The only change in NCAA Tournament seeding among the top 16 teams coming out of Saturday's action was Kentucky moving up to a No. 4 seed as the Wildcats displaced Auburn on the strength of the their win at Tennessee. Auburn has an unusual resume with just one Quad 1 win, and no team has ever been seeded in the top four with just one of those victories. In fact, the highest seed for a team with just one Quad 1 win in at least eight games is a No. 9 seed: Michigan State in 2004. The Spartans were 1-9 in Quad 1 opportunities, although we did not call the buckets of opponents on team sheets "quadrants" back then.
Utah State clinched the outright Mountain West championship with a win over New Mexico. Coach Danny Sprinkle had to build this team from nothing this offseason; no player who scored a point for the Aggies last season was still on the roster. It's a remarkable story and one that will get Sprinkle attention in the national coach of the year race.
The first automatic bid went to Morehead State as the champion of the Ohio Valley Conference. The Eagles were part of a three-way tie for first in the regular season and beat top seed Little Rock for the title.
On the actual bubble, New Mexico was the only team among the last four in the field to lose, though the Lobos are still there ... for now. On the other side, Utah, Villanova and Providence all lost again, and only the Utes still remain on the bubble. The damage to Villanova and especially Providence's resumes is bad enough now that by the time either gets enough wins to get back in contention, it is likely the automatic qualifier.
There are two bubble teams in action on Sunday as the 2023-24 regular season comes to a close.
All times Eastern.
Check out Palm's latest bracket, full field of 68 and Bubble Watch at the Bracketology hub
Bubble teams in action Sunday
| 1 |  |
| vs. Michigan, Noon | Big Ten Network, fuboTV (Try for free) -- The Cornhuskers are on the road to end the regular season and the journey this year has been unkind. They are just 3-8 off their home floor, but the win at Kansas State in nonconference play looks better this morning. A win over the Wolverines does not fix their rep as a team that struggles away from home against better teams, but a loss would be Nebraska's worst of the season. | |
| 2 |  |
| vs. Illinois, 7 p.m. on FS1 | Big Ten Network, fuboTV (Try for free) -- Iowa has been making a move up the ladder of late. The Hawkeyes have wins over Wisconsin and at Michigan State and Northwestern in their last five games. This would be the biggest win of the season for Iowa and would certainly inch them closer to the bracket, if not on to it. | |
NCAA Tournament locks
Locks based on resume: 28 | AQ bids secured: 0 | At-large spots remaining: 8
| Conference | Locks | Teams |
|---|---|---|
ACC | 3 | Duke, North Carolina, Clemson |
Big East | 3 | |
Big Ten | 3 | |
Big 12 | 6 | |
Pac-12 | 2 | |
MWC | 4 | San Diego State, Utah State, Nevada, Colorado State |
SEC | 6 | Tennessee, Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, South Carolina, Florida |
WCC | 2 |
Near the cut line
| Last 4 In | Team | Record | NET |
|---|---|---|---|
 | New Mexico | 22-9 | 29 |
 | Colorado | 22-9 | 28 |
 | Seton Hall | 20-11 | 61 |
 | St. John's | 19-12 | 38 |
| First 4 Out | Team | Record | NET |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Utah | 18-13 | 52 |
| Iowa | 18-12 | 57 |
 | Texas A&M | 18-13 | 46 |
 | Pitt | 21-10 | 44 |
| Next 4 Out | Team | Record | NET |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Wake Forest | 19-12 | 37 |
 | Kansas State | 18-13 | 71 |
 | Virginia Tech | 18-13 | 56 |
 | Memphis | 22-9 | 70 |
Note – all references to NCAA Tournament selection records and trends based on NET rankings excludes the 2021 tournament. Due to shortened schedules and a relatively small number of non-conference games, those rankings are not reliable enough to be considered.
