For the first time in six years, IU is dancing.
The Hoosiers had to wait to see their name on the bracket reveal, and when they did, it was as a No. 12 seed, sent to Dayton to face Wyoming in the First Four at 9:10 pm, Tuesday.
Purdue thought it was staying in Indianapolis for the first two rounds. Instead, the third-seeded Boilermakers have been sent to Milwaukee, opening up against Yale at 2 pm, Friday.
NCAA Tournament:Print and fill out your March Madness bracket
EAST REGION FIRST ROUND TV SCHEDULE
12. Indiana vs. 12 Wyoming, 9:10 pm, Tuesday (Dayton); truTV
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1. Baylor vs. 16 Norfolk State, 2 pm, Thursday (Fort Worth); TBS
8. North Carolina vs. No. 9 Marquette, 4:30 pm, Thursday (Fort Worth); TBS
5. St. Mary’s vs. 12. Indiana/Wyoming; 7:20 pm, Thursday (Portland); TBS
4. UCLA vs. 13. Akron; 9:50 pm, Thursday (Portland); TBS
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6. Texas vs. 11. Virginia Tech, 4:30 pm, Friday (Milwaukee); TBS
3. Purdue vs. 14. Yale, 2 pm, Friday (Milwaukee); TBS
7. Murray State vs. 10. San Francisco, 9:40 pm, Thursday (Indianapolis); CBS
2. Kentucky vs. No. 15 St. Peter’s; 7:10 pm, Thursday (Indianapolis); CBS
On No. 1 seed Baylor
Baylor shook off an early loss in last season’s Big 12 Tournament to race to a national championship. The Bears can only hope they can do it again.
Baylor’s repeat bid for a national title starts against Norfolk State. The Bears are the top seed in the East and open the tournament Thursday close to home in Fort Worth, Texas.
The Bears (26-6) are a No. 1 seed for the second straight season and only the second time in program history. Their potential path out of the region — which plays Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games in Philadelphia — includes No. 8 North Carolina, No. 4 UCLA and No. 2 Kentucky.
Baylor won five straight games before it was upset by Oklahoma in the Big 12 tourney quarterfinals.
“I think first nobody likes losing, and when you lose it recalibrates you, makes you hungrier,” coach Scott Drew said after the loss. “We had a nice run, so that will be the first thing. Second thing is, it will be different from the standpoint, last year we were coming off an extended three-week pause, and we needed to get back practicing hard, we needed to get back to the basics. This year rotation wise, injury wise, we haven’t had a pause.”
On No. 2 seed Kentucky
Kentucky is back in the tournament for the first time since 2019.
The Wildcats were 9-16 last season but coach John Calipari got a quick turnaround going and they put the smack down this season on tournament teams Tennessee (28-point win), Kansas (18 points) and North Carolina (29 points).
“Before we were selected my heart was definitely racing,” junior forward Jacob Toppin said. “The suspense was killing all of us. We just wanted to know who we were going to play, but I’m excited.
“This is the first tournament game for most of us. I think we’re all excited. We’re focused on our first game and we’ll worry about the rest when it comes.”
On No. 3 seed Purdue
Coach Matt Painter’s team just finished playing three games in Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis in the Big Ten tournament, falling short of the championship Sunday after losing to Iowa 75-66. The Boilers thought they’d get to stay in Indianapolis for the first two rounds. Instead, it’s off to Milwaukee.
“We thought we were going to Indy or Chicago,” senior Eric Hunter Jr. said. “It’s cool. We’re going to handle business wherever we’re at.”
NCAA tournament:Purdue earns No. 3 seed in East Region, opens against Yale
A return trip to Indianapolis appeared to be set but Kentucky and Tennessee — both seeded higher than Purdue — will play in Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
“That stuff is out of your control,” senior Sash Stefanovic said. “You try not to look too much into a lot of the bracket or anything like that. We’re still close enough to home and Milwaukee is a good place.”
The Boilermakers will play Yale, which won the Ivy League championship on Sunday. Purdue was scheduled to face the Bulldogs last season but the Ivy League canceled its basketball season – and other sports – due to the pandemic.
On No. 4 seed UCLA
USA TODAY’s Scott Gleeson listed UCLA among his six dark-horse teams: The Bruins (25-7) undoubtedly claim the glory for being the biggest sleeper of last year’s NCAA tournament, going all the way to the Final Four as a play-in No . 11 seed. And somehow, they’re positioned to be overlooked in a different way this tournament: Overlooked in the Pac-12 due to Arizona and other blue-bloods that have gotten back to form. There is still a dynamic quartet of guards for UCLA – Johnny Juzang, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Tyger Campbell and Jules Bernard – poised to go on another deep run. Coach Mick Cronin knows how to get the most out of this veteran team when it counts, and it starts on defense.
On No. 5 seed St. Mary’s
USA TODAY’s Scott Gleeson listed St. Mary’s among his five most overrated tournament teams: The Gaels (25-7) can be one of the most deceiving teams in the tournament because they have an excellent profile, but it’s largely a result of playing so well on their home court – where they went undefeated and knocked off Gonzaga on Feb. 26. Coach Randy Bennett’s team has good statistics defensively, but the offense is where we could see Saint Mary’s get into trouble and fall into lulls against a high-octane, tempo-controlling opponent.
