Selection Sunday 2024 live updates: March Madness brackets, schedules for Iowa men's teams

18 Mar 2024

The Des Moines Register

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Selection Sunday 2024 live updates March Madness brackets schedules for
Iowa mens teams

Iowa, Iowa State and Drake men's basketball eagerly await their NCAA Tournament status on Selection Sunday 2024. See coverage for all 3...

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Jay Wright shares his Cinderella team in this year's NCAA Tournament

College basketball analyst Jay Wright explains why he chose Iowa State as this year's 'Cinderella' team.

Sports Seriously

March Madness 2024 is finally here, and Iowa, Iowa State and Drake men's basketball teams and fans have seen the results of the 2024 NCAA Tournament bracket reveal.

See below for live updates on the Hawkeyes, Cyclones and Bulldogs men's teams:

WOMEN'S TEAMS: Selection Sunday 2024 live updates: March Madness brackets, schedules for Iowa women's teams

Iowa men earn 3-seed in NIT

The Hawkeyes will host Kansas State in the first round.

More: Iowa men's basketball earns 3-seed in NIT, to host Kansas State

Inside look at Iowa State-South Dakota State connection

More: Iowa State basketball turns page from one championship to try to win another

Why Drake basketball can reach the Sweet 16

Alyssa Hertel: "The Bulldogs haven’t made it out of the first round of the tournament since the 1970s, but several things about this team suggest they can go further this time around."

More: Why Drake can reach Sweet 16 in our 2024 March Madness predictions

Can Iowa State reach the Final Four?

Randy Peterson: "Let’s not bury the lead: Iowa State men's basketball legitimately can reach the Final Four, and yes I know the Cyclones are in the toughest NCAA Tournament regional.

I’m not saying that as an emotional response from Saturday night’s dismantling of top-ranked Houston in the Big 12 Tournament championship game – a game in which the Cyclones’ unrelenting defense was at its finest."

More: Peterson: Why Iowa State can reach Final Four in our 2024 March Madness predictions

Iowa State basketball vs South Dakota State prediction

More: Iowa State basketball vs South Dakota St. in March Madness: Prediction for 2024 NCAA Tournament

Drake basketball head coach Darian DeVries's reaction to Selection Sunday result

More: Here is what Drake basketball coach Darian DeVries said after Selection Sunday

Iowa does not make 2024 NCAA Tournament

For the first time since 2018, the Iowa Hawkeyes (18-14) won't play in the NCAA Tournament. They were not any of the first four teams out either.

A likely NIT bid will be coming for Iowa.

Iowa State gets No. 2 seed in East region in Omaha

No. 2 seed Iowa State (27-7) will face No. 15 seed South Dakota State (22-12) in Omaha in the East region.

More: Iowa State's March Madness bracket opponent is South Dakota St. to open 2024 NCAA Tournament

Drake gets No. 10 seed in East region in Omaha

No. 10 seed Drake (28-6) will face No. 7 seed Washington State (24-9) in Omaha in the East region.

More: Drake basketball’s March Madness opponent is Washington St. to open 2024 NCAA Tournament bracket

Selection Sunday 2024 has begun!

The 2024 NCAA Tournament bracket reveal show has begin on CBS.

We will soon find out the seeds for Iowa, Iowa State and Drake men's basketball, as well as which team they'll play in the first round.

Can Iowa State men's basketball win the NCAA Tournament?

Des Moines Register columnist and Cyclones expert Randy Peterson certainly thinks so.

Holding the No. 1-ranked team in the country, Houston, to 41 points in both teams biggest game this season to date certainly put the country on notice, if it wasn't already. The Cyclones all season have leaned on their defense, which many regarded as potentially the second best in the nation behind the Cougars, but ISU's offense was less of a strength.

But Iowa State's scorers seemingly found their footing in Kansas City, notching points totals of 76, 76 and 69 en route to the Big 12 Tournament title. That last figure came against Houston, which held teams to an absurdly-low average of 56.6 points per game entering that contest.

An X-factor player in the Cyclones' tournament chances is surely freshman forward Milan Momcilovic, who enjoyed a terrific first three months of his career before cooling off considerably over the final nine games of the regular season.

