The funny thing about #1 seeds is that there are only 4 of them. If there are more than 4 teams that “deserve” one, guess what happens?

Right now, the CTD seeding model says that Gonzaga’s resume does in fact “deserve” a #1 seed. However, so do the resumes of 5 other teams.

If Kentucky, Wisconsin, Villanova win out, and Duke and Virginia win out until the ACC final, you could easily say each of them also deserves a #1 seed.

Gonzaga may end up with a #1 seed (and if they do, they’ll follow the Seattle to Los Angeles path, but if they win out and don’t get a #1 seed, it doesn’t mean that they didn’t deserve it.

It’s just like at-large selections. There might be more or fewer than 36 teams that “deserve” spots, but the committee has to pick exactly 36.