St. John's Snubbed in March Madness Seeding

Disrespected Red Storm Seek Motivation for Tournament Run

Mar. 18, 2026 at 12:18am

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The St. John's men's basketball team, which has won 19 of its past 20 games and is the Big East's first back-to-back outright regular-season and tournament champion, was surprisingly given a No. 5 seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament and listed as the 18th overall seed by the selection committee.

Why it matters

St. John's has proven itself as one of the top teams in the country this season, with impressive wins over UConn and a dominant run through the Big East. The low seeding and perceived disrespect from the selection committee and AP voters could provide extra motivation for the Red Storm to prove the doubters wrong and make a deep tournament run.

The details

St. John's has been one of the hottest teams in college basketball, winning 19 of its last 20 games and capturing back-to-back Big East regular season and tournament titles. However, the selection committee slotted them as a No. 5 seed in the East Region and ranked them 18th overall, well below where many expected them to be seeded.

  • On Sunday night, the initial March Madness bracket was revealed, showing St. John's as a No. 5 seed.
  • On Tuesday afternoon, the Associated Press released its final Top 25 poll, which also had St. John's ranked lower than anticipated.

The players

Rick Pitino

The head coach of the St. John's men's basketball team.

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What they’re saying

“Nobody's opinion of St. John's matters anymore”

— Zach Braziller, Sports columnist (nypost.com)

What’s next

The St. John's team will look to use the perceived disrespect from the selection committee and AP voters as motivation to prove them wrong and make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

The takeaway

This situation highlights the subjectivity and potential biases that can influence the NCAA Tournament selection process. St. John's has earned the right to be considered one of the top teams in the country, and the low seeding could provide the extra motivation the team needs to make a statement in March Madness.