NCAA Bracket 2024: Forecasting Potentially Epic Men's 1st-Round Matchups
Some of the most electric offenses in men's college basketball could face off in the first round of the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
The Kentucky Wildcats and Alabama Crimson Tide put on countless high-scoring spectacles throughout SEC play.
They could be met by comparable offenses in the form of mid-major champions slotted into the Nos. 12 and 13 seeds.
One of the potential upset-minded mid-major teams already beat an SEC opponent this season.
The Florida Atlantic Owls, last season's surprise Final Four team, should generate plenty of buzz as well at the start of the Big Dance. There is potential for them to open up against a power-conference foe from the same state.
Kentucky vs. Samford
The Samford Bulldogs rank fifth in Division I in points per game and three-point percentage.
A potential first-round showdown with Kentucky would pit a pair of top-five offenses against each other.
Samford needs to win the Southern Conference tournament to get into the field of 68, but if they do, they should somewhere between a No. 12 and No. 14 seed.
ESPN's Joe Lunardi projected the Bulldogs as a No. 13 seed in his latest projection, while CBS Sports' Jerry Palm placed them on the No. 12 seed line.
Samford may not beat Kentucky with the way the Wildcats have played lately, but it can at least push the pace and potentially create the highest-scoring first-round game.
Alabama vs. Applachian State
The Appalachian State Mountaineers are known best for their football success.
The Sun Belt side made a name for itself on the college hardwood this season. It topped the Sun Belt regular-season standings and defeated the Auburn Tigers in nonconference action.
App State could produce another upset over an SEC team in the NCAA tournament, if it wins the Sun Belt tournament.
Alabama looked susceptible to an early exit in recent weeks, as it lost three of its last five games.
The Crimson Tide can score better than most teams when they are their best, but they could struggle against a disciplined defense.
App State ranks ninth in two-point defense and 68th in three-point defense on KenPom. It held seven Sun Belt opponents under 60 points and it limited 17 foes under 70 points, including Auburn.
Lunardi and Palm both project App State to be a No. 13 seed, so it could see Alabama, or another SEC foe, if it qualifies for the field of 68.
Florida Atlantic vs. Florida
Florida Atlantic will be on everyone's radar at the start of the 2024 NCAA tournament.
Most of the Owls roster that drove the team to the Final Four last season are still around, which is what makes them an intriguing pick to make the second weekend.
FAU could potentially start its path back to the Final Four against an in-state foe in the Florida Gators.
FAU is currently a No. 8 seed in Palm's projection and a No. 9 seed in the eyes of Lunardi. Florida is a No. 6 seed in Lunardi's bracket and a No. 7 seed for Palm.
A matchup is possible because the Gators could lose early in the SEC tournament, which would drop it to the No. 7 or No. 8 seed line.
FAU battled with the South Florida Bulls for most of the American Athletic Conference season. A loss to USF could push the Owls down a seed line, which could align it with Florida.
The styles of both programs could clash as well, but the main draw of this potential first-round matchup would be a flashy mid-major squaring off an in-state power conference foe that would not usually schedule it in nonconference play.