NCAA tournament preview: East Regional

A look at the NCAA tournament’s East Regional:

THURSDAY :: BUFFALO, N.Y.

1 Villanova (31-3, Big East champion)

vs. 16 Play-in winner

(See matchup below)

The biggest hurdle to the heavily favored Wildcats returning to the Final Four could be an regional final matchup against Duke at Madison Square Garden.

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8 Wisconsin (25-9, at-large)

vs. 9 Virginia Tech (22-10, at-large)

Despite a late-season slump when the Badgers lost five of their last 10 games, they still boast a defense that held opponents to 61.1 points per game — seventh-best in the country.

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THURSDAY :: ORLANDO, FLA.

5 Virginia (22-10, at-large)

vs. 12 North Carolina Wilmington (29-5, CAA champion)

Keep an eye on the high-scoring Seahawks. They’ve won seven straight games, using an experienced group that lost to Duke by eight points in the first round of last year’s tournament.

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4 Florida (24-8, at-large)

vs. 13 East Tennessee State (27-7, Southern champion)

Florida’s Gators, who played one of the country’s toughest schedules, return to the tournament for the first time since 2014, when they lost to Connecticut in the national semifinals.

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FRIDAY :: TULSA, OKLA.

6 Southern Methodist (30-4, AAC champion)

vs. 11 Play-in winner

(See matchup below)

The Mustangs have won 16 consecutive games and boast the country’s third-best scoring defense. They haven’t won an NCAA tournament game since 1988.

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3 Baylor (25-7, at-large)

vs. New Mexico State (28-5, WAC champion)

After dropping four of their last seven games — including losing to Kansas State in a Big 12 tournament quarterfinal — the Bears are struggling at a bad time.

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FRIDAY :: GREENVILLE, S.C.

7 South Carolina (22-10, at-large)

vs. 10 Marquette (19-12, at-large)

Marquette makes a jaw-dropping 43% of its 3-pointers — and plays terrible defense. South Carolina has lost five of its last seven games but has an effective defense.

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2 Duke (27-8, ACC champion)

vs. 15 Troy (22-14, Sun Belt champion)

The second NCAA tournament appearance in school history probably will be brief for the Trojans, already losers to teams such as South Alabama and Georgia Southern this season.

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PLAY-IN GAME FOR NO. 16 :: TUESDAY :: DAYTON, OHIO

Mount St. Mary’s (19-15, NEC champion)

vs. New Orleans (20-11, Southland champion)

The Privateers might have one of the best nicknames in the tournament, but they’re just competing with the Mountaineers for the honor of being blasted by top-seeded Villanova.

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PLAY-IN GAME FOR NO. 11 :: WEDNESDAY :: DAYTON, OHIO

Providence (20-12, at-large)

vs. USC (24-9, at-large)

In the first round of last season’s tournament, the Friars edged the Trojans on a layup with 1.5 seconds left. USC is looking for its first NCAA tournament win in its fourth season under Andy Enfield.

NCAA March Madness bracket »

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Top seeds

[1 VILLANOVA]

The tournament’s No. 1 overall seed beat North Carolina last year to win its first championship since 1985 — and could be poised to repeat with an experienced roster.

[2 DUKE]

The Blue Devils were the No. 5 seed in the ACC tournament, but won four consecutive games, including a comeback victory over Notre Dame in the final, to capture the conference title.

[3 BAYLOR]

This matches the highest seed in school history. However, the Bears lost their opening NCAA tournament games in each of the past two seasons. They had top-5 seeds both times.

[4 FLORIDA]

The Gators won nine straight games at one point this season, but have dropped three of their last four. The struggles could stem from last month’s season-ending knee injury to center John Egbunu.

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Cinderella search

East Tennessee State hasn’t won an NCAA tournament game since beating Arizona in 1992, but the dangerous Buccaneers face struggling Florida in the first round.

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Top players

Josh Hart, guard, Villanova

The Big East Conference player of the year led the Wildcats in scoring (18.9 points per game) and rebounding (6.5 rebounds) as part of a dominant senior season.

Luke Kennard, guard, Duke

Projected as a top-20 pick in June’s NBA draft, the sophomore scoring machine recorded 20 points or more 19 times this season. That includes a season-high 35 points against Maine.

Johnathan Motley, forward, Baylor

Another projected first-round pick in the NBA draft, the 6-foot-10 junior is one of the nation’s most skilled big men. Among this season’s highlights: 32 points and 20 rebounds vs. Texas.

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Rim shots

• Keep an eye on North Carolina Wilmington. In 14 of the last 16 tournaments — 2007 and 2015 are the only exceptions — at least one No. 12 seed has upset a No. 5 seed in the first round. The Seahawks are a good candidate in this year’s edition.

• Two of Villanova’s three losses this season came against Butler. The Bulldogs are the No. 4 seed in the South Region.

• Mount St. Mary’s started the season 1-11, but finished on a 18-4 run. The Mountaineers include one of the tournament’s most unique players — 5-foot-5 guard Junior Robinson, averaging 14.1 points a game.

• Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski has led the Blue Devils to 23 NCAA appearances as a No. 1 or 2 seed.