Andrew Pace
The NCAA basketball tournament, also known as March Madness, is an annual tournament featuring 68 teams from the men's and women's tournaments. The teams are divided into four regions, with each region having a No. 1 seed. The No. 1 seeds are typically the best teams in the tournament, and they have historically dominated the No. 16 seeds, with a 158-2 record since the tournament expanded in 1985. In the men's bracket, Alabama, Houston, Purdue, and Kansas were the No. 1 seeds in 2023, while South Carolina, Indiana, Virginia Tech, and Stanford were the No. 1 seeds in the women's bracket.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of times the No. 1 seed has won the women's tournament | 22 |
| Number of times the No. 2 seed has won the women's tournament | 4 |
| Year when all four No. 1 seeds reached the Final Four | 2008 |
| Teams that were No. 1 seeds in the 2023 men's tournament | Alabama, Houston, Purdue, Kansas |
| Teams that were No. 1 seeds in the 2023 women's tournament | South Carolina, Indiana, Virginia Tech, Stanford |
| Number of national champions since 1985 | 39 |
| Number of national champions that were No. 1 seeds | 25 |
| Number of No. 1 seeds among the past 17 title winners | 13 |
| Team that was a No. 1 seed in the 2025 DII men's tournament | Nova Southeastern |
| Team that was a No. 1 seed in the 2025 men's tournament | Florida |
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What You'll Learn
Men's NCAA Tournament No. 1 seeds
In the Men's NCAA Tournament, the No. 1 seeds are the top-ranked teams in the competition. The seeding system is used to rank teams based on their performance during the regular season.
The No. 1 seeds are typically the teams that are expected to advance the furthest in the tournament. They are often the favourites to win the tournament, and they usually have a higher chance of progressing through the early rounds.
The number of No. 1 seeds can vary, but there are typically four in the Men's NCAA Tournament. These teams are usually placed in different regions of the bracket to ensure they do not meet until the later stages of the tournament, if at all.
In the 2023 NCAA Tournament, for example, Alabama, Houston, Purdue, and Kansas were the four No. 1 seeds in the men's bracket. In the 2025 NCAA Tournament, Auburn, Duke, and Houston were projected to be three of the four No. 1 seeds, with Florida and Tennessee competing for the final spot.
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Women's NCAA Tournament No. 1 seeds
In the 2025 NCAA women's basketball tournament, UCLA, South Carolina, USC, and Texas were the four No. 1 seeds. This was the first time in UCLA's history that they were the top team in the tournament. They had two losses that season, both to the Trojans. South Carolina's coach, Dawn Staley, felt that her team should have been the top overall seed. The Gamecocks had three losses heading into March Madness that year, including one to the Bruins. The NCAA selection committee chair, Derita Dawkins, cited two key factors in the decision: the head-to-head matchup between UCLA and South Carolina, and the competitiveness of South Carolina's losses.
Historically, the No. 1 seed in the women's NCAA tournament has won the championship a record 22 times, with the No. 2 seed winning four titles. UConn and Tennessee are the most frequent No. 1 seeds, with 12 and 22 instances, respectively. Tennessee has not been a top seed since 2014. In 2023, Indiana and Stanford were both No. 1 seeds but suffered surprising early losses. In 2021, NC State earned a top seed for the first time in program history and repeated this feat in 2022. In 2025, UCLA earned a top seed for the first time.
The NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1994. Since the inaugural tournament in 1982, there have been a total of 172 No. 1 seeds across 43 tournaments. Thirty-five different schools have claimed a top seed, with only four programs achieving double-digit No. 1 seed appearances. Notably, nine schools have only achieved a No. 1 seed status once.
In 2023, the women's NCAA Tournament featured South Carolina, Indiana, Virginia Tech, and Stanford as the four No. 1 seeds.
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No. 1 seeds in the Final Four
In the NCAA basketball tournament, also known as March Madness, teams are divided into four regions, with the top teams in each region ranked as No. 1 seeds. The No. 1 seeds are usually the best teams from the regular season and often have the most success in the tournament.
