Friday, December 16, 2011
Back from the dead
Yes, I'm back, and with something that's been bothering me. I'm still trying to find out some of the earliest information on NASDAQ-100 listing changes. Recall my post from January, 2010: http://bracketwatch.blogspot.com/2010/01/ot-building-nasdaq-100in-19-19-1985.html. Well I'm still hopeful that someone out there has better information than I was able to extract. If anyone can help me, please e-mail me at pinkerson@webtv.net and maybe we can convince NASDAQ to release the information to the public.
Monday, December 5, 2011
What will happen first?
The NCAA naming the East Regional site for 2013?
OR
The end of the world?
That is the question that must be asked.
It's 15 months until the 2013 tournament, and as far as I'm concerned, it's too late to continue delaying the announcement. In fact, the one time I tried to pose the question on who will be hosting, I got nothing in response. And just as well. A few months ago, the NCAA should have told the most likely host, Madison Square Garden that it wanted a hard, inflexible deadline to wrap up it's needed renovations. Otherwise, the NCAA would select an alternate. But instead, MSG has apparently told them it needed more time(The NBA lockout will likely force back even more work to Summer, 2013), but that they still want to host. Whatever the case, the announcement must come soon, or else a lot of people will be like me. Wondering where the East Region will be held in 2013.
And another thing
MSG won't be able to host in 2014, because of Wrestlemania. So if it isn't 2013, 2015 is next in line.
OR
The end of the world?
That is the question that must be asked.
It's 15 months until the 2013 tournament, and as far as I'm concerned, it's too late to continue delaying the announcement. In fact, the one time I tried to pose the question on who will be hosting, I got nothing in response. And just as well. A few months ago, the NCAA should have told the most likely host, Madison Square Garden that it wanted a hard, inflexible deadline to wrap up it's needed renovations. Otherwise, the NCAA would select an alternate. But instead, MSG has apparently told them it needed more time(The NBA lockout will likely force back even more work to Summer, 2013), but that they still want to host. Whatever the case, the announcement must come soon, or else a lot of people will be like me. Wondering where the East Region will be held in 2013.
And another thing
MSG won't be able to host in 2014, because of Wrestlemania. So if it isn't 2013, 2015 is next in line.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
The story of the conferences-Ivy League
Linked by a common bond of academic excellence, strong research capabilities, and roots in pre-revolution America, the Ivy League is without question, the most prestigious collection of universites in the world, not just this country. Naturally you would think that these schools would have their fingerprints on athletics, right, well yes, historically. These days, the Ivy League, or Ivy Group, is an inconsistent mid-major league, but in the early days of organized university athletics, they were the major power conference of it's time. Most of it centered on football, but they were pretty good at hoops too.
The Early Years
In 1900, Nine years after Dr. James Naismith created the sport of basketball at today's Springfield College, Harvard and Yale joined with four other highly prestigious schools; Amherst, Holy Cross, Trinity College, and Williams to form the New England Inter-Collegiate Basketball League, the first recognized association of universities formed to played basketball. It lasted all of one season, when the Bulldogs and Crimson left to form a new association with Columbia, Cornell, and Princeton; calling it the Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League. The basic structure of the league called for all members to play each other, twice during the season. Soon after, champions of this league started arranging championship playoffs with the Western Conference(today's Big Ten). These lasted only a few years before it was ended(mostly due to travel, but also for two seasons, the EIBL did not play a league schedule). In the meantime, Pennsylvania joined for 1904, followed by Harvard's withdrawal after 1909, and Dartmouth joined in 1912. It would remain at six until 1934, when Harvard returned.
Enter the Ivy
For 1953-54, Brown was finally persuaded to join the EIBL, but that was a precursor of things to come, for in the spring of 1954, the eight schools agreed to combine all their athletic pursuits into a single all-sports alliance, the Ivy League. Thus, 1955 was the last year for the EIBL. There has not been a change in membership since.
Doing things differently
Today, the Ivy League does several things differently than anyother league within Division I. For instance:
*The league is the only one not to conduct a postseason tournament, due to academic schedules. To compensate, in years where there is a tie for first, a one game, neutral-site, playoff is held.
*It also does not award any athletic scholarships of any kind. All scholarships are awarded on need, only.
*It also schedules games, again for academic reasons, only on Fridays and Saturdays, save for the Penn-Princeton games, which are played on Tuesdays.
Success
In the Helms Foundation period of national championships, the Ivy recorded several national titles. Columbia won three of these(1904, 1905, 1910), while Yale(1901 and 1903) and Penn(1920 and 1921) won twice, and Princeton won it in 1925. Dartmouth won it in 1906, but were not an EIBL member during that period.
Since the NCAA tournament era began in 1939, no Ivy League school has won, although Dartmouth came closest, twice, finishing runner-up in 1942 and 1944. Since 1951, Princeton came the closest, finishing third in 1965 behind the play of Bill Bradley, while Penn placed 4th in 1979. The Tigers are the only school to take home an National Invitational Tournament title, winning the 1975 crown.
Stability
Very strong. Except for a brief period in the late 1940's and early 1950's when Penn looked to breakaway due to issues with the televising of football games, the Ivies have remained locked together in the longest running conference configuration. With the exception of Cornell, which came along in 1865, all members can trace their roots to pre-revolution America. In short, don't look for anyone to join, or leave, the Ivy League as long as it exists.
The Early Years
In 1900, Nine years after Dr. James Naismith created the sport of basketball at today's Springfield College, Harvard and Yale joined with four other highly prestigious schools; Amherst, Holy Cross, Trinity College, and Williams to form the New England Inter-Collegiate Basketball League, the first recognized association of universities formed to played basketball. It lasted all of one season, when the Bulldogs and Crimson left to form a new association with Columbia, Cornell, and Princeton; calling it the Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League. The basic structure of the league called for all members to play each other, twice during the season. Soon after, champions of this league started arranging championship playoffs with the Western Conference(today's Big Ten). These lasted only a few years before it was ended(mostly due to travel, but also for two seasons, the EIBL did not play a league schedule). In the meantime, Pennsylvania joined for 1904, followed by Harvard's withdrawal after 1909, and Dartmouth joined in 1912. It would remain at six until 1934, when Harvard returned.
Enter the Ivy
For 1953-54, Brown was finally persuaded to join the EIBL, but that was a precursor of things to come, for in the spring of 1954, the eight schools agreed to combine all their athletic pursuits into a single all-sports alliance, the Ivy League. Thus, 1955 was the last year for the EIBL. There has not been a change in membership since.
Doing things differently
Today, the Ivy League does several things differently than anyother league within Division I. For instance:
*The league is the only one not to conduct a postseason tournament, due to academic schedules. To compensate, in years where there is a tie for first, a one game, neutral-site, playoff is held.
*It also does not award any athletic scholarships of any kind. All scholarships are awarded on need, only.
*It also schedules games, again for academic reasons, only on Fridays and Saturdays, save for the Penn-Princeton games, which are played on Tuesdays.
Success
In the Helms Foundation period of national championships, the Ivy recorded several national titles. Columbia won three of these(1904, 1905, 1910), while Yale(1901 and 1903) and Penn(1920 and 1921) won twice, and Princeton won it in 1925. Dartmouth won it in 1906, but were not an EIBL member during that period.
Since the NCAA tournament era began in 1939, no Ivy League school has won, although Dartmouth came closest, twice, finishing runner-up in 1942 and 1944. Since 1951, Princeton came the closest, finishing third in 1965 behind the play of Bill Bradley, while Penn placed 4th in 1979. The Tigers are the only school to take home an National Invitational Tournament title, winning the 1975 crown.
Stability
Very strong. Except for a brief period in the late 1940's and early 1950's when Penn looked to breakaway due to issues with the televising of football games, the Ivies have remained locked together in the longest running conference configuration. With the exception of Cornell, which came along in 1865, all members can trace their roots to pre-revolution America. In short, don't look for anyone to join, or leave, the Ivy League as long as it exists.
The story of the conferences-Intro post
Welcome to a new series of posts detailing(in basketball terms) with the stories of the 52 historically recognized conferences of NCAA Division I. Each post details the whos and whens of membership, their historical success, and their prospects for future growth and stability. I'll detail each and every conference in order of creation, going from the Ivy League to the Great West. So sit back and enjoy this series.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Predicting the finish-The Bracket
Sorry for the long delay on the bracket. It was finished a few days ago, but forgot to put it up because I was too busy. So, let's get to it.
Final Four Pairings
Midwest(1) vs. West(4)
South(2) vs. East(3)
The First Four
(UD Arena; Dayton, OH; University of Dayton)
March 13th
Game 1: Wagner(Northeast) vs. Alabama State(Southwestern)
Game 2: Brigham Young vs. Cincinnati
March 14th
Game 1: South Dakota State(Summit) vs. UNC Asheville(Big South)
Game 2: Creighton vs. Mississippi State
MIDWEST Region
(Edward Jones Dome; St. Louis; Missouri Valley Conference)
@ Consol Energy Center; Pittsburgh; Duquesne University
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Wagner/Alabama State
8-New Mexico(Mountain West) vs. 9-Florida State
@ Rose Garden Arena; Portland; University of Oregon
4-Wichita State vs. 13-North Texas(Sun Belt)
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-Utah State(Western Athletic)
@ The Pit; Albuquerque; University of New Mexico
2-Baylor(Big 12) vs. 15-Lamar(Southland)
7-Washington vs. 10-Marquette
@ Nationwide Arena; Columbus; Ohio State University
3-Pittsburgh vs. 14-Western Michigan(Mid-American)
6-Temple(Atlantic 10) vs. 11-Northwestern
WEST Region
US Airways Center; Phoenix; Arizona State University
@ Pittsburgh
1-Connecticut(Big East) vs. 16-Stony Brook(America East)
8-Clemson vs. 9-Michigan State
@ Albuquerque
4-Arizona(Pacific-12) vs. 13-Marshall(Conference USA)
5-Texas A&M vs. 12-Brigham Young/Cincinnati
@ Greensboro Coliseum; Greensboro, NC; Atlantic Coast Conference
2-Duke vs. 15-Loyola(MD)(Metro Atlantic)
7-West Virginia vs. 10-Virginia Commonwealth(Colonial)
@ Portland
3-Gonzaga(West Coast) vs. 14-UC Santa Barbara(Big West)
6-Michigan vs. 11-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
SOUTH Region
Georgia Dome; Atlanta; Georgia Tech
@ Greensboro
1-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 16-Hampton(Mid-Eastern)
8-Old Dominion vs. 9-St. Mary's
@ KFC Yum! Center; Louisville; University of Louisville
4-Florida vs. 13- Appalachian State(Southern)
5-Notre Dame vs. 12-Creighton/Mississippi State
@ Bridgestone Arena; Nashville; Ohio Valley Conference
2-Memphis vs. 15-Austin Peay(Ohio Valley)
7-Louisville vs. 10-Miami(FL)
@ Century Link Center; Omaha; Creighton University and Missouri Valley Conference
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-Weber State(Big Sky)
6-Alabama vs. 11-Detroit
EAST Region
TD Garden; Boston
@ Columbus
1-Kentucky(Southeastern) vs. 16-South Dakota State/UNC Asheville
8-Missouri vs. 9-Unlv
@ Nashville
4-Purdue vs. 13-Harvard(Ivy)
5-Virginia Tech vs. 12-Indiana State(Missouri Valley)
@ Louisville
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Lehigh(Patriot)
7-Xavier vs. 10-Central Florida
@ Omaha
3-Kansas vs. 14-Milwaukee(Horizon)
6-Ucla vs. 11-Georgetown
Last four in the field: Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Creighton, Mississippi State
First four left out: Saint Louis, Villanova, Oklahoma State, Uab
Next four left out: Indiana, Virginia, George Mason, California
Reminder: The first Bracket Watch will be posted on January 3rd.
Final Four Pairings
Midwest(1) vs. West(4)
South(2) vs. East(3)
The First Four
(UD Arena; Dayton, OH; University of Dayton)
March 13th
Game 1: Wagner(Northeast) vs. Alabama State(Southwestern)
Game 2: Brigham Young vs. Cincinnati
March 14th
Game 1: South Dakota State(Summit) vs. UNC Asheville(Big South)
Game 2: Creighton vs. Mississippi State
MIDWEST Region
(Edward Jones Dome; St. Louis; Missouri Valley Conference)
@ Consol Energy Center; Pittsburgh; Duquesne University
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Wagner/Alabama State
8-New Mexico(Mountain West) vs. 9-Florida State
@ Rose Garden Arena; Portland; University of Oregon
4-Wichita State vs. 13-North Texas(Sun Belt)
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-Utah State(Western Athletic)
@ The Pit; Albuquerque; University of New Mexico
2-Baylor(Big 12) vs. 15-Lamar(Southland)
7-Washington vs. 10-Marquette
@ Nationwide Arena; Columbus; Ohio State University
3-Pittsburgh vs. 14-Western Michigan(Mid-American)
6-Temple(Atlantic 10) vs. 11-Northwestern
WEST Region
US Airways Center; Phoenix; Arizona State University
@ Pittsburgh
1-Connecticut(Big East) vs. 16-Stony Brook(America East)
8-Clemson vs. 9-Michigan State
@ Albuquerque
4-Arizona(Pacific-12) vs. 13-Marshall(Conference USA)
5-Texas A&M vs. 12-Brigham Young/Cincinnati
@ Greensboro Coliseum; Greensboro, NC; Atlantic Coast Conference
2-Duke vs. 15-Loyola(MD)(Metro Atlantic)
7-West Virginia vs. 10-Virginia Commonwealth(Colonial)
@ Portland
3-Gonzaga(West Coast) vs. 14-UC Santa Barbara(Big West)
6-Michigan vs. 11-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
SOUTH Region
Georgia Dome; Atlanta; Georgia Tech
@ Greensboro
1-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 16-Hampton(Mid-Eastern)
8-Old Dominion vs. 9-St. Mary's
@ KFC Yum! Center; Louisville; University of Louisville
4-Florida vs. 13- Appalachian State(Southern)
5-Notre Dame vs. 12-Creighton/Mississippi State
@ Bridgestone Arena; Nashville; Ohio Valley Conference
2-Memphis vs. 15-Austin Peay(Ohio Valley)
7-Louisville vs. 10-Miami(FL)
@ Century Link Center; Omaha; Creighton University and Missouri Valley Conference
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-Weber State(Big Sky)
6-Alabama vs. 11-Detroit
EAST Region
TD Garden; Boston
@ Columbus
1-Kentucky(Southeastern) vs. 16-South Dakota State/UNC Asheville
8-Missouri vs. 9-Unlv
@ Nashville
4-Purdue vs. 13-Harvard(Ivy)
5-Virginia Tech vs. 12-Indiana State(Missouri Valley)
@ Louisville
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Lehigh(Patriot)
7-Xavier vs. 10-Central Florida
@ Omaha
3-Kansas vs. 14-Milwaukee(Horizon)
6-Ucla vs. 11-Georgetown
Last four in the field: Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Creighton, Mississippi State
First four left out: Saint Louis, Villanova, Oklahoma State, Uab
Next four left out: Indiana, Virginia, George Mason, California
Reminder: The first Bracket Watch will be posted on January 3rd.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Drama in the City of Jealousy
Yes, I'll have my preseason predictions for the bracket up today, but I couldn't pass this story up.
As the Big East(as in Big East of the Pacific Time Zone) prepares to add 6 more schools, one school who's in the Big East's backyard is going to be left out because of envy. The school is Temple, and their main tormentor is Villanova.SBNation's Temple page(link forthcoming) has the scoop:
Sounds like envy right? Of course it is. It's also a sign to the new football playing schools that it's the hoop schools that dominate the agenda in this league. And that might not change until those who play football make their break. And then they might welcome the Owls to their ranks.
As the Big East(as in Big East of the Pacific Time Zone) prepares to add 6 more schools, one school who's in the Big East's backyard is going to be left out because of envy. The school is Temple, and their main tormentor is Villanova.
The Wildcats reportedly do not want to share the Philadelphia market with another Big East team. There had been some speculation that Villanova’s concerns about adding Temple as a basketball school would lead the conference to extend the Owls a football only invite. However, at least according to McMurphy’s source, that will not be the case.
SNIP
Temple fans will cry foul about an uneven playing field – but if you want the basketball playing field to be even, football needs to be too. And if the Big East isn’t willing to extend that olive branch, Villanova should be opposed to sharing their dominance in the Philadelphia market, a known hoops haven. So no, Villanova isn’t scared of Temple. They’re just being savvy and not giving up a territory that they dominate with nothing in return.
Sounds like envy right? Of course it is. It's also a sign to the new football playing schools that it's the hoop schools that dominate the agenda in this league. And that might not change until those who play football make their break. And then they might welcome the Owls to their ranks.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Predicting the finish-Conference races(Part 2)
Onward we go with the regular season finishes(before the season even starts!
Key:
Conference Tournament Champion
Regular Season Champion, NIT Automatic Bid
Mid-Eastern
1. Coppin State
2. HAMPTON
3. North Carolina Central
4. Morgan State
5. Howard
6. Norfolk State
7. North Carolina A&T
8. Bethune-Cookman
9. Delaware State
10. South Carolina State
11. Florida A&M
12. Umes
13. Savannah State
Missouri Valley
1. Wichita State
2. Creighton
3. INDIANA STATE
4. Missouri State
5. Evansville
6. Northern Iowa
7. Drake
8. Illinois State
9. Southern Illinois
10. Bradley
Mountain West
1. NEW MEXICO
2. Unlv
3. San Diego State
4. Texas Christian
5. Boise State
6. Colorado State
7. Air Force
8. Wyoming
Northeast
1. Long Island
2. Robert Morris
3. Central Connecticut State
4. WAGNER
5. Mount St. Mary's
6. St. Francis(NY)
7. Quinnipiac
8. Sacred Heart
9. Bryant
10. Monmouth
11. St. Francis(PA)
12. Fairleigh Dickinson
Ohio Valley
1. Tennessee Tech
2. AUSTIN PEAY
3. Murray State
4. Tennessee State
5. Jacksonville State
6. SE Missouri State
7. Eastern Kentucky
8. Morehead State
9. Tennessee-Martin
10. Eastern Illinois
11. SIU-Edwardsville
Pacific 12
1. ARIZONA
2. Ucla
3. Washington
4. California
5. Southern California
6. Stanford
7. Oregon
8. Arizona State
9. Washington State
10. Colorado
11. Oregon State
12. Utah
Patriot League
1. Bucknell
2. LEHIGH
3. American
4. Army
5. Holy Cross
6. Colgate
7. Lafayette
8. Navy
Southeastern
1. KENTUCKY
2. Florida
3. Alabama
4. Vanderbilt
5. Mississippi State
6. Mississippi
7. Arkansas
8. Georgia
9. Tennessee
10. Louisiana State
11. South Carolina
12. Auburn
Southern
North Division
1. Western Carolina
2. APPALACHIAN STATE
3. Elon
4. Chattanooga
5. UNC Greensboro
6. Samford
South Division
1. Davidson
2. College of Charleston
3. Furman
4. The Citadel
5. Wofford
6. Georgia Southern
Southland
East Division
1. LAMAR
2. Northwestern State
3. SE Louisiana
4. Central Arkansas
5. McNeese State
6. Nicholls State
West Division
1. Texas-Arlington
2. Utsa
3. Stephen F. Austin
4. Sam Houston State
5. Texas State
6. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Southwestern
1. ALABAMA STATE
2. Jackson State
3. Texas Southern
4. Alabama A&M
5. Prairie View A&M
6. Mississippi Valley State
7. Uapb
8. Alcorn State
9. Grambling
10. Southern
Summit
1. Oral Roberts
2. Oakland
3. SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
4. North Dakota State
5. Iupui
6. Southern Utah
7. Missouri-Kansas City
8. South Dakota
9. Ipfw
10. Western Illinois
Sun Belt
East Division
1. Florida Atlantic
2. South Alabama
3. Middle Tennessee
4. Western Kentucky
5. Florida International
6. Troy
West Division
1. NORTH TEXAS
2. Arkansas State
3. Louisiana-Lafayette
4. Ualr
5. Denver
6. Louisiana-Monroe
West Coast
1. GONZAGA
2. St. Mary's
3. Brigham Young
4. Portland
5. Santa Clara
6. Pepperdine
7. San Francisco
8. San Diego
9. Loyola Marymount
Western Athletic
1. UTAH STATE
2. Nevada
3. New Mexico State
4. Idaho
5. Fresno State
6. Hawai'i
7. San Jose State
8. Louisiana Tech
And last, but not least, the Great West(if you constitute west as being west of the Hudson.)
