The Cincinnati Bearcats got what they wanted - one of the four coveted No. 1 seeds in the men's NCAA basketball tournament - while the Xavier Musketeers got less than what they hoped for - a No. 7 seed. Both teams are in the West Region. Here are the first-round pairings for area teams:

        • (1) Cincinnati (30-3) vs. (16) Boston (22-9), Friday at Pittsburgh (West Region)

        • (7) Xavier (25-5) vs. (10) Hawaii (27-5), Friday at Dallas (West Region)

        • (4) Ohio State (23-7) vs. (13) Davidson (21-9), Thursday at Albuquerque (West Region)

        • (4) Kentucky (20-9) vs. (13) Valparaiso (25-7), Thursday at St. Louis (East Region)

        Game times will be announced Monday.

UC's Donald Little and teammates whoop it up after winning the Conference USA tournament final Saturday. (Jeff Swinger photo) | ZOOM |

        Being No. 1 in the West could be a double-edged sword for UC. It's the toughest bracket in the tournament, with Oklahoma seeded No. 2, Arizona No. 3 and Ohio State No. 4. The Bearcats are looking at a tough second-round matchup against eighth-seeded UCLA (19-11) or ninth-seeded Mississippi (20-10) and are on a collision course with Ohio State, which won the Big Ten tournament Sunday, in the third round.

        The Bearcats, ranked No. 5 in the major polls, earned a No.1 seed after convincingly winning the Conference USA Tournament and regular season. The Bearcats, who beat No.13 Marquette 77-63 on Saturday, are 30-3 and were No.3 in Saturday's Ratings Percentage Index, behind only Kansas and Maryland. They edged Oklahoma, ranked fourth in the polls, in spite of Oklahoma's victory over top-ranked Kansas in the Big 12 Tournament championship Sunday.

        “I don't think there's any question we should be (a No.1 seed),” UC coach Bob Huggins said Saturday.

        If the Bearcats advance to the Sweet 16, they would go to San Jose, Calif.

        If No. 24 Xavier can get by Hawaii, it's staring at a second-round game with Oklahoma. That's why the Musketeers were hoping for a No. 5 or 6 seed based on their RPI - 19 going into Saturday. Xavier wrapped up the Atlantic 10 Conference's automatic bid by beating Richmond 73-60 in Saturday's tournament championship.

        The No. 21 Buckeyes moved up in the seeding this weekend by winning the Big Ten tournament.

        No. 12 Kentucky's 70-57 loss to South Carolina in the Southeastern Conference tournament Friday cost the Wildcats a No. 3 seed.

        In the women's bracket, UC (26-4), ranked No. 21, got a sixth seed in the East Region and opens against 11th-seeded St. Peter's (25-5) on Saturday at Columbia, S.C. The Bearcats are looking at a second-round matchup with either the host school, South Carolina (22-6), or Liberty (23-7).

        The UC women got C-USA's automatic bid after winning the league tournament. This is the women's first NCAA appearance since 1999. They are riding a 13-game winning streak.

• Printable men's bracket • Printable women's bracket
• UC tournament coverage • Xavier tournament coverage

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