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7 Winners (Michigan State) and losers (Big East) from the men's bracket on Selection Sunday

Selection Sunday has come and gone and already we’re experiencing the highs and lows of March Madness on the men’s side of the bracket.

As many of us start filling out the first of an infinite number of brackets, researching potential upsets and wondering who the Cinderellas could be this year, there are plenty of teams across the country wondering what just happened to them.

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We’re not just talking about some of the obvious snubs here. We’re thinking about the teams that got absolutely blindsided by their seeding and then some.

Here’s a look at the winners and losers from Selection Sunday.

Winner: Grambling State

(AP Photo/Butch Dill)

Welcome to March Madness, Grambling State!

It doesn’t matter that the SWAC Tournament champions automatically qualified for the NCAA and didn’t have to sweat out Selection Sunday. When your school finally gets off the list of teams to never make the tournament, it’s a moment to remember.

Look at how pumped the Tigers were to get some love on the selection show.

Grambling State will head to the First Four where they’ll play Montana State for the right to claim the No. 16 seed. The winner also gets No. 1 Purdue, which probably isn’t as scary after the Boilermakers lost to No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson last year.

The Tigers are already making history just be being here. Why stop now?

Loser: Northwestern

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Sure the Wildcats got off the list of teams to never make the tournament a few years go, but it’s still a rare achievement for the Big Ten school.

Which is why it’s quite a bummer for Northwestern fans that they’ll be a No. 9 seed and have to face a No. 8 Florida Atlantic team that went all the way to the Final Four last year — and returns largely the same roster.

March has never been kind to the Wildcats, even when it goes their way.

Winner: Virginia

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Go ahead and exhale, Virginia fans.

For the first time in what feels like months, the Cavaliers aren’t just off the bubble, they are safely in the bracket. Well, kinda. Virginia will head to the First Four as a No. 10 seed for a matchup with Colorado State with the winner getting No. 7 Texas.

After losing to NC State in the ACC Tournament semifinals, plenty of bracket analysts had UVA missing the tournament. Turns out they were wrong and now another recent champ is back in the field looking for a second title since 2019.

Loser: Wisconsin

Oh wow did the selection committee do the Badgers dirty.

After upsetting Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament to pad a resume loaded with wins against quality opponents like Marquette, Michigan State and Virginia the committee rewarded Wisconsin with a No. 5 seed and a first round matchup against No. 12 James Madison.

This Dukes team went 31-3 on the regular season while scoring the 12th-most points per game in the nation (84.4). Should the Badgers get past JMU, they’ll get the winner of No. 4 Duke- No. 13 Vermont. Oh, and Wisconsin has Houston as it’s No. 1 seed and Marquette as a No. 2.

An absolutely crushing draw.

Winner: Michigan State

Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

It’s not all bad for the Big Ten. Just take a look at what the committee gifted Michigan State.

Despite an iffy resume — especially compared to teams that got left out — Sunday couldn’t have gone much better for MSU. The Spartans slot in as the No. 9 seed in the West. They’ll face No. 8 Mississippi State in the first round and will likely play No. 1 North Carolina if they get past the Bulldogs. But after that? It’s smooth sailing for Tom Izzo’s program.

Their potential Sweet Sixteen opponents include Saint Mary’s, Grand Canyon, Alabama and Charleston. Not exactly a murderer’s row of tournament giants.

Those teams can’t be too thrilled to have a March wizard like Izzo in their bracket, either. The Spartans could’ve done a lot worse given their resume.

Loser: UConn

(AP Photo/Mark Stockwell) 

Wait, what? How is the No. 1 overall seed a loser?

Well, um, have you seen the Huskies’ draw? This may be one of the toughest paths any No. 1 overall seed has had in quite some time. It’s almost to the point you wonder if there was some bias against the Big East (more on this later).

Not only will the defending champions likely face a second-round matchup against an FAU team looking to return to the Final Four for a second consecutive year, they might have to face San Diego State in the Sweet Sixteen — team they defeated for the championship last year.

UConn also got placed in the same region as Auburn, Illinois and Iowa State — the teams that just won the SEC, Big Ten and Big 12 tournaments, respectively.

How does that happen?

Loser: The Big East

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

This one is truly baffling. The Big East had been one of the most competitive conferences all year long with plenty of quality teams. And the only three programs who made it in are UConn, Creighton and Marquette.

Here’s where it gets really weird. Look at where the snubbed teams ranked on KenPom: St. John’s (25), Villanova (35), Providence (54), Xavier (56), Seton Hall (62). The advanced metrics clearly believe these are tournament teams.

The committee thought otherwise. Maybe Rick Pitino has a point?

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