1. NJIT
2. Utah Valley
3. North Dakota
4. Houston Baptist
5. Texas-Pan American
6. Chicago State
Key:
Conference Tournament Champion
Regular Season Champion, NIT Automatic Bid
Mid-Eastern
1. Coppin State
2. HAMPTON
3. North Carolina Central
4. Morgan State
5. Howard
6. Norfolk State
7. North Carolina A&T
8. Bethune-Cookman
9. Delaware State
10. South Carolina State
11. Florida A&M
12. Umes
13. Savannah State
Missouri Valley
1. Wichita State
2. Creighton
3. INDIANA STATE
4. Missouri State
5. Evansville
6. Northern Iowa
7. Drake
8. Illinois State
9. Southern Illinois
10. Bradley
Mountain West
1. NEW MEXICO
2. Unlv
3. San Diego State
4. Texas Christian
5. Boise State
6. Colorado State
7. Air Force
8. Wyoming
Northeast
1. Long Island
2. Robert Morris
3. Central Connecticut State
4. WAGNER
5. Mount St. Mary's
6. St. Francis(NY)
7. Quinnipiac
8. Sacred Heart
9. Bryant
10. Monmouth
11. St. Francis(PA)
12. Fairleigh Dickinson
Ohio Valley
1. Tennessee Tech
2. AUSTIN PEAY
3. Murray State
4. Tennessee State
5. Jacksonville State
6. SE Missouri State
7. Eastern Kentucky
8. Morehead State
9. Tennessee-Martin
10. Eastern Illinois
11. SIU-Edwardsville
Pacific 12
1. ARIZONA
2. Ucla
3. Washington
4. California
5. Southern California
6. Stanford
7. Oregon
8. Arizona State
9. Washington State
10. Colorado
11. Oregon State
12. Utah
Patriot League
1. Bucknell
2. LEHIGH
3. American
4. Army
5. Holy Cross
6. Colgate
7. Lafayette
8. Navy
Southeastern
1. KENTUCKY
2. Florida
3. Alabama
4. Vanderbilt
5. Mississippi State
6. Mississippi
7. Arkansas
8. Georgia
9. Tennessee
10. Louisiana State
11. South Carolina
12. Auburn
Southern
North Division
1. Western Carolina
2. APPALACHIAN STATE
3. Elon
4. Chattanooga
5. UNC Greensboro
6. Samford
South Division
1. Davidson
2. College of Charleston
3. Furman
4. The Citadel
5. Wofford
6. Georgia Southern
Southland
East Division
1. LAMAR
2. Northwestern State
3. SE Louisiana
4. Central Arkansas
5. McNeese State
6. Nicholls State
West Division
1. Texas-Arlington
2. Utsa
3. Stephen F. Austin
4. Sam Houston State
5. Texas State
6. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Southwestern
1. ALABAMA STATE
2. Jackson State
3. Texas Southern
4. Alabama A&M
5. Prairie View A&M
6. Mississippi Valley State
7. Uapb
8. Alcorn State
9. Grambling
10. Southern
Summit
1. Oral Roberts
2. Oakland
3. SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
4. North Dakota State
5. Iupui
6. Southern Utah
7. Missouri-Kansas City
8. South Dakota
9. Ipfw
10. Western Illinois
Sun Belt
East Division
1. Florida Atlantic
2. South Alabama
3. Middle Tennessee
4. Western Kentucky
5. Florida International
6. Troy
West Division
1. NORTH TEXAS
2. Arkansas State
3. Louisiana-Lafayette
4. Ualr
5. Denver
6. Louisiana-Monroe
West Coast
1. GONZAGA
2. St. Mary's
3. Brigham Young
4. Portland
5. Santa Clara
6. Pepperdine
7. San Francisco
8. San Diego
9. Loyola Marymount
Western Athletic
1. UTAH STATE
2. Nevada
3. New Mexico State
4. Idaho
5. Fresno State
6. Hawai'i
7. San Jose State
8. Louisiana Tech
And last, but not least, the Great West(if you constitute west as being west of the Hudson.)
1. NJIT
2. Utah Valley
3. North Dakota
4. Houston Baptist
5. Texas-Pan American
6. Chicago State
Predicting the finish-Conference Races(Part 1)
As I explained last week, I was planning on unveiling my conference predictions after releasing my preseason bracket. But that was before I decided it was better to release my regular season predictions first. So with that out of the way, here now are my predictions for the 32 conferences. For space purposes, it's divided into two parts.
Key:
Conference Tournament Champion
Regular Season Champion, NIT Automatic Bid
America East
1. STONY BROOK
2. Albany
3. Hartford
4. Vermont
5. Maine
6. Boston University
7. New Hampshire
8. Binghamton
9. Maryland-Baltimore County
Atlantic Coast
1. NORTH CAROLINA
2. Duke
3. Virginia Tech
4. Clemson
5. Florida State
6. Miami(FL)
7. Virginia
8. NC State
9. Boston College
10. Maryland
11. Georgia Tech
12. Wake Forest
Atlantic Sun
1. BELMONT
2. Jacksonville
3. North Florida
4. East Tennessee State
5. Lipscomb
6. South Carolina Upstate
7. Stetson
8. Kennesaw State
9. Mercer
10. Florida Gulf Coast
Atlantic 10
1. Xavier
2. TEMPLE
3. Saint Louis
4. Duquesne
5. Charlotte
6. St. Bonaventure
7. Massachusetts
8. George Washington
9. St. Joseph's
10. Dayton
11. Richmond
12. Rhode Island
13. La Salle
14. Fordham
Big East
1. Syracuse
2. CONNECTICUT
3. Pittsburgh
4. Notre Dame
5. Louisville
6. Marquette
7. Cincinnati
8. Georgetown
9. West Virginia
10. Villanova
11. St. John's
12. Rutgers
13. Providence
14. DePaul
15. Seton Hall
16. South Florida
Big Sky
1. WEBER STATE
2. Montana
3. Northern Colorado
4. Montana State
5. Idaho State
6. Northern Arizona
7. Portland State
8. Sacramento State
9. Eastern Washington
Big South
1. Liberty
2. Radford
3. UNC ASHEVILLE
4. Coastal Carolina
5. Winthrop
6. High Point
7. Virginia Military
8. Campbell
9. Charleston Southern
10. Gardner-Webb
11. Presbyterian
Big Ten
1. OHIO STATE
2. Wisconsin
3. Purdue
4. Michigan
5. Northwestern
6. Michigan State
7. Indiana
8. Minnesota
9. Penn State
10. Illinois
11. Nebraska
12. Iowa
Big 12
1. BAYLOR
2. Kansas
3. Texas A&M
4. Missouri
5. Oklahoma State
6. Texas
7. Kansas State
8. Oklahoma
9. Texas Tech
10. Iowa State
Big West
1. Long Beach State
2. Cal State Fullerton
3. UCSB
4. UC Davis
5. UC Irvine
6. Pacific
7. UC Riverside
8. Cal Poly
9. Northridge State
Colonial
1.VCU
2. Old Dominion
3. George Mason
4. James Madison
5. UNC Wilmington
6. William & Mary
7. Northeastern
8. Drexel
9. Hofstra
10. Delaware
11. Towson
12. Georgia State
Conference USA
1. Memphis
2. Central Florida
3. MARSHALL
4. Uab
5. Tulsa
6. Southern Methodist
7. Rice
8. Tulane
9. Utep
10. East Carolina
11. Houston
12. Southern Mississippi
Horizon League
1. Detroit
2. Cleveland State
3. MILWAUKEE
4. Butler
5. Wright State
6. Green Bay
7. Loyola of Chicago
8. Valparaiso
9. Illinois-Chicago
10. Youngstown State
Ivy League
1. HARVARD
2. Princeton
3. Cornell
4. Pennsylvania
5. Yale
6. Dartmouth
7. Columbia
8. Brown
Metro Atlantic
1. Fairfield
2. St. Peter's
3. Iona
4. Canisius
5. LOYOLA(MD)
6. Niagara
7. Manhattan
8. Rider
9. Siena
10. Marist
Mid-American
Eastern Division
1.Akron
2. Ohio
3. Kent State
4. Miami(OH)
5. Buffalo
6. Bowling Green
Western Division
1. Ball State
2. WESTERN MICHIGAN
3. Toledo
4. Central Michigan
5. Northern Illinois
6. Eastern Michgan
Key:
Conference Tournament Champion
Regular Season Champion, NIT Automatic Bid
America East
1. STONY BROOK
2. Albany
3. Hartford
4. Vermont
5. Maine
6. Boston University
7. New Hampshire
8. Binghamton
9. Maryland-Baltimore County
Atlantic Coast
1. NORTH CAROLINA
2. Duke
3. Virginia Tech
4. Clemson
5. Florida State
6. Miami(FL)
7. Virginia
8. NC State
9. Boston College
10. Maryland
11. Georgia Tech
12. Wake Forest
Atlantic Sun
1. BELMONT
2. Jacksonville
3. North Florida
4. East Tennessee State
5. Lipscomb
6. South Carolina Upstate
7. Stetson
8. Kennesaw State
9. Mercer
10. Florida Gulf Coast
Atlantic 10
1. Xavier
2. TEMPLE
3. Saint Louis
4. Duquesne
5. Charlotte
6. St. Bonaventure
7. Massachusetts
8. George Washington
9. St. Joseph's
10. Dayton
11. Richmond
12. Rhode Island
13. La Salle
14. Fordham
Big East
1. Syracuse
2. CONNECTICUT
3. Pittsburgh
4. Notre Dame
5. Louisville
6. Marquette
7. Cincinnati
8. Georgetown
9. West Virginia
10. Villanova
11. St. John's
12. Rutgers
13. Providence
14. DePaul
15. Seton Hall
16. South Florida
Big Sky
1. WEBER STATE
2. Montana
3. Northern Colorado
4. Montana State
5. Idaho State
6. Northern Arizona
7. Portland State
8. Sacramento State
9. Eastern Washington
Big South
1. Liberty
2. Radford
3. UNC ASHEVILLE
4. Coastal Carolina
5. Winthrop
6. High Point
7. Virginia Military
8. Campbell
9. Charleston Southern
10. Gardner-Webb
11. Presbyterian
Big Ten
1. OHIO STATE
2. Wisconsin
3. Purdue
4. Michigan
5. Northwestern
6. Michigan State
7. Indiana
8. Minnesota
9. Penn State
10. Illinois
11. Nebraska
12. Iowa
Big 12
1. BAYLOR
2. Kansas
3. Texas A&M
4. Missouri
5. Oklahoma State
6. Texas
7. Kansas State
8. Oklahoma
9. Texas Tech
10. Iowa State
Big West
1. Long Beach State
2. Cal State Fullerton
3. UCSB
4. UC Davis
5. UC Irvine
6. Pacific
7. UC Riverside
8. Cal Poly
9. Northridge State
Colonial
1.VCU
2. Old Dominion
3. George Mason
4. James Madison
5. UNC Wilmington
6. William & Mary
7. Northeastern
8. Drexel
9. Hofstra
10. Delaware
11. Towson
12. Georgia State
Conference USA
1. Memphis
2. Central Florida
3. MARSHALL
4. Uab
5. Tulsa
6. Southern Methodist
7. Rice
8. Tulane
9. Utep
10. East Carolina
11. Houston
12. Southern Mississippi
Horizon League
1. Detroit
2. Cleveland State
3. MILWAUKEE
4. Butler
5. Wright State
6. Green Bay
7. Loyola of Chicago
8. Valparaiso
9. Illinois-Chicago
10. Youngstown State
Ivy League
1. HARVARD
2. Princeton
3. Cornell
4. Pennsylvania
5. Yale
6. Dartmouth
7. Columbia
8. Brown
Metro Atlantic
1. Fairfield
2. St. Peter's
3. Iona
4. Canisius
5. LOYOLA(MD)
6. Niagara
7. Manhattan
8. Rider
9. Siena
10. Marist
Mid-American
Eastern Division
1.Akron
2. Ohio
3. Kent State
4. Miami(OH)
5. Buffalo
6. Bowling Green
Western Division
1. Ball State
2. WESTERN MICHIGAN
3. Toledo
4. Central Michigan
5. Northern Illinois
6. Eastern Michgan
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Coming soon...
...the preseason look at the end result will be up next week. I have the field already chosen, just need to make a seed list and then bracket them. I'll also have a superpost predicting the 32 regular season races the next day.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Still nothing to see
Wishful thinking on my part that the NCAA would name the East Region host site for the 2013 Men's tournament. If it isn't obvious by now, the NCAA has decided to string this out for no good reason at all so it can make a triumpant announcement that the East Region in 2013 will be played at Madison Square Garden, but it can't for one of 2 reasons:
1) The multi-million dollar renovation is not expected to end until the Summer of 2013. or;
2) The Circus is objecting.
Of course it could be true that the Garden is not even in play here and the NCAA is looking over to Barclays Center in Brooklyn, but who knows. The simple fact the NCAA is not even throwing out hints as to where it wants to go is troubling enough, but with the 2013 tournament now 18 months distant, the clock is ticking louder. The need to hold up this information like it's a Soviet state secret is looking more and more ridiculous. The NCAA must come clean within the coming days and just announce the site already. A nation waits with great anticipation.
1) The multi-million dollar renovation is not expected to end until the Summer of 2013. or;
2) The Circus is objecting.
Of course it could be true that the Garden is not even in play here and the NCAA is looking over to Barclays Center in Brooklyn, but who knows. The simple fact the NCAA is not even throwing out hints as to where it wants to go is troubling enough, but with the 2013 tournament now 18 months distant, the clock is ticking louder. The need to hold up this information like it's a Soviet state secret is looking more and more ridiculous. The NCAA must come clean within the coming days and just announce the site already. A nation waits with great anticipation.
Friday, August 12, 2011
As the Conferences turn
The tetonics of the college sports planet have awaken during this August of Discontent, and it's as active as it was last June. This time, it involves the fates of three conferences not touched by last year's upheave. But it also includes one of the central characters of last year trying to survive.
A 14-school SEC...maybe
The most vexing question to the direction of these moves is the potential of the SEC to go from the 12-team structure it pioneered in University Division Football in 1992 to 14, or possibly 16, teams in the next few years. The most likely candidate to join is Texas A&M, whom, as you'll read about shortly, are thinking about bolting the Big 12-2. If the Aggies join, a 14th team will need to be in order. Reports out of Florida have ACC member Florida State as the 14th team(much to the potential disgust of UF AD, Jeremy Foley, who's made loud noises about having his Gators be the only Sunshine State school in the league). But the SEC might not stop there. Schools like Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Missouri, West Virginia, Clemson, Virginia Tech, North Carolina and NC State have been linked to possible expansion. If it's limited to the first 3 schools, the Big 12-2 is almost toast, if the choices come from the last 5, Jon Swofford may have to merge the rump of the ACC with the football playing "Big East" schools. So it's likely the SEC will split the difference, which may bring in the Big Ten to pick off schools like Kansas, Missouri(if the SEC doesn't move first), Syracuse, Rutgers, Maryland, and possibly Virginia. Now why is such a move possible?
Big Brother-Little Brother Syndrome
Despite being enriched by television deals with ESPN and the Fox Sports Media Group, Texas A&M officials have been very frank about their unhappiness with their situation in the Big 12-2. It's only increased with Texas' new Longhorn Network, which will launch in 2 weeks. One beef with the new ESPN-owned service is that the Horns are seeking to have at least one Big 12-2 game on in order to increase it's worthiness to Cable and Satellite systems. The other beef was the fact that LHN sought to air High School games, but the NCAA shot that idea down. Nonetheless, the Aggies are trying to get out, even Govenor Rick Perry admits to the notion of escaping(despite previous attempts by him to keep UT and TAMU tied to each other during last year's tetonics).
Action, Reaction
It seems inevitable that TAMU and the SEC are going to elope and join forces. Then what? Will the remainder of the SEC go over Jeremy Foley's head and invite Florida State? Will they go to 16 and go after Oklahoma? Oklahoma State? In the east, how bout Clemson? UNC? NC State? Virginia Tech? Can Dan Branch, chair of the influential Texas House Higher Education Committee try to trim funding for TAMU?
The answers are coming soon, and if you ask me, I think the SEC goes to 14. With Florida State joining in as well.
A 14-school SEC...maybe
The most vexing question to the direction of these moves is the potential of the SEC to go from the 12-team structure it pioneered in University Division Football in 1992 to 14, or possibly 16, teams in the next few years. The most likely candidate to join is Texas A&M, whom, as you'll read about shortly, are thinking about bolting the Big 12-2. If the Aggies join, a 14th team will need to be in order. Reports out of Florida have ACC member Florida State as the 14th team(much to the potential disgust of UF AD, Jeremy Foley, who's made loud noises about having his Gators be the only Sunshine State school in the league). But the SEC might not stop there. Schools like Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Missouri, West Virginia, Clemson, Virginia Tech, North Carolina and NC State have been linked to possible expansion. If it's limited to the first 3 schools, the Big 12-2 is almost toast, if the choices come from the last 5, Jon Swofford may have to merge the rump of the ACC with the football playing "Big East" schools. So it's likely the SEC will split the difference, which may bring in the Big Ten to pick off schools like Kansas, Missouri(if the SEC doesn't move first), Syracuse, Rutgers, Maryland, and possibly Virginia. Now why is such a move possible?
Big Brother-Little Brother Syndrome
Despite being enriched by television deals with ESPN and the Fox Sports Media Group, Texas A&M officials have been very frank about their unhappiness with their situation in the Big 12-2. It's only increased with Texas' new Longhorn Network, which will launch in 2 weeks. One beef with the new ESPN-owned service is that the Horns are seeking to have at least one Big 12-2 game on in order to increase it's worthiness to Cable and Satellite systems. The other beef was the fact that LHN sought to air High School games, but the NCAA shot that idea down. Nonetheless, the Aggies are trying to get out, even Govenor Rick Perry admits to the notion of escaping(despite previous attempts by him to keep UT and TAMU tied to each other during last year's tetonics).
