Arizona vs. Gonzaga in NCAA tournament? Updated predictions have intriguing matchups
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The Arizona Wildcats significantly improved their NCAA tournament resume with Monday night's road win over Baylor.
Not only did the 74-67 victory give Arizona (18-8, 12-3) a season sweep of the Bears, but it was also the Wildcats eighth Quad 1 victory of the season — the second-best total in the country. Quad 1 victories are gold in the eyes of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. They're classified as home wins against a top 30 team in the NCAA NET Rankings, or road wins against a top 50 team in the NET.
Arizona is ranked No. 9 in the NET and its Quad 1 record is 8-7. Auburn is No. 1 in the NET in large part because the Tigers are 14-2 in Quad 1 games.
Arizona's NCAA tournament outlook
Arizona was slotted as a No. 3 seed in the East in the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee's first top 16 rankings of the season, which were released Saturday morning. The committee will release its updated top 16 teams every Saturday leading up to Selection Sunday on March 16.
As the No. 12 overall team in the committee's rankings, the Wildcats were given the final No. 3 seed, which is partly why they were placed in the East. If Arizona can move up to No. 9 or 10, they have a chance to be placed in the West, which would mean far less travel if they advance past the first weekend. The East Regional is in Newark, N.J., while the West Regional is in San Francisco.
In ESPN's updated NCAA tournament Bracketology predictions, Joe Lunardi falls in line with the committee and has Arizona as a No. 3 seed in the East, matched up against Utah Valley in the first round. If the Wildcats win, they are projected to play No. 6 UCLA in the second round and No. 2 Tennessee in the Sweet 16 in Newark.
In CBS Sports' latest NCAA tournament predictions, Jerry Palm has Arizona sliding down a seed line to No. 4 and being placed in the West. Palm has the Wildcats matched up against High Point in the first round, with the winner playing No. 5 Marquette in the second round. If Arizona advances to the Sweet 16, they would likely play No. 1 Florida in San Francisco.
An interesting matchup could materialize in Palm's bracket. He has Gonzaga slotted as a No. 8 seed, with a likely second-round matchup against Florida. If the Zags upset Florida — which is not out of the question — it could set up a Sweet 16 matchup between Arizona and Gonzaga, where Tommy Lloyd spent the first 20 seasons of his coaching career.
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.