Consider it the Big Ten for big movement.
Following its Friday night 84-70 home loss to No. 3 Michigan, No. 10 Illinois — which posted second consecutive loss — has slipped in FOX Sports bracket forecaster Mike DeCourcy’s latest NCAA Tournament projections, as has No. 12 Nebraska.
Meanwhile, No. 13 Michigan State got a road victory over No. 8 Purdue on Thursday, which moved the Spartans up one spot. Elsewhere, Troy clinched the Sun Belt regular season championship, getting the Trojans into the projected field.
Michigan State posted its second ranked win of February on the road against Purdue on Feb. 26. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
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Here is a complete look at DeCourcy’s NCAA Tournament seed list:
No. 1 seeds
1. Duke
2. Michigan
3. Arizona
4. Connecticut
No. 2 seeds
5. Iowa State
6. Florida
7. Houston
8. Kansas
No. 3 seeds
9. Illinois
10. Purdue
11. Gonzaga
12. Michigan State
No. 4 seeds
13. Nebraska
14. Virginia
15. Alabama
16. Texas Tech
No. 5 seeds
17. Arkansas
18. Vanderbilt
19. St. John’s
20. North Carolina
No. 6 seeds
21. Tennessee
22. Louisville
23. BYU
24. Villanova
No. 7 seeds
25. UCF
26. Kentucky
27. Saint Mary’s
28. Saint Louis
No. 8 seeds
29. Utah State
30. Wisconsin
31. Miami RedHawks
32. Miami Hurricanes
No. 9 seeds
33. Iowa
34. NC State
35. Georgia
36. SMU
No. 10 seeds
37. UCLA
38. Missouri
39. Clemson
40. Texas A&M
No. 11 seeds
41. Texas
42. California
43. TCU v. 44. Indiana
45. Santa Clara v. 46. VCU
No. 12 seeds
47. Belmont
48. South Florida
49. Yale
50. Liberty
No. 13 seeds
51. Stephen F. Austin
52. UNC Wilmingon
53. High Point
54. Utah Valley
No. 14 seeds
55. Hawaii
56. Austin Peay
57. North Dakota State
58. Navy
No. 15 seeds
59. Troy
60. Portland State
61. East Tennessee State
62. Wright State
No. 16 seeds
63. Merrimack
64. LIU
65. UMBC
66. Bethune-Cookman
67. Morehead State
68. Morgan State
And it’s never too early to check in on the bubble.
According to DeCourcy’s seed list, Auburn, San Diego State, Virginia Tech and USC are the first four teams out of the tournament, while Ohio State, New Mexico, Seton Hall and Oklahoma State are the next four out.
Selection Sunday is less than one month away, and this list will inevitably evolve. For now, DeCourcy’s latest seed list offers a clear snapshot of who’s rising, who’s falling and which programs are already building the résumés they’ll need when March arrives.