Action, Reaction
It seems inevitable that TAMU and the SEC are going to elope and join forces. Then what? Will the remainder of the SEC go over Jeremy Foley's head and invite Florida State? Will they go to 16 and go after Oklahoma? Oklahoma State? In the east, how bout Clemson? UNC? NC State? Virginia Tech? Can Dan Branch, chair of the influential Texas House Higher Education Committee try to trim funding for TAMU?
The answers are coming soon, and if you ask me, I think the SEC goes to 14. With Florida State joining in as well.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Now we know the bitter truth
The NCAA made an announcement today on future sites for the Division I Men's Basketball tournament. Unfortunately, it wasn't the one I harped upon last year around this time.
The announcement that Dayton will host the next two years of the First Four was well known in advance, but the NCAA's continued silence on who will host the East Regional in 21 months time continues to be the most deafening silence ever uttered since Manfred Mann released The Roaring Silence in 1976.
It's now very obvious the NCAA is witholding the identinty of the site so that Madison Square Garden can complete it's renovation by March, 2013. But there is one problem, the renovation will not be totally complete until October, 2013. If I'm positive, the NCAA wants the arena to be fully renovated(not just the seating bowl) before hand. So what excuse could the NCAA possibly have? A secret deal between it, St. John's, and the Big East(the potential hosts of any garden party)? A lukewarm reception from other prospective hosts?
Obviously, the NCAA needs to name a host site and school by September. Otherwise the prospective hosts will have very little time to prepare. IMO, they should have named the host LAST September.
The announcement that Dayton will host the next two years of the First Four was well known in advance, but the NCAA's continued silence on who will host the East Regional in 21 months time continues to be the most deafening silence ever uttered since Manfred Mann released The Roaring Silence in 1976.
It's now very obvious the NCAA is witholding the identinty of the site so that Madison Square Garden can complete it's renovation by March, 2013. But there is one problem, the renovation will not be totally complete until October, 2013. If I'm positive, the NCAA wants the arena to be fully renovated(not just the seating bowl) before hand. So what excuse could the NCAA possibly have? A secret deal between it, St. John's, and the Big East(the potential hosts of any garden party)? A lukewarm reception from other prospective hosts?
Obviously, the NCAA needs to name a host site and school by September. Otherwise the prospective hosts will have very little time to prepare. IMO, they should have named the host LAST September.
Friday, April 1, 2011
OT: Something I've been working on
Over the last several months, I've been quietly setting up a new forum dedicated to the history of the NAIA. I'm here to tell you that it's now open to all. Please go to this address: http://naiahistoryforum.freeforums.org/index.php. Enjoy it, you'll like it. Note: I'm in the process of moving the centerpiece of the forums, a detailed history of the NAIA's various playoffs to determine the qualifiers for the Men's and Women's basketball national championships to it's very own dedicated forum, so it will take some time.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
The knee jerk to the field of 68(or The Screwing of Seth Greenberg, take four)
Well the field is out, and all I can say at this point is this: What was Gene Smith and the NCAA Division I Baskeball Committee smoking(if they indeed do smoke)?
The top of the field
Ohio State and Kansas were the easiest one seeds to find, both having swept their respective conferences' regular season and tournament championships. Placing them in was also tre facile. The Buckeyes were slotted in Newark, the Jayhawks in San Antonio. There were some doubts about the identity of the other two ones, in the end, Pittsburgh(Southeast) and Duke(West) were granted top spots, leaving Notre Dame, North Carolina, and San Diego State somewhat dissapointed. All three leftovers, plus Florida make up the second line.
The last spots
At the start of the day, St. Mary's, Georgia, and Clemson were the only three teams left that I had some doubts about including. The Bulldogs(10 in the East) and Tigers(First four in the East) did make the field, but the Gaels did not. You'd think that the Gaels would be the lone miss, right? WRONG. The most shocking exlcusion wasn't St. Mary's at all, it was Virginia Tech, who inspite of a regular season shocker over Duke, got excluded from the 68 due to a late season slump that included getting swept by Boston College and losing to fellow bubbler Clemson. Colorado also missed out because of a poor OOC SOS, Alabama got turned down with a poor OOC performance, and Missouri State's first Missouri Valley regular season crown could not prop up the fact they were beaten by Indiana State in the final. Of those who did get in, Virginia Commonwealth was the biggest surprise, a fourth place Colonial finish was counterbalanced by road wins in the NIT Season Tip-Off and at Wichita State. Southern California finished fourth in the Pacific-10, but had marquee wins galore. And UAB conveyed an outright Conference USA title into a bid.
Surprise seeds
Butler was seeded by most as a 10 or 11, but the NCAA gave them an 8. Utah State's 12 meant that the Aggies would have missed the field if they lost WAC final. Michigan was a bubble team by most accounts, but an 8 was given. At the top, Texas had dreams of being a 2 or 3, but wound up a 4. I could go on and on about the seeding, but I won't, not with issues of...
Pod placement
Pittsburgh was sent to Washington, D.C. instead of Cleveland(presumably to allow the UNC Asheville-UALR winner to have a quick turnaround.
My personal performance
If my performance is indicative of what the rest of the bracketologists did, we(collectively) did a horrendous job this year in selecting and seeding. All I know at this point is that I did better at selecting at-larges than Bracketology 101 did(that statement says a lot:
Missed teams: 3(UAB, Southern California, Virginia Commonwealth; chose instead Colorado, St. Mary's, Virginia Tech)
Teams seeded within one seed line: 52
Teams at exact seed: 25
*The Buckeyes only need to be seeded 1st in the West sometime in the future to complete the Grand Slam of Seeding, while the Big Ten +2, with it's first East #1 completes the conference version of the slam.
The top of the field
Ohio State and Kansas were the easiest one seeds to find, both having swept their respective conferences' regular season and tournament championships. Placing them in was also tre facile. The Buckeyes were slotted in Newark, the Jayhawks in San Antonio. There were some doubts about the identity of the other two ones, in the end, Pittsburgh(Southeast) and Duke(West) were granted top spots, leaving Notre Dame, North Carolina, and San Diego State somewhat dissapointed. All three leftovers, plus Florida make up the second line.
The last spots
At the start of the day, St. Mary's, Georgia, and Clemson were the only three teams left that I had some doubts about including. The Bulldogs(10 in the East) and Tigers(First four in the East) did make the field, but the Gaels did not. You'd think that the Gaels would be the lone miss, right? WRONG. The most shocking exlcusion wasn't St. Mary's at all, it was Virginia Tech, who inspite of a regular season shocker over Duke, got excluded from the 68 due to a late season slump that included getting swept by Boston College and losing to fellow bubbler Clemson. Colorado also missed out because of a poor OOC SOS, Alabama got turned down with a poor OOC performance, and Missouri State's first Missouri Valley regular season crown could not prop up the fact they were beaten by Indiana State in the final. Of those who did get in, Virginia Commonwealth was the biggest surprise, a fourth place Colonial finish was counterbalanced by road wins in the NIT Season Tip-Off and at Wichita State. Southern California finished fourth in the Pacific-10, but had marquee wins galore. And UAB conveyed an outright Conference USA title into a bid.
Surprise seeds
Butler was seeded by most as a 10 or 11, but the NCAA gave them an 8. Utah State's 12 meant that the Aggies would have missed the field if they lost WAC final. Michigan was a bubble team by most accounts, but an 8 was given. At the top, Texas had dreams of being a 2 or 3, but wound up a 4. I could go on and on about the seeding, but I won't, not with issues of...
Pod placement
Pittsburgh was sent to Washington, D.C. instead of Cleveland(presumably to allow the UNC Asheville-UALR winner to have a quick turnaround.
My personal performance
If my performance is indicative of what the rest of the bracketologists did, we(collectively) did a horrendous job this year in selecting and seeding. All I know at this point is that I did better at selecting at-larges than Bracketology 101 did(that statement says a lot:
Missed teams: 3(UAB, Southern California, Virginia Commonwealth; chose instead Colorado, St. Mary's, Virginia Tech)
Teams seeded within one seed line: 52
Teams at exact seed: 25
*The Buckeyes only need to be seeded 1st in the West sometime in the future to complete the Grand Slam of Seeding, while the Big Ten +2, with it's first East #1 completes the conference version of the slam.
Bracket Watch '11 - The FINAL projection
Well, it's here. The last projection of the season since the bracketing process starts at 3:30 EDT. This is the bracket that I'm standing on for all bracket aggregators like Bracket Matrix. This is based on my initial Sunday bracket, but there are a few changes as a result of the early games; Duke and North Carolina swap seeds as a result of the ACC final; Florida swaps seeds with Connecticut, and Kentucky with BYU as a result of the SEC; also, due to the changes above, Penn State and Villanova, and Arizona and West Virginia swap seeds to avoid conflicts.
Final four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The first four
Tuesday: UNC ASHEVILLE vs. UALR; Michigan State vs. Clemson
Wednesday: UC SANTA BARBARA vs. ALABAMA STATE; St. Mary's vs. Georgia
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State vs. 16-UC SANTA BARBARA/ALABAMA STATE
8-George Mason vs. 9-GONZAGA
@ Washington, D.C.
4-Syracuse vs. 13-PRINCETON
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-BELMONT
@ Tucson
2-SAN DIEGO STATE vs. 15-NORTHERN COLORADO
7-Cincinnati vs. 10-Florida State
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-LONG ISLAND
6-Temple vs. 11-MEMPHIS
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-UT SAN ANTONIO
8-UTAH STATE vs. 9-Missouri
@ Denver
4-Brigham Young vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Michigan State/Clemson
@ Charlotte
2-North Carolina vs. 15-BOSTON UNIVERSITY
7-Texas A&M vs. 10-RICHMOND
@ Denver
3-KENTUCKY vs. 14-MOREHEAD STATE
6-Arizona vs. 11-Michigan
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-KANSAS vs. 16-HAMPTON
8-Ucla vs. 9-Marquette
@ Chicago
4-Purdue vs. 13-St. Mary's/Georgia
5-St. John's vs. 12-Virginia Tech
@ Cleveland
2-Pittsburgh vs. 15-BUCKNELL
7-Tennessee vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Tampa
3-Louisville vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Xavier vs. 11-Illinois
Southeast region
@ Charlotte
1-DUKE vs. 16-UNC ASHEVILLE/UALR
8-WASHINGTON vs. 9-Unlv
@ Tucson
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-Georgetown vs. 12-Colorado
@ Washington, D.C.
2-CONNECTICUT vs. 15-AKRON
7-OLD DOMINION vs. 10-Penn State
@ Tampa
3-Florida vs. 14-SAINT PETER'S
6-Kansas State vs. 11-Villanova
The last four in the field: Michigan State, St. Mary's, Georgia, Clemson
Note: Michigan State is safe, the others are not.
The first four left out: Alabama, Harvard, Boston College, Southern California
The next four left out: Uab, Utep, Missouri State, Virginia Commonwealth
To all bracketologists out there, good luck and good seeding.
Final four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The first four
Tuesday: UNC ASHEVILLE vs. UALR; Michigan State vs. Clemson
Wednesday: UC SANTA BARBARA vs. ALABAMA STATE; St. Mary's vs. Georgia
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State vs. 16-UC SANTA BARBARA/ALABAMA STATE
8-George Mason vs. 9-GONZAGA
@ Washington, D.C.
4-Syracuse vs. 13-PRINCETON
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-BELMONT
@ Tucson
2-SAN DIEGO STATE vs. 15-NORTHERN COLORADO
7-Cincinnati vs. 10-Florida State
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-LONG ISLAND
6-Temple vs. 11-MEMPHIS
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-UT SAN ANTONIO
8-UTAH STATE vs. 9-Missouri
@ Denver
4-Brigham Young vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Michigan State/Clemson
@ Charlotte
2-North Carolina vs. 15-BOSTON UNIVERSITY
7-Texas A&M vs. 10-RICHMOND
@ Denver
3-KENTUCKY vs. 14-MOREHEAD STATE
6-Arizona vs. 11-Michigan
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-KANSAS vs. 16-HAMPTON
8-Ucla vs. 9-Marquette
@ Chicago
4-Purdue vs. 13-St. Mary's/Georgia
5-St. John's vs. 12-Virginia Tech
@ Cleveland
2-Pittsburgh vs. 15-BUCKNELL
7-Tennessee vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Tampa
3-Louisville vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Xavier vs. 11-Illinois
Southeast region
@ Charlotte
1-DUKE vs. 16-UNC ASHEVILLE/UALR
8-WASHINGTON vs. 9-Unlv
@ Tucson
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-Georgetown vs. 12-Colorado
@ Washington, D.C.
2-CONNECTICUT vs. 15-AKRON
7-OLD DOMINION vs. 10-Penn State
@ Tampa
3-Florida vs. 14-SAINT PETER'S
6-Kansas State vs. 11-Villanova
The last four in the field: Michigan State, St. Mary's, Georgia, Clemson
Note: Michigan State is safe, the others are not.
The first four left out: Alabama, Harvard, Boston College, Southern California
The next four left out: Uab, Utep, Missouri State, Virginia Commonwealth
To all bracketologists out there, good luck and good seeding.
Bracket Watch '11 - The early Sunday bracket
I had written earlier this morning that I would not have an early bracket. Oops! So here you go, the first preliminary bracket.
Final four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The first four:
Tuesday: UNC ASHEVILLE vs. UALR; Michigan State vs. Clemson
Wednesday: UC SANTA BARBARA vs. ALABAMA STATE; St. Mary's vs. Georgia
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-UC SANTA BARBARA/ALABAMA STATE
8-George Mason vs. 9-GONZAGA
@ Washington, D.C.
4-Syracuse vs. 13-PRINCETON
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-BELMONT
@ Tucson
2-SAN DIEGO STATE vs. 15-NORTHERN COLORADO
7-Cincinnati vs. 10-Florida State
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-LONG ISLAND
6-Temple vs. 11-MEMPHIS
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-UT SAN ANTONIO
8-UTAH STATE vs. 9-Missouri
@ Denver
4-Kentucky vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Arizona vs. 12-Michigan State/Clemson
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-BOSTON UNIVERSITY
7-Texas A&M vs. 10-Richmond(Atlantic 10)
@ Denver
3-Brigham Young vs. 14-MOREHEAD STATE
6-West Virginia vs. 11-Michigan
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-KANSAS vs. 16-HAMPTON
8-Ucla vs. 9-Marquette
@ Chicago
4-Purdue vs. 13-St. Mary's/Georgia
5-St. John's vs. 12-Virginia Tech
@ Cleveland
2-Pittsburgh vs. 15-BUCKNELL
7-Tennessee vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Tampa
3-Louisville vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Xavier vs. 11-Illinois
Southeast region
@ Charlotte
1-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 16-UNC ASHEVILLE/UALR
8-WASHINGTON vs. 9-Unlv
@ Tucson
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-Georgetown vs. 12-Colorado
@ Tampa
2-Florida(Southeast) vs. 15-AKRON
7-OLD DOMINION vs. 10-Villanova
@ Washington, D.C.
3-CONNECTICUT vs. 14-SAINT PETER'S
6-Kansas State vs. 11-Penn State
The last four in the field: Michigan State, St. Mary's, Georgia, Clemson
Note: Michigan State is safe, the others are not.
The first four left out: Alabama, Harvard, Boston College, Southern California
The next four left out: Uab, Utep, Missouri State, Virginia Commonwealth
Note: If Dayton does win the Atlantic 10 final, Clemson is out, and Colorado bumps to the first four.
Well, I'll post again later on today for either an update, or putting up the final projection.
Final four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The first four:
Tuesday: UNC ASHEVILLE vs. UALR; Michigan State vs. Clemson
Wednesday: UC SANTA BARBARA vs. ALABAMA STATE; St. Mary's vs. Georgia
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-UC SANTA BARBARA/ALABAMA STATE
8-George Mason vs. 9-GONZAGA
@ Washington, D.C.
4-Syracuse vs. 13-PRINCETON
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-BELMONT
@ Tucson
2-SAN DIEGO STATE vs. 15-NORTHERN COLORADO
7-Cincinnati vs. 10-Florida State
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-LONG ISLAND
6-Temple vs. 11-MEMPHIS
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-UT SAN ANTONIO
8-UTAH STATE vs. 9-Missouri
@ Denver
4-Kentucky vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Arizona vs. 12-Michigan State/Clemson
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-BOSTON UNIVERSITY
7-Texas A&M vs. 10-Richmond(Atlantic 10)
@ Denver
3-Brigham Young vs. 14-MOREHEAD STATE
6-West Virginia vs. 11-Michigan
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-KANSAS vs. 16-HAMPTON
8-Ucla vs. 9-Marquette
@ Chicago
4-Purdue vs. 13-St. Mary's/Georgia
5-St. John's vs. 12-Virginia Tech
@ Cleveland
2-Pittsburgh vs. 15-BUCKNELL
7-Tennessee vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Tampa
3-Louisville vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Xavier vs. 11-Illinois
Southeast region
@ Charlotte
1-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 16-UNC ASHEVILLE/UALR
8-WASHINGTON vs. 9-Unlv
@ Tucson
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-Georgetown vs. 12-Colorado
@ Tampa
2-Florida(Southeast) vs. 15-AKRON
7-OLD DOMINION vs. 10-Villanova
@ Washington, D.C.
3-CONNECTICUT vs. 14-SAINT PETER'S
6-Kansas State vs. 11-Penn State
The last four in the field: Michigan State, St. Mary's, Georgia, Clemson
Note: Michigan State is safe, the others are not.
The first four left out: Alabama, Harvard, Boston College, Southern California
The next four left out: Uab, Utep, Missouri State, Virginia Commonwealth
Note: If Dayton does win the Atlantic 10 final, Clemson is out, and Colorado bumps to the first four.
Well, I'll post again later on today for either an update, or putting up the final projection.
Quick update
I do have a seed list made up, but it will not be put in to bracket form until after the early games. Expect the final projection to be up around 3 to 4(depending on when I finish actually bracketing).
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Top four seed lines as of 11:30 PM
After a crazy Saturday(and that's both basketball and hockey, thank you very much), here's who I have at the top of the bracket.
1-Ohio State, Kansas, Duke, Notre Dame
2-Pittsburgh, North Carolina, Florida, San Diego State
3-Texas, Connecticut, Brigham Young, Purdue
4-Louisville, Kentucky, St. John's, Syracuse
The last four byes: Penn State, Michigan, Virginia Tech, Colorado
The last four in the field: Michigan State, St. Mary's, Georgia(surprise), Clemson
The first four left out: Alabama, UTEP, Boston College, Southern California
The next three left out: Harvard, Missouri State, UAB
Note: I will post an early bracket by Noon CDT(did you forget to spring ahead?), with a final one to be posted after the early games end, so it's quite likely that the projection I post in the morning could end up the final one.
