The conference tournaments are complete. It’s just hours before the NCAA baseball tournament field of 68 will be set by the committee on Monday, May 25.
Some business is already known. The 16 host schools were announced Sunday with the SEC, unsurprisingly, dominating the list with seven teams. However, it’s expected that Big Ten champion UCLA and ACC champion Georgia Tech will be the top two seeds. Georgia, which won the regular season and the conference tournament, looks to be slotted into the No. 3 spot. Texas, Auburn, Alabama and Florida are all in the mix to be among the top eight, which would guarantee a home series through the super regionals.
Down at the bottom of the field, there were several difficult decisions with the conference tournament creating some bid thieves and some smaller schools possibly getting nudged from the bubble.
So without further ado, here’s our projection for how the field will look when unveiled on Memorial Day.
NCAA baseball tournament bracket projections
(Teams that are automatic qualifiers are in bold.)
Los Angeles regional
- UCLA (1)
- Liberty (32)
- Arizona State
- South Dakota State
Atlanta regional
- Georgia Tech (2)
- Oklahoma (31)
- Louisiana-Lafayette
- Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Athens regional
- Georgia (3)
- Virginia (30)
- Central Florida
- Illinois-Chicago
Chapel Hill regional
- North Carolina (4)
- UC Santa Barbara (29)
- Kentucky
- Long Island
Auburn regional
- Auburn (5)
- Missouri State (28)
- Boston College
- Holy Cross
Austin regional
- Texas(6)
- Jacksonville State (27)
- Virginia Tech
- Lipscomb
Tuscaloosa regional
- Alabama (7)
- Miami (26)
- East Carolina
- Alabama State
Gainesville regional
- Florida (8)
- Coastal Carolina (25)
- Mercer
- Yale
Tallahassee regional
- Florida State (9)
- Tennessee (24)
- Troy
- Rider
College Station regional
- Texas A&M (10)
- Oklahoma State (23)
- Pittsburgh
- Saint Mary’s
Hattiesburg regional
- Southern Mississippi (11)
- Wake Forest (22)
- The Citadel
- Binghamton
Starkville regional
- Mississippi State (12)
- Southern California (21)
- Tarleton State
- St. John’s
Lawrence regional
- Kansas (13)
- Oregon State (20)
- Northern Illinois
- Arkansas-Little Rock
Eugene regional
- Oregon (14)
- Cincinnati (19)
- Cal Poly
- Washington State
Lincoln regional
- Nebraska (15)
- Mississippi (18)
- USC Upstate
- Lamar
Morgantown regional
- West Virginia (16)
- Arkansas (17)
- Virginia Commonwealth
- Northeastern
Last four in
Kentucky, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, Troy.
Last four out
TCU, Michigan, Texas State, North Carolina State.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NCAA baseball tournament bracket projection before field announcement