South Region (Atlanta)
Lexington
1.) Auburn vs. 16.) Norfolk State
8.) Baylor vs. 9.) Oklahoma
Denver
5.) Illinois vs. 12.) McNeese State
4.) Mississippi vs. 13.) Arkansas State
Wichita
6.) Louisville vs. 11.) Texas/Ohio State
3.) Houston vs. 14.) UNC-Wilmington
Cleveland
7.) West Virginia vs. 10.) Vanderbilt
2.) Marquette vs. 15.) Northern Colorado
Since the last bracket update, a lot of teams at the top of the bracket have suffered losses. The No. 1 overall seed Auburn lost as well when they lost Johnni Broome for two games to an ankle injury. On the court, they’ve continued to roll with 11 quad 1 wins and a top 3 ranking in all the metrics. Broome has since returned and Auburn is back at full strength. This is why the Tigers are the No. 1 seed in the South region.
Auburn’s road to the Final Four has some potential roadblocks that include No. 2 Marquette, a dangerous Houston team as the No. 3 seed and an Illinois team that is led by a couple of freshmen, Kasparas Jakucionis and Will Riley. McNeese State is the No. 12 seed in this region and the Cowboys are 15-5 with an unblemished 9-0 record in the Southland and haven’t lost since a three-point defeat to Mississippi State in mid-December.
The team to keep an eye on in this region is the No. 10 seed Vanderbilt Commodores. Mark Byington’s squad has had a recent stretch that has put them solidly in the field and further away from the bubble. In Their last three games, they have sandwiched a loss to Alabama in between signature home wins over both Tennessee and Kentucky. February will be a huge month for Vanderbilt’s resume, with road games at Florida, Kentucky, and Tennessee and a home tilt with Auburn.