On No. 7 seed Murray State
USA TODAY’s Scott Gleeson lists Murray State among his five mid-major Cinderella candidates: Consider the Racers (30-2) the anomaly of the bunch. The program plays like a power conference team and isn’t seeded in the double-digits like some mid-majors. The Racers, who showcased Ja Morant in 2019, have been to the NCAA Tournament plenty over the years but never reached a Sweet 16. Coach Matt McMahon has a team that’s athletic and dominant on the glass, ranking third nationally in rebounding margin. That’s a byproduct of forward KJ Williams (18.2 ppg, 8.6 rpg), the centerpiece of this dynamic group that dominated the Ohio Valley Conference with a perfect 18-0 record.
On No. 8 seed North Carolina
USA TODAY’s Scott Gleeson included North Carolina on his list of six dark-horse candidates: The Tar Heels (24-9) were on the NCAA tourney bubble until they hit the high mark of their season by upsetting Duke in the regular-season finale, spoiling coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. UNC showed how good it can be in that game, and this dangerous team could pull off major upsets on par with the one at Duke. Armando Bacot (16.5 ppg, 12.5 rpg) was arguably the best player in the ACC, and coach Hubert Davis has a scrappy team that does momentum-shifting little things (rebounding, hustle plays, blocked shots) to outplay its seeding.
The Tar Heels won 12 of their final 15 games, with the biggest a win over Duke in coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. UNC lost in the first round last season.
On No. 11 seed Virginia Tech
Also on Scott Gleeson’s list of six dark-horse teams you don’t want to see in your bracket: The Hokies (23-12) played themselves off the bubble and it all started with a buzzer-beating win in the ACC quarterfinals vs. Clemson. Virginia Tech then rode that momentum to knock off blue-bloods North Carolina and Duke en route to the ACC tourney title. Coach Mike Young has this team rolling, having won 14 of its last 16 games. Marksman guard Hunter Cattoor erupted for 31 points off seven three-pointers in the victory over Duke.
On No. 12 seed Indiana
IU secured a No. 12 seed in Dayton, sending the Hoosiers to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2016. They will face Wyoming for a chance to play St. Mary’s in Portland later in the week.
“You come to college to play basketball,” Woodson said Sunday after the selection show. “You come to make the tournament and get an education. A lot of these guys have been sitting on the sideline for years watching basketball played in March and never knowing what it’s about.
“I think it’s a beautiful thing. I’m so thrilled.”
NCAA tournament:IU heads to Dayton to play Wyoming in First Four East Region
They almost certainly would not have been in position to hear their name called Sunday without their excellent work in the Big Ten tournament: beating Michigan, top seed Illinois and losing to eventual champion Iowa on a banked 3-pointer.
The Hoosiers’ overall body of work in the state capital moved from them, in all likelihood, off the wrong side of the bubble before tipoff Thursday morning to safely in the field by the time it was announced Sunday night.
On No. 12 Wyoming
The Cowboys (25-8, 13-4 in Mountain West) are an at-large selection. They defeated UNLV and lost to No. 1 seed Boise State in the conference tournament. They are 1-2 against Pac-12 opponents, beating Washington and losing to Arizona and Stanford.
Wyoming’s top scorers are also their toughest rebounders.
Graham Ike averages 19.0 points per game on 51% field goal shooting, as well as 9.6 rebounds. Hunter Maldonado averages 18.4 points and 5.8 rebounds. Drake Jeffries averages 10.5 points with 94 3-pointers and 42% accuracy, and 5.3 rebounds.
On No. 13 seed Akron
Akron dominated a battle of red-hot Northeast Ohio teams to claim the 2022 Mid-American Conference tournament championship with a 75-55 victory over backyard rival Kent State.
The fourth-seeded Zips (24-9) earned their eighth consecutive victory, snapped the Golden Flashes’ 14-game winning streak, and avenged a pair of regular-season losses to Kent State (23-10). Akron knocked off No. 5 seed Buffalo, No. 1 seed Toledo and the second-seeded Flashes to claim their first MAC tourney crown since 2013.
On No. 14 seed Yale
Yale clinched a berth in the NCAA tournament by winning the Ivy League conference championship game 66-64 over Princeton.
Azar Swain is the team’s leading scorer, averaging a career-high 19.1 points per game. The senior shoots 42% from the floor and 34.2% from behind the 3-point arc. He has four games this season with at least 25 points, including in the conference semifinal against Penn. He scored 37 points against Columbia in January and 34 against Iona in December.
The Bulldogs were inconsistent during the first part of their schedule, finishing nonconference play 6-8 and heading into Ivy League play on a three-game losing streak. But after a 2-1 start to league play, Yale won seven straight from Jan. 25-Feb. 18. They split their final four regular-season games before beating Penn and Princeton in the conference tournament.
On 15 seed Saint Peter’s
The Peacocks (19-11) made the Big Dance after defeating Monmouth 60-54 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament Championship on Saturday. The win earned No. 15 seeded Saint Peter’s its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2011 and fourth overall (1991, 1995, 2011, 2022).
Saint Peter’s isn’t known for a high powered offense. The Peacocks were 10th out of 11 teams in the MAAC with 66.9 points per game. Where Saint Peter’s makes its money is defense.
This season, the Peacocks boasted one of the top defenses in the MAAC. Senior KC Ndefo led the conference in blocks per game (2.7). Saint Peter’s lead the conference in steals as well and on the glass, the Peacocks were one of the better rebounding teams in the conference finishing fourth with 36.2 per game.
IndyStar reporters Zach Osterman, Matthew VanTryon and Scott Horner, Journal & Courier reporter Mike Carmin, Courier Journal’s JL Kirven and USA TODAY’s Scott Gleeson and the Associated Press contributed to this story.
