After a long wait that seemed like months, we finally have our hands on the 2024 NCAA DI men’s basketball bracket. And not to anyone’s surprise, we have some very heated matchups to look forward to this March Madness. Will the promising UConn take the throne again or some other team will kick them off their throne? Who did not even get to be in the bracket? Many questions will be solved with just one bracket. Let us have a detailed look at the matchups, seeds, and snubs for the year. And also predict the fate of the 68 DI men’s basketball teams.

CBS Sports released the NCAA men’s bracket today at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT to begin the race of the much-awaited pool filling. Excited? Of Course! Here is what the bracket looks like for the first four and the first round.

2024 March Madness bracket: A peek at the top seeds

The No. 1 seeds for every region are UConn, Houston, Purdue, and North Carolina. However, the Huskies seem to be determined to join the consecutive champions list and wear their sixth ring this year as they are already the overall top seed in the tournament. While Purdue had an upsetting conference run against Wisconsin, seems like their almost perfect numbers have shot them straight to the first mark in the Midwest region.

On the other hand, the perennial performers– North Carolina, who could not even make it to the field of 68 last year, have now returned after 2022 (finalists) as the first seed in the West region. At the same time, last year’s No. 1 seed Houston is back, but in the South region. They were out in the Sweet Sixteen last year. But they will surely try to make it up to the higher levels, possibly winning the ring for the first time.

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Apart from the first seeds, the expected No. 2 are also in the bracket. These include Iowa State for the East, Arizona for the West, Marquette for the South, and Tennessee for the Midwest region. It will be interesting to see how these teams with so many expectations on their shoulders play in the tournament. However, no reigning champions in the last six years could even continue their run after the very first weekend. In fact, most of them got knocked out of the tournament in the Sweet Sixteen itself.

While we do not know what’s in the fate for these table toppers, we know which teams surely will not get to display their skills in the March Madness. Here are the teams that faced snubs in the 2024 bracket.

Teams that are out of the NCAA bracket

Surprisingly, many top-seed teams and others that were in the field last year did not make it to the bracket this time. This was because of their sub-par performance throughout the regular season. These are Maryland, West Virginia, Furman, Princeton, Fair Dickinson, Memphis, FAU, Oral Roberts, Providence, Kansas St, Arkansas, Iona, Arizona St, and UNC Asheville.

Apart from these teams, the A-10 conference finalist– VCU, is also not in the bracket. At the same time, teams that are bringing glory to the women’s league are also not present for the men’s. These are USC, LSU, and UCLA. There are 31 other teams that were not even in the bubble for the candidacy of 2024 March Madness.

March Madness 2024: Detailed Look into List of Venues and Cities Hosting the NCAA Tournament

A lot of major programs got ditched this year as the others displayed their dominance over the court. With an incredibly exciting three weeks ahead of us, here is what you can expect from your top teams.

How will the top teams perform?

The first-round matchups in the Eastern region have the defending champions and everyone’s favorite UConn in action. They will take on No. 16 Stetson in their first round. But many teams can give them a fight on their road to the Final Four. These are Iowa State, Big 10 champions- Illinois, Auburn, and BYU. However, we sure can expect a lot of surprises on this journey to Boston.

The Western Region has the Tar Heels as their top contenders. After missing out on the March Madness last time around, North Carolina would like to go one step further than their 2022 campaign, where they finished runner-ups. The six-time national champions will have teams like Alabama, St. Mary’s, Michigan St., and Mississippi St. on their way to the regionals in Las Vegas. Following this, they will have a chance to lock horns with other worthy opponents who can be either Arizona, Baylor, Dayton, or Clemson.

In the Midwest region, it’s Zach Edey’s Purdue that can be assumed as second-favorite. The Boilermakers would want to get past their previous season’s misery to No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson. This time around they will clash with either Montana State or Grambling, depending on who is victorious in their First Four matchup. Further, this region possesses teams like Kansas, Gonzaga, Creighton, and Tennessee who can end up in Detroit for the regional.

Moving to the South, the Cougars will have the company of Marquette, five-time champions- Duke, the underdogs- Wisconsin, Kentucky, and Texas Tech. Consequently, Houston will have their task cut out to reach Dallas if they make it to their regional game.

Factually speaking, no team in the last 17 years has won consecutive championship titles after the Florida Gators in 2006-2007. But this year’s matchups are no less than hellfire itself, and with favoritism votes going to UConn, they might get the confidence to make it happen once again. But there’s a complete possibility that amidst the several Cinderella stories, we get a new king for the men’s division I basketball.

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