Gonzaga, Baylor, Illinois, Michigan Earn No. 1 Seeds in 2021 Men's NCAA Tournament


As expected, Gonzaga is the No. 1 overall seed in this year's March Madness.

The 68 teams who will compete in the 2021 men's NCAA tournament were revealed on Selection Sunday, with 31 automatic bids and 37 recipients of at-large bids all vying for April's coveted championship.

Gonzaga, Baylor, Illinois and Michigan earned this year's No. 1 seeds, with the undefeated Bulldogs holding the honor of the tournament's No. 1 overall seed.

Once the teams were selected, the committee was then responsible for seeding the participants by pedigree and then bracketing them into four regions: the East, West, South and Midwest. Even though the entire 2021 men's tournament is being held in the state of Indiana due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the traditional region names remain. Additionally, there are four replacement teams on standby in the event anyone needs to withdraw before Tuesday night.

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The men's tournament will open on Thursday, March 18 with the First Four, then the first round being held on Friday, March 19 and Saturday, March 20, after which the field will be whittled down to 32 teams.

Here's a look at all the first-round matchups and regions:

West Region

No. 1 Gonzaga vs. No. 16 Norfolk State/Appalachian State
No. 8 Oklahoma vs. No. 9 Missouri
No. 5 Creighton vs. No. 12 UC Santa Barbara
No. 4 Virginia vs. No. 13 Ohio
No. 6 USC vs. No. 11 Wichita State/Drake
No. 3 Kansas vs. No. 14 Eastern Washington
No. 7 Oregon vs. No. 10 VCU
No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 15 Grand Canyon

South Region

No. 1 Baylor vs. No. 16 Hartford
No. 8 North Carolina vs. No. 9 Wisconsin
No. 5 Villanova vs. No. 12 Winthrop
No. 4 Purdue vs. No. 13 North Texas
No. 6 Texas Tech vs. No. 11 Utah State
No. 3 Arkansas vs. No. 14 Colgate
No. 7 Florida vs. No. 10 Virginia Tech
No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 15 Oral Roberts

Midwest Region

No. 1 Illinois vs. No. 16 Drexel
No. 8 Loyola Chicago vs. No. 9 Georgia Tech
No. 5 Tennessee vs. No. 12 Oregon State
No. 4 Oklahoma State vs. No. 13 Liberty
No. 6 San Diego State vs. No. 11 Syracuse
No. 3 West Virginia vs. No. 14 Morehead State
No. 7 Clemson vs. No. 10 Rutgers
No. 2 Houston vs. No. 15 Cleveland State

East Region

No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 16 Mount St. Mary's/Texas Southern
No. 8 LSU vs. No. 9 St. Bonaventure
No. 5 Colorado vs. No. 12 Georgetown
No. 4 Florida State vs. No. 13 UNC Greensboro
No. 6 BYU vs. No. 11 Michigan State/UCLA
No. 3 Texas vs. No. 14 Abilene Christian
No. 7 UConn vs. No. 10 Maryland
No. 2 Alabama vs. No. 15 Iona

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