In that stretch, the Wisconsin scored in double figures just twice, coming not far after a string of 10 consecutive 10-plus-point performances. He seemingly regained his shooting stroke on Saturday, notching a game-high 18 points with four triples.

If Momcilovic can remain a key offensive presence and the Cyclones maintain their elite defense, Peterson, and other college basketball analysts, agree that Iowa State can make a run.

More: Peterson: Iowa State put the college basketball world on notice in Big 12 Tournament

Final Bracketology predictions

CBS Sports' final Bracketology predictions were published this afternoon and revealed some interesting developments.

Firstly, it has Iowa State now as a No. 1 seed in the West region and Omaha site, edging out 2-seeds Arizona, Purdue, North Carolina and Tennessee.

That also means the Cyclones' opponent won't be known until after after the First Four contest between Grambling and Montana State.

If ISU was it win its first game in this projection, it would play the winner of No. 9 seed Nebraska and No. 8 seed New Mexico.

Drake lands in the East region at the Brooklyn site as a No. 11 seed facing San Diego State. If the Bulldogs were to win, they're play the winner of No. 3 seed Kentucky and No. 14 seed Morehead State.

Iowa, however, does not make the 2024 NCAA Tournament in this projection and is not even one of the first four teams out.

The Hawkeyes haven't missed an NCAA Tournament since 2018.

Where will Iowa, Iowa State and Drake men's basketball be seeded in the 2024 NCAA Tournament?

Iowa, after going 18-14 this season and bowing out in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament, is expected to be excluded from the NCAA Tournament this March for the first time since 2018.

What truly doomed the Hawkeyes was being the only higher-seeded (No. 7) Big Ten team to be upset in the second round, while a team like fifth-seeded Wisconsin made it to the title game.

Still, Iowa is expected to make the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) with a resume that sports notable wins over Nebraska, Seton Hall, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Northwestern.

More: Where Iowa men's basketball’s March Madness resume stands for 2024 NCAA Tournament

Iowa State (27-7), despite getting the best of the No. 1-ranked team in the country (Houston) in two out of three meetings this season that was capped with a blowout victory in the Big 12 title game, is almost universally expected to secure a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

It that projection holds true, it will match the highest seeding in program history. The 1999-2000 and 2000-01 Cyclones teams both were No. 2 seeds after winning a regular season championship and two Big 12 Tournament titles combined.

ISU could also land in the Omaha playing cite, which offers the Cyclones the chance to play NCAA Tournament games the nearest to campus in program history and get their loyal fan base to travel.

It's was obvious at "Hilton South" how much an Iowa-State-heavy crowd can impact a game.

More: Where Iowa State basketball's March Madness resume stands for 2024 NCAA Tournament

Drake (28-6) enters the NCAA Tournament with two consecutive MVC Tournament titles, on a five-game winning streak and ranked No. 47 in the NET with a 4-1 record against Quad 1 opponents, a resume that should hold some weight with the selection committee.

ESPN’s Joe Lunardi predicted Drake as a No. 11 seed vs. No. 6 Saint Mary's in Omaha in his bracket last updated Saturday, March 16, at 10:30 a.m. Andy Katz, CBS’s Jerry Palm and Fox Sports’ Mike Decourcy also have Drake as an 11-seed.

The Athletic has Drake in Indianapolis as the No. 11 seed.

More: Where Drake basketball’s March Madness resume stands for 2024 NCAA Tournament

March Madness 2024 automatic bids for Iowa men's teams

Big 12 Conference: Iowa State Cyclones
Missouri Valley Conference: Drake Bulldogs

Iowa State punched its ticket to the 2024 NCAA Tournament by dominating No. 1 seed Houston 69-41 in the Big 12 Tournament championship on Saturday.

Drake secured its spot in the NCAA Tournament by besting Indiana State 84-80 in the MVC Tournament final on March 10.

Iowa's spot, however, is uncertain as the Hawkeyes concluded an inconsistent regular season with a disappointing 90-78 second-round loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament.