Big four are top seeds for "March Madness"

There were few surprises when the 65-team NCAA championship bracket was announced on Sunday, with all the predicted top teams earning No 1 seed status. The top-ranked Kansas will begin the college basketball event, affectionately known as "March Madness", in the Midwest against the 16th-ranked Lehigh, while their fellow No 1 regional teams Kentucky, Duke and Syracuse lead the East, South and West respectively. Syracuse face a stiff task to emerge as the national champions having been upset early in the Big East tournament, especially with their centre, Arinze Onuaku, struggling with an injured quadriceps muscle. The tournament will begin with a game between Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Winthrop tonight to determine who makes an entry into what will become a 64-team affair. Contending with Kansas in the Midwest are Ohio State, the second seeds, who will open against UC Santa Barbara. The third-seeded Georgetown take on Ohio, while the fourth-ranked Maryland face Houston. sports@thenational.ae