1-Ohio State, Kansas, Duke, Notre Dame
2-Pittsburgh, North Carolina, Florida, San Diego State
3-Texas, Connecticut, Brigham Young, Purdue
4-Louisville, Kentucky, St. John's, Syracuse
The last four byes: Penn State, Michigan, Virginia Tech, Colorado
The last four in the field: Michigan State, St. Mary's, Georgia(surprise), Clemson
The first four left out: Alabama, UTEP, Boston College, Southern California
The next three left out: Harvard, Missouri State, UAB
Note: I will post an early bracket by Noon CDT(did you forget to spring ahead?), with a final one to be posted after the early games end, so it's quite likely that the projection I post in the morning could end up the final one.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Top four seed lines as of 10:50 PM
UPDATE: I had to do it over after Virginia Tech pulled out a 52-51 win over Florida State.
I don't think I'll have time tomorrow to do a seed update(much less a bracket update), so instead I'm doing a top seeds update and a last four update.
1-Ohio State, Kansas, Notre Dame, Duke
2-Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Brigham Young, North Carolina
3-Purdue, Texas, Louisville, Connecticut
4-San Diego State, Florida, Kentucky, St. John's
Last four to gain 2nd round bye: Michigan State, Villanova, St. Mary's, Colorado
Last four in as of 10:50: Clemson, Alabama, Virginia Tech, Penn State
The under consideraion board(in order): Southern California, Richmond, Memphis, Georgia, Missouri State, UAB
Bid poachers: Dayton, St. Joseph's, Oregon, Boise State/New Mexico State winner
I don't think I'll have time tomorrow to do a seed update(much less a bracket update), so instead I'm doing a top seeds update and a last four update.
1-Ohio State, Kansas, Notre Dame, Duke
2-Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Brigham Young, North Carolina
3-Purdue, Texas, Louisville, Connecticut
4-San Diego State, Florida, Kentucky, St. John's
Last four to gain 2nd round bye: Michigan State, Villanova, St. Mary's, Colorado
Last four in as of 10:50: Clemson, Alabama, Virginia Tech, Penn State
The under consideraion board(in order): Southern California, Richmond, Memphis, Georgia, Missouri State, UAB
Bid poachers: Dayton, St. Joseph's, Oregon, Boise State/New Mexico State winner
Bracket Watch '11 - Two days to Selection Sunday
I had something really witty in mind before revealing the newest projected bracket, but I won't. Not after Japan suffered it's largest earthquake in it's history, which also triggered tsunami warnings for Hawai'i and the West Coast. My thoughts and prayers are on those that are suffering through this time of what will be a great loss. Godspeed Japan, godspeed.
Now on to the projections:
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four
Tuesday: McNeese State(Southland) vs. UNC ASHEVILLE; Alabama vs. Virginia Tech
Wednesday: Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. UALR; Richmond vs. Clemson
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State vs. 16-Texas Southern/UALR
8-Marquette vs. 9-Washington
@ Tucson
4-Connecticut vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-Boston College
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Bucknell(Patriot)
7-OLD DOMINION vs. 10-Illinois
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 11-St. Mary's
West region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Missouri
@ Denver
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 12-Alabama/Virginia Tech
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-MOREHEAD STATE
7-Tennessee vs. 10-Michigan
@ Tucson
3-San Diego State vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Villanova
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-McNeese State/UNC ASHEVILLE
8-Unlv vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Utep(Conference USA)
5-Temple vs. 12-Michigan State
@ Chicago
2-Purdue vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-Cincinnati vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Tampa
3-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 14-LONG ISLAND
6-West Virginia vs. 11-Colorado
Southeast region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame(Big East) vs. 16-NORTHERN COLORADO
8-Ucla vs. 9-George Mason
@ Washington, D.C.
4-St. John's vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Richmond/Clemson
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Beach State(Big West)
7-Kansas State vs. 10-GONZAGA
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-SAINT PETER'S
6-Georgetown vs. 11-BELMONT
New to the field: Utep
Leaving the field: Uab
Last four to get byes: Villanova, Colorado, Boston College, Michigan State
Last four in the field: Richmond, Clemson, Alabama, Virginia Tech
First four left out: Southern California, Georgia, Memphis, Uab
Next four left out: Missouri State, Penn State, New Mexico, Washington State
Seed range for teams not in the field, but could play their way in through conference championships:
Lehigh(First four)
Stony Brook(First four)
Utsa(First four)
Now on to the projections:
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four
Tuesday: McNeese State(Southland) vs. UNC ASHEVILLE; Alabama vs. Virginia Tech
Wednesday: Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. UALR; Richmond vs. Clemson
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State vs. 16-Texas Southern/UALR
8-Marquette vs. 9-Washington
@ Tucson
4-Connecticut vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-Boston College
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Bucknell(Patriot)
7-OLD DOMINION vs. 10-Illinois
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 11-St. Mary's
West region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Missouri
@ Denver
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 12-Alabama/Virginia Tech
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-MOREHEAD STATE
7-Tennessee vs. 10-Michigan
@ Tucson
3-San Diego State vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Villanova
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-McNeese State/UNC ASHEVILLE
8-Unlv vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Utep(Conference USA)
5-Temple vs. 12-Michigan State
@ Chicago
2-Purdue vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-Cincinnati vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Tampa
3-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 14-LONG ISLAND
6-West Virginia vs. 11-Colorado
Southeast region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame(Big East) vs. 16-NORTHERN COLORADO
8-Ucla vs. 9-George Mason
@ Washington, D.C.
4-St. John's vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Richmond/Clemson
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Beach State(Big West)
7-Kansas State vs. 10-GONZAGA
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-SAINT PETER'S
6-Georgetown vs. 11-BELMONT
New to the field: Utep
Leaving the field: Uab
Last four to get byes: Villanova, Colorado, Boston College, Michigan State
Last four in the field: Richmond, Clemson, Alabama, Virginia Tech
First four left out: Southern California, Georgia, Memphis, Uab
Next four left out: Missouri State, Penn State, New Mexico, Washington State
Seed range for teams not in the field, but could play their way in through conference championships:
Lehigh(First four)
Stony Brook(First four)
Utsa(First four)
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Three Days to Selection Sunday
The projected field of 68 contains the same teams that were in the last projection, but plenty of teams moved up to solidify their standing, whilst others stumbled. On the outside, both Nebraska(by one to Oklahoma State) and Baylor(who got vaporized by Oklahoma) lost, ending their hopes of dancing, while Marquette can now consider themselves a locked in team. Today will feature even more bubble teams looking to either make a statement, or make fools of themselves.
On the automatics front, Long Island and Robert Morris played a thriller for the Northeast crown, the Blackbirds eventually winning in OT after the Colonials scored the tying three ball in the last seconds of regulation. In the Big Sky, Northern Colorado scored it's first ever bid to the dance at Montana's expense, but it was back and forth as to whom would win. There are no automatic bids at stake tonight.
Here's how the results resulted in the newest projections.
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four
Tuesday: Alabama vs. Clemson; UNC ASHEVILLE vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
Wednesday: Colorado vs. Virginia Tech; McNeese State(Southland) vs. UALR
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-McNeese State/UALR
8-Georgetown vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tucson
4-Connecticut vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-Alabama/Clemson
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Bucknell(Patriot)
7-Ucla vs. 10-Illinois
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-MOREHEAD STATE
6-Vanderbilt vs. 11-St. Mary's
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-UNC ASHEVILLE/Texas Southern
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Michigan
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-BELMONT
5-Kansas State vs. 12-Uab(Conference USA)
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-OLD DOMINION vs. 10-Villanova
@ Tucson
3-San Diego State vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Temple vs. 11-Washington
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-NORTHERN COLORADO
8-Tennessee vs. 9-Marquette
@ Denver
4-Louisville vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 12-Michigan State
@ Chicago
2-Purdue vs. 15-Kent State(Mid-American)
7-Unlv vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-LONG ISLAND
6-West Virginia vs. 11-Richmond
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Missouri vs. 9-George Mason
@ Washington, D.C.
4-St. John's vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Colorado/Virginia Tech
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Beach State(Big West)
7-Texas A&M vs. 10-GONZAGA
@ Tampa
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-SAINT PETER'S
6-Cincinnati vs. 11-Boston College
New to the field: None
Leaving the field: None
Last four in the field(by seed list): Alabama, Clemson, Colorado, Virginia Tech
First four left out: Southern California, Georgia, Missouri State, Memphis
Next four left out: Washington State, Oklahoma State, Colorado State, Penn State
The under consideration board: Duquesne, Nebraska, Utep, Wichita State(yeah, I had to scrape the bottom of the barrel for the under consideration list.)
On the automatics front, Long Island and Robert Morris played a thriller for the Northeast crown, the Blackbirds eventually winning in OT after the Colonials scored the tying three ball in the last seconds of regulation. In the Big Sky, Northern Colorado scored it's first ever bid to the dance at Montana's expense, but it was back and forth as to whom would win. There are no automatic bids at stake tonight.
Here's how the results resulted in the newest projections.
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four
Tuesday: Alabama vs. Clemson; UNC ASHEVILLE vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
Wednesday: Colorado vs. Virginia Tech; McNeese State(Southland) vs. UALR
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-McNeese State/UALR
8-Georgetown vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tucson
4-Connecticut vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-Alabama/Clemson
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Bucknell(Patriot)
7-Ucla vs. 10-Illinois
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-MOREHEAD STATE
6-Vanderbilt vs. 11-St. Mary's
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-UNC ASHEVILLE/Texas Southern
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Michigan
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-BELMONT
5-Kansas State vs. 12-Uab(Conference USA)
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-OLD DOMINION vs. 10-Villanova
@ Tucson
3-San Diego State vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Temple vs. 11-Washington
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-NORTHERN COLORADO
8-Tennessee vs. 9-Marquette
@ Denver
4-Louisville vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 12-Michigan State
@ Chicago
2-Purdue vs. 15-Kent State(Mid-American)
7-Unlv vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-LONG ISLAND
6-West Virginia vs. 11-Richmond
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Missouri vs. 9-George Mason
@ Washington, D.C.
4-St. John's vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Colorado/Virginia Tech
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Beach State(Big West)
7-Texas A&M vs. 10-GONZAGA
@ Tampa
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-SAINT PETER'S
6-Cincinnati vs. 11-Boston College
New to the field: None
Leaving the field: None
Last four in the field(by seed list): Alabama, Clemson, Colorado, Virginia Tech
First four left out: Southern California, Georgia, Missouri State, Memphis
Next four left out: Washington State, Oklahoma State, Colorado State, Penn State
The under consideration board: Duquesne, Nebraska, Utep, Wichita State(yeah, I had to scrape the bottom of the barrel for the under consideration list.)
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Four Days to Selection Sunday
In terms of my projections(and of others), a bid opened up last night as a result of Butler's domination of Milwaukee in the Horizon League final. But realistically, no one expected the Panthers to do the deed three times against the unflustered Bulldogs, whose reaction to the win was exactly the same as a regular season game(Heck, I'm not sure that a single net was cut into), very ho-hum, another game another win. Also last night, Princeton dominated Penn in the second half to force a one-game playoff with Harvard on Yale's home court, Oakland cruised in the second half to down Oral Roberts for the summit of the Summit, and UALR's cinderella run through the Sun Belt ended with a win against North Texas. The play of the game was Solomon Bozman's game winning three-ball in the closing seconds, capping a 6-1 run in the last 17 seconds.
Amongst the big boys, Villanova is in huge trouble, pulling defeat from the jaws of victory in a 70-69 loss to South Florida. They're still in for now, but it would not be out of the realm of possibility for the Wildcats to miss the big dance.
With yesterday out of the way, here's how the projected field stacks up:
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four
Tuesday: Alabama vs. Virginia Tech; McNeese State(Southland) vs. UALR
Wednesday: Clemson vs. Colorado; Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. UNC ASHEVILLE
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Texas Southern/UNC ASHEVILLE
8-George Mason vs. 9-Villanova
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-Michigan State
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-MOREHEAD STATE
7-Vanderbilt vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Washington, D.C.
3-St. John's vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Arizona vs. 11-Boston College*
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-McNeese State/UALR
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Illinois
@ Tucson
4-Kentucky vs. 13-BELMONT
5-Kansas State vs. 12-Richmond*
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-SAINT PETER'S
7-Georgetown vs. 10-Washington
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Cincinnati vs. 11-GONZAGA
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-Northern Colorado(Big Sky)
8-Unlv vs. 9-Tennessee
@ Denver
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Alabama/Virginia Tech
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-Temple vs. 10-Michigan*
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Uab(Conference USA)*
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-OLD DOMINION vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Connecticut vs. 12-Clemson*/Colorado*
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Ucla vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Missouri vs. 11-St. Mary's*
New to the field: Virginia Tech, UALR
Leaving the field: Milwaukee, North Texas
Last four in the field(by seed list): Alabama, Clemson, Colorado, Virginia Tech
First four left out: Southern California, Georgia, Missouri State, Memphis
Next four left out: Virginia Commonwealth, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Washington State
The under-consideration board: Penn State, UTEP, Wichita State
Seeding range for tonight's finalists not in the field:
Montana(16)
Robert Morris(16 or First Four)
Amongst the big boys, Villanova is in huge trouble, pulling defeat from the jaws of victory in a 70-69 loss to South Florida. They're still in for now, but it would not be out of the realm of possibility for the Wildcats to miss the big dance.
With yesterday out of the way, here's how the projected field stacks up:
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four
Tuesday: Alabama vs. Virginia Tech; McNeese State(Southland) vs. UALR
Wednesday: Clemson vs. Colorado; Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. UNC ASHEVILLE
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Texas Southern/UNC ASHEVILLE
8-George Mason vs. 9-Villanova
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-Michigan State
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-MOREHEAD STATE
7-Vanderbilt vs. 10-BUTLER
@ Washington, D.C.
3-St. John's vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Arizona vs. 11-Boston College*
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-McNeese State/UALR
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Illinois
@ Tucson
4-Kentucky vs. 13-BELMONT
5-Kansas State vs. 12-Richmond*
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-SAINT PETER'S
7-Georgetown vs. 10-Washington
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Cincinnati vs. 11-GONZAGA
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-Northern Colorado(Big Sky)
8-Unlv vs. 9-Tennessee
@ Denver
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-OAKLAND
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Alabama/Virginia Tech
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-Temple vs. 10-Michigan*
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Uab(Conference USA)*
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-OLD DOMINION vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Connecticut vs. 12-Clemson*/Colorado*
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Ucla vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Missouri vs. 11-St. Mary's*
New to the field: Virginia Tech, UALR
Leaving the field: Milwaukee, North Texas
Last four in the field(by seed list): Alabama, Clemson, Colorado, Virginia Tech
First four left out: Southern California, Georgia, Missouri State, Memphis
Next four left out: Virginia Commonwealth, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Washington State
The under-consideration board: Penn State, UTEP, Wichita State
Seeding range for tonight's finalists not in the field:
Montana(16)
Robert Morris(16 or First Four)
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Five Days to Selection Sunday
Last night saw two games that had direct relevance to the bubble and the results were positive. The first one, the Colonial final, saw Old Dominion get out to as much as an 18-point lead before VCU stormed back to within 2. Ultimately, the Monarchs' interior dominance did the Rams in and resulted in a 70-65 win. For the bubble, it's a significant sigh of relief as both the Monarchs and George Mason were in regardless of what happened last night. The second game, the West Coast final in Las Vegas, saw Gonzaga and St. Mary's see-saw the lead well into the second half. But foul trouble for it's two most prominent interior players spelt an inevitable defeat for the Gaels, who now, for the second time in three years, leave themselves exposed to the hungry pack of bid poachers ready to swipe in at a moment's notice.
Here's the latest projection update, with two changes. Connecticut and Missouri swap seeds to better fit their profiles, while WOFFORD and Oakland swap regions to avoid a Wisconsin-WOFFORD rematch. These projections are done as always as if the season has ended.
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four
Tuesday: Colorado vs. Alabama; Northern Colorado(Big Sky) vs. McNeese State(Southland)
Wednesday: Michigan State vs. Clemson; Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. UNC ASHEVILLE
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Texas Southern/UNC ASHEVILLE
8-Villanova vs. 9-George Mason
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-BELMONT
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-MOREHEAD STATE
7-Vanderbilt vs. 10-Butler*
@ Washington, D.C.
3-St. John's vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Arizona vs. 11-Boston College*
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-Northern Colorado/McNeese State
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Illinois
@ Tucson
4-Kentucky vs. 13-Milwaukee(Horizon)
5-Kansas State vs. 12-Richmond
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-SAINT PETER'S
7-Georgetown vs. 10-Washington
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Cincinnati vs. 11-GONZAGA
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Unlv vs. 9-Tennessee
@ Denver
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Colorado*/Alabama*
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-Temple vs. 10-Michigan*
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Uab(Conference USA)*
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-North Texas(Sun Belt)
8-OLD DOMINION vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Connecticut vs. 12-Michigan State*/Clemson*
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Ucla vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Missouri vs. 11-St. Mary's*
New to the field: SAINT PETER'S, WOFFORD, North Texas
Leaving the field: Iona, College of Charleston, Middle Tennessee
Last four in the field(by seed list): Michigan State, Alabama, Clemson, Colorado First four left out: Virginia Tech, Southern California, Georgia, Missouri State
Next four left out: Memphis, Virginia Commonwealth, Oklahoma State, Nebraska The under-consideration board: Penn State, UTEP, Wichita State
Seeding range for tonight's finalists not in the field:
Oral Roberts: 13-14
Arkansas-Little Rock: First Four
Here's the latest projection update, with two changes. Connecticut and Missouri swap seeds to better fit their profiles, while WOFFORD and Oakland swap regions to avoid a Wisconsin-WOFFORD rematch. These projections are done as always as if the season has ended.
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four
Tuesday: Colorado vs. Alabama; Northern Colorado(Big Sky) vs. McNeese State(Southland)
Wednesday: Michigan State vs. Clemson; Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. UNC ASHEVILLE
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Texas Southern/UNC ASHEVILLE
8-Villanova vs. 9-George Mason
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-BELMONT
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-MOREHEAD STATE
7-Vanderbilt vs. 10-Butler*
@ Washington, D.C.
3-St. John's vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Arizona vs. 11-Boston College*
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-Northern Colorado/McNeese State
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Illinois
@ Tucson
4-Kentucky vs. 13-Milwaukee(Horizon)
5-Kansas State vs. 12-Richmond
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-SAINT PETER'S
7-Georgetown vs. 10-Washington
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Cincinnati vs. 11-GONZAGA
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Unlv vs. 9-Tennessee
@ Denver
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Colorado*/Alabama*
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-Temple vs. 10-Michigan*
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Uab(Conference USA)*
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-North Texas(Sun Belt)
8-OLD DOMINION vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-WOFFORD
5-Connecticut vs. 12-Michigan State*/Clemson*
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Ucla vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Missouri vs. 11-St. Mary's*
New to the field: SAINT PETER'S, WOFFORD, North Texas
Leaving the field: Iona, College of Charleston, Middle Tennessee
Last four in the field(by seed list): Michigan State, Alabama, Clemson, Colorado First four left out: Virginia Tech, Southern California, Georgia, Missouri State
Next four left out: Memphis, Virginia Commonwealth, Oklahoma State, Nebraska The under-consideration board: Penn State, UTEP, Wichita State
Seeding range for tonight's finalists not in the field:
Oral Roberts: 13-14
Arkansas-Little Rock: First Four
Monday, March 7, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Six Days to Selection Sunday
And DOWN the stretch they come! Michigan State starting to fade...Here comes VCU on the rail! Colorado on the outside! Missouri State's out of it! Virginia Tech and Alabama neck and neck! Here's the finish...AND IT'S TOO CLOSE TO CALL!! THEY WILL HAVE TO GO TO THE PHOTO TO DETERMINE WHO'S IN AND WHO'S OUT! MY WHAT A FINISH.
