Clemson basketball: Final bracketology projections before NCAA selection show

Chapel Fowler
·3 min read

It’s Selection Sunday for the Clemson men’s basketball team.

The Tigers (22-10) had a disappointing one-and-done showing in this week’s ACC Tournament. But they’re still considered a lock for the NCAA Tournament and will learn their postseason placement during Sunday’s tournament selection show.

Here’s a look at some final projections before the selection show (6 p.m., CBS).

Clemson basketball NCAA projections

  • ESPN: No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 Dayton in East Region (Brooklyn)

  • CBS Sports: No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 Mississippi State in South Region (Memphis)

  • Field of 68: No. 7 seed vs. No. 10 Mississippi State in West Region

  • The Athletic: No. 6 seed vs. No. 11 Mississippi State in Midwest Region (Pittsburgh)

  • USA TODAY: No. 7 seed vs. No. 10 Nebraska in Midwest Region (Indianapolis)

  • Washington Post: No. 6 seed vs. No. 11 Oklahoma/Texas A&M winner in South Region (Pittsburgh)

As of Saturday night

Clemson projected NCAA seed

A week ago, Clemson was 21-9 and heading into its season finale at Wake Forest with a chance at a top-four seed and double bye in the ACC Tournament, plus a No. 5 seed in the NCAA field.

But an 81-76 loss at Wake Forest dropped Clemson to 11-9 in the ACC and the No. 6 spot in the ACC Tournament bracket. And the Tigers followed that up with ... a 76-55 loss to No. 11 seed Boston College on Wednesday in which they trailed the entire second half and shot a season-worst 19 of 54 (35.2%) from the field.

Those back-to-back losses didn’t put Clemson’s NCAA status in danger (the Tigers are No. 36 in the NET rankings and have enough quality Quadrant 1 and Quadrant 2 wins to make them a lock). But a late slump that’s seen Clemson lose three of its last four has hit hard in the seeding projections.

Clemson was projecting as a No. 5 seed as late as last week but is now a bottom-half seed on the clear majority of brackets. BracketMatrix.com, which aggregates over 100 projections, has the Tigers’ average seed at 6.60 (essentially the last seed on the No. 6 line) in a roundup of 122 updated brackets Saturday.

Who will Clemson play next?

After Wednesday’s showing, getting past its first NCAA opponent should be the only focus for Clemson and coach Brad Brownell, who’s set to make his second tournament in four years (but only his fourth in 14 seasons at the school).

But it’s worth noting who Clemson could potentially match up with in the second round if it wins the round of 64. As a lower seed, the Tigers could quickly run into some fearsome opponents if their side of the bracket goes chalk (i.e., all higher seeds beat lower seeds). With a win, Clemson’s round of 32 opponent could be:

  • No. 1 UConn in Brooklyn (ESPN)

  • No. 1 Houston in Memphis (CBS)

  • No. 2 Tennessee (Field of 68)

  • No. 2 Marquette in Indianapolis (USA TODAY)

  • No. 3 Creighton in Pittsburgh (Washington Post)

How to watch NCAA selection show

  • What: NCAA men’s tournament selection show

  • When: 6 p.m. Sunday

  • TV: CBS

  • Streaming: Via CBS.com