(WGHP) — The field of 68 for the NCAA Tournament was announced on Sunday, this is how North Carolina’s college basketball teams fared.
Who’s In?
North Carolina State: 11-seed in the South Region
The Wolfpack snuck into the bracket as 11-seed despite their 26-point loss to Clemson in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament in Greensboro.
They went 23-10 for the season with a 12-8 record in ACC conference games. At their peak this season, NC State was ranked as the No. 22 team in the nation.
The Wolfpack will play the 6-seed Creighton Bluejays in the 1st Round of the tournament.
Creighton has a 21-12 record and went 14-6 in Big East conference games. At their peak this season, the Bluejays were ranked as the No. 7 team in the nation.
Duke: 5-seed in the East Region
The Blue Devils are one of the hottest teams in the nation coming off of winning the ACC Tournament and boasting a nine-game winning streak heading into the NCAA Tournament.
They went 26-8 for the season with a 14-6 record in ACC conference games. At their peak this season, Duke was ranked as the No. 7 team in the nation.
The Blue Devils will face off against the 12-seed Oral Roberts Eagles in the 1st Round of the tournament.
Oral Roberts has a 30-4 record and went 18-0 in Summit League conference games. Oral Roberts is on a 17-game winning streak but has not been ranked at any point in the season, nor have they defeated a ranked opponent.
Oral Roberts has a history as a cinderella as they made a surprising run to the Sweet 16 just two seasons ago as a 15-seed, upsetting 2-seed and No. 7 ranked nationally Ohio State and 7-seed Florida before losing by two points 3-seed and No. 10 ranked nationally Arkansas.
UNC Asheville: 15-seed in the West Region
The Bulldogs are going dancing thanks to a nine-game winning streak powering them to winning the Big South Tournament.
They went 27-7 on the season with a 16-2 record in Big South conference games. They have not been ranked at any point in the season.
UNC Asheville was dominant in league play as their 16-2 record in the Big South also won them the regular season conference title by a staggering four-game total.
The Bulldogs will lace them up against the 2-seed UCLA bruins in the 1st Round of the tournament. UCLA has a 29-5 record and went 18-2 in Pac-12 conference games. At their peak which was last week, they were ranked as the No. 2 team in the nation.
The Bruins lost in the Pac-12 Championship Game to 1-seed Arizona by two points.
Needless to say, the Bulldogs would be pulling off quite the historic upset.
Who’s Out?
North Carolina
The Tar Heels made NCAA history and are the first team to ever be ranked as the preseason No. 1 to fail to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.
UNC went 20-13 on the season and went 11-9 in ACC conference games. They lost to Virginia in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament.
The Tar Heels were third on the list of the first four teams out of the bracket.
Since missing out on the tournament, UNC has announced that they will not partake in the NIT, meaning their season has officially ended.
Head coach Hubert Davis released the following statement:
“All season, our focus and goal have been on being the best team we can possibly become and reaching our full potential to give us another opportunity to compete, play for and win an NCAA championship.
“Although we no longer have that opportunity and this season wasn’t what we had hoped for, I want to thank our players and staff for their hard work and love for Carolina Basketball.
“Many factors go into postseason play, and we believe now is the time to focus on moving ahead, preparing for next season and the opportunity to again compete for ACC and NCAA championships.
“I also want to thank our great fans for their incredible support. Our commitment to you is what drives us to improve our program in every way.”
Wake Forest
The Demon Deacons are also missing out on the tournament thanks to a midseason slump in ACC play and a heartbreaking loss in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament.
Wake Forest finished the season with a 19-14 record and went 10-10 in ACC conference games. Their bracket hopes looked high early in February as they had a 17-9 record and were 9-6 in the ACC.
Unfortunately, the Demon Deacons lost four of their next five games in the regular season before losing to Miami in the ACC quarterfinals by two points leaving them firmly outside of the field of 68.
They are a candidate to play in the NIT.
UNC Greensboro
The Spartans’ hopes to make it into March Madness were dashed due to a heartbreaking one-point loss to Wofford in the quarterfinals of the Southern Conference Tournament.
UNCG finished the season with a 20-12 record and went 14-4 in SoCon play finishing third in the conference for the regular season and one game behind first place.
The Spartans are a candidate for both the NIT and CBI tournaments.
