re: “We won’t see South Carolina until the Final Four”

It's in the selection rules. No in-conference top 16 (1-4 seeds) teams can be placed in the same region.

That's why people have been saying that all that matters is getting a 4 seed or better.

quote:

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III. Principles for Placing Teams into the Championship Bracket

Each of the first four teams selected from a conference shall be placed in different regional pods if they are seeded on the first four lines

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