Where will Clemson land in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Selection Sunday?
It’s anyone’s guess after the Tigers suffered an embarrassing 21-point loss to Boston College in the ACC Tournament at Washington’s Capital One Arena earlier this week. One thing is for certain: Clemson didn’t help its seeding chances any, and that shows in the latest NCAA Tournament bracketology predictions.
CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm updated his projections Friday morning and sees Clemson slipping into a No. 8 vs. No. 9 first-round matchup against Oklahoma.
The Sooners are 20-12 this season and finished ninth in a loaded Big 12 conference.
Palm forecasts the potential Tigers-Sooners matchup to be in the Midwest Region of the tournament in Indianapolis. That would be the toughest matchup Clemson could draw because a second-round date with No. 1 overall seed Purdue would await the Tigers in the second round if they managed to get past Oklahoma.
Oklahoma has Quadrant 1 wins over Iowa State, Cincinnati, Kansas State and BYU, plus five wins against Quad 2 teams. The Sooners are currently 44th in the NCAA’s NET rankings. Clemson is 36th in NET rankings.
Palm’s projected No. 1 seeds are Purdue, Houston, UConn, and Tennessee.