That's the kind of call Dave Johnson would have if he were to handicap the bubble picture. And this year, that call would be very close to the truth. And around the NIT bubble, it's even worse, as conference champions have taken up five(and potentially six) spots so far.
There's also a change at the top of the bracket, as Duke's 81-67 loss to North Carolina dropped the Blue Devils to a 2 seed. Who's replacing them, Notre Dame; after a 70-67 win over UConn. The other three top seeds are safe(for now at least).
Starting with this bracket, teams that have already qualified for the dance of all dances will be in all CAPS.
Projection done as if the season has ended:
Final Four pairings:
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four:
Tuesday: Colorado vs. Alabama; Northern Colorado(Big Sky) vs. McNeese State(Southland
Wednesday: Michigan State vs. Clemson; Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. UNC ASHEVILLE
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Texas Southern/UNC ASHEVILLE
8-Villanova vs. 9-George Mason
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-BELMONT
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-MOREHEAD STATE
7-Vanderbilt vs. 10-Butler*
@ Washington, D.C.
3-St. John's vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Arizona vs. 11-Boston College*
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-Northern Colorado/McNeese State
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Illinois
@ Tucson
4-Kentucky vs. 13-Milwaukee(Horizon)
5-Kansas State vs. 12-Richmond
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-Iona(Metro Atlantic)
7-Georgetown vs. 10-Washington
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Cincinnati vs. 11-Gonzaga*
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Unlv vs. 9-Tennessee
@ Denver
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-College of Charleston(Southern)
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Colorado*/Alabama*
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-Temple vs. 10-Michigan*
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Uab(Conference USA)*
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Middle Tennessee(Sun Belt)
8-Old Dominion(Colonial) vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Missouri vs. 12-Michigan State/Clemson
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Ucla vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Connecticut vs. 11-St. Mary's(West Coast)
New to the field: Clemson, UNC ASHEVILLE, Colorado, Iona, INDIANA STATE, MOREHEAD STATE, Alabama, Middle Tennessee
Leaving the field: Virginia Tech, Coastal Carolina, Fairfield, Missouri State, Wichita State, Murray State, Georgia, Florida Atlantic
Last four in the field(by seed list): Michigan State, Alabama, Clemson, Colorado
First four left out: Virginia Tech, Southern California, Georgia, Missouri State
Next four left out: Memphis, Virginia Commonwealth, Oklahoma State, Nebraska
The under-consideration board: Penn State, UTEP, Wichita State
Seeding range for tonight's finalists not in the field:
St. Peter's(15-16)
Virginia Commonwealth(11-13)
Wofford(13-14)
That's the kind of call Dave Johnson would have if he were to handicap the bubble picture. And this year, that call would be very close to the truth. And around the NIT bubble, it's even worse, as conference champions have taken up five(and potentially six) spots so far.
There's also a change at the top of the bracket, as Duke's 81-67 loss to North Carolina dropped the Blue Devils to a 2 seed. Who's replacing them, Notre Dame; after a 70-67 win over UConn. The other three top seeds are safe(for now at least).
Starting with this bracket, teams that have already qualified for the dance of all dances will be in all CAPS.
Projection done as if the season has ended:
Final Four pairings:
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four:
Tuesday: Colorado vs. Alabama; Northern Colorado(Big Sky) vs. McNeese State(Southland
Wednesday: Michigan State vs. Clemson; Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. UNC ASHEVILLE
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Texas Southern/UNC ASHEVILLE
8-Villanova vs. 9-George Mason
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard or Princeton(Ivy)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-BELMONT
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-MOREHEAD STATE
7-Vanderbilt vs. 10-Butler*
@ Washington, D.C.
3-St. John's vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Arizona vs. 11-Boston College*
West region
@ Chicago
1-Notre Dame vs. 16-Northern Colorado/McNeese State
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Illinois
@ Tucson
4-Kentucky vs. 13-Milwaukee(Horizon)
5-Kansas State vs. 12-Richmond
@ Charlotte
2-Duke vs. 15-Iona(Metro Atlantic)
7-Georgetown vs. 10-Washington
@ Tulsa
3-Texas vs. 14-INDIANA STATE
6-Cincinnati vs. 11-Gonzaga*
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas(Big 12) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Unlv vs. 9-Tennessee
@ Denver
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-College of Charleston(Southern)
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Colorado*/Alabama*
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Syracuse vs. 15-Boston University(America East)
7-Temple vs. 10-Michigan*
@ Charlotte
3-North Carolina(Atlantic Coast) vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Uab(Conference USA)*
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Middle Tennessee(Sun Belt)
8-Old Dominion(Colonial) vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Missouri vs. 12-Michigan State/Clemson
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Ucla vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Connecticut vs. 11-St. Mary's(West Coast)
New to the field: Clemson, UNC ASHEVILLE, Colorado, Iona, INDIANA STATE, MOREHEAD STATE, Alabama, Middle Tennessee
Leaving the field: Virginia Tech, Coastal Carolina, Fairfield, Missouri State, Wichita State, Murray State, Georgia, Florida Atlantic
Last four in the field(by seed list): Michigan State, Alabama, Clemson, Colorado
First four left out: Virginia Tech, Southern California, Georgia, Missouri State
Next four left out: Memphis, Virginia Commonwealth, Oklahoma State, Nebraska
The under-consideration board: Penn State, UTEP, Wichita State
Seeding range for tonight's finalists not in the field:
St. Peter's(15-16)
Virginia Commonwealth(11-13)
Wofford(13-14)
Friday, March 4, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Friday Update
As is usual for a Friday, a quick look at the seeds, but no bracket update. And also as usual, the projections are done as if the season has already ended.
* Denotes a bubble team
Underline denotes First Four team
1-Ohio State(East), Kansas(Southwest), Pittsburgh(Southeast), Duke(West)
2-Notre Dame, Purdue, San Diego State, Brigham Young
3-Syracuse, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Texas
4-Florida, Louisville, St. John's, Georgetown
5-Connecticut, Arizona, Kentucky, Kansas State
6-Xavier, George Mason, Cincinnati, UNLV
7-Vanderbilt, Texas A&M, Villanova, West Virginia
8-Utah State, Missouri, Temple, Old Dominion
9-Tennessee, Marquette, UCLA, Washington
10-Florida State, Butler*, UAB*, Georgia*
11-Michigan State*, Illinois*, Gonzaga*, St. Mary's*
12-Richmond*, Michigan*, Boston College*, Missouri State*, Virginia Tech*, Wichita State*
13-Belmont, Oakland, Coastal Carolina, Princeton
14-Kent State, College of Charleston, Long Island, Milwaukee
15-Long Beach State, Vermont, Fairfield, Bucknell
16-Texas Southern, Florida Atlantic, Murray State, Northern Colorado, Bethune Cookman, McNeese State
New to the field: Boston College, Kent State, Wichita State
Leaving the field: Baylor, Miami(OH), Alabama
Last four in the field: Michigan, Boston College, Virginia Tech, Wichita State
First four left out: Clemson, Nebraska, Virginia Commonwealth, Alabama
Next four left out: Washington State, Memphis, Baylor, Penn State
The Under Consideration board: Dayton, Northwestern, Colorado, Southern Mississippi, Colorado State, Southern California
Quick update for next week:
Look for a fully updated bracket on Monday, followed by Tuesday and Wednesday updates, full brackets on Thursday and Friday, a seed update on Saturday(if possible), and at least one projected bracket on Sunday which might be expanded to two projections(one morning, one near the Selection Show) if conditions warrant.
* Denotes a bubble team
Underline denotes First Four team
1-Ohio State(East), Kansas(Southwest), Pittsburgh(Southeast), Duke(West)
2-Notre Dame, Purdue, San Diego State, Brigham Young
3-Syracuse, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Texas
4-Florida, Louisville, St. John's, Georgetown
5-Connecticut, Arizona, Kentucky, Kansas State
6-Xavier, George Mason, Cincinnati, UNLV
7-Vanderbilt, Texas A&M, Villanova, West Virginia
8-Utah State, Missouri, Temple, Old Dominion
9-Tennessee, Marquette, UCLA, Washington
10-Florida State, Butler*, UAB*, Georgia*
11-Michigan State*, Illinois*, Gonzaga*, St. Mary's*
12-Richmond*, Michigan*, Boston College*, Missouri State*, Virginia Tech*, Wichita State*
13-Belmont, Oakland, Coastal Carolina, Princeton
14-Kent State, College of Charleston, Long Island, Milwaukee
15-Long Beach State, Vermont, Fairfield, Bucknell
16-Texas Southern, Florida Atlantic, Murray State, Northern Colorado, Bethune Cookman, McNeese State
New to the field: Boston College, Kent State, Wichita State
Leaving the field: Baylor, Miami(OH), Alabama
Last four in the field: Michigan, Boston College, Virginia Tech, Wichita State
First four left out: Clemson, Nebraska, Virginia Commonwealth, Alabama
Next four left out: Washington State, Memphis, Baylor, Penn State
The Under Consideration board: Dayton, Northwestern, Colorado, Southern Mississippi, Colorado State, Southern California
Quick update for next week:
Look for a fully updated bracket on Monday, followed by Tuesday and Wednesday updates, full brackets on Thursday and Friday, a seed update on Saturday(if possible), and at least one projected bracket on Sunday which might be expanded to two projections(one morning, one near the Selection Show) if conditions warrant.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - The wackiness is not over
Things are still evidently goofy with less than two weeks to go before Gene Smith and the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee reveals the 68 team field. How goofy? Well in the past week:
-Duke fell to a desperate Virginia Tech;
-Texas ended up losing a 15-point lead to Colorado, thus getting swept by the departing schools of the Big 12;
-St. John's continued it's revival by downing a suddenly down Villanova;
-Florida and Alabama set up their exciting showdown on Tuesday by losing;
-Brigham Young went in to San Diego and made itself San Diego State's daddy;
-Memphis had their at-large candidacy severly damaged vs. UTEP;
-and lastly, Harvard couldn't get past Yale, making this Saturday's game with Princeton a deathmatch(death meaning of course, a Tiger title).
There were a lot more results that affected the field this day, but those were the ones that had the biggest impact. How much? Well read for yourself. Also note that starting with this projection, bubble teams will be listed with an asterisk*.
Projections done as if the season ended yesterday.
Final Four pairings:
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four:
Tuesday Game A: Bethune Cookman(Mid Eastern) vs. Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
Tuesday Game B: Virginia Tech vs. Michign
Wednesday Game A: Baylor vs. Alabama
Wednesday Game B: Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. McNeese State(Southland)
East regional
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Texas Southern/McNeese State
8-Tennessee vs. 9-Washington*
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Princeton(Ivy League)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)*
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-Murray State(Ohio Valley)
7-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 10-Illinois*
@ Chicago
3-Notre Dame vs. 14-Vermont(America East)
6-Missouri vs. 11-Butler*
West region
@ Denver
1-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman/Florida Atlantic
8-Marquette vs. 9-Kansas State*
@ Tucson
4-Connecticut vs. 13-Coastal Carolina(Big South)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Missouri State(Missouri Valley)*
@ Charlotte
2-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 15-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
7-George Mason(Colonial) vs. 10-Georgia*
@ Washington, D.C.
3-St. John's vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-St. Mary's(West Coast)*
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas vs. 16-Northern Colorado(Big Sky)
8-UNLV vs. 9-Cincinnati
@ Charlotte
4-North Carolina vs. 13-Baylor*/Alabama*
5-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 12-Michigan State*
@ Chicago
2-Purdue vs. 15-Miami(Ohio)(Mid-American)
7-West Virginia vs. 10-Old Dominion*
@ Washington, D.C.
3-Syracuse vs. 14-Milwaukee(Horizon)
6-Vanderbilt vs. 11-Richmond*
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Long Island(Northeast)
8-UCLA vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Georgetown vs. 12-Virginia Tech*/Michigan*
@ Tulsa
2-Texas(Big 12) vs. 15-Long Beach State(Big West)
7-Temple vs. 10-Gonzaga*
@ Denver
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Villanova vs. 11-UAB(Conference USA)*
New to the field: Virginia Tech, Northern Colorado, Michigan, Baylor, UAB, Princeton, Miami(Ohio), McNeese State
Leaving the field: Montana, Memphis, Southern Mississippi, Harvard, Kent State, Wichita State, Colorado State, Texas State
Last four in the field: Virginia Tech, Baylor, Michigan, Alabama
First four left out: Boston College, Memphis, Clemson, Colorado
Next four left out: Wichita State, Virginia Commonwealth, Colorado State, Penn State
The underconsideration board: Maryland, Dayton, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, UTEP, Southern Mississippi, Valparaiso, Harvard, New Mexico, Southern Califorina, South Carolina
-Duke fell to a desperate Virginia Tech;
-Texas ended up losing a 15-point lead to Colorado, thus getting swept by the departing schools of the Big 12;
-St. John's continued it's revival by downing a suddenly down Villanova;
-Florida and Alabama set up their exciting showdown on Tuesday by losing;
-Brigham Young went in to San Diego and made itself San Diego State's daddy;
-Memphis had their at-large candidacy severly damaged vs. UTEP;
-and lastly, Harvard couldn't get past Yale, making this Saturday's game with Princeton a deathmatch(death meaning of course, a Tiger title).
There were a lot more results that affected the field this day, but those were the ones that had the biggest impact. How much? Well read for yourself. Also note that starting with this projection, bubble teams will be listed with an asterisk*.
Projections done as if the season ended yesterday.
Final Four pairings:
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
The First Four:
Tuesday Game A: Bethune Cookman(Mid Eastern) vs. Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
Tuesday Game B: Virginia Tech vs. Michign
Wednesday Game A: Baylor vs. Alabama
Wednesday Game B: Texas Southern(Southwestern) vs. McNeese State(Southland)
East regional
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Texas Southern/McNeese State
8-Tennessee vs. 9-Washington*
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Princeton(Ivy League)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)*
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-Murray State(Ohio Valley)
7-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 10-Illinois*
@ Chicago
3-Notre Dame vs. 14-Vermont(America East)
6-Missouri vs. 11-Butler*
West region
@ Denver
1-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman/Florida Atlantic
8-Marquette vs. 9-Kansas State*
@ Tucson
4-Connecticut vs. 13-Coastal Carolina(Big South)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Missouri State(Missouri Valley)*
@ Charlotte
2-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 15-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
7-George Mason(Colonial) vs. 10-Georgia*
@ Washington, D.C.
3-St. John's vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-St. Mary's(West Coast)*
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas vs. 16-Northern Colorado(Big Sky)
8-UNLV vs. 9-Cincinnati
@ Charlotte
4-North Carolina vs. 13-Baylor*/Alabama*
5-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 12-Michigan State*
@ Chicago
2-Purdue vs. 15-Miami(Ohio)(Mid-American)
7-West Virginia vs. 10-Old Dominion*
@ Washington, D.C.
3-Syracuse vs. 14-Milwaukee(Horizon)
6-Vanderbilt vs. 11-Richmond*
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Long Island(Northeast)
8-UCLA vs. 9-Florida State
@ Tampa
4-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Georgetown vs. 12-Virginia Tech*/Michigan*
@ Tulsa
2-Texas(Big 12) vs. 15-Long Beach State(Big West)
7-Temple vs. 10-Gonzaga*
@ Denver
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Villanova vs. 11-UAB(Conference USA)*
New to the field: Virginia Tech, Northern Colorado, Michigan, Baylor, UAB, Princeton, Miami(Ohio), McNeese State
Leaving the field: Montana, Memphis, Southern Mississippi, Harvard, Kent State, Wichita State, Colorado State, Texas State
Last four in the field: Virginia Tech, Baylor, Michigan, Alabama
First four left out: Boston College, Memphis, Clemson, Colorado
Next four left out: Wichita State, Virginia Commonwealth, Colorado State, Penn State
The underconsideration board: Maryland, Dayton, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, UTEP, Southern Mississippi, Valparaiso, Harvard, New Mexico, Southern Califorina, South Carolina
Friday, February 25, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Friday Update
I have nothing to say today except for one thing. If anyone thinks that someone will correctly predict all 37 at-large teams in 2 weeks time, they're full of hooey, and that's putting it mildly.
Projections are done as if the season ended last night.
1-Ohio State(East), Pittsburgh(Southeast), Duke(Southwest), San Diego State(West)
2-Texas, Brigham Young, Kansas, Notre Dame
3-Purdue, Wisconsin, Florida, Louisville
4-North Carolina, Villanova, Georgetown, Arizona
5-Connecticut, Syracuse, Missouri, St. John's
6-Vanderbilt, Xavier, Texas A&M, West Virginia
7-Tennessee, Kentucky, Cincinnati, Temple
8-George Mason, UNLV, Marquette, UNLV
9-Michigan State, Old Dominion, Utah State, Florida State
10-Kansas State, Washington, Illinois, Memphis
11-Alabama, Gonzaga, Missouri State, Georgia
12-St. Mary's, Belmont, Oakland, Butler
13-Richmond, Southern Mississippi, Wichita State, Colorado State, Harvard, Milwaukee
14-Kent State, Fairfield, Coastal Carolina, Montana
15-Vermont, Bucknell, Long Beach State, College of Charleston
16-Florida Atlantic, Texas Southern, Murray State, Long Island, Bethune Cookman, Texas State
New to the field: Memphis, Southern Mississippi, Milwaukee, Kent State, Wichita State, Colorado State, Murray State, Texas State
Leaving the field: Boston College, Virginia Tech, Minnesota, UTEP, Cleveland State, Miami(OH), Morehead State, McNeese State
Last four in the field: Richmond, Southern Mississippi, Wichita State, Colorado State
First four left out: Virginia Tech, Clemson, UAB, Boston College
Next four left out: Minnesota, Baylor, Penn State, Maryland
The under-consideration board: Dayton, Michigan, Nebraska, UTEP, Tulsa, Cleveland State, Valparaiso, New Mexico, Washington State, South Carolina
Projections are done as if the season ended last night.
