The field of 68 teams for the 2012 men's NCAA basketball tournament was revealed this evening. The No. 1 seeds in the four regions of the bracket are Kentucky, Syracuse, North Carolina and Michigan State.
Capping a day of upsets and a thrilling week of conference tournaments, the selection committee announced the seeds of all the teams live on CBS -- providing just a taste of what's to come.
With the automatic bids for 31 teams already set for the 2012 NCAA tournament most of the suspense centered around which other teams would join the path to the national crown. Every time an unexpected team like Western Kentucky snagged an auto bid, another bubble team lost its shot at participating in this year's edition of March Madness.
The selection deliberation resembles a war room - with committee members keeping a close eye on stats and graphs being presented on whiteboards while monitoring Twitter and Facebook for feedback. There's serious work to be done and dynasties hang in the balance. (Although Stan Morrison looks so much like Tim Gunn that at times it feels more like Project Runway than the Big Dance.)
This year's men's NCAA Tournament will get underway on March 13-14 in Dayton with the four first-round games. March Madness will culminate in the Big Easy as the 2012 Final Four will be hosted by New Orleans at the Superdome.
So what does your bracket look like? Who will be this year's bracket busters and who do you think will be cutting down the net on April 2nd?
And don't forget - tomorrow is Selection Day for the ladies. Tune in to ESPN or ESPN3 at 7pm ET Monday night when the 64 teams who will play for the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship are unveiled.
@jschonb
dare to dream
Also online at prettytough.com and womentalksports.com