University of North Carolina Athletics
Tar Heels Earn No. 3 Seed in NCAA West Regional
June 21, 1999 | Men's Basketball
March 7, 1999
University of North Carolina head coach Bill Guthridge on the Tar Heels' selection to the NCAA Tournament: "No matter how many times you play in the NCAA Tournament, it is a thrill to be invited and get an opportunity to compete for the national championship. We were excited to win two games in the ACC Tournament, but now our focus is on winning two games in what we call the 'Seattle Invitational.' We want to win two games there and advance to Phoenix. We congratulate Weber State on winning the Big Sky Conference. They have a great basketball tradition and have some big wins in the postseason. It will be a quick turnaround for us."
Ticket information: Tickets are $40 per session. Fans interested in purchasing tickets should contact the UNC Ticket Office Monday at 919-962-2296.
By DOUG TUCKER
AP Sports Writer
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Top-ranked Duke, Michigan State, Auburn and Connecticut were selected Sunday as the No. 1 seeds for the NCAA tournament.
The Blue Devils (32-1), the first team to go 16-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, will take their 27-game winning streak into a first-round game in the East Regional at Charlotte, N.C., on Friday against Florida A&M. At 12-18, the Rattlers, who won the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament, are the only team in this year's field with a sub-.500 record.
Michigan State (29-4), the Big Ten champion, was chosen No. 1 in the Midwest Regional and will play on Friday against Mount St. Mary's, the Northeast Conference champions coached by 800-game winner Jim Phelan.
Auburn (27-3), which lost to Kentucky in the Southeastern Conference tournament semifinals, opens play in the South Regional on Thursday in Seattle against Winthrop, the Big South champions and one of five teams in the tournament for the first time.
Connecticut (28-2) was the only top seed moved out of its natural region. The Big East champions will play in Denver on Thursday against Texas-San Antonio, which won the Southland Conference.
The Southeastern Conference had one-fourth of the top 16 seeds, but the Big Ten tied the record with seven teams. The SEC had six teams invited, one more than the Big East and Big 12.
The other games to be played in Charlotte are: fourth-seeded Tennessee against No. 13 Delaware; fifth-seeded Wisconsin against No. 12 Southwest Missouri State; and eighth-seeded College of Charleston against No. 9 Tulsa.
At Boston it will be: second-seeded Miami against No. 15 Lafayette, which is making its first appearance since 1957; third-seeded Cincinnati against No. 14 George Mason; sixth-seeded Temple against No. 11 Kent; and seventh-seeded Texas against No. 10 Purdue.
The East Regional semifinals and finals will be held March 19 and 21 in East Rutherford, N.J.
In addition to the Michigan State-Mount St. Mary's game in Milwaukee, fourth-seeded Arizona plays No. 13 Oklahoma; fifth-seeded North Carolina Charlotte meets No. 12 Rhode Island; and No. 8 Villanova plays No. 9 Missouri.
The games Friday in New Orleans feature second-seeded Utah against No. 15 Arkansas State; No. 3 Kentucky against 14th-seeded New Mexico State; No. 6 Kansas against 11th-seeded Evansville; and seventh-seeded Washington against No. 10 Miami of Ohio.
The Midwest Regional semifinals and finals are March 19 and 21 in St. Louis.
In the other games Thursday in Indianapolis, fourth-seeded Ohio State plays No. 13 Murray State; No. 5 UCLA meets 12th-seeded Detroit; and Syracuse plays Oklahoma State in the 8-9 matchup.
The other South subregional starts Thursday in Orlando, Fla., and features No. 2 Maryland against last year's surprise team, No. 15 Valparaiso; No. 3 St. John's against 14th-seeded Samford; No. 6 Indiana against No. 11 George Washington; and seventh-seeded Louisville, the school given a second chance at being in the tournament, against No. 10 Creighton.
The South Regional semifinals and final will be March 18 and 20 in Knoxville, Tenn.
In addition to Connecticut-Texas-San Antonio, the games Thursday in Denver feature No. 4 Arkansas against No. 13 Siena; No. 5 Iowa against No. 12 Alabama irmingham; and No. 8 Missouri against No. 9 New Mexico.
In Seattle on Thursday second-seeded Stanford plays No. 15 Alcorn State; No. 3 North Carolina meets No. 14 Weber State; No. 6 Florida goes up against No. 11 Pennsylvania; and No. 7 Minnesota plays No. 10 Gonzaga.
The West Regional semifinals and finals will be March 18 and 20 in Phoenix.
The national semifinals are March 27 in St. Petersburg, Fla., and the matchups are South vs. West and East vs. Midwest. The championship game is March 29.
North Carolina extended its own record with its 25th consecutive appearance, 10 more than the next best current streak, Arizona's 15.
The other first-time NCAA teams were Arkansas State, Florida A&M, Kent and Samford.
The other multibid conferences were Conference USA and Pac-10 with four each; the Atlantic Coast Conference, Missouri Valley Conference, and Western Athletic Conference with three teams each; and the Mid-American Conference with two.
NCAA Tournament Seedings
By The Associated Press
SOUTH
1. Auburn
2. Maryland
3. St. John's
4. Ohio State
5. UCLA
6. Indiana
7. Louisville
8. Syracuse
9. Oklahoma State
10. Creighton
11. George Washington
12. Detroit
13. Murray State
14. Samford
15. Valparaiso
16. Winthrop
WEST
1. Connecticut
2. Stanford
3. North Carolina
4. Arkansas
5. Iowa
6. Florida
7. Minnesota
8. Missouri
9. New Mexico
10. Gonzaga
11. Pennsylvania
12. Alabama-Birmingham
13. Siena
14. Weber State
15. Alcorn State
16. Texas-San Antonio
EAST
1. Duke
2. Miami
3. Cincinnati
4. Tennessee
5. Wisconsin
6. Temple
7. Texas
8. College of Charleston
9. Tulsa
10. Purdue
11. Kent
12. Southwest Missouri State
13. Delaware
14. George Mason
15. Lafayette
16. Florida A&M
MIDWEST
1. Michigan State
2. Utah
3. Kentucky
4. Arizona
5. North Carolina Charlotte
6. Kansas
7. Washington
8. Villanova
9. Mississippi
10. Miami, Ohio
11. Evansville
12. Rhode Island
13. Oklahoma
14. New Mexico State
15. Arkansas State
16. Mount St. Mary's
