This bracket busting piece of history is on the line in Kansas-Providence game
The busted men’s NCAA Tournament bracket is approaching historic proportions.
Losses by No. 1 seeds Gonzaga to Arkansas and Arizona to Houston on Thursday in the Sweet 16 leave one top remaining — Kansas.
The Jayhawks’ Sweet 16 game against fourth-seeded Providence in the Midwest Region tips off at 6:29 p.m. Friday. A Friars’ upset — they’re 7 1/2-point underdogs — would mean the NCAA Tournament would be without a top seed in the Elite Eight for the first time since the seeding process started in 1979.
The first No. 1 seed to fall was Baylor, to North Carolina, in the second round last weekend.
Three Final Fours have occurred without a top-seeded team: 1980, 2006 and 2011.
Four have happened with one team in the Elite Eight. Two top seeds in those tournaments — Michigan State in 2000 and Louisville in 2013 — went on to win the championship. One of the others was Kansas, which fell to VCU in a 2011 regional final.
It’s already been a wild tournament with a No. 15 seed advancing to the Sweet 16 for the third time. St. Peter’s takes on third-seeded Purdue at 6:09 p.m. Friday.
Also, with 10th-seeded Miami (Florida) meeting No. 11 Iowa State tonight, double-digit seeds are meeting in the regional semifinals for the fifth time.
This story was originally published March 25, 2022 at 10:14 AM.