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East Region preview: Zion Williamson, Duke earn tournament’s overall top seed

Duke's Zion Williamson, right, embraces RJ Barrett, left, during the second half of the NCAA college basketball championship game against Florida State in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, March 16, 2019. (Nell Redmond / AP)
Associated Press

Zion’s path to the Final Four goes through the nation’s capital.

Zion Williamson and Duke are the overall No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Blue Devils sit atop the East Region, and their road to Minneapolis could include matchups with ACC rival Virginia Tech – which beat Duke without Zion – and Big Ten champion Michigan State.

Fifth-ranked Duke’s top competition in the East comes from the second-seeded Spartans – who lost forward Kyle Ahrens to a left leg injury in the Big Ten title game Sunday – third-seeded LSU and fourth-seeded Virginia Tech. The Hokies beat Duke 77-72 on Feb. 26.

The Blue Devils (29-5) haven’t lost since Williamson returned, rolling through the ACC tourney by beating Syracuse, North Carolina and Florida State.

Krzyzewski hopes center Marques Bolden returns at some point in the tournament.

Duke opens the NCAA Tournament in Columbia, South Carolina, against the 16th-seeded winner of the First Four game between North Carolina Central and North Dakota State.

Assuming Duke gets through the first round, eighth-seeded VCU or ninth-seeded UCF will be waiting. VCU star point guard Marcus Evans injured his left knee in the Atlantic 10 Tournament but is expected to return for the NCAA Tournament.

Spartans’ pride: Michigan State held off rival Michigan to win the Big Ten Tournament and rolls into a matchup with 15th-seeded Bradley. Guard Joshua Langford is already lost for the season, but the Spartans can still lean on Cassius Winston and strong rebounding.

More injuries: Virginia Tech’s Justin Robinson tweeted Sunday he’s ready to return after missing the past 12 games with a left foot injury. Virginia Tech opens the tournament against Saint Louis, which won the Atlantic 10 Tournament.

Bubble in: Temple was squarely on the bubble after losing to Wichita State in its first American Athletic Conference Tournament game Friday. But Fran Dunphy’s Owls will face Belmont on Tuesday for the right to be the 11th seed in the East and face sixth-seeded Maryland.

LSU without Dade: LSU goes into the NCAA Tournament having won nine of 11, but coach Will Wade remains under an indefinite suspension after a report he had been caught on a wiretap talking with a person convicted of funneling money to the families of basketball recruits. LSU opens against 14th-seeded Yale, which beat Harvard to win the Ivy League Tournament.

Maryland, my Maryland: If Maryland gets through Temple or Belmont and then LSU or Yale, it’ll be playing a home game in the Sweet 16. Capital One Arena is just 12 miles from College Park and could be the site of rival factions of Duke and Maryland fans if the former ACC rivals both reach the third round.