Alabama, Kansas Among No. 1 Seeds in 2023 NCAA Men's Tournament Bracket Preview

Less than a month from Selection Sunday, Alabama and Houston are in the driver's seat for the top two seeds in the 2023 NCAA men's tournament.

The Division I men's basketball committee unveiled the current top 16 seeds for this year's tournament Saturday. Alabama is the No. 1 seed in the South Region, with Houston getting the top seed in the Midwest Region.

Alabama, which is ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25, secured the top overall seed from the committee despite coming off a 68-59 loss at Tennessee on Wednesday.

Purdue (East Region) and Kansas (West Region) are in position for the two remaining No. 1 seeds. Texas and Arizona are the top two No. 2 seeds and are ranked fifth and sixth in the overall top 16, per the committee.

Here is the full top 16 as of Feb. 18 from the D-I men's basketball committee:

1. Alabama (22-4) 
2. Houston (24-2)
3. Purdue (23-4) 
4. Kansas (21-5)
5. Texas (20-6) 
6. Arizona (23-4)
7. Baylor (20-6)
8. UCLA (22-4)
9. Tennessee (20-6)
10. Virginia (20-4)
11. Iowa State (17-8)
12. Kansas State (19-7)
13. Indiana (18-8)
14. Marquette (21-6)
15. Gonzaga (22-5)
16. Xavier (19-7)

Houston does have a better overall record than Alabama with a marquee road win over No. 7 Virginia on Dec. 17, but the Crimson Tide hold a head-to-head victory over the Cougars from Dec. 17.

Alabama has lost two games in the past three weeks, including a 93-69 defeat at Oklahoma on Jan. 28.

The defending national champion Jayhawks have bounced back after a lull in January that saw them lose three consecutive games to Kansas State, TCU and Baylor. None of those losses can be considered a bad defeat, with Baylor (No. 7) and Kansas State (No. 12) in the top 16 unveiled Saturday.

TCU didn't crack the top 16, but it should be a tournament team with a 17-9 record.

Head coach Kelvin Sampson has the Cougars on track to earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament for the second time in school history. It previously happened during the 1982-83 season when they lost to North Carolina State in the national title game.

Houston is first in the nation in several key barometers used to determine seeding, including KenPom rankings and BPI. Its out-of-conference RPI strength of schedule ranks 19th.

One top team that's trending in the wrong direction leading into tournament season is Purdue, though the committee still has head coach Matt Painter's squad as a No. 1 seed and No. 3 overall in the top 16.

After spending six of eight weeks atop the AP poll from Dec. 12 through Jan. 30, the Boilermakers have lost three of their last four games. The rough stretch includes back-to-back road losses at Northwestern and Maryland this week.

Things do bode well for Alabama to get the No. 1 overall seed in the final bracket. Every team that has received the No. 1 overall seed in the in-season rankings has maintained that position on Selection Sunday since the process was introduced in 2017.

The full 68-team bracket for the 2023 NCAA men's basketball tournament will be unveiled March 12.