NCAA Tournament: Hubert Davis Seeding Comments, Notes & More

North Carolina is the top seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament, and the Tar Heels open play Thursday afternoon at 2:45 against wither Howard or Wagner.

The Bison and Seahawks play Tuesday night in Dayton, OH, to see who advances to face Hubert Davis’ team. Carolina begins play in Charlotte, and if the Tar Heels advance to the regional, it must play in Los Angeles. The Final Four this season is in Phoenix, site of UNC’s last national championship in 2017.

After learning Sunday evening where his team is seeded, Davis had some comments, released by the school to the media in an email. Also included are some relevant program notes:

Head Coach Hubert Davis on being a No. 1 seed and playing in Charlotte:

HD: “I'm just really excited for the guys. We're a number one seed because of the work this team has done this season. I’m a proud of how they have worked all season, how they've played, how they have prepared and how from the start of the season they have wanted to be a team. To be given an opportunity to play in the NCAA Tournament is a big deal. I know the importance of being able to play close to home, so playing in Charlotte for potentially the first two rounds and being closer to our fans is a big deal for us, but it's just fun coming into the tournament.”

Q: Two years ago, when UNC came up as a number eight seed, you told the players the seed number doesn't matter.

HD: “I told them that again today. It's great being a number one seed but it’s an NCAA Tournament. It's 68 accomplished teams so you have to come play, whatever seed you are, wherever you play, so our preparation, practice and play will be the same as it's been for 34 games. We're excited about the challenge.”

Carolina’s 2024 NCAA Tournament Bracket Notes

• This is Carolina’s 53rd NCAA Tournament appearance, second most all-time. The Tar Heels are 131-49 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.

• This is Carolina’s 18th time as a No. 1 seed, the most in NCAA Tournament history.

• Carolina’s No. 1 seeds include 1979, 1982, 1984, 1987, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2024.

• Carolina advanced to the Final Four as a No. 1 seed 10 times: 1982, 1991, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2016 and 2017.

• The Tar Heels advanced to the Final Four out of the West Region in 1981.

• The Tar Heels have won NCAA titles as a No. 1 seed in 1982, 1993, 2005, 2009 and 2017.

• Hubert Davis is the fourth Tar Heel head coach to lead a team to a No. 1 seed (Dean Smith eight times, Roy Williams eight times, Bill Guthridge once).

• This is the eighth time UNC will play in the West Region: 1978, 1981 (2 seed), 1986 (3 seed), 1988 (2 seed), 1999 (3 seed), 2015 (4 seed), 2018 (2 seed), 2024 (1 seed).

• Carolina has the most wins in NCAA Tournament history (131), the most Final Fours (21), the second-highest winning percentage (.728), the second-most games (180) and the third-most NCAA Tournament titles (6).

• The Tar Heels are 12-1 in NCAA Tournament play in Charlotte (1-0 in 1975, 1-0 in 1982, 1-0 in 1984, 2-0 in 1987, 2-0 in 2005, 2-0 in 2008, 2-0 in 2011 and 1-1 in 2018).

• Carolina plays the winner of the Howard/Wagner play-in game. The Tar Heels are 5-0 all-time vs. Howard (last played in Chapel Hill on 1/2/2000) and have never played Wagner. Carolina has never played Howard in the NCAA Tournament. UNC played Howard in 1922 in Atlanta in the Southern Conference Tournament.