Wisconsin not a top-4 seed in early NCAA tournament bracket

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For the first time, an early projected top-16 teams -- seeds 1-4 -- was unveiled Saturday for this year's NCAA tournament bracket.

Not including among the group was the Wisconsin Badgers.

At first glance, this omission might be puzzling. Wisconsin is 20-3 and ranked No. 7 in the latest Associated Press top-25 poll.

However, the Badgers don't own any "good" wins and are just 2-3 against teams ranked in the RPI's top 50 with victories over Minnesota and Tennessee.



Reigning national champion Villanova is the top seed in the selection committee's preliminary rankings.

The Wildcats (23-2), No. 2 in the AP top 25, joined Kansas (21-3), Baylor (21-3) and Gonzaga (25-0) as the top seeds.

The selection committee followed the lead of the College Football Playoff by releasing the top 16 seeds early to drum up interest before Selection Sunday on March 12. The rankings are based on games through Friday.

Villanova was slated as the top seed in the East Region and would play in New York. Kansas, No. 3 in the AP poll, was the top seed in the Midwest, Baylor was No. 1 in the South and Gonzaga topped the West.

The good news for Wisconsin is there's plenty of basketball to be played between now and Selection Sunday.