkansas Ohio St. 1944 Utah Dartmouth Iowa St. Ohio St. 1943 Wyoming Georgetown DePaul Texas 1942 Stanford Dartmouth Colorado Kentucky 1941 Wisconsin Washington St. Arkansas Pittsburgh 1940 Indiana Kansas Duquesne USC 1939 Oregon Ohio St. Oklahoma St VillanovaWho is the top college basketball seed?
Top bracketology seeds
| Seed | West | East |
|---|---|---|
| No.1 | Gonzaga | Baylor |
| No.2 | Duke | Kentucky |
