
<p>Welcome to the first week of January, which means we can see the faint outline of March on the horizon. That means it’s time to dive into On3’s first projected field for the 2022 NCAA Tournament.</p>



<p>I cover <a href="https://www.on3.com/category/college-business/news/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">the sports business scene for On3</a> but also possess a master’s degree in bracketology from my long tenure at The Washington Post and USA Today covering college basketball. I used to regularly assemble mock NCAA tournament brackets and had quite a bit of success in accurately projecting the 68-team field and seeding. </p>



<p>So let me dust off the old bracketology playbook and start doing blind team résumé tests, comparing Quad 1 victories and examining nitty gritty reports. As the season continues to take shape, come back each Tuesday for our latest projection of what the 2022 NCAA Tournament field will look like on “Selection Sunday” (<a href="https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2022-march-madness-schedule" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">March 13, by the way</a>).</p>



<p>Note: Teams projected to be conference champs are in <strong>bold type</strong>, with the conference listed.</p>



<p>Let the debates ensue.</p>



<h2 id="h-1-seeds">1 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>Baylor (Big 12)<br>Duke (ACC)<br>Gonzaga (West Coast Conference)<br></strong>Kansas</p>



<h2 id="h-2-seeds">2 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>Purdue (Big Ten)<br>Arizona (Pac-12)<br></strong>UCLA<br><strong>Auburn (SEC)</strong></p>



<h2 id="h-3-seeds">3 seeds</h2>



<p>Michigan State<br><strong>Houston (American)<br></strong>USC<br>Ohio State</p>



<h2 id="h-4-seeds">4 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>Villanova (Big East)<br></strong>Alabama<br>LSU<br>Tennessee</p>



<h2 id="h-5-seeds">5 seeds</h2>



<p>Kentucky<br>Iowa State<br>Xavier<br>Providence</p>



<h2 id="h-6-seeds">6 seeds</h2>



<p>Seton Hall<br>Texas<br>Wisconsin<br>UConn</p>



<h2 id="h-7-seeds">7 seeds</h2>



<p>Texas Tech<br>West Virginia<br><strong>Colorado State (Mountain West)<br></strong>Illinois</p>



<h2 id="h-8-seeds">8 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>Loyola (Missouri Valley)<br></strong>Iowa<br>BYU<br>North Carolina</p>



<h2 id="h-9-seeds">9 seeds</h2>



<p>Indiana<br>San Francisco<br>Michigan<br>Oklahoma</p>



<h2 id="h-10-seeds">10 seeds</h2>



<p>Florida<br>Minnesota<br>Virginia Tech<br>Saint Mary’s</p>



<h2 id="h-11-seeds">11 seeds</h2>



<p>San Diego State<br>UCF<br><strong>Iona (Metro Atlantic)<br>Davidson (Atlantic 10)</strong></p>



<h2 id="h-12-seeds">12 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>Murray State (Ohio Valley)<br>UAB (Conference USA)<br></strong>Wake Forest/Mississippi State<br>Creighton/Belmont</p>



<h2 id="h-13-seeds">13 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>South Dakota State (Summit)<br>Ohio (MAC)<br>Wagner (Northeast)<br>Chattanooga (Southern)</strong></p>



<h2 id="h-14-seeds">14 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>Vermont (America East)<br>Towson (Colonial)<br>Oakland (Horizon)<br>New Mexico State (WAC)</strong></p>



<h2 id="h-15-seeds">15 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>Princeton (Ivy)<br>Louisiana (Sun Belt)<br>UC Irvine (Big West)<br>Navy (Patriot)</strong></p>



<h2 id="h-16-seeds">16 seeds</h2>



<p><strong>Liberty (Atlantic Sun)<br>Campbell (Big South)<br>Texas Southern (SWAC)/Southern Utah (Big Sky)<br>Nicholls State (Southland)/Norfolk State (MEAC)</strong></p>



<p>Sites for the 2022 NCAA Tournament are listed <a href="https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2022-march-madness-schedule" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>.</p>


On3 Basketball

2022 NCAA Tournament bracketology: January 4 projection

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