Finding way home starts as high seed
UH a consensus No. 1 in NCAA field with UT close behind in projections
The road to the Final Four at NRG Stadium begins in less than five weeks.
Could it be a homecoming for the University of Houston?
Kelvin Sampson’s team continues to make a case for a No. 1 seed. The Cougars are No. 1 in KenPom and the NET rankings, two key metrics used by the NCAA Selection Committee to determine seeding for the 68-team field.
With less than five weeks until Selection Sunday, the Cougars are among the top picks for a top regional seed. Purdue is the consensus No. 1 overall seed, with Alabama, Arizona and Houston among the top picks for the top spots in one of the four regionals. Texas, Kansas and Tennessee are also under consideration.
During Sunday’s telecast of the UH-Temple game, ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi said the Cougars pass the “eye test” as a worthy No. 1 seed.
“I just think they have all the pieces,” Lunardi said. “They can even get explosive offensively at times, and the number of times the offense has completely disappeared — as it did in the Elite Eight a year ago — seems to be less. And when you have Marcus Sasser, you’re going to be able to get a bucket.”
Houston is attempting to join a short list of schools to play in the Final Four in their home city: City College of New York (1950), Louisville (1959), UCLA (1968, 1972) and Butler (2010).
Texas is a consensus No. 2 pick, according to the projections. Two other Texas schools, Baylor and TCU, are safely in the NCAA field as top-5 seeds.
After Tuesday’s win over Auburn, Texas A&M is a 9 seed on TeamRankings.com and has a 70.3 percent chance of making the tournament, a 19 percent increase from last week.
“It would be foolish of us not to give our very best on the current chapter that we’re writing,” A&M coach Buzz Williams said Tuesday night after an 83-78 victory over Auburn improved the Aggies to 9-2 in SEC play. “Let’s put ourselves in position to earn everything.”
Expected to be the biggest winners on Selection Sunday? The Big 12 and Big Ten. Both conferences have eight bids in the ESPN, USA Today and CBS Sports projections, accounting for almost 25 percent of the field.
The Final Four will be held April 1 and 3 at NRG Stadium.
Here is a roundup of tournament projections:
ESPN
In his latest projections, Joe Lunardi has the Cougars as a No. 1 seed in a Texas-centric East Region that also features No. 3 seed Baylor and No. 4 seed TCU. Big 12 leader Texas is the No. 2 seed in the West Regional and has a chance to get into the 1-seed talk with four ranked opponents to end the regular season — Iowa State, Baylor, TCU and Kansas — and the conference tournament. UT is 2-2 against those teams, as every night is a heavyweight fight in the Big 12.
“At the end of the day, the top line will be Purdue, Houston and whoever wins the Big 12 and SEC,” Lunardi said.
No. 1 seeds
Purdue (South), Alabama (Midwest), Arizona (West, )Houston (East).
Matchups EAST:
(1) Houston vs. (16) Rider in Birmingham, Ala. WEST: (2) Texas vs. (15) Youngstown State in Denver. EAST: (3) Baylor vs. (14) UC-Santa Barbara in Denver. EAST: (4) TCU vs. (13) Louisiana in Orlando, Fla. FIRST FOUR OUT: Texas A&M.
USA Today
Houston draws a tough West Regional that features No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Virginia and a possible Sweet 16 matchup against Drew Timme and No. 4 Gonzaga.
No. 1 seeds
Purdue (South), Alabama (Midwest), Tennessee (East), Houston (West). Matchups WEST: (1) Houston vs. (16) Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in Birmingham, Ala. MIDWEST: (2) Texas vs. (15) Vermont in Denver. EAST: (4) Baylor vs. (13) Furman in Orlando, Fla. WEST: (5) TCU vs. (12) Utah Valley in Denver. WEST: Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma State in 11-seed play-in game in Dayton, Ohio. The winner plays (6) Rutgers in Greensboro, N.C.
CBS Sports
A rematch with Virginia in the Sweet 16 could be on tap for the Cougars, according to Jerry Palm’s projections. UH beat thenNo. 2 Virginia 69-61 on Dec. 17 in Charlottesville. Defending champion Kansas could be the final hurdle for the Cougars playing in the Final Four.
No. 1 seeds
Purdue (South), Alabama (Midwest), Kansas (East), Texas (West). Matchups WEST: (1) Texas vs. (16) Maryland-Eastern Shore in Birmingham, Ala. EAST: (2) Houston vs. (15) Youngstown State in Des Moines, Iowa. MIDWEST: (4) Baylor vs. (13) VCU in Orlando, Fla. SOUTH: (5) TCU vs. (12) Utah Valley in Sacramento, Calif.
Bracket W.A.G.
No. 1 seeds
Alabama (East), Kansas (Midwest), Purdue (South), Arizona (West). Matchups EAST: (2) Houston vs. (15) Eastern Washington in Denver. SOUTH: (2) Texas vs. UNC-Asheville in Des Moines, Iowa. WEST: (3) Baylor vs. (14) Colgate in Greensboro, N.C. MIDWEST: (4) TCU vs. (13) Southern Illinois in Orlando, Fla. FIRST FOUR OUT: Texas A&M.
Bracketville No. 1 seeds
Purdue (South), Alabama (Midwest), Texas (East), Arizona (West). Matchups EAST: (1) Texas vs. UNC-Asheville in Birmingham, Ala. MIDWEST: (2) Houston vs. (15) Youngstown State in Des Moines, Iowa. EAST: (3) Baylor vs. (14) Princeton in Orlando, Fla. WEST: (4) TCU vs. (13) Furman in Albany, N.Y. FIRST FOUR OUT: Texas A&M.
Field of 68
No. 1 seeds
Purdue (South), Alabama (Midwest), Houston (East), Arizona (West). Matchups EAST: (1) Houston vs. (16) Morehead State/ Southern in Greensboro, N.C. MIDWEST: (2) Texas vs. (15) UNC-Asheville in Denver. SOUTH: (3) Baylor vs. (14) Furman in Des Moines, Iowa. SOUTH: (5) TCU vs. (12) Utah Valley in Albany, N.Y. FIRST
Texas A&M.
FOUR OUT: Washington Post
No. 1 seeds
Purdue (South), Alabama (East), Houston (Midwest), Arizona (West). Matchups MIDWEST: (1) Houston vs. (16) vs. Northwestern State in Birmingham, Ala. MIDWEST: (2) Texas vs. (15) Colgate in Denver. EAST: (3) Baylor vs. (14) Princeton in Orlando, Fla. EAST: (5) TCU vs. (12) VCU in Albany, N.Y. WEST: Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma State in 12-seed play-in game in Dayton, Ohio. The winner plays (5) Connecticut in Sacramento, Calif.
The Sporting News
Bill Bender’s projections do not include regional assignments, but he has the Cougars “trending toward the No. 1 overall seed with a 12-1 record in Quads 1-2.” The Longhorns are also in the consideration for a No. 1 seed.
No. 1 seeds
Purdue, Alabama, Houston, Kansas.
TeamRankings.com
Houston has a 75 percent chance to make the Sweet 16 and 36 percent chance to reach the Final Four. The Cougars have a 14 percent chance to win the national championship, which makes them one of the favorites.