Only two days remain until the NCAA Tournament Selection Show and Florida State is a lock to make the tournament for the first time in five years.
The Seminoles hope to earn an automatic berth into the dance with two more wins in the ACC Tournament, but even if that doesn’t happen, FSU has to like its chances of landing a high seed. The latest slew of brackets unveiled on Thursday all have the Seminoles opening the big dance in Orlando.
Both Jerry Palm of CBS Sports and SB Nation’s Chris Dobbertean have FSU projected as a third seed in the Midwest Region and facing No. 14 seed Florida Gulf Coast, the Atlantic Sun champions. The Seminoles and Eagles last met in the first round of the NIT in 2014, with FSU winning 58-53 in Tallahassee.
ESPN’s Joe Lunardi and NBC Sports’ Dave Ommen each having the third-seeded Seminoles playing No. 14 seed and Big South champion Winthrop. Lunardi projects the match-up to take place in the East Region while Ommen pencils both teams into the Midwest. FSU beat Winthrop earlier this season in Tallahassee on Nov. 18, 100-86.
USA Today’s Shelby Mast continues to be the bracketologist most favorable to FSU. Mast projects FSU as a No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region. Mast pits the Seminoles against No. 15 seed and projected SWAC champion Texas Southern.
Florida State will play in the ACC Tournament semifinals against Notre Dame on Friday night. The Fighting Irish are projected as a No. 5 seed by four of the bracketologists and a No. 4 seed by Ommen.
The winner of Friday’s game will move on to Saturday’s final to face either Duke or North Carolina. Three of the five experts have Duke as a No. 3 seed. Ommen and Dobbertean have the Blue Devils listed as a No. 2. North Carolina is unanimously projected as a No. 1 seed.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
Lance King/FSU athletics
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