From the NCAA themselves:
What's that mean for Tennessee?
- Each of the first four teams selected from a conference shall be placed in different regions if they are seeded on the first four lines.
- Teams from the same conference shall not meet prior to the regional final if they played each other three or more times during the regular season and conference tournament.
- Teams from the same conference shall not meet prior to the regional semifinals if they played each other twice during the regular season and conference tournament.
- Teams from the same conference may play each other as early as the second round if they played no more than once during the regular season and conference tournament.
- Any principle can be relaxed if two or more teams from the same conference are among the last four at large seeded teams participating in the First Four.
- Teams will remain in or as close to their areas of natural interest as possible, as determined by mileage from campus to the venue. A team moved out of its natural area will be placed in the next closest region to the extent possible. If two teams from the same natural region are in contention for the same bracket position, the team ranked higher in the seed list shall remain in its natural region.
- If possible, rematches of non-conference regular-season games should be avoided in the First Four and first round.
- If possible, after examining the previous two years’ brackets, teams will not be moved out of its natural region or geographic area an inordinate number of times.
- If possible, rematches from the previous tournament should be avoided in the First Four and First Round.
What's that mean for Tennessee?
- Get a higher seed and they'll stay closer to home. Think Greeneville (226 miles), Indianapolis (357 miles), Pittsburgh (493 miles) as likely options for First and Second Rounds.
- Likely to be in different regional than Kentucky, Auburn and maybe Arkansas.