1-Ohio State(East), Pittsburgh(Southeast), Duke(Southwest), San Diego State(West)
2-Texas, Brigham Young, Kansas, Notre Dame
3-Purdue, Wisconsin, Florida, Louisville
4-North Carolina, Villanova, Georgetown, Arizona
5-Connecticut, Syracuse, Missouri, St. John's
6-Vanderbilt, Xavier, Texas A&M, West Virginia
7-Tennessee, Kentucky, Cincinnati, Temple
8-George Mason, UNLV, Marquette, UNLV
9-Michigan State, Old Dominion, Utah State, Florida State
10-Kansas State, Washington, Illinois, Memphis
11-Alabama, Gonzaga, Missouri State, Georgia
12-St. Mary's, Belmont, Oakland, Butler
13-Richmond, Southern Mississippi, Wichita State, Colorado State, Harvard, Milwaukee
14-Kent State, Fairfield, Coastal Carolina, Montana
15-Vermont, Bucknell, Long Beach State, College of Charleston
16-Florida Atlantic, Texas Southern, Murray State, Long Island, Bethune Cookman, Texas State
New to the field: Memphis, Southern Mississippi, Milwaukee, Kent State, Wichita State, Colorado State, Murray State, Texas State
Leaving the field: Boston College, Virginia Tech, Minnesota, UTEP, Cleveland State, Miami(OH), Morehead State, McNeese State
Last four in the field: Richmond, Southern Mississippi, Wichita State, Colorado State
First four left out: Virginia Tech, Clemson, UAB, Boston College
Next four left out: Minnesota, Baylor, Penn State, Maryland
The under-consideration board: Dayton, Michigan, Nebraska, UTEP, Tulsa, Cleveland State, Valparaiso, New Mexico, Washington State, South Carolina
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Predicting the conference tournament champions
As is usual, I'm taking the liberty(not the university) of putting on my predicting cap and announcing whom I think will posess the 31 automatic tickets to the big dance floor. This year though, I'm making the picks early so that you can enter your picks too. No prizes, however, will be awarded. So you think you can outdo my choices? Bring it on, dudes and dudettes.
America East Vermont
Atlantic Coast Duke
Atlantic Sun Belmont
Atlantic 10 Temple
Big East St. John's
Big Sky Northern Colorado
Big South Coastal Carolina
Big Ten Ohio State
Big 12 Texas A&M
Big West Pacific
Colonial James Madison(bid poach)
Conference USA UTEP
Horizon Valparaiso
Ivy League Harvard
Metro Atlantic Fairfield
Mid-American Ohio
Mid-Eastern Morgan State
Missouri Valley Missouri State
Mountain West San Diego State
Northeast Central Connecticut State
Ohio Valley Austin Peay
Pacific-10 California(bid poach)
Patriot Bucknell
Southeastern Alabama
Southern Furman
Southland Stephen F. Austin
Southwestern Mississippi Valley State
Summit South Dakota State
Sun Belt Florida Atlantic
West Coast St. Mary's
Western Athletic Utah State
And for those projecting the CollegeInsider.com tourney,
Great West NJIT(can you believe they went winless two years ago?)
America East Vermont
Atlantic Coast Duke
Atlantic Sun Belmont
Atlantic 10 Temple
Big East St. John's
Big Sky Northern Colorado
Big South Coastal Carolina
Big Ten Ohio State
Big 12 Texas A&M
Big West Pacific
Colonial James Madison(bid poach)
Conference USA UTEP
Horizon Valparaiso
Ivy League Harvard
Metro Atlantic Fairfield
Mid-American Ohio
Mid-Eastern Morgan State
Missouri Valley Missouri State
Mountain West San Diego State
Northeast Central Connecticut State
Ohio Valley Austin Peay
Pacific-10 California(bid poach)
Patriot Bucknell
Southeastern Alabama
Southern Furman
Southland Stephen F. Austin
Southwestern Mississippi Valley State
Summit South Dakota State
Sun Belt Florida Atlantic
West Coast St. Mary's
Western Athletic Utah State
And for those projecting the CollegeInsider.com tourney,
Great West NJIT(can you believe they went winless two years ago?)
Monday, February 21, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Bracket Stew....Ewwwww!
Which event this past week was the most jarring to you? Was it the sight of a 20-year old winning the most prestigous NASCAR race? Or the fact that everyone in the top 5(but not Duke) getting upset? For me, being both a college hoops fan and a NASCAR fan as well, it's both.
First off, what Trevor Bayne did yesterday will more than likely stand as the greatest upset in Daytona 500 history, eclipsing what Derrike Cope did in 1990 in terms of pure shock. Secondly, and this point is overlooked, he won the race with a part-time team. That team, the Wood Brothers racing team, used to be one of the best teams in NASCAR, if not the best. After a decade of decline due to sponsorship issues and dwindling results, they decided to take a risk on a driver with lots of potential, but few results to back it up. Yesterday, thanks to an abundance of power in his Ford, coupled with a string of crashes that took out most of the "serious" contenders(including a Big One on lap 29), Bayne went from being an unknown driver into one of the greatest cinderella stories in the course of 208 laps.
But does that moment, seminal as it is, compare to the carnage of the week where it seems everyone was being upset? Yes. Teams from coast to coast were upset at an alarming rate. The result was significant upheaval at the top of the bracket, yet due to Bracketbuster weekend taking place, there were only six spots in the field that exchanged hands. Projections of course are based as if the season has ended already:
Final Four pairings:
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southeast(2) vs. Southwest(3)
First Four pairings:
Tuesday Game A: Butler vs. Boston College
Tuesday Game B: Gonzaga vs. Richmond
Wednesday Game A: Miami(OH)(Mid-American) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
Wednesday Game B: McNeese State(Southland) vs. Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. McNeese State/Bethune Cookman
8-Cincinnati vs. 9-Kansas State
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard(Ivy)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-Virginia Tech
@ Charlotte
2-Georgetown vs. 15-Vermont(America East)
7-UCLA vs. 10-Alabama
@ Tampa
3-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Minnesota
West region
@ Tucson
1-San Diego State(Mountain West) vs. 16-Montana(Big Sky)
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Old Dominion
@ Denver
4-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 13-UTEP(Conference USA)
5-Villanova vs. 12-Butler/Boston College
@ Tulsa
2-Kansas vs. 15-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
7-Florida State vs. 10-Georgia
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Morehead State(Ohio Valley)
6-Syracuse vs. 11-St. Mary's(West Coast)
Southeast region
@ Charlotte
1-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 16-Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
8-George Mason(Colonial) vs. 9-Illinois
@ Washington, D.C.
4-Notre Dame vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Gonzaga/Richmond
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young vs. 15-Long Beach State(Big West)
7-Temple vs. 10-Washington
@ Washington, D.C.
3-Connecticut vs. 14-Coastal Carolina(Big South)
6-Missouri vs. 11-Michigan State
Southwest region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Miami(Ohio)/Texas Southern
8-Tennessee vs. 9-UNLV
@ Denver
4-North Carolina vs. 13-Cleveland State(Horizon)
5-St. John's vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
@ Tulsa
2-Texas(Big 12) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Vanderbilt vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-West Virginia vs. 11-Missouri State(Missouri Valley)
New to the field: Richmond, UTEP, Harvard, Bethune Cookman, McNeese State, Gonzaga
Leaving the field: Baylor, Memphis, Princeton, Hampton, Wichita State, Texas State
Last four in the field: Butler, Boston College, Gonzaga, Richmond
First four left out: Memphis, Virginia Commonwealth, Baylor, UAB
Next four left out: Clemson, Michigan, Nebraska, Southern Mississippi
The under-consideration board: Maryland, Duquesne, Dayton, Northwestern, Colorado, Wichita State, Colorado State, New Mexico, Washington State, South Carolina
First off, what Trevor Bayne did yesterday will more than likely stand as the greatest upset in Daytona 500 history, eclipsing what Derrike Cope did in 1990 in terms of pure shock. Secondly, and this point is overlooked, he won the race with a part-time team. That team, the Wood Brothers racing team, used to be one of the best teams in NASCAR, if not the best. After a decade of decline due to sponsorship issues and dwindling results, they decided to take a risk on a driver with lots of potential, but few results to back it up. Yesterday, thanks to an abundance of power in his Ford, coupled with a string of crashes that took out most of the "serious" contenders(including a Big One on lap 29), Bayne went from being an unknown driver into one of the greatest cinderella stories in the course of 208 laps.
But does that moment, seminal as it is, compare to the carnage of the week where it seems everyone was being upset? Yes. Teams from coast to coast were upset at an alarming rate. The result was significant upheaval at the top of the bracket, yet due to Bracketbuster weekend taking place, there were only six spots in the field that exchanged hands. Projections of course are based as if the season has ended already:
Final Four pairings:
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southeast(2) vs. Southwest(3)
First Four pairings:
Tuesday Game A: Butler vs. Boston College
Tuesday Game B: Gonzaga vs. Richmond
Wednesday Game A: Miami(OH)(Mid-American) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
Wednesday Game B: McNeese State(Southland) vs. Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. McNeese State/Bethune Cookman
8-Cincinnati vs. 9-Kansas State
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard(Ivy)
5-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 12-Virginia Tech
@ Charlotte
2-Georgetown vs. 15-Vermont(America East)
7-UCLA vs. 10-Alabama
@ Tampa
3-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Texas A&M vs. 11-Minnesota
West region
@ Tucson
1-San Diego State(Mountain West) vs. 16-Montana(Big Sky)
8-Utah State(Western Athletic) vs. 9-Old Dominion
@ Denver
4-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 13-UTEP(Conference USA)
5-Villanova vs. 12-Butler/Boston College
@ Tulsa
2-Kansas vs. 15-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
7-Florida State vs. 10-Georgia
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Morehead State(Ohio Valley)
6-Syracuse vs. 11-St. Mary's(West Coast)
Southeast region
@ Charlotte
1-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 16-Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
8-George Mason(Colonial) vs. 9-Illinois
@ Washington, D.C.
4-Notre Dame vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Gonzaga/Richmond
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young vs. 15-Long Beach State(Big West)
7-Temple vs. 10-Washington
@ Washington, D.C.
3-Connecticut vs. 14-Coastal Carolina(Big South)
6-Missouri vs. 11-Michigan State
Southwest region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Miami(Ohio)/Texas Southern
8-Tennessee vs. 9-UNLV
@ Denver
4-North Carolina vs. 13-Cleveland State(Horizon)
5-St. John's vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
@ Tulsa
2-Texas(Big 12) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Vanderbilt vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-West Virginia vs. 11-Missouri State(Missouri Valley)
New to the field: Richmond, UTEP, Harvard, Bethune Cookman, McNeese State, Gonzaga
Leaving the field: Baylor, Memphis, Princeton, Hampton, Wichita State, Texas State
Last four in the field: Butler, Boston College, Gonzaga, Richmond
First four left out: Memphis, Virginia Commonwealth, Baylor, UAB
Next four left out: Clemson, Michigan, Nebraska, Southern Mississippi
The under-consideration board: Maryland, Duquesne, Dayton, Northwestern, Colorado, Wichita State, Colorado State, New Mexico, Washington State, South Carolina
Friday, February 18, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Friday Update
Before I release the seeding update, I admit that I'm being harsh on Georgia. If you look at the current Bracket Matrix, I'm the only one who doesn't believe the Bulldogs are not NCAA worthy. This is simply because they have a tough finish to their schedule(starting this weekend at Tennessee) and the fact they have lost several key home games too to the likes of Xavier and Vanderbilt. That said, the Bulldogs are in the projected field today, since it appears no one else wants in.
Projected seeds as of Today(And this week, regions for the #1 seeds); teams underlined will be in the first four:
1-Ohio State(East), Texas(Southwest), Pittsburgh(Southeast), Duke(West)
2-Kansas, Brigham Young, San Diego State, Notre Dame
3-Connecticut, Georgetown, Purdue, Wisconsin
4-Florida, Syracuse, North Carolina, Villanova
5-Arizona, Kentucky, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt
6-Louisville, Xavier, West Virginia, Illinois
7-Missouri, Temple, St. John's, Tennessee
8-Florida State, UCLA, Utah State, Washington
9-Cincinnati, George Mason, Alabama, UNLV
10-St. Mary's, Baylor, Marquette, Virginia Tech
11-Minnesota, Missouri State, Memphis, Kansas State
12-Boston College, Michigan State, Belmont, Georgia, Old Dominion
13-Wichita State, Butler, Oakland, Princeton, Cleveland State
14-Miami(Ohio), Coastal Carolina, Vermont, College of Charleston
15-Montana, Fairfield, Morehead State, Bucknell
16-Long Beach State, Hampton, Long Island, Florida Atlantic, Texas State, Texas Southern
New to the field: Kansas State, Butler, Cleveland State, Miami(Ohio), Georgia
Leaving the field: Richmond, UTEP, UAB, Valparaiso, Kent State
Last four in the field: Georgia, Old Dominion, Wichita State, Butler
First four left out: Richmond, UAB, Gonzaga, Colorado State
Next four left out: Penn State, Washington State, Harvard, Duquesne
The underconsideration board: Clemson, North Carolina State, Maryland, Dayton, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Southern Mississippi, Valparaiso, New Mexico, South Carolina
Projected seeds as of Today(And this week, regions for the #1 seeds); teams underlined will be in the first four:
1-Ohio State(East), Texas(Southwest), Pittsburgh(Southeast), Duke(West)
2-Kansas, Brigham Young, San Diego State, Notre Dame
3-Connecticut, Georgetown, Purdue, Wisconsin
4-Florida, Syracuse, North Carolina, Villanova
5-Arizona, Kentucky, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt
6-Louisville, Xavier, West Virginia, Illinois
7-Missouri, Temple, St. John's, Tennessee
8-Florida State, UCLA, Utah State, Washington
9-Cincinnati, George Mason, Alabama, UNLV
10-St. Mary's, Baylor, Marquette, Virginia Tech
11-Minnesota, Missouri State, Memphis, Kansas State
12-Boston College, Michigan State, Belmont, Georgia, Old Dominion
13-Wichita State, Butler, Oakland, Princeton, Cleveland State
14-Miami(Ohio), Coastal Carolina, Vermont, College of Charleston
15-Montana, Fairfield, Morehead State, Bucknell
16-Long Beach State, Hampton, Long Island, Florida Atlantic, Texas State, Texas Southern
New to the field: Kansas State, Butler, Cleveland State, Miami(Ohio), Georgia
Leaving the field: Richmond, UTEP, UAB, Valparaiso, Kent State
Last four in the field: Georgia, Old Dominion, Wichita State, Butler
First four left out: Richmond, UAB, Gonzaga, Colorado State
Next four left out: Penn State, Washington State, Harvard, Duquesne
The underconsideration board: Clemson, North Carolina State, Maryland, Dayton, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Southern Mississippi, Valparaiso, New Mexico, South Carolina
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Guess Who?
It's blind resume time once again. Can you identify this bubble team?
Current RPI: 58.
Division I Record: 16-10
SOS: 0.574
SOS Rank: 18
vs. RPI top 50: 2-8
vs. RPI 51-100: 5-1
vs. RPI 101-150: 2-0
vs. RPI 151-200: 1-1
vs. the Dregs: 5-0
Hint: this team faces a tough finishing stretch.
(All info current as of Tuesday Morning. It comes from Rivals.Yahoo.com)
Current RPI: 58.
Division I Record: 16-10
SOS: 0.574
SOS Rank: 18
vs. RPI top 50: 2-8
vs. RPI 51-100: 5-1
vs. RPI 101-150: 2-0
vs. RPI 151-200: 1-1
vs. the Dregs: 5-0
Hint: this team faces a tough finishing stretch.
(All info current as of Tuesday Morning. It comes from Rivals.Yahoo.com)
Monday, February 14, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Who wants to be an NCAA tourney team?
At this point, many teams don't want to be one. And they know who they are. OTOH, teams like George Mason and Alabama are looking more and more like NCAA teams. Given the paucity of teams distinguishing themselves, these two are closer to being locks than most people realize.
With that being said, here's the latest projection, complete with a new #1 overall seed to boot.
Final Four Pairings:
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southeast(2) vs. Southwest(3)
The First Four:
Tuesday Game A: Cincinnati vs. Wichita State
Tuesday Game B: Richmond vs. UAB
Wednesday Game A: Murray State(Ohio Valley) vs. Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
Wednesday Game B: Texas State(Southland) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Texas State/Texas Southern
8-George Mason(Colonial) vs. 9-Utah State(Western Athletic)
@ Tucson
4-Vanderbilt vs. 13-Cincinnati/Wichita State
5-Texas A&M vs. 12-UTEP(Conference USA)
@ Charlotte
2-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Washington vs. 10-Alabama
@ Chicago
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Villanova vs. 11-Baylor
(Note: Baylor and Alabama swapped seeds so that the Bears would not face Duke in the 3rd round, if they defeated Washington)
West region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas vs. 16-Hampton(Mid-Eastern)
8-St. Mary's(West Coast) vs. 9-Minnesota
@ Tampa
4-North Carolina vs. 13-Princeton(Ivy)
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Kent State(Mid-American)
7-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Notre Dame vs. 14-Valparaiso(Horizon)
6-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 11-Michigan State
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Murray State/Florida Atlantic
8-St. John's vs. 9-UNLV
@ Denver
4-Louisville vs. 13-Coastal Carolina(Big South)
5-Missouri vs. 12-Old Dominion
@ Charlotte
2-Georgetown vs. 15-Vermont(America East)
7-Temple vs. 10-Virginia Tech
@ Tampa
3-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Illinois vs. 11-Memphis
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Texas(Big 12) vs. 16-Long Beach State(Big West)
8-UCLA vs. 9-Florida State
@ Washington D.C.
4-Connecticut vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Richmond/UAB
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-Montana(Big Sky)
7-Syracuse vs. 10-Missouri State(Missouri Valley)
@ Washington D.C.
3-Purdue vs. 14-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
6-Tennessee vs. 11-Boston College
New to the field: Richmond, Montana, Memphis, Wichita State, Alabama, Texas State
Leaving the field: Clemson, Duquesne, Northern Colorado, Kansas State, Virginia Commonwealth, Northwestern State
Last four in the field: Cincinnati, Richmond, UAB, Wichita State
First four left out: Georgia, Virginia Commonwealth, Kansas State, Duquesne
Next four left out: Harvard, Clemson, Gonzaga, Butler
The under-consideration board: Maryland, Dayton, Providence, Michigan, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Cleveland State, Colorado State, New Mexico, Washington State, South Carolina
With that being said, here's the latest projection, complete with a new #1 overall seed to boot.
Final Four Pairings:
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southeast(2) vs. Southwest(3)
The First Four:
Tuesday Game A: Cincinnati vs. Wichita State
Tuesday Game B: Richmond vs. UAB
Wednesday Game A: Murray State(Ohio Valley) vs. Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
Wednesday Game B: Texas State(Southland) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Texas State/Texas Southern
8-George Mason(Colonial) vs. 9-Utah State(Western Athletic)
@ Tucson
4-Vanderbilt vs. 13-Cincinnati/Wichita State
5-Texas A&M vs. 12-UTEP(Conference USA)
@ Charlotte
2-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Washington vs. 10-Alabama
@ Chicago
3-Wisconsin vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Villanova vs. 11-Baylor
(Note: Baylor and Alabama swapped seeds so that the Bears would not face Duke in the 3rd round, if they defeated Washington)
West region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas vs. 16-Hampton(Mid-Eastern)
8-St. Mary's(West Coast) vs. 9-Minnesota
@ Tampa
4-North Carolina vs. 13-Princeton(Ivy)
5-West Virginia vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Kent State(Mid-American)
7-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 10-Marquette
@ Chicago
3-Notre Dame vs. 14-Valparaiso(Horizon)
6-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 11-Michigan State
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Murray State/Florida Atlantic
8-St. John's vs. 9-UNLV
@ Denver
4-Louisville vs. 13-Coastal Carolina(Big South)
5-Missouri vs. 12-Old Dominion
@ Charlotte
2-Georgetown vs. 15-Vermont(America East)
7-Temple vs. 10-Virginia Tech
@ Tampa
3-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Illinois vs. 11-Memphis
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Texas(Big 12) vs. 16-Long Beach State(Big West)
8-UCLA vs. 9-Florida State
@ Washington D.C.
