It's time for my annual stab at predicting the brackets.

There are always a variety of challenges in wading through the numbers including trying to avoid matchups between conference opponents before the regional finals and also dealing with host teams needing to be placed in the subregionals.

Every year top teams are forced to play at a site of a lower seeded teams and this year is no different. I have Sun Belt champion Arkansas-Little Rock champion as a No. 14 seed meaning that a No. 3 seed would have to play its first round game at Arkansas-Little Rock. Baylor, Stanford, Tennessee and Duke are among the top projected seeds who could be forced to play a subregional on the road.

There are 16 automatic bids to be decided in the next two days and the brackets could change significantly. The Horizon League and Colonial Athletic Association title games will draw the most attention from teams residing on the bubble. Regular season champions Green Bay and Delaware will earn tournament bids win or lose but if they get upset the tournament champions could take away spots in the field that teams in larger conferences were hoping to secure.

I usually try to predict which team will be UConn's first-round opponent. Unless Maryland-Baltimore County or Monmouth win the American Each and Northeast Conference titles, I would say that the winner of the Patriot League final between Holy Cross and Navy will draw the Huskies.

Here are my brackets with subregional hosts in all caps:
                DES MOINES RALEIGH                   KINGSTON   FRESNO
      1.     Baylor            NOTRE DAME         UCONN         Stanford

2.     TEX A&M       MARYLAND            Duke             Tennessee

3.     Miami            St. John’s                 Kentucky      PURDUE

4.     Penn State    LSU                           Delaware     Ga. Tech

5.     Rutgers          Kansas State          OKLAHOMA Ohio State

6.     DEPAUL         Nebraska                Bonaventure   Georgetown

7.     Princeton      Georgia                   Louisville       IOWA STATE

8.     GONZAGA    California                S. Carolina    Green Bay

9.     W. Va.           Arkansas                Brig. Young    VANDERBILT

10.   USC               Dayton                   Iowa                M. Tennessee

11.    Florida          Michigan              Marist              Temple

12.    Mich St.        J. Madison          Missouri St      S. Dakota State

13.     ARK-LR         E. Michigan         Sacred Heart   Idaho State

14.      Samford      Howard               Liberty               Fresno

15.       Utep             Fla. GC                 Albany               Cal-Santa Barbara

16.       Alcorn         Tenn-Martin       Holy Cross      San Diego St.

With 12 subregionals being played at host sites that leaves four sites without a host team. With North Carolina not making the field it's only natural that Duke is placed in Chapel Hill. I placed Kentucky in Bowling Green. As for the Old Dominion and Florida State subregionals, I have St. John's and Georgia Tech as the top seeds there.

Once all the conference tournaments are over with, I will revise my bracket.