Nearly five decades into a Hall of Fame career, there aren’t many nights that qualify as unfamiliar territory for Rick Pitino. His résumé includes seven Final Fours and two national titles. Now at St. John’s, he’s far more accustomed to making history than enduring it.
But a 72-40 loss to UConn on Wednesday night was the wrong kind of milestone for Pitino.
The team’s 32-point defeat was the second-largest loss Pitino has suffered as the head coach of an AP-ranked team and the most lopsided setback of his three seasons at St. John’s. With the loss, the Red Storm slipped to the third No. 5 seed in FOX Sports bracket forecaster Mike DeCourcy’s latest NCAA Tournament projections.
St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino reacts against the Marquette Golden Eagles. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
[COLLEGE HOOPS: Takeaways From UConn’s Win Over St. John’s]
The Red Storm weren’t alone. Wisconsin fell from the 7-line to the 8-line after a road loss to Oregon, while Utah State also dropped to the 8-line following a loss to San Diego State.
Here is a complete look at DeCourcy’s NCAA Tournament seed list:
No. 1 seeds
1. Duke
2. Michigan
3. Arizona
4. Connecticut
No. 2 seeds
5. Iowa State
6. Illinois
7. Purdue
8. Houston
No. 3 seeds
9. Kansas
10. Florida
11. Gonzaga
12. Nebraska
No. 4 seeds
13. Virginia
14. Michigan State
15. Alabama
16. Texas Tech
No. 5 seeds
17. Arkansas
18. Vanderbilt
19. St. John’s
20. North Carolina
No. 6 seeds
21. Tennessee
22. Louisville
23. BYU
24. Villanova
No. 7 seeds
25. UCF
26. Kentucky
27. Saint Mary’s
28. Saint Louis
No. 8 seeds
29. Utah State
30. Wisconsin
31. Miami Hurricanes
32. Miami RedHawks
No. 9 seeds
33. NC State
34. Iowa
35. Georgia
36. SMU
No. 10 seeds
37. UCLA
38. Missouri
39. Clemson
40. Texas A&M
No. 11 seeds
41. Texas
42. California
43. Indiana v. 44. TCU
45. Santa Clara v. 46. VCU
No. 12 seeds
47. Belmont
48. Yale
49. South Florida
50. Liberty
No. 13 seeds
51. Stephen F. Austin
52. UNC Wilmingon
53. High Point
54. Hawaii
No. 14 seeds
55. Utah Valley
56. Austin Peay
57. North Dakota State
58. Navy
No. 15 seeds
59. Portland State
60. East Tennessee State
61. Wright State
62. Merrimack
No. 16 seeds
63. Appalachian State
64. UMBC
65. LIU
66. Bethune-Cookman
67. Southeast Missouri State
68. Morgan State
And it’s never too early to check in on the bubble.
According to DeCourcy’s seed list, Auburn, San Diego State, Virginia Tech and USC are the first four teams out of the tournament, while Ohio State, New Mexico, Seton Hall and Oklahoma State are the next four out.
Selection Sunday is less than one month away, and this list will inevitably evolve. For now, DeCourcy’s latest seed list offers a clear snapshot of who’s rising, who’s falling and which programs are already building the résumés they’ll need when March arrives.