4-Connecticut vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Kentucky vs. 12-Richmond/UAB
@ Tucson
2-San Diego State vs. 15-Montana(Big Sky)
7-Syracuse vs. 10-Missouri State(Missouri Valley)
@ Washington D.C.
3-Purdue vs. 14-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
6-Tennessee vs. 11-Boston College
New to the field: Richmond, Montana, Memphis, Wichita State, Alabama, Texas State
Leaving the field: Clemson, Duquesne, Northern Colorado, Kansas State, Virginia Commonwealth, Northwestern State
Last four in the field: Cincinnati, Richmond, UAB, Wichita State
First four left out: Georgia, Virginia Commonwealth, Kansas State, Duquesne
Next four left out: Harvard, Clemson, Gonzaga, Butler
The under-consideration board: Maryland, Dayton, Providence, Michigan, Oklahoma State, Nebraska, Cleveland State, Colorado State, New Mexico, Washington State, South Carolina
Friday, February 11, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Friday Update
For the rest of this month, I'll only be doing seeding updates on Fridays. Here's the first such update. Projections are done as if the season ended yesterday(No attempt is made to forecast the remainder of the season).
Note: First Four teams are Underlined.
1-Ohio State, Texas, Pittsburgh, Kansas
2-Duke, Brigham Young, San Diego State, Georgetown
3-Notre Dame, Purdue, Connecticut, Florida
4-Wisconsin, Kentucky, North Carolina, Vanderbilt
5-Villanova, Arizona, Tennessee, Syracuse
6-West Virginia, Florida State, Illinois, Temple
7-Texas A&M, Louisville, Missouri, Xavier
8-St. Mary's, Minnesota, St. John's, UNLV
9-Utah State, Washington, UCLA, VCU
10-Missouri State, George Mason, Cincinnati, Baylor
11-Virginia Tech, Clemson, Marquette, UTEP
12-UAB, Boston College, Belmont, Duquesne, Michigan State
13-Kansas State, Old Dominion, Oakland, Valparaiso, Princeto
14-Vermont, Kent State, Murray State, College of Charleston
15-Bucknell, Fairfield, Long Beach State, Coastal Carolina
16-Hampton, Northern Colorado, Long Island, Florida Atlantic, Northwestern State, Texas Southern
New to the field: Virginia Tech, Michigan State, Baylor, Old Dominion, Valparaiso,, Missouri State
Leaving the field: Richmond, Memphis, Cleveland State, Wichita State, Alabama, Georgia
Last four in the field: Duquesne, Michigan State, Kansas State, Old Dominion
First four left out: Richmond, Memphis, Oklahoma State, South Carolina
Next four left out: Wichita State, Harvard, Dayton, Alabama
The under-consideration board: Maryland, Providence, Northwestern, Penn State, Nebraska, Southern Mississippi, Tulsa, Southern Methodist, Colorado State, New Mexico, Washington State, Gonzaga.
Note: First Four teams are Underlined.
1-Ohio State, Texas, Pittsburgh, Kansas
2-Duke, Brigham Young, San Diego State, Georgetown
3-Notre Dame, Purdue, Connecticut, Florida
4-Wisconsin, Kentucky, North Carolina, Vanderbilt
5-Villanova, Arizona, Tennessee, Syracuse
6-West Virginia, Florida State, Illinois, Temple
7-Texas A&M, Louisville, Missouri, Xavier
8-St. Mary's, Minnesota, St. John's, UNLV
9-Utah State, Washington, UCLA, VCU
10-Missouri State, George Mason, Cincinnati, Baylor
11-Virginia Tech, Clemson, Marquette, UTEP
12-UAB, Boston College, Belmont, Duquesne, Michigan State
13-Kansas State, Old Dominion, Oakland, Valparaiso, Princeto
14-Vermont, Kent State, Murray State, College of Charleston
15-Bucknell, Fairfield, Long Beach State, Coastal Carolina
16-Hampton, Northern Colorado, Long Island, Florida Atlantic, Northwestern State, Texas Southern
New to the field: Virginia Tech, Michigan State, Baylor, Old Dominion, Valparaiso,, Missouri State
Leaving the field: Richmond, Memphis, Cleveland State, Wichita State, Alabama, Georgia
Last four in the field: Duquesne, Michigan State, Kansas State, Old Dominion
First four left out: Richmond, Memphis, Oklahoma State, South Carolina
Next four left out: Wichita State, Harvard, Dayton, Alabama
The under-consideration board: Maryland, Providence, Northwestern, Penn State, Nebraska, Southern Mississippi, Tulsa, Southern Methodist, Colorado State, New Mexico, Washington State, Gonzaga.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
State of the Bubble - Pacific-10 to Western Athletic
Sorry folks for being this late with the last installment. I was busy and couldn't find the time to put this up, until now.
Pacific-10
Expected bid range: 2-4
Locks: none
Should be in: Arizona
Bubble riders: UCLA, Washington, Washington State
In another down year for the Pac-10, it seems no one wants to be a lock. The Wildcats are the closest, but have little to show from their non-conference work. The Huskies are in a bit of bother, struggling to hold on to the Wildcats' coattails.
Patriot League
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Bucknell, American
Southeastern
Expected bid range: 4-6
Locks: Florida, Kentucky
Should be in: Tennessee, Vanderbilt
Bubble Riders: Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina
Southern
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: College of Charleston, Chattanooga, Furman, Wofford
Southland
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: It's so wide open down here, everyone but Central Arkansas could win the conference. And that's saying something.
Southwestern
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Texas Southern, Jackson State
Summit
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Oakland, IUPUI, IPFW, South Dakota State
Earlier this season, the Grizzlies could have been in contention for an at-large, but a loss to the Jaguars put an end to that. Still, if Oakland does make it, they will give a higher seed fits.
Sun Belt
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Florida Atlantic, Denver, Middle Tennessee, Arkansas State, North Texas
West Coast
Expected bid range: 1-2
Locks: None
Should be in: St. Mary's
Bubble riders: None
Gonzaga is out of contention for the moment, after losing at home to Memphis on Feb. 5th, but they could still make their way back in.
Pacific-10
Expected bid range: 2-4
Locks: none
Should be in: Arizona
Bubble riders: UCLA, Washington, Washington State
In another down year for the Pac-10, it seems no one wants to be a lock. The Wildcats are the closest, but have little to show from their non-conference work. The Huskies are in a bit of bother, struggling to hold on to the Wildcats' coattails.
Patriot League
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Bucknell, American
Southeastern
Expected bid range: 4-6
Locks: Florida, Kentucky
Should be in: Tennessee, Vanderbilt
Bubble Riders: Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina
Southern
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: College of Charleston, Chattanooga, Furman, Wofford
Southland
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: It's so wide open down here, everyone but Central Arkansas could win the conference. And that's saying something.
Southwestern
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Texas Southern, Jackson State
Summit
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Oakland, IUPUI, IPFW, South Dakota State
Earlier this season, the Grizzlies could have been in contention for an at-large, but a loss to the Jaguars put an end to that. Still, if Oakland does make it, they will give a higher seed fits.
Sun Belt
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Florida Atlantic, Denver, Middle Tennessee, Arkansas State, North Texas
West Coast
Expected bid range: 1-2
Locks: None
Should be in: St. Mary's
Bubble riders: None
Gonzaga is out of contention for the moment, after losing at home to Memphis on Feb. 5th, but they could still make their way back in.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Guess Who?
It's time for blind resumes! Your mission is to identify this team by reading it's record. The first person to identify the team in question wins....absolutely nothing.
The Team in Question:
RPI Rank: 29
Division I record: 18-6
Conference Record: 9-4
SOS: 52
vs. RPI top 50: 2-3
vs. RPI 51-100: 5-2
vs. RPI 101-150: 3-1
vs. RPI 151-200: 3-0
vs. the Dregs(RPI 201+): 5-0
Notes: in a number of brackets, but in 3rd place in their league.
The Team in Question:
RPI Rank: 29
Division I record: 18-6
Conference Record: 9-4
SOS: 52
vs. RPI top 50: 2-3
vs. RPI 51-100: 5-2
vs. RPI 101-150: 3-1
vs. RPI 151-200: 3-0
vs. the Dregs(RPI 201+): 5-0
Notes: in a number of brackets, but in 3rd place in their league.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Bracket Watch '11-Now the real fun begins
First off, for those wondering what happened to the third part of the state of the bubble series, I will get to it this week. Secondly, this week begins the Friday projection series, which will be the same as the Monday projection series. Thirdly, I'll be starting up the blind resumes on Tuesday. Lastly, is anyone as frustrated by the lack of teams willing to step up? I present you my projected field and can say without any resonable doubt, I can't figure it out either.
Projections as if the season ended before Christina Aguilera butchered the Star Spangled Banner.
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
First Four games:
Tuesday: UAB vs. Richmond; Kansas State vs. Memphis
Wednesday: Hampton(Mid-Eastern) vs. Northern Colorado(Big Sky); Northwestern State(Southland) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Northwestern State/Texas Southern
8-Virginia Commonwealth(Colonial) vs. 9-Marquette
@ Denver
4-Missouri vs. 13-Alabama(Southeastern)
5-Syracuse vs. 12-Cleveland State(Horizon)
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Connecticut vs. 15-Vermont(America East)
7-Minnesota vs. 10-Wichita State
@ Tucson
3-San Diego State vs. 14-Kent State
6-Washington vs. 11-Georgia
West Region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas vs. 16-Long Beach State(Big West)
8-Boston College vs. 9-St. John's
@ Tucson
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-Oakland
5-Kentucky vs. 12-UAB/Richmond
@ Charlotte
2-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 15-Coastal Carolina
7-West Virginia vs. 10-Temple
3-Georgetown vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Illinois vs. 11-George Mason
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Texas(Big 12) vs. 16-Hampton/Northern Colorado
8-Florida State vs. 9-St. Mary's(West Coast)
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Princeton(Ivy)
5-Tennessee vs. 12-Duquesne
@ Chicago
2-Purdue vs. 15-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
7-UNLV vs. 10-Utah State(Western Athletic)
3-Notre Dame vs. 14-Murray State(Ohio Valley)
6-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 11-Clemson
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
8-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 9-UCLA
@ Tampa
4-Florida vs. 13-Kansas State/Memphis
5-North Carolina vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Texas A&M vs. 10-Cincinnati
@ Washington, D.C.
3-Villanova vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Vanderbilt vs. 11-UTEP(Conference USA)
New to the field: Vermont, Clemson, Richmond, Northern Colorado, Kansas State, George Mason, UAB, UTEP, Princeton, Hampton, Murray State, College of Charleston, Northwestern State
Leaving the field: Maine, Montana, Michigan State, Penn State, Nebraska, Old Dominion, Harvard, Bethune Cookman, Missouri State, Austin Peay, Wofford, McNeese State
Last four in the field: UAB, Kansas State, Richmond, Memphis
First four left out: Michigan State, Old Dominion, Baylor, South Carolina
Next four left out: Missouri State, Penn State, Oklahoma State, Harvard
The under-consideration board: Miami(FL), Virginia Tech, Dayton, Providence, Michigan, Northwestern, Nebraska, Iowa State, Southern Mississippi, Butler, Washington State, Gonzaga
Projections as if the season ended before Christina Aguilera butchered the Star Spangled Banner.
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southwest(2) vs. Southeast(3)
First Four games:
Tuesday: UAB vs. Richmond; Kansas State vs. Memphis
Wednesday: Hampton(Mid-Eastern) vs. Northern Colorado(Big Sky); Northwestern State(Southland) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Northwestern State/Texas Southern
8-Virginia Commonwealth(Colonial) vs. 9-Marquette
@ Denver
4-Missouri vs. 13-Alabama(Southeastern)
5-Syracuse vs. 12-Cleveland State(Horizon)
@ Washington, D.C.
2-Connecticut vs. 15-Vermont(America East)
7-Minnesota vs. 10-Wichita State
@ Tucson
3-San Diego State vs. 14-Kent State
6-Washington vs. 11-Georgia
West Region
@ Tulsa
1-Kansas vs. 16-Long Beach State(Big West)
8-Boston College vs. 9-St. John's
@ Tucson
4-Wisconsin vs. 13-Oakland
5-Kentucky vs. 12-UAB/Richmond
@ Charlotte
2-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 15-Coastal Carolina
7-West Virginia vs. 10-Temple
3-Georgetown vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Illinois vs. 11-George Mason
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Texas(Big 12) vs. 16-Hampton/Northern Colorado
8-Florida State vs. 9-St. Mary's(West Coast)
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Princeton(Ivy)
5-Tennessee vs. 12-Duquesne
@ Chicago
2-Purdue vs. 15-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
7-UNLV vs. 10-Utah State(Western Athletic)
3-Notre Dame vs. 14-Murray State(Ohio Valley)
6-Arizona(Pacific-10) vs. 11-Clemson
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
8-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 9-UCLA
@ Tampa
4-Florida vs. 13-Kansas State/Memphis
5-North Carolina vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Long Island(Northeast)
7-Texas A&M vs. 10-Cincinnati
@ Washington, D.C.
3-Villanova vs. 14-Bucknell(Patriot)
6-Vanderbilt vs. 11-UTEP(Conference USA)
New to the field: Vermont, Clemson, Richmond, Northern Colorado, Kansas State, George Mason, UAB, UTEP, Princeton, Hampton, Murray State, College of Charleston, Northwestern State
Leaving the field: Maine, Montana, Michigan State, Penn State, Nebraska, Old Dominion, Harvard, Bethune Cookman, Missouri State, Austin Peay, Wofford, McNeese State
Last four in the field: UAB, Kansas State, Richmond, Memphis
First four left out: Michigan State, Old Dominion, Baylor, South Carolina
Next four left out: Missouri State, Penn State, Oklahoma State, Harvard
The under-consideration board: Miami(FL), Virginia Tech, Dayton, Providence, Michigan, Northwestern, Nebraska, Iowa State, Southern Mississippi, Butler, Washington State, Gonzaga
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
State of the Bubble-Horizon League to Ohio Valley
My fellow Americans, this is indeed a troubled time for our bubble. It is being forced to deal with a growing number of teams wishing to reside on it's surface. It's shrinking land mass means a potential for a big crisis. Let there be no doubt whatsoever though, it will continue to weed out those who have been unlucky to fall in to the bad side. And by the middle of March, only those who have persevered will be moved to stronger and more stable positions in the bracket. Let us take an examination at who shall be finding themselves in the so-called promised land of the field of 68.
Horizon League
Expected bid range: 1-2
Locks: None
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Cleveland State, Valparaiso, Butler
Could the three inches that separated the Bulldogs from an improbable national championship a year ago conspire to work against them this year? Could be. Wins over Washington State, Florida State and South Carolina are counterbalanced by losses to Evansville, Xavier and Milwaukee(twice). As for the Vikings and Crusaders, their non-conference resumes leave a lot to be desired, but both will get some pop in the upcoming Bracketbusters free-for-all(Something the Bulldogs will not benefit from).
Ivy League
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Harvard, Princeton
The Ivies will only get one bid this year, though the Crimson could have a bit of a say, given their wins over Colorado and Boston College. They meet the Tigers in Princeton on Friday night and then again in Cambridge in February. If they do tie, a one-game winner-take-all playoff would take place on March 12th.
Metro Atlantic
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Fairfield, St. Peter's, Iona
With half of the conference season gone, the Stags have emerged as the favorite, but it's not overwhelming. They still must meet with the Gaels twice this season, with the Peacocks also on tap during the last few games.
Mid-American
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Ball State, Kent State, Bowling Green, Buffalo
There are simply too many variables to list in this post, but there's one thing certain, the MAC will once again have one team in the NCAA's.
Mid-Eastern
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Bethune Cookman, Hampton, Morgan State
The Bears' reign on the MEAC is being challenged by an unexpected source, Daytona Beach. The Tigers are the current leaders by a game in the win column, but the team that's behind them, the Pirates, already beat them in the lone game between the two, so it's imperative that BC stay the course. Whoever wins will likely be in the First Four.
Missouri Valley
Expected bid range: 1-2
Locks: None
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Missouri State, Northern Iowa, Wichita State
Conference cannibalism is about to threaten the Valley once again, and it's UNI doing the damage, having beaten the Bears and Shockers on their respective home courts. At this point, it's looking more likely to be a one bid league, rather than a two bid one.
Mountain West
Expected bid range: 3-4
Locks: Brigham Young, San Diego State
Should be in: UNLV
Bubble riders: New Mexico, Colorado State
The Cougars and Aztecs have hung around the top 10 all season, below them, however, are three teams trying to define themselves. In order of OOC accompishments, the Rebels have the leg up on the Lobos and Rams. Though I think 4 will be the max for the MWC, 5 teams isn't out of the question.
Northeast
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Long Island, Central Connecticut, Quinnipiac
Another wide open race this year, with at least 4 others that have legitimate chances to advance in the conference tournament. One reason getting the top seed is important here is the way the conference reseeds after everyround, guaranteeing the champ the worst winner of the 1st round.
Ohio Valley
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Austin Peay, Morehead State, Murray State, Tennessee State
Down in the valley, four teams have put themselves onto a level the other teams can't reach. Look for the finals in Nashville to be a real barnburner.
Horizon League
Expected bid range: 1-2
Locks: None
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Cleveland State, Valparaiso, Butler
Could the three inches that separated the Bulldogs from an improbable national championship a year ago conspire to work against them this year? Could be. Wins over Washington State, Florida State and South Carolina are counterbalanced by losses to Evansville, Xavier and Milwaukee(twice). As for the Vikings and Crusaders, their non-conference resumes leave a lot to be desired, but both will get some pop in the upcoming Bracketbusters free-for-all(Something the Bulldogs will not benefit from).
Ivy League
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Harvard, Princeton
The Ivies will only get one bid this year, though the Crimson could have a bit of a say, given their wins over Colorado and Boston College. They meet the Tigers in Princeton on Friday night and then again in Cambridge in February. If they do tie, a one-game winner-take-all playoff would take place on March 12th.
Metro Atlantic
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Fairfield, St. Peter's, Iona
With half of the conference season gone, the Stags have emerged as the favorite, but it's not overwhelming. They still must meet with the Gaels twice this season, with the Peacocks also on tap during the last few games.
Mid-American
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Ball State, Kent State, Bowling Green, Buffalo
There are simply too many variables to list in this post, but there's one thing certain, the MAC will once again have one team in the NCAA's.
Mid-Eastern
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Bethune Cookman, Hampton, Morgan State
The Bears' reign on the MEAC is being challenged by an unexpected source, Daytona Beach. The Tigers are the current leaders by a game in the win column, but the team that's behind them, the Pirates, already beat them in the lone game between the two, so it's imperative that BC stay the course. Whoever wins will likely be in the First Four.
