God's Bracket 2010: Men's Edition

Once again, here is my annual look at the religiously affiliated schools in the NCAA Tournament.

As usual the Archdiocese of Hoops dominates the field with eight Roman Catholic schools represented in this year's tournament, including second-seeded Villanova and third-seeded Georgetown.

But many United Methodist basketball fans were "strangely warmed" to learn that both Duke and Syracuse are the top seeds in their respective regions.

When Steph Curry left Davidson for the NBA, he took with him any hope of the Wildcats getting the Presbyterians back to the Big Dance after a disappointing absence last year. The theological heirs of John Calvin this year put their faith in preseason Conference USA favorite Tulsa. Alas, the Golden Hurricane was not predestined to be in this year's field.

Here's the complete rundown:



Roman Catholic

• Notre Dame (#6, South)

Jesuit

• Georgetown (#3, Midwest)


• Xavier (#6, West)


• Marquette (#6, East)


• Gonzaga (#8, West)

Augustinian

• Villanova (#2, South)

LaSallian

• St. Mary's (#10, South)

Franciscan

• Siena (#13, South)

United Methodist

• Duke (#1, South)


• Syracuse (#1, West)


• Wofford (#13, East)

Baptist

• Baylor (#3, South)


• Wake Forest (#9, East)

Latter-Day Saints

• Brigham Young (#7, West)

Note: While not listed, Vanderbilt (#4, West) has historical ties to The United Methodist Church.


See Kneeling in the End Zone: Spiritual Lessons From the World of Sports for an appendix with a complete list of religiously affiliated Division I schools.