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Final projection for 2011 NCAA tournament field

We’ll soon know the actual Field of 68 for March Madness.

Our final No. 1 seeds are Ohio State, Kansas, Pittsburgh, and Duke. Prefer Notre Dame? That’s fine. No issues. Same for the bottom of the bracket. Arguments can be made for any of the bubble teams. One of those kind of years.

Here’s our final look. Hope you’ve enjoyed the ride. Now, it’s time for some great tournament action.

UPDATED: Sunday, March 13 | 4:55 p.m. ET | FINAL BRACKET

NEW: Teams in CAPS represent the AUTOMATIC bid champion for this bracket. Exceptions are made for those teams that traditionally use an abbreviation (UTEP, BYU, etc).

NOTE: In the new 68-team format you will notice two pairing games that represent the First Four pairings. In this bracket the First Four games in Dayton would be ... USC vs. Clemson | Georgia vs. Virginia Tech | UT-SAN ANTONIO vs. ALABAMA STATE | UA-LITTLE ROCK vs. UNC-ASHEVILLE. The final four at-large teams are paired along with the teams seeded 65-68 on the S-curve. The matchups are indicated in the bracket below.

Next Update: FINAL BRACKET for 2011

BRACKET PROJECTION ...

EAST - Newark SOUTHEAST - New Orleans
Cleveland Cleveland
1) Ohio State (32-2) 1) Pittsburgh (27-5)
16) NC-ASHEVILLE / UA-LITTLE ROCK 16) UC-SANTA BARBARA (16-13)
8 Missouri (22-10) 8 UCLA (22-10)
9) BUTLER (22-9) 9) Florida State (21-10)
Chicago Denver
5) Vanderbilt (23-10) 5) St. John’s (21-11)
12) USC / Clemson 12) Colorado (20-13)
4) Louisville (25-9) 4) BYU (29-4)
13) ST. PETERS (20-13) 13) BELMONT (30-4)
Charlotte Tampa
6) Xavier (24-7) 6) Cincinnati (25-8)
11) Michigan (19-13) 11) Penn State (19-14)
3) North Carolina (26-7) 3) Florida (26-7)
14) BUCKNELL (25-8) 14) WOFFORD (21-12)
Washington, DC Tulsa
7) OLD DOMINION (27-6) 7) Georgetown (21-10)
10) Tennessee (19-14) 10) RICHMOND (27-7)
2) CONNECTICUT (26-9) 2) Texas (27-7)
15) BOSTON UNIVERSITY (21-13) 15) AKRON (22-12)
SOUTHWEST - San Antonio WEST - Anaheim
Tulsa Charlotte
1) Kansas (32-2) 1) DUKE (30-4)
16) UT-SAN ANTONIO / ALABAMA ST 16) HAMPTON (23-8)
8 WASHINGTON (23-10) 8 George Mason (26-6)
9) GONZAGA (24-9) 9) Villanova (21-10)
Tucson Denver
5) West Virginia (20-11) 5) Texas AM (23-8)
12) Georgia / Virginia Tech 12) MEMPHIS (25-9)
4) Wisconsin (23-8) 4) Purdue (25-7)
13) OAKLAND (24-9) 13) PRINCETON (24-6)
Tampa Washington, DC
6) UNLV (24-8) 6) Arizona (27-7)
11) Michigan State (18-14) 11) Illinois (19-13)
3) KENTUCKY (25-8) 3) Syracuse (26-7)
14) INDIANA STATE (19-13) 14) LONG ISLAND (27-5)
Chicago Tucson
7) Temple (24-7) 7) Kansas State (21-10)
10) UTAH STATE (29-3) 10) Marquette (20-14)
2) Notre Dame (26-6) 2) SAN DIEGO STATE (30-2)
15) MOREHEAD STATE (22-9) 15) NORTHERN COLORADO (19-10)

NOTES on the BRACKET: Ohio State remains the No. 1 overall seed followed by Kansas, Pittsburgh, Duke. The two seeds in order are Notre Dame, San Diego State, Texas, Connecticut

Last Five teams in (at large): Colorado, Georgia, Clemson, Virginia Tech, USC

First Five teams out (at large): Alabama, St. Mary’s, Boston College, UAB, VCU

Bracket adjustments: None in this update.

Here is the team breakdown by Conference ...

Big East (11): CONNECTICUT, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Villanova, West Virginia, Louisville, St. John’s, Cincinnati, Marquette

Big Ten (7): Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan State, Michigan, Penn State

ACC (5): DUKE, North Carolina, Florida State, Clemson, Virginia Tech

SEC (5): KENTUCKY, Florida, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Georgia

Big 12 (5): KANSAS, Texas, Texas AM, Missouri, Kansas State, Colorado

Pac 10 (4): WASHINGTON, Arizona, UCLA, USC

Mountain West (3): SAN DIEGO ST, BYU, UNLV

Atlantic 10 (3): RICHMOND, Xavier, Temple

Colonial (2): OLD DOMINION, George Mason

West Coast (1): GONZAGA

Horizon (1): BUTLER

Conference USA (1): MEMPHIS

Missouri Valley (1): INDIANA STATE

Conference leaders/champions ... UTAH STATE (WAC), MOREHEAD STATE (OVC), ST. PETERS (MAAC), AKRON (MAC), NO. COLORADO (Big Sky), WOFFORD (Southern), OAKLAND (Summit), UC-SANTA BARBARA (Big West), LONG ISLAND (NEC), BELMONT (Atlantic Sun), ARK-LITTLE ROCK (Sun Belt), PRINCETON (Ivy), UNC-ASHEVILLE (Big South), HAMPTON (MEAC), BUCKNELL (Patriot), BOSTON UNIVERSITY (America East), UT-SAN ANTONIO (Southland), ALABAMA STATE (SWAC)