Arizona gets favorable draw in updated NCAA Tournament Bracketology
In this story:
With four games to play, the Arizona Wildcats (18-9, 12-4) are once again all alone in second place in the Big 12.
The Houston Cougars (24-4, 16-1) clinched their second straight Big 12 championship Monday night with a 69-61 road victory over Texas Tech (21-7, 12-5). The loss dropped the Red Raiders a 1/2 game behind Arizona in the standings.
If the Wildcats can beat Utah on Wednesday night at McKale Memorial Center, they'll be one game ahead of Texas Tech with three to play. Finishing all alone in second place in the Big 12 is a big deal, mainly because it comes with a bye to the Big 12 tournament quarterfinals and some much-needed rest for a team that has played the eighth-toughest schedule in the country.
Updated March Madness predictions
The strength of Arizona's schedule continues to help a great deal when it comes to seeding for the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
The 12-person NCAA Tournament Selection Committee uses the NET Rankings as the primary sorting tool for selection and seeding for March Madness, and the Wildcats continue to be ranked among the top-10 teams in the country.
Despite losing three of its last four games, Arizona is currently ranked No. 9 in the NET. The rankings take into account the quality of the opponent, plus offensive and defensive efficiency metrics. The three losses all came down to the final minute and were by a combined eight points. And all three teams are highly ranked in the NET.
Because of the quality of those losses, Arizona is still projected to be a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament — and the Wildcats' draw is favorable. ESPN's Joe Lunardi has No. 4 Arizona headed to Denver for the first round, matched up against No. 13. Drake. If the Wildcats win, they are projected to former Pac-12 foe Oregon in the second round.
Getting to the Sweet 16 would be a great result for a team that started the season 4-5, and going through Akron and Oregon to get there is not nearly as daunting of a path as what Arizona has faced the past month in the Big 12.
In Jerry Palm's updated Bracketology predictions, he also has Arizona playing in Denver, but as a No. 5 seed in the East, matched up against No. 12 Liberty in the first round. If the Wildcats win, they are projected to play No. 4 Kentucky in the second round.
With at least two more Quad 1 games on their schedule, plus the Big 12 Tournament, the Wildcats still have an opportunity to improve their March Madness seed.
More Arizona & Big 12 Analysis
-029877d49238355bd3388a94f90e3c72.jpg "Ben Sherman")
Ben Sherman has been covering the sports world for most of his 27-year journalism career, including 17 years with The Oregonian/OregonLive. A basketball junkie, March Madness is his favorite time of the year.