Andrew Logue

alogue@dmreg.com

Sunday was an historic day for Des Moines.

For the first time ever, eight teams were sent to the capital city as part of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.

The headliner is No. 1 overall seed Kansas, which was placed in the South Region and will be playing in Des Moines for the first time since visiting the Drake University Fieldhouse on Feb. 20, 1950.

Joining the Jayhawks (30-4) in Wells Fargo Arena is first-round opponent Austin Peay (19-17), No. 8 seed Colorado (22-11), No. 9 Connecticut (24-10). In the East Region, Kentucky (26-8) will come to Des Moines as a No. 4 seed and play Stony Brook (26-6). Indiana (25-7) is a No. 5, playing Chattanooga (29-5).

“Nobody can take away that we’ve had a good year,” Jayhawks coach Bill Self told CBS analyst Charles Barkley. “These guys have really performed well, consistently at a high level.

“But in order to make it a special year, you know you’ve got to win in March.”

Your definitive guide to March Madness in Des Moines

First-round games in Des Moines tip off Thursday, with second-round games following on Saturday.

Wells Fargo Arena hosted the 2013 NCAA wrestling championships in 2013, and the NCAA women’s basketball regional in 2012.

City officials expect more than 25,000 fans will flock to the city for this week’s men’s tournament. It’s expected to generate an economic impact of $3.1 million locally.

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