Virginia gets tough road to Final Four
Cavaliers top team in tournament shadowed by recruiting scandal
With the esteemed Atlantic Coast Conference’s regularseason and tournament championships in its pocket, Virginia (31-2), with a smothering defence and the pace of a manatee, was named the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament bracket released Sunday night.
The other No.1seeds were Villanova (30-4), the Big East champion; Kansas (27-7), the Big 12 champion for a record 14th consecutive year; and Xavier (28-5), also of the Big East. The four No. 2 seeds were Duke (26-7); North Carolina (25-10), the defending national champion; Purdue (28-6); and Cincinnati (30-4), the American Athletic Conference champion.
Big Ten champion Michigan (28-7) received a No. 3 seed, the Pacific-12 champion Arizona (27-7) is a No. 4, and the Southeastern Conference champion Kentucky (24-10) — in its record 58th NCAA Tournament — is a No. 5. The tournament is being played in the shadow of a widespread U.S. federal investiga- tion into corruption in college basketball recruiting.
The investigation, which led to criminal charges against nearly a dozen defendants last year, is continuing, and an NCAA commission is examining possible reforms.
Arizona, Auburn (25-7) and Miami (22-9) are among the programs in this year’s field that were directly implicated in the scandal.
One news report also tied Arizona coach Sean Miller to an allegation that he had discussed illicit payments for his star freshman, DeAndre Ayton, although Miller strongly denied it.
While Creighton athletic director Bruce Rasmussen, chairperson of the men’s basketball selection committee, respond- ed to questions about the investigation’s effect on bids by telling reporters that the committee “will not discuss that at all,” there were three teams implicated in the scandal that were on the bubble — Louisville, Oklahoma State and Southern California — and all three were left out.
The most challenging region appeared to be the Midwest. The No.1seed is Kansas, but the Jayhawks may have to face No. 8 Seton Hall (21-11), which began the season with great promise, in the second round and either Clemson (23-9), which finished fourth in the ACC, or Auburn in the Round of 16. The quadrant’s bottom half features second-seeded Duke, a perennial championship contender, and third-seeded Michigan State (29-4), among college basketball’s most balanced teams.
The South Region will present Virginia with the toughest road to the Final Four in San Antonio of any No. 1 seed other than Kansas. On the second weekend, in Atlanta, the Cavaliers may face a major-conference champion in either Kansas St. or Arizona in the Round of 16, with No. 3-seeded Tennessee (25-8) or Cincinnati potentially waiting in the regional final.