The 2026 NCAA Tournament is less than a month away, but if it started right now Arizona would once again be a No. 1 seed.
The tourney selection committee ranked the UA as the No. 3 overall team in the field in a mock selection done Thursday, sending the Wildcats (24-2, 11-2 Big 12) as the No. 1 seed in the West Region. It would be Arizona’s second No. 1 seed in five seasons under Tommy Lloyd and would keep his team on the West Coast for the first two weekends, likely opening in San Diego before heading
to the West Regional in San Jose.
Michigan (Midwest), Duke (East) and Iowa State (South) were the other projected No. 1 seeds, with the Cyclones giving the Big 12 half of the top four. According to Selection Committee chair Keith Gill at least three of those projected top seeds have earned a No. 1 seed in the real bracket in seven of the previous each seasons, the exception being in 2023 when all four did.
The committee unveiled the projected top 16 teams, with the others in line to play in the West being No. 8 Purdue, No. 12 Gonzaga and No. 14 Michigan State. Michigan State would be the UA’s projected Sweet 16 opponent, with the possibility of Lloyd facing his old school in the Elite Eight.
The Big 12 had five teams in the Top 16, tied with the Big Ten, while the ACC and SEC had two each and the Big East and West Coast Conference one apiece. Houston was No. 6 overall, Kansas No. 10 and Texas Tech No. 13. The Red Raiders made the cut despite losing star JT Toppin to a season-ending knee injury on Tuesday.
Arizona has three games remaining against projected Top 16 teams, starting Saturday at Houston (23-3, 11-2) in a game that could decide the Big 12 title. The Wildcats also host Kansas on Feb. 28 and Iowa State on March 2.