Missouri Valley
Expected bid range: 1-2
Locks: None
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Missouri State, Northern Iowa, Wichita State
Conference cannibalism is about to threaten the Valley once again, and it's UNI doing the damage, having beaten the Bears and Shockers on their respective home courts. At this point, it's looking more likely to be a one bid league, rather than a two bid one.
Mountain West
Expected bid range: 3-4
Locks: Brigham Young, San Diego State
Should be in: UNLV
Bubble riders: New Mexico, Colorado State
The Cougars and Aztecs have hung around the top 10 all season, below them, however, are three teams trying to define themselves. In order of OOC accompishments, the Rebels have the leg up on the Lobos and Rams. Though I think 4 will be the max for the MWC, 5 teams isn't out of the question.
Northeast
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Long Island, Central Connecticut, Quinnipiac
Another wide open race this year, with at least 4 others that have legitimate chances to advance in the conference tournament. One reason getting the top seed is important here is the way the conference reseeds after everyround, guaranteeing the champ the worst winner of the 1st round.
Ohio Valley
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Austin Peay, Morehead State, Murray State, Tennessee State
Down in the valley, four teams have put themselves onto a level the other teams can't reach. Look for the finals in Nashville to be a real barnburner.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
State of the Bubble: America East to Conference USA
My fellow Americans, this is indeed a troubled time for our bubble. It is being forced to deal with a growing number of teams wishing to reside on it's surface. It's shrinking land mass means a potential for a big crisis. Let there be no doubt whatsoever though, it will continue to weed out those who have been unlucky to fall in to the bad side. And by the middle of March, only those who have persevered will be moved to stronger and more stable positions in the bracket. Let us take an examination at who shall be finding themselves in the so-called promised land of the field of 68.
America East
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Maine, Vermont, Boston University
The Black Bears, who have exactly ZERO postseason appearances at the Division I level, hold a one game lead over the Catamounts, but it's essentially two games, since Maine won the first contest(rather convincingly) in Burlington. Don't count out the Catamounts or Terriers though, both face the Black Bears once more and both are capable of thwarting the momentum.
Atlantic Coast
Expected bid range: 4-7
Locks: Duke
Should be there: North Carolina
Bubble riders: Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Maryland, Miami(FL), Virginia Tech
This has been a tough year for the ACC, only Duke has anything close to a solid resume(and even there the Blue Devils got rocked by St. John's). In any other year, the Tar Heels' middling resume would be bubble-worthy, but the fact they have a good chance of a protected seed tells you how much worse the collective shape of all 32 conferences is this year. If it weren't for the fact that they're not hoops royalty, the Seminoles and Eagles would, in my view, not be the bubble riders that they are. The Terps' resume doesn't match up with it's performance...yet. Beat the Blue Devils on Wednesday and they should move above the cut line.
Atlantic Sun
Expected bid: 1
Contenders: Belmont, East Tennessee State
The Bruins of Nashville almost had a resume-changing win that would have gotten it bubble consideration. But they couldn't beat either Vanderbilt or Tennessee(twice), so the fall back to just being the heavy favorite in this low-level league. The Buccaneers are a game and a half behind, but lost to the Bruins in Johnson City, so the must make up ground if they're to get the top seed.
Atlantic 10
Expected bid range: 1-3
Locks: None
Should be in: Temple
Bubble riders: Xavier, Duquesne, Dayton, Richmond
Conference cannibalism has yet to strike here, but the collective heft in non-conference play is rather weak. The Musketeers are the team on the upswing, but it's the Dukes who could end up on top in the conference, even with a weak OOC profile.
Big East
Expected bid range: 8-12
Locks: Pittsburgh, Connecticut, Villanova, Georgetown, Louisville, Notre Dame
Should be in: West Virginia, Syracuse, St. John's
Bubble: Cincinnati, Marquette, Rutgers
Without any reasonable doubt, this is by far the best conference in Division I and this year, that 2005 expansion should pay off with the most bids in the country. Whether or not the league will have ten teams or more in it is in play, but 9 is a certain lock to happen. The only way the 8 bid scenario comes forth is if wacky things happen elsewhere.
Big Sky
Expected bids: 1
Contender: Northern Colorado, Montana
Despite losing 71-70 at Weber State on Saturday, the Bears remain the best contender for the AQ out of the Big Sky. The Grizz, currently up front by half a game, does have the edge for the teams' return game next month. Whoever wins the regular season title will also host the later rounds of the conference tournament.
Big South
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Coastal Carolina, Liberty, Winthrop
The Chanticleers hold the edge over the Flames in the race for the top spot in this conference, and should expand the edge when the two meet in Conway on Thursday. But you can never count out Randy Peele's Eagles, who since 1999 have(figuratively) owned the league. Last year, Coastal Carolina went 17-1 in the regular season, but the Eagles shut down the Chanticleers' offense and won the bid.
Big Ten
Expected bid range: 6-7
Locks: Ohio State, Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin
Should be in: Michigan State
Bubble riders: Penn State, Michigan
If it weren't for the Big East, the Big Ten would be the best conference in the country. It has a clear leader in Ohio State, several sweet 16 contenders, and two legitamate bubble teams. There's still time for someone like Northwestern to make a run(Did I just really say that?).
Big 12
Expected bid range: 5-7
Locks: Texas, Kansas, Missouri, Texas A&M
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Nebraska, Baylor, Iowa State, Colorado, Kansas State
The most dissapointing team in the last group are the Wildcats who are struggling to make it to .500 in the conference. Everyone else on that list have some holes in their resumes. Expect one to three of them to eventually make it in to the field.
Big West
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Long Beach State, Cal Poly, Fullerton State
The 49ers are running away from the Big West pack, giving coach Dan Monson some relief after his failed tenure at Minnesota.
Colonial
Expected bid range: 1-3
Locks: None
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Old Dominion, VCU, George Mason
All three bubble teams listed here will face tough competition in the upcoming Bracketbusters series. The Monarchs get to host Cleveland State, the Rams visit Wichita State and the Patriots do battle with Northern Iowa. If they do well, then the Colonial could get an extra team in.
Conference USA
Expected bid range: 1-2
Locks: None
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Memphis, UAB, UTEP
Conference cannibalism has struck the league with avengance. Central Florida, who had 2 excellent wins over Florida and Miami(FL) is last in the conference having lost at home to East Carolina and Rice. They're no longer in contention. The other three have lots of work to do, especially if one is to breakaway. In all likelyhood, only the conference tournament winner will go.
America East
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Maine, Vermont, Boston University
The Black Bears, who have exactly ZERO postseason appearances at the Division I level, hold a one game lead over the Catamounts, but it's essentially two games, since Maine won the first contest(rather convincingly) in Burlington. Don't count out the Catamounts or Terriers though, both face the Black Bears once more and both are capable of thwarting the momentum.
Atlantic Coast
Expected bid range: 4-7
Locks: Duke
Should be there: North Carolina
Bubble riders: Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Maryland, Miami(FL), Virginia Tech
This has been a tough year for the ACC, only Duke has anything close to a solid resume(and even there the Blue Devils got rocked by St. John's). In any other year, the Tar Heels' middling resume would be bubble-worthy, but the fact they have a good chance of a protected seed tells you how much worse the collective shape of all 32 conferences is this year. If it weren't for the fact that they're not hoops royalty, the Seminoles and Eagles would, in my view, not be the bubble riders that they are. The Terps' resume doesn't match up with it's performance...yet. Beat the Blue Devils on Wednesday and they should move above the cut line.
Atlantic Sun
Expected bid: 1
Contenders: Belmont, East Tennessee State
The Bruins of Nashville almost had a resume-changing win that would have gotten it bubble consideration. But they couldn't beat either Vanderbilt or Tennessee(twice), so the fall back to just being the heavy favorite in this low-level league. The Buccaneers are a game and a half behind, but lost to the Bruins in Johnson City, so the must make up ground if they're to get the top seed.
Atlantic 10
Expected bid range: 1-3
Locks: None
Should be in: Temple
Bubble riders: Xavier, Duquesne, Dayton, Richmond
Conference cannibalism has yet to strike here, but the collective heft in non-conference play is rather weak. The Musketeers are the team on the upswing, but it's the Dukes who could end up on top in the conference, even with a weak OOC profile.
Big East
Expected bid range: 8-12
Locks: Pittsburgh, Connecticut, Villanova, Georgetown, Louisville, Notre Dame
Should be in: West Virginia, Syracuse, St. John's
Bubble: Cincinnati, Marquette, Rutgers
Without any reasonable doubt, this is by far the best conference in Division I and this year, that 2005 expansion should pay off with the most bids in the country. Whether or not the league will have ten teams or more in it is in play, but 9 is a certain lock to happen. The only way the 8 bid scenario comes forth is if wacky things happen elsewhere.
Big Sky
Expected bids: 1
Contender: Northern Colorado, Montana
Despite losing 71-70 at Weber State on Saturday, the Bears remain the best contender for the AQ out of the Big Sky. The Grizz, currently up front by half a game, does have the edge for the teams' return game next month. Whoever wins the regular season title will also host the later rounds of the conference tournament.
Big South
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Coastal Carolina, Liberty, Winthrop
The Chanticleers hold the edge over the Flames in the race for the top spot in this conference, and should expand the edge when the two meet in Conway on Thursday. But you can never count out Randy Peele's Eagles, who since 1999 have(figuratively) owned the league. Last year, Coastal Carolina went 17-1 in the regular season, but the Eagles shut down the Chanticleers' offense and won the bid.
Big Ten
Expected bid range: 6-7
Locks: Ohio State, Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin
Should be in: Michigan State
Bubble riders: Penn State, Michigan
If it weren't for the Big East, the Big Ten would be the best conference in the country. It has a clear leader in Ohio State, several sweet 16 contenders, and two legitamate bubble teams. There's still time for someone like Northwestern to make a run(Did I just really say that?).
Big 12
Expected bid range: 5-7
Locks: Texas, Kansas, Missouri, Texas A&M
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Nebraska, Baylor, Iowa State, Colorado, Kansas State
The most dissapointing team in the last group are the Wildcats who are struggling to make it to .500 in the conference. Everyone else on that list have some holes in their resumes. Expect one to three of them to eventually make it in to the field.
Big West
Expected bids: 1
Contenders: Long Beach State, Cal Poly, Fullerton State
The 49ers are running away from the Big West pack, giving coach Dan Monson some relief after his failed tenure at Minnesota.
Colonial
Expected bid range: 1-3
Locks: None
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Old Dominion, VCU, George Mason
All three bubble teams listed here will face tough competition in the upcoming Bracketbusters series. The Monarchs get to host Cleveland State, the Rams visit Wichita State and the Patriots do battle with Northern Iowa. If they do well, then the Colonial could get an extra team in.
Conference USA
Expected bid range: 1-2
Locks: None
Should be in: None
Bubble riders: Memphis, UAB, UTEP
Conference cannibalism has struck the league with avengance. Central Florida, who had 2 excellent wins over Florida and Miami(FL) is last in the conference having lost at home to East Carolina and Rice. They're no longer in contention. The other three have lots of work to do, especially if one is to breakaway. In all likelyhood, only the conference tournament winner will go.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - A Super Headache
Welcome to super week, where we have one last chance(this season hopefully, what with the cloud of a lockout threatening to block us out) to enjoy men grapple with the destiny of a prolate spheroid on 360 feet of space for cash. Which of course means that I'm only a week away from adopting the two-a-week strategy. Brackets he said, toppled goal posts, mileage charts.
Of course it's coming off of a week where Triskaidekaphobia ran rampant over the weekend. 13 teams rated in the Top 25 lost, four of them to fellow top 25ers, 9 fell to those residing out of it. This is starting to make anyone's head explode with confusion(and it won't help that the State of the Bubble is coming, that will easily supply more confusion). How did I handle all of this? Well, here's the latest projection:
Projection done as if the season ended on Sunday.
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southeast(2) vs. Southwest(3)
First Four Pairings:
Tuesday Game A: Baylor vs. Georgia
Tuesday Game B: Nebraska vs. Duquesne
Wednesday Game A: Wofford(Southern) vs. Long Island(Northeast)
Wednesday Game B: McNeese State(Southland) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-McNeese State/Texas Southern
8-Nevada-Las Vegas vs. 9-Virginia Commonwealth(Colonial)
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard(Ivy)
5-Texas A&M vs. 12-Ucla
@ Washington, DC
2-Connecticut vs. 15-Bucknell(Patriot)
7-Florida State vs. 10-Wichita State
@ Tampa
3-Kentucky vs. 14-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
6-Minnesota vs. 11-Temple
West region
@ Charlotte
1-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 16-Maine(America East)
8-St. Mary's(West Coast) vs. 9-Cincinnati
@ Washington, DC
4-Villanova vs. 13-Nebraska/Duquesne
5-Wisconsin vs. 12-Cleveland State(Horizon)
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Montana(Big Sky)
7-Syracuse vs. 10-Michigan State
3-Missouri vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Tennessee vs. 11-Penn State
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Wofford/Long Island
8-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 9-Missouri State(Missouri Valley)
@ Charlotte
4-North Carolina vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Arizona vs. 12-Alabama(Southeastern)
@ Tulsa
2-Kansas vs. 15-Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
7-St. John's vs. 10-Memphis(Conference USA)
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Coastal Carolina(Bug South)
6-Florida vs. 11-West Virginia
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Texas(Big 12) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Boston College vs. 9-Marquette
@ Tucson
4-Georgetown vs. 13-Baylor/Georgia
5-Washington(Pacific-10) vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
2-San Diego State vs. 15-Austin Peay(Ohio Valley)
7-Illinois vs. 10-Utah State(Western Athletic)
@ Chicago
3-Notre Dame vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Vanderbilt vs. 11-Old Dominion(Colonial)
New to the field: Duquesne, Marquette, St. John's, Montana, Penn State, Nebraska, Old Dominion, VCU, Kent State, Bethune Cookman, Austin Peay, Georgia, Wofford, McNeese State
Leaving the field: Miami(FL), Virginia Tech, Richmond, Northern Colorado, George Mason, Hofstra, Butler, Valparaiso, Ball State, Hampton, Colorado State, Tennessee State, College of Charleston, Lamar
Last four in the field: Baylor, Georgia, Nebraska, Duquesne
First four left out: Virginia Tech, UAB, George Mason, Richmond
Next four left out: Valparaiso, Oklahoma State, Colorado State, Maryland
The under consideration board: Miami(FL), Dayton, Michigan, Kansas State, Colorado, UTEP, Butler, Northern Iowa, Washington State, South Carolina, Boise State
Of course it's coming off of a week where Triskaidekaphobia ran rampant over the weekend. 13 teams rated in the Top 25 lost, four of them to fellow top 25ers, 9 fell to those residing out of it. This is starting to make anyone's head explode with confusion(and it won't help that the State of the Bubble is coming, that will easily supply more confusion). How did I handle all of this? Well, here's the latest projection:
Projection done as if the season ended on Sunday.
Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Southeast(2) vs. Southwest(3)
First Four Pairings:
Tuesday Game A: Baylor vs. Georgia
Tuesday Game B: Nebraska vs. Duquesne
Wednesday Game A: Wofford(Southern) vs. Long Island(Northeast)
Wednesday Game B: McNeese State(Southland) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-McNeese State/Texas Southern
8-Nevada-Las Vegas vs. 9-Virginia Commonwealth(Colonial)
@ Tampa
4-Louisville vs. 13-Harvard(Ivy)
5-Texas A&M vs. 12-Ucla
@ Washington, DC
2-Connecticut vs. 15-Bucknell(Patriot)
7-Florida State vs. 10-Wichita State
@ Tampa
3-Kentucky vs. 14-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
6-Minnesota vs. 11-Temple
West region
@ Charlotte
1-Duke(Atlantic Coast) vs. 16-Maine(America East)
8-St. Mary's(West Coast) vs. 9-Cincinnati
@ Washington, DC
4-Villanova vs. 13-Nebraska/Duquesne
5-Wisconsin vs. 12-Cleveland State(Horizon)
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Montana(Big Sky)
7-Syracuse vs. 10-Michigan State
3-Missouri vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Tennessee vs. 11-Penn State
Southeast region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Wofford/Long Island
8-Xavier(Atlantic 10) vs. 9-Missouri State(Missouri Valley)
@ Charlotte
4-North Carolina vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Arizona vs. 12-Alabama(Southeastern)
@ Tulsa
2-Kansas vs. 15-Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
7-St. John's vs. 10-Memphis(Conference USA)
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-Coastal Carolina(Bug South)
6-Florida vs. 11-West Virginia
Southwest region
@ Tulsa
1-Texas(Big 12) vs. 16-Bethune Cookman(Mid-Eastern)
8-Boston College vs. 9-Marquette
@ Tucson
4-Georgetown vs. 13-Baylor/Georgia
5-Washington(Pacific-10) vs. 12-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
2-San Diego State vs. 15-Austin Peay(Ohio Valley)
7-Illinois vs. 10-Utah State(Western Athletic)
@ Chicago
3-Notre Dame vs. 14-Kent State(Mid-American)
6-Vanderbilt vs. 11-Old Dominion(Colonial)
New to the field: Duquesne, Marquette, St. John's, Montana, Penn State, Nebraska, Old Dominion, VCU, Kent State, Bethune Cookman, Austin Peay, Georgia, Wofford, McNeese State
Leaving the field: Miami(FL), Virginia Tech, Richmond, Northern Colorado, George Mason, Hofstra, Butler, Valparaiso, Ball State, Hampton, Colorado State, Tennessee State, College of Charleston, Lamar
Last four in the field: Baylor, Georgia, Nebraska, Duquesne
First four left out: Virginia Tech, UAB, George Mason, Richmond
Next four left out: Valparaiso, Oklahoma State, Colorado State, Maryland
The under consideration board: Miami(FL), Dayton, Michigan, Kansas State, Colorado, UTEP, Butler, Northern Iowa, Washington State, South Carolina, Boise State
Monday, January 24, 2011
Bracket Watch '11 - Let's go crazy
With all apologies to Prince(or the artist formerly known as thingy), this past week was the week every bracketologist(and those who just casually follow the sport) had to be clawing out their hair. Numerous teams that were in got hampered with bad losses. Cases in point:
Central Florida
To paraphrase Dennis Green, the Golden Knights are who we thought they were, a pretender to Conference USA's throne. Back-to-back HOME losses to East Carolina and Rice put UCF into the conference cellar and with a trip to Memphis looming this week, don't look for the Knights to resurface anytime soon.
Kansas State
Why, oh why did I have to put up a preseason bracket? Yes, if you recall, I had the Wildcats as a #1 seed, but now with a 1-4 record in Big 12 play, including rough road losses to Missouri and Texas A&M, they're really reeling. And of course it gets worse, they have to go to Lawrence to help Kansas start another homecourt winning streak.
Gonzaga
I fear that the Bulldogs' bloom has finally worn off. Their weekend trip to the Bay Area to face San Francisco and Santa Clara ended with two losses. Now they must face St. Mary's at home in a must win game. If the Bulldogs lose, the hill they have to climb will become a very difficult mountain.
I could go on and on with the bad losses(Butler, Georgia, Colorado, etc.), but I can't, we must move on with the projections.
Projection done as if the