Where could Dayton Flyers play in NCAA tournament?

These days, the NCAA tries to place teams as close to home as possible, though it doesn’t work out that way for everyone.

“Teams will remain in or as close to their areas of natural interest as possible, as determined by mileage from campus to the venue,” the seeding principles state. “A team moved out of its natural area will be placed in the next closest region to the extent possible. If two teams from the same natural region are in contention for the same bracket position, the team ranked higher in the seed list shall remain in its natural region.”

Where will Dayton, which is considered a lock to receive an at-large bid this season, end up in the 2024 tournament? It will find out on Selection Sunday, which is March 17.

Here’s a look at the eight first-round sites listed in order of miles from Dayton:

1. Indianapolis, Ind.; Gainbridge Fieldhouse (117 miles): No. 7 seed Dayton lost 64-58 to No. 10 Wichita State in the first round on March 17, 2017, at this arena, which was then known as Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

2. Pittsburgh, Pa; PPG Paints Arena (256): Dayton has never played a NCAA tournament game in Pittsburgh but has played Duquesne at this arena and played here in the A-10 tournament in 2017.

3. Charlotte, N.C.; Spectrum Center (456): Dayton travels to the Charlotte area every other year for games at Davidson but has never played a NCAA tournament game at this arena.

4. Memphis, Tenn.; FedExForum (534): No. 11 seed Dayton beat No. 10 seed Stanford 82-72 in the Sweet 16 at this arena in 2014 before losing 62-52 to No. 1 seed Florida in the Elite Eight.

5. Brooklyn, N.Y.; Barclays Center (608): Dayton could head to Brooklyn in consecutive weeks. The A-10 tournament starts at the Barclays Center on Tuesday. Dayton will play in the quarterfinals at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Dayton has played in seven A-10 tournaments at this arena.

6. Omaha, Neb.; CHI Health Center (724): Dayton has not been sent west of the Mississippi River for a first-round game since it traveled to Minneapolis, Minn., in 2009. Dayton is 0-2 at this arena with a 91-90 double-overtime loss to Creighton in November 2005 and a 77-59 loss to Creighton in December 2008.

7. Salt Lake City, Utah; Delta Center (1,638): Dayton played two NCAA tournament games in Salt Lake City in 1984, beating LSU 74-66 and Oklahoma 89-85. Those are the only two games it has played in the state. The games were played at the Special Events Center, now known as the Jon M. Huntsman Center, on the campus of the University of Utah.

8. Spokane, Wash.; Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena (2,084): Dayton played at this arena in the first round of the 2003 tournament and lost 84-71 as the No. 4 seed to No. 13 Tulsa.