Selection Committee Reveals Top 16; Where Does Nebrasketball Stand?

Just three weeks from Selection Sunday, the NCAA Tournament selection committee unveiled its top 16 teams as of today. In this snapshot of the top seeds, how does the committee view Nebrasketball?

Fred Hoiberg has Nebraska in position for one of its highest seeds in program history. | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

With just over three weeks to go until Nebrasketball officially learns its fate for the 2026 NCAA Tournament, the selection committee has revealed how it sees the Huskers.

On CBS late Saturday morning, the top 16 seeds were unveiled. This is simply a snapshot of how the committee sees the top of the field at this point in time, prior to any games played on Saturday.

Nebraska Cornhuskers guard Sam Hoiberg goes to the basket as Iowa Hawkeyes forward Alvaro Folgueiras (rear) and guard Tavion Banks (6) defend. | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Nebraska slots in as a 3-seed. In this reveal, the other seeds in the South Region would be Iowa State (1), UConn (2), and Texas Tech (4).

In this seeding reveal, Nebraska would potentially face UConn in the Sweet 16 and Iowa State or Texas Tech in the Elite Eight.

Here's how the full top 16 went, including which region (Midwest, East, South, and West) the committee slotted them into.

1. Michigan MW
2. Duke E
3. Arizona W
4. Iowa State S
5. UConn S
6. Houston MW
7. Illinois E
8. Purdue W
9. Florida MW
10. Kansas E
11. Nebraska S
12. Gonzaga W
13. Texas Tech 13
14. Michigan State W
15. Vanderbilt E
16. Virginia MW

Based on this order of teams, Nebraska's NCAA Tournament first weekend would be in Buffalo, New York. The two closest locations to Lincoln, Oklahoma City and St. Louis, would be occupied by Iowa State, Houston, Illinois, and Kansas.

Knowing where the committee has Nebraska right now in relation to those four teams shows who the Huskers need to outpace over the next three weeks to get a closer tournament site for the first weekend.

Nebraska's spot in the top 16 lines up perfectly with where the Huskers are in the NET. NU is at 11, with records of 5-4 against Quad 1, 7-0 against Quad 2, 4-0 against Quad 3, and 6-0 against Quad 4. Some of those records will shift as teams move up or down between quads.

Nebraska forward Pryce Sandfort is already the single-season record holder for three-pointers made by a Husker. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

As for the other metrics, Nebraska entered the day 11th in the Torvik and 18th in the BPI.

One metric that has become a solid indicator of seeding is Wins Above Bubble, or WAB. Nebraska is currently 6.52 wins above the bubble, good for 10th.

Below are the top 20 for the NET, Torvik, BPI, and WAB, as they were entering Saturday's games.

NET

1. Michigan
2. Duke
3. Arizona
4. Illinois
5. Gonzaga
6. Iowa State
7. Purdue
8. Houston
9. Florida
10. UConn
11. Nebraska
12. Michigan State
13. Kansas
14. Louisville
15. Vanderbilt
16. Virginia
17. Texas Tech
18. Arkansas
19. Tennessee
20. Alabama

Bart Torvik

1. Michigan
2. Houston
3. Arizona
4. Illinois
5. Duke
6. Florida
7. Purdue
8. Iowa State
9. UConn
10. Kansas
11. Nebraska
12. Vanderbilt
13. Texas Tech
14. Gonzaga
15. Louisville
16. Michigan State
17. Tennessee
18. Virginia
19. Alabama
20. Arkansas

BPI

1. Duke
2. Michigan
3. Houston
4. Arizona
5. Illinois
6. Iowa State
7. Florida
8. Gonzaga
9. Purdue
10. Louisville
11. UConn
12. Tennessee
13. Michigan State
14. Vanderbilt
15. Kansas
16. St. John's
17. Alabama
18. Nebraska
19. BYU
20. Texas Tech

WAB

1. Michigan
2. Duke
3. Arizona
4. UConn
5. Purdue
6. Houston
7. Illinois
8. Iowa State
9. Kansas
10. Nebraska
11. Alabama
12. Michigan State
13. Florida
14. Gonzaga
15. Texas Tech
16. Virginia
17. Vanderbilt
18. Arkansas
19. Tennessee
20. St. John's

Nebraska Tournament Seed History

Nebraska is famously the only Power Four program without a win in the NCAA Tournament, but that doesn't mean the Huskers have never been there. Here is a look at the seeds NU has held in the past.

The Huskers have been a single-digit seed five times, including an 8-seed under Fred Hoiberg in 2024. The very first tournament appearance for the Big Red came as a 9-seed in 1986.

Former Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Danny Nee led NU to five NCAA Tournament berths in the 1990s. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Nebraska's best seed came in 1991. The 26-7 Huskers entered the field as a 3-seed, only to get upended by Xavier in the first round, 89-84.

Other single-digit seed years include 1992 (8) and 1994 (6). The three double-digit seed bids came in 1993 (10), 1998 (11), and 2014 (11).

Selection Sunday

Selection Sunday is set for March 15. The bracket will be announced at 5 p.m. CDT on CBS.

NCAA Tournament Schedule

• Selection Sunday: 5 p.m. CDT Sunday, March 15 on CBS
• First Four: Tuesday, March 17 and Wednesday, March 18
• First round: Thursday, March 19 and Friday, March 20
• Second round: Saturday, March 21 and Sunday, March 22
• Sweet 16: Thursday, March 26 and Friday, March 27
• Elite Eight: Saturday, March 28 and Sunday, March 29
• Final Four: Saturday, April 4 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind.
• NCAA championship game: Monday, April 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind.

Have a question or comment for Kaleb? Send an email to kalebhenry.huskermax@gmail.com.