ESPN College GameDay analyzes race to final No. 1 seed between Tennessee, Arizona
The race for the final No. 1 seed between Tennessee and Arizona is heating up. The Wildcats have held the fourth No. 1 seed for most of the season, according to ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi.
However, Tennessee is the No. 1 seed in Lunardi’s latest projection. Lunardi joined ESPN College GameDay on Saturday and shared how much difference there is between the Vols and Arizona right now.
“Not a whole lot,” Joe Lunardi said. “If Tennessee loses down the stretch or loses today to Kentucky, I think Arizona could re-pass them and get back to the top line.”
Tennessee beat South Carolina earlier this week to clinch the outright SEC title. The Vols have an identical 24-6 record with Arizona.
Tennessee closes out the regular season at home against Kentucky on Saturday, while Arizona plays at USC Saturday night in its regular season finale.
After that, both teams will have another chance to improve their resume in their conference tournament ahead of Selection Sunday.
“That story’s probably going to continue all the way through next Saturday night and into Sunday,” Lunardi said of the battle for a No. 1 seed.
Arizona currently holds a slight edge over Tennessee in the NET as the Wildcats are No. 4, compared to No. 5 for the Vols.
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Lunardi has Purdue as the top overall seed, with UConn and Houston also getting No. 1 seeds.
What Tennessee must do to ‘remove all doubt’ it is worthy of No. 1 seed
The Tennessee Volunteers are making a strong case to be considered a top seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
On the latest episode of Andy Staples On3, On3 Bracketologist James Fletcher III joined the show to discuss the Volunteers, and why they’re on their way towards removing any doubt that they should be a No. 1 seed come Selection Sunday.
“Down at the bottom of the No. 1 line, you’ve got Tennessee and Arizona. Tennessee did cement their spot on the No. 1 line against South Carolina. That was good to see from them, because they also secured the SEC regular season title, which was a big point of focus for them late in this regular season,” Fletcher III said. “Now for them, it’s about making a run through that SEC Tournament. Making sure you don’t take any bad losses. They really need to win the SEC tournament to remove all doubt of who the last No. 1 seed will be.
“Arizona does still have enough of a path through the Pac 12. We saw them survive this week as well, picking up a win. So for both of those teams, it’s very important to run the table in order to secure that final No. 1 seed, and host that West Regional.”