Selection Sunday: Bracket Revealed; Kentucky Earns No. 1 Overall Seed

The Wildcats got favorable No. 2 and No. 3 seeds, too: No. 2 Duke and No. 3 Baylor are less imposing than some of the other teams on those seed lines. But they may have a tougher round of 32 game than most teams, with No. 9 UConn looming. Elsewhere in the South, No. 5 Wichita State and No. 12 VCU meet in the second round in a tussle of mid-majors, and No. 10 Xavier breezed into the tournament after being considered a bubble team in recent weeks.

Here’s the full South Region bracket for the 2012 NCAA Tournament:

Here’s the full East Region bracket for the 2012 NCAA Tournament:

No. 1 Syracuse

No. 16 UNC Asheville

The 2012 NCAA Tournament’s First Four will pit eight of the most marginal teams selected to the 68-team field against each other for four spots in the second round of 64 teams, and it will take place in Dayton, Ohio, Tuesday and Wednesday. On Tuesday, March’s madness truly tips off with Western Kentucky taking on Mississippi Valley State and Iona matching up with BYU.

The Hilltoppers and Delta Devils are No. 16 seeds, and maybe most notable for their outstanding match-up of monikers. Even with a win on Tuesday, neither team is likely to be the first No. 16 to topple a No. 1 on Thursday, especially considering that No. 1 is top overall seed Kentucky.

The 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket was released on Sunday evening with the Big East securing the most bids of any conference. It wasn’t particularly surprising, but considering the Big 12 and Big Ten conferences were second-best with six teams apiece, that’s a pretty solid performance.

It’s good to see that even though the Pirates were snubbed, the fans are keeping it cool and not burning couches or whatever the college kids do these days. Bravo, Seton Hall.

In terms of job performance reviews, the NCAA Tournament selection committee is essentially an officiating crew: “You guys did a good job, but a couple of things ...” is pretty much the best they can hope for.

If mild criticism is the goal, it seems this morning as if the selection committee deserves high marks, because the 2012 bracket has sparked less outrage than any in recent memory. Beefs with the inclusion of Iona and BYU over fellow bubble contenders like Drexel and Seton Hall seem to be the only quibbles that are consistently popping up.

Hooray for March Madness, the most humbling time of year for sports know-it-alls. Even though there’s no relation between winning your office pool and knowing anything about basketball, chances are you’ve embarked upon this column looking for answers. By the end, you’ll realize I don’t know anything either have a lot more to think about.

Yeah, that’s it...

Following the announcement on Selection Sunday of the pairings and brackets for the 2012 NCAA Tournament, the selection committee revealed the overall seeding of the teams. You can see the rankings in the photos below.

The final teams to be included as at-large selections were California, South Florida, Iona and BYU. The first four out are Oral Roberts, Miami, Nevada and Drexel, all four teams just missing the cut.

The 2012 NCAA Tournament field has only been out a short amount of time, but you’re probably all ready to start filling things out, narrowing down picks and prepping that perfect bracket. It’s the most wonderful time of the year for college basketball fans, and with the field now all set the real work begins.

Here’s the 2012 NCAA Tournament printable bracket, updated through March 14.

Here’s the full Midwest Region bracket for the 2012 NCAA Tournament:

No. 1 North Carolina

No. 16 Lamar / Vermont (First Four)

Michigan State earned the fourth No. 1 seed in the 2012 NCAA Tournament with a spectacular performance in the Big Ten Tournament. The Spartans got rewarded with a regional stocked with tournament champions.

No. 2 Missouri won the Big 12 Tournament, No. 4 Louisville ran through the Big East Tournament, No. 5 New Mexico took home the Mountain West title, and a slew of other tournament winners will join the Spartans in the West. The biggest surprise of Selection Sunday so far is in the West, too: Iona will play BYU in the First Four in Dayton for the right to earn a No. 14 seed and play No. 3 Marquette.

More: The printable NCAA bracket is here.

On Selection Sunday, the No. 1 seeds for the four brackets of the 2012 NCAA Tournament were announced.

For more on the Ohio State Buckeyes, head over to Along The Olentangy. For updates on the MIchigan State Spartans, visit The Only Colors. For more on the entire tournament, stay with our Big Ten Tournament StoryStream. For wall to wall coverage of the 2012 NCAA Tournament, stay tuned to SB Nation’s dedicated college hoops hub.

Since the moment of truth is nearly upon us, here is my final projected bracket of 2012. My analysis, focused on the final pair of spots on the top line and a few changes at the bottom of the at-large pool from this morning’s projection, follows.

Teams that have clinched automatic bids appear in all caps.

The second half was somehow even more dunktastic than the first. Terrence Jones was the biggest culprit on the day, with back-to-back slams to extend the Wildcats’ lead to five just before the midway point of the half.

Bid thief! St. Bonaventure earned an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament with a 67-56 win against Xavier in the Atlantic 10 Tournament.

The win is bad news for bubble teams, as the Bonnies (20-11), who were unlikely to receive real consideration for an at-large bid, now are assured a spot in the 68-team field. It will be St. Bonaventure’s first trip to the big dance since 2000.

For more on the two teams, check out Florida Seminoles blog Tomahawk Nation and North Carolina blog Carolina March. For more on college tournaments nationwide, head over to SB Nation’s dedicated NCAA basketball hub. For more on the ACC tourney, make sure to follow this StoryStream.

At long last, the 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket will be released on Sunday. The regular season is over, the conference tournaments are all winding down and all that’s left is the big reveal, completing a week’s worth of work by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. There are just a few hours left until bubble teams learn their fate, top-ranked teams find out their seeds and the March Madness bracket competitions begin.

Once again, CBS has the exclusive rights to the NCAA bracket show. The traditional Selection Sunday show will feature the reveal, done by regions, followed by bracket analysis from the CBS panel of experts.