Where Arkansas basketball’s NCAA Tournament resume stands as March Madness arrives

Arkansas basketball is looking to continue its recent run of NCAA Tournament success in 2023. The Razorbacks will learn their March Madness destination, seed and opponent Sunday.

The Selection Sunday bracket reveal show airs 5 p.m. CT on ESPN. Where might the Razorbacks land?

Arkansas (20-13) exited the SEC Tournament in the quarterfinal after a loss to No. 2-seed Texas A&M. Despite a disappointing end to the regular season — the Razorbacks entered the postseason on a three-game losing streak — and the short run at the conference tournament, Arkansas appears to be a lock for March Madness.

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Thanks to a challenging schedule, Arkansas has a high NET ranking. After Saturday's games, the Razorbacks were sitting at No. 21 in the NET. Only three SEC teams, Alabama, Tennessee and Texas A&M, were ahead of the Razorbacks.

Arkansas will make its third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance under coach Eric Musselman. The question is what seed the Razorbacks might earn and what teams they might face.

Arkansas' NCAA Tournament bracket projections

Entering Sunday, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi projected the Razorbacks to play as a No. 8 seed in the Midwest Region of the bracket. Lunardi’s estimation has Arkansas facing No. 9-seed Northern Kentucky in the first round and either No. 1-seed Kansas or No. 16-seed Northern Kentucky in the second round. Those rounds would take place at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.

Facing a No. 1-seed so early would certainly be a tough draw for the Razorbacks, but most projections place them as a No. 8-seed, making that inevitable. In Lunardi’s projections, the task would be especially tough: ESPN has Kansas as its No. 1 overall seed.

Jerry Palm of CBS also had the Razorbacks as a No. 8 seed entering Sunday. He projected Arkansas facing No. 9-seed Iowa in the first round in the West Region at Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama. Arkansas would match up with No. 1-seed Houston or No. 16-seed Northern Kentucky.

USA TODAY Sports also predicted Arkansas will be a No. 8 seed in the East Region, possibly matching up with No. 1-seed Kansas in the second round. In that projection, the Razorbacks would first take on No. 9-seed Penn State and then either the Jayhawks or No. 16-seed Northern Kentucky. Those games would be played at Madison Square Garden in New York.

This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Arkansas NCAA Tournament 2023: Where its March Madness resume stands