2024 NCAA Tournament Watch: North Carolina will be the No. 4 seed

(Editor's note: This is part of the Bracket Central series, an inside look at the lead-up to the men's and women's NCAA tournaments, along with analysis and picks during the tournaments.)

It took until the day before Sunday, but finally we can say with certainty who the top eight seeds in the 2024 NCAA Tournament will be.

With Tennessee and Arizona losing on Saturday and North Carolina advancing to the ACC Tournament, the Tar Heels will join Purdue, Houston and UConn at the top. The only minor intrigue remaining is whether Houston will pass Purdue for the No. 1 overall seed.

Tennessee and Arizona will be on the No. 2 line, along with Marquette State and Iowa. The Cyclones beat Baylor to reach the Big 12 title game and more than made up for a lackluster non-conference roster, while Marquette reached the Big East final without All-America point guard Tyler Kolek. And given the Golden Eagles' impressive resume and their insistence on Kulik returning next week, the No. 2 seed is a good fit.

Clarity comes in at the top, and the bubble stays in focus as well. Mississippi State and Texas A&M locked up the spots with wins over Tennessee and Kentucky, respectively. New Mexico beat Colorado State in the Mountain West semifinals and should be safe. Colorado finally got over the hump in our bracket by defeating Washington State in the Pac-12 semifinals — the Buffaloes' first win over a team in the field away from home — and they are now the winner of the league's projected auto bid. They can end all doubts by beating Oregon in the Pac-12 title game on Saturday. However, if the Ducks win, they will steal the show. Maybe… Colorado Show. Madness!

Someone had to come off the field to make room for the Buffs, and we think it was Seton Hall. With others rising after big wins, it puts the Pirates' shaky resume into stark relief. We don't think Virginia should feel 100 percent confident either, and even St. John's, at 3-10 in Quad 1, has reason to be nervous — and to cheer against Oregon and NC State in Saturday's title games.

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(Photo by Cam Jones for Marquette: Sarah Steer/Getty Images)