Advertisement

Who's No. 1

Yahoo Sports

Bubble Watch | Bubble Math | Projected Seeds | Who's No. 1

Here are cases for (and sometimes against) the teams vying for a No. 1 seed.

Illinois
No debate here regardless of the Big Ten touney final. Illinois should be the top No. 1 seed.

North Carolina
The Tar Heels didn't make the ACC final, but they won an outright ACC title. Nobody thinks UNC doesn't deserve a No. 1 seed.

Duke
Yes, they didn't have to take out the No. 1 or 2 seeds (UNC and Wake) to win their conference tourney. But the Blue Devils still have just five losses and they won the tourney in the best (or at least top-heaviest) league in the country, and in so doing they might have passed Wake Forest.

Wake Forest
Didn't win ACC. Didn't win a tournament game. Will the Deacons not be penalized for their one-and-out (due to Chris Paul's suspension for their quarterfinal loss to North Carolina State)?

If the committee chooses to cut Wake some slack for the early exit, Wake probably will make it three ACC No. 1 seeds.

Washington
Hard to imagine the second-place Pac-10 team getting a No. 1 seed, but the Huskies won the league's tournament and two of three games against Arizona. They also beat Utah, Alabama and Oklahoma to win the Great Alaska Shootout.

Louisville
The Cardinals won the Conference USA regular-season and tourney titles (a rare feat for a major conference this season). But C-USA domination doesn't guarantee a No. 1. The Cards look like a solid No. 2 now though; they've won 18 of 19.

Kentucky
The loss in the SEC final hurts the Wildcats, who don't seem to have the RPI to be a No. 1 seed. But they have just five losses and beat Louisville.

Oklahoma State
The Cowboys' win in the Big 12 tourney erases the stigma of losing three of the last four in the Big 12 regular season. But don't expect the committee to reshuffle their brackets just to make OSU a No. 1 – the timing does the Cowboys no favors. But will they get a 2?

Kansas
The Jayhawks have the strength of schedule and the RPI. But Kansas has staggered down the stretch, losing five of eight to end the year. That won't do it.