NCAA: Purdue Seeded 4th, Will Play North Texas in Tournament Opener
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Purdue got its assignment for the NCAA Tournament on Sunday night, and will open the rare Indiana-only event as a No. 4 seed in the South Region. They will play No. 13 seed North Texas in the first round.
“I don’t know anything about North Texas. I know their coach (Grant McCasland). I’m friends with their coach,'' Purdue coach Matt Painter said when he first got word of the pairing.
North Texas plays in Conference USA and was 17-9 this season. They beat Western Kentucky in overtime to win the league tournament.
McCasland was an assistant to Scott Drew at Baylor from 2011-16 and then was the head coach at Arkansas State for a year before being hired at North Texas, which is located in Denton, Texas. He is 78-50 in his four years there.
Get to know North Texas
- Nickname: Mean Green
- Location: Denton, Texas
- Regular Season: 17-9 overall, 9-5 in Conference USA
- How'd they get here: Won four straight games in the conference tournament to get the league's autmatic bid. Beat Western Kentucky in overtime to win the title.
- NCAA history: Lost to Kansas State in the first round in 2010.
- Scouting report: North Texas plays small ball and has a roster full of perimeter shooters, and they like to get after people defensively. Senior point guard Javion Hamlet is their leading scorer, averaging 14.4 points per game and 4.1 assists.
- Nugget to know: Purdue's young team is the polar opposite of the Green Wave, which starts four seniors and a junior. Purdue doesn't have a single senior on its roster.
Game times and locations have not yet been announced. This story will be updated. Here are the NCAA Tournament pairings.
South Region
Friday/Sunday
- No. 1 Baylor (22-2) vs. No. 16 Hartford (15-8)
- No. 8 North Carolina (18-10) vs. No. 9 Wisconsin (17-12)
- No. 5 Villanova (16-6) vs. No. 12 Winthrop (23-1)
- No. 4 Purdue (18-8) vs. No. 13 North Texas (17-9)
- No. 6 Texas Tech (17-10) vs. No. 11 Utah State (20-8)
- No. 3 Arkansas (22-6) vs. No. 14 Colgate (14-1)
- No. 7 Florida (14-9) vs. No. 10 Virginia Tech (15-6)
- No. 2 Ohio State (21-9) vs. No. 15 Oral Roberts (16-10)
East Region
Thursday
- No. 11 -- Michigan State (15-12) vs. UCLA (17-9)
- No. 16 -- Mount St. Mary's (12-10) vs. Texas Southern (16-8)
Saturday/Monday
- No. 1 Michigan (20-4) vs. No. 16 Mount St. Mary's (12-10) or Texas Southern (16-8)
- No. 8 LSU (18-9) vs. No. 9 St. Bonaventure (16-4)
- No. 5 Colorado (22-8) vs. No. 12 Georgetown (13-12)
- No. 4 Florida State (16-6) vs. No. 13 UNC-Greensboro (21-8)
- No. 6 BYU (20-6) vs. No. 11 Michigan State (15-12) or UCLA (17-9)
- No. 3 Texas (19-7) vs. No. 14 Abilene Christian (23-4)
- No. 7 Connecticut (15-7) vs. No. 10 Maryland (16-13)
- No. 2 Alabama (24-6) vs. No. 15 Iona (12-5)
Midwest Region
Friday/Sunday
- No. 1 Illinois (23-6) vs. No. 16 Drexel (12-7)
- No. 8 Loyola-Chicago (24-4) vs. No. 9 Georgia Tech (17-8)
- No. 5 Tennessee (18-8) vs. No. 12 Oregon State (17-12)
- No. 4 Oklahoma State (20-8) vs. No. 13 Liberty (23-5)
- No. 6 San Diego State (23-4) vs. No. 11 Syracuse (16-9)
- No. 3 West Virginia (18-9) vs. No. 14 Morehead State (23-7)
- No. 7 Clemson (16-7) vs. No. 10 Rutgers (15-11)
- No. 2 Houston (24-3) vs. No. 15 Cleveland State (19-7)
West Region
Thursday (First Four games)
- No. 11 -- Wichita State (16-5) vs. Drake (25-4)
- No. 16 -- Appalachian State (17-11) vs. Norfolk State (16-7)
Saturday/Monday
- No. 1 Gonzaga (26-0) vs. No. 16 Appalachian State (17-11) or Norfolk State (16-7)
- No. 8 Oklahoma (15-10) vs. No. 9 Missouri (16-9)
- No. 5 Creighton (20-8) vs. No. 12 UC-Santa Barbara (22-4)
- No. 4 Virginia (18-6) vs. No. 13 Ohio (16-7)
- No. 6 USC (22-7) vs. No. 11 Wichita State (16-5) or Drake (25-4)
- No. 3 Kansas (20-8) vs. No. 14 Eastern Washington (16-7)
- No. 7 Oregon (20-6) vs. No. 10 VCU (19-7)
- No. 2 Iowa (21-8) vs. No. 15 Grand Canyon (17-6)
Printable NCAA Tournament bracket
Here is the link to print out a full NCAA Tournament bracket. CLICK HERE
