Men’s Bracketology: Here we go! It’s Tennessee and North Carolina for the last No. 1

Men’s Bracketology: 2024 NCAA TournamentBy Joe Lunardi Updated: 3/16/2024 at 1 a.m. ET

Bracketology is in its 30th season on ESPN. From now until Selection Sunday on March 17, we’ll keep you up to date on the postseason chances and projection of your favorite teams. We will culminate with daily updates throughout Champion Week, all with an eye toward the 2024 NCAA men’s basketball tournament.

Bracket WatchThe No. 1 seeds for the NCAA tournament are set. North Carolina clinched its spot on the top line Friday, outlasting Pitt in the ACC semifinals after Tennessee laid an egg against Mississippi State in its SEC tournament opener and Arizona did the same against Oregon in the Pac-12. The Tar Heels will head West, via Charlotte, when the main bracket gets underway next Thursday. Still to be determined is the order of the other top seeds: Purdue, Houston and UConn. It says here that Houston will claim the No. 1 overall seed Saturday night if it wins the Big 12 tournament, having already captured the regular season title outright and claimed the nation’s No. 1 ranking. This scenario also takes the selection committee off the hook from having to wait out a potential late Sunday afternoon game involving Purdue. UConn coach Dan Hurley will probably act disrespected at not being first overall, but the defending champions also get what they want: a friendly East Region path of Brooklyn and Boston.

On the Bubble68-Team BracketMIDWEST (DETROIT)IndianapolisSpokanePittsburghCharlotteWEST (LOS ANGELES)CharlotteSalt LakeOmahaSalt LakeSOUTH (DALLAS)MemphisSpokaneMemphisIndianapolisEAST (BOSTON)BrooklynBrooklynPittsburghOmahaConference BreakdownPhoto illo by ESPN Illustration, additional photos courtesy of Getty Images, Associated Press, Imagn, USA TODAY Sports, Icon Sportswire, EPA/Shutterstock