2024 NCAA Tournament projections: Kansas, Purdue among No. 1 seeds

We are less than two weeks away from the start of the 2023-24 college basketball season, and the anticipation is off the charts to see which team will hoist the national championship trophy on April 8 in Phoenix.

With the new campaign fast approaching, FOX Sports bracket forecaster Mike DeCourcy released his preseason NCAA Tournament projections.

Duke (East), Kansas (South), Purdue (Midwest) and Marquette (West) are listed as the No. 1 seeds in DeCourcy’s projections. The Jayhawks are the top-ranked team in FOX Sports’ preseason top 25 poll, followed closely by Jon Scheyer’s Duke Blue Devils.

Kansas returns the talented trio of Dajuan Harris, Kevin McCullar and KJ Adams, while also adding the most coveted transfer in the country in former All-American Hunter Dickinson. Meanwhile, Duke is set to welcome back preseason All-American Kyle Filipowski, along with Tyrese Proctor, Mark Mitchell and leader Jeremy Roach. The Blue Devils also welcome the nation’s No. 2 recruiting class with guard Jared McCain and forward TJ Power headlining the group.

Purdue takes the top spot in the Midwest region as the Boilermakers return the reigning national player of the year in 7-foot-4 big man Zach Edey, while preseason All-American Tyler Kolek and the reigning Big East regular-season and tournament champion Marquette Golden Eagles round out the No. 1 seeds in DeCourcy’s bracket projections.

Defending national champion UConn is listed as a No. 2 seed in DeCourcy’s projections, along with Michigan State, Tennessee and Texas.

As for the teams on the bubble, DeCourcy has Boise State, Missouri, VCU and Kansas State listed as his last four teams in the tournament, while Florida, Rutgers, Xavier and Texas Tech make up his first four teams out.

The Big Ten has the most representatives in DeCourcy’s compilation, leading the way with eight teams, while the SEC trails just behind with seven. The Big East and Big 12 each have six teams represented, while the Pac-12 and ACC each have five. The Mountain West has three teams, and the WCC, A-10 and AAC boast two apiece.