Gonzaga is the No. 1 overall seed in this year’s NCAA men’s basketball tournament after a dominant season that saw them go undefeated. Baylor, Illinois and Michigan were awarded the other No. 1 seeds by the selection committee on Sunday.
The Bulldogs are the fifth team to enter the NCAA tournament undefeated since Indiana’s perfect season in 1975-76. They’re also the first team to go wire-to-wire as AP’s No. 1 since unbeaten Kentucky in 2014-15. Assuming Gonzaga gets past the first round, they will take on the winner of 8th seed Oklahoma and 9th seed Missouri. That first round game will be played Saturday.
Baylor had been on Gonzaga’s heels all season, having lost just one game before dropping their second to Oklahoma State in the Big 12 tournament. The Bears are the No. 1 seed in the men’s tournament for the first time in their history.
Illinois earned their No. 1 seed less than an hour after beating Ohio State in overtime to win the Big Ten championship. The Fighting Illini now have six wins over AP top-10 teams this season, tied for the most in a season in Big Ten history.
Michigan narrowly missed having their highest regular-season winning percentage ever after a one-point loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten tournament to finish 20-4. It’s the Wolverines first No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament since 1993.
The Big Ten lead all conferences with nine teams, followed by the ACC and Big 12 with seven each. It’s the most Big Ten teams in a tournament in a single year ever, and tied for the third-most by a single conference in a single season.