UNC in NC

There are 4 #1 seeds in the NCAA tournament, obviously. UCLA is the #1 in the West. Their reward? Trips to Anaheim and Phoenix (potentially) on their way to the final four. North Carolina has an even more favorable road. While UCLA has to cross the CA/AZ border, UNC gets to stay in state in trips to Raleigh and Charlotte as the #1 in the East. So, the committee rewarded UNC and UCLA for good seasons by letting them stay close to home.

What about the other #1 seeds, Kansas and Memphis? As the #1 in the Midwest, KU is slated for Omaha and Detroit. Memphis, the #1 in the South, starts in Little Rock and faces a potential Elite 8 match-up with Texas in Houston, TX.

Why do UNC and - to a lesser extent, maybe - UCLA get to stay home while KU and Memphis are given what's left? Well, I heard someone on ESPN say that the sites are determined years in advance, so that's just the way it worked out. Ehhhhh. While that might not be wrong, it's not a sufficiently formulated position.

I will grant you that it might not be reasonable to wait until the #1 seeds are chosen to determine the sites for the tournament. But, if Kansas doesn't get to play in Kansas City and St. Louis, why should UNC get to play in Raleigh and Charlotte? They shouldn't. If Memphis can't play in Memphis and Nashville, UCLA shouldn't be in Anaheim and Phoenix. UNC doesn't have to be the #1 in the East. They could easily be the #1 in the South. Memphis could play in Raleigh and Charlotte as the #1 in the East. KU could go to Anaheim and Phoenix as the #1 in the West and UCLA could head the Midwest region and play in Omaha and Detroit.

The tournament selection committee should be as equitable as possible for all teams. Obviously, that isn't the case right now. I'm pretty sure the committee could find reasonable match-ups adhering to the criterion that no team will have a "home" game. The rule could state that no team will have the possibility of playing in their home state or a neighboring state in the first week. The same rule could apply for the second week (Sweet 16 and Elite 8 rounds), or you could limit it to just not being able to play in the home state. If you make it to the Final Four in your home area, at least you've had to play four neutral site games to get there. It isn't feasible to only select sites in states that don't have any teams that could possibly make a Final Four run. I don't think there is a large clamoring for the Final Four to go to Alaska, Idaho or the Dakotas (I know, I'm leaving some states out)!