Selection Sunday Bracket Revealed: Maryland Basketball Earns No. 6 Seed
With Selection Sunday behind us, the 2017 bracket for the NCAA Tournament has been revealed. What seed did the Maryland basketball team earn?
The Selection Sunday show kept Maryland basketball fans on the edge of their seats with Maryland being one of the final teams announced during the highly-anticipated Selection Sunday show.
More importantly, Maryland earned a 6-seed and will take on 11-seed Xavier (21-13) in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament bracket. The Terps will remain on the east coast in Orlando in the beautiful Sunshine State and is set to play Thursday, Mar 16.
Before the official unveiling of the 2017 March Madness bracket, the majority of bracketologists projected Maryland to earn a seven or eight seed, making their official seeding a bit of a surprise. Also, Wisconsin, who led the Big Ten for most of the season and beat Maryland in their lone matchup of the season, earned a surprising 8-seed.
... AND last but certainly not least!
— Maryland Men’s Basketball (@TerrapinHoops) March 12, 2017
The Terps are the 6-seed and will face Xavier Thurs. in Orlando!#SelectionSunday | #FearTheTurtle pic.twitter.com/d48Dt5xm4t
Here’s what we know about Thursday’s game against Xavier:
Who: No. 6 Maryland vs. No. 11 Xavier
When: Thursday, March 18
Time: 6:50 pm ET
Network: TNT
Venue: Amway Center, Orlando, FL
TV Crew: Eagle/Lavin/Washburn
Overview of Maryland’s First Opponent
The Maryland Terrapins will play the Big East’s Xavier Musketeers Thursday, a Xavier team who started the season as the 7th-ranked team in the Preseason AP Top 25 poll.
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Xavier opened the season at home with an unimpressive three-point victory over Lehigh. Like Maryland’s opening season win against American, the AP Pollsters wasn’t impressed with Xavier’s 84-81 victory, dropping them to the 11th-ranked team after a week of play.
Xavier’s collapse was in full force during Feb, losing six straight games, including a 3-5 record for the month, losing to teams like Providence, Seton Hall, Butler, Marquette, and Villanova.
Xavier picked up a crucial victory over 18th-ranked Butler Bulldogs to advance to the semifinals of the Big East Tournament. However, Xavier fell short of advancing to the Big East championship game, losing to Creighton 75-72.
West Region Review
For the 2017 NCAA Tournament, Maryland will play in the West Region which includes No. 1 Gonzaga and No. 2 Arizona.
No. 6 Maryland will face No. 11 Xavier on Thursday pic.twitter.com/FP5yRBpWpk
— Jake Russell (@_JakeRussell) March 12, 2017
If Maryland wins Thursday, they will play the winner of the 3-seed Florida State and 14-seed Florida Golf Coast contest. Prepare for most college basketball experts and fans to elect FGCU as a darkhorse Sweet Sixteen team.
Here’s the complete seed list, put together by the NCAA Tournament council:
From 1 to 68. #SelectionSunday pic.twitter.com/UJVnFAEYLb
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 12, 2017
Surprisingly, it seems as if Maryland’s loss to Northwestern didn’t hurt them much at all as they land as the No. 23 overall seed, ahead of other Big Ten teams Michigan and Wisconsin.
Like the fans, the Maryland basketball team anxiously waited for their name to be called during the Selection Sunday show.
Check the video below of the team’s reaction to their 27th NCAA Tournament appearance:
"What a feeling! #FearTheTurtle #LetsDance | #SelecationSunday https://t.co/nPEu5Mfmk0— Maryland Basketball (@TerrapinHoops) March 12, 2017"