Since 1985, 25 out of 39 national champions have been No. 1 seeds, and 13 of the past 17 title winners have come from the top line. In 2008, all four No. 1 seeds made it to the Final Four for the first and only time: Kansas, Memphis, North Carolina, and UCLA. Three No. 1 seeds have made it to the Final Four just five times.
In the 2025 tournament, history was made as all four No. 1 seeds advanced to the men's Final Four for only the second time. Duke, Florida, Auburn, and Houston were the four teams that made up the strongest quartet of No. 1 seeds in recent history, according to college basketball statistician Ken Pomeroy. Florida was the best offensive rebounding team, while Auburn played the toughest schedule and won the most quality games during the regular season. Duke was considered the favourite among the No. 1 seeds, with the best scoring margin in 20 league games.
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No. 1 seeds vs No. 16 seeds
In the NCAA basketball tournament, commonly known as March Madness, No. 1 seeds are historically dominant against No. 16 seeds. Since the tournament expanded its field in 1985, No. 1 seeds have prevailed in almost all matchups against No. 16 seeds, with a record of 154-2 or 158-2 across sources. This lopsided history has led to No. 16 seeds having a meagre 1.25% winning percentage against No. 1 seeds.
However, on rare occasions, No. 16 seeds have pulled off monumental upsets. The first such instance occurred in 2018 when the University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) Retrievers defeated the Virginia Cavaliers, who were not only a No. 1 seed but also the top-ranked team in the country that year. UMBC dominated Virginia, winning by a score of 74-54 in what is considered one of the biggest upsets in NCAA Tournament history.
In 2023, Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU) became just the second No. 16 seed to knock off a No. 1 seed when they defeated Purdue. FDU's victory was particularly surprising given that they were the shortest team in the tournament, averaging a height of only 6'3", while Purdue was the tallest team, led by the 7-foot-4 centre Zach Edey. Despite Edey's 21 points, FDU pulled off the stunning upset with a final score of 63-58.
These rare upsets have added to the excitement and unpredictability of March Madness, showcasing the potential for any team to rise to the challenge and etch their names in collegiate basketball lore. While No. 1 seeds typically hold a significant advantage, the occasional triumph of a No. 16 seed reminds us that anything can happen in the thrilling world of college basketball.
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Teams with the most No. 1 seeds
In college basketball, the 68 teams participating in the men's and women's NCAA Tournament are divided into four regions, with each region having a No. 1 seed. The No. 1 seed is usually the team with the best record in the region.
The NCAA Tournament, also known as March Madness, is a single-elimination tournament featuring the top men's and women's college basketball teams in the United States. The tournament is held every year, and the teams that earn a No. 1 seed are often considered the favourites to win the championship.
On the women's side, the No. 1 seed has won the tournament a record 22 times, with the second-most successful seed being the No. 2 seed, with four titles.
While I cannot find a clear record of which teams have earned the most No. 1 seeds, the following teams were the No. 1 seeds in their respective regions in 2023: Alabama, Houston, Purdue, and Kansas for the men's tournament, and South Carolina, Indiana, Virginia Tech, and Stanford for the women's tournament.
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Frequently asked questions
The number 1 seeds in the basketball tournament are the top seeds in the men's and women's brackets. In 2023, the men's bracket number 1 seeds were Alabama, Houston, Purdue, and Kansas. The women's bracket number 1 seeds were South Carolina, Indiana, Virginia Tech, and Stanford.
The number 1 seeds are determined by the selection committee, which selects, seeds, and brackets the 68 teams from the men's and women's tournaments. The selection committee decides which 36 teams that didn't automatically qualify will earn a spot in the tournament.
Number 1 seeds have historically dominated number 16 seeds, with a 158-2 record since the NCAA tournament expanded its field in 1985. Of the 39 national champions since 1985, 25 of them were number 1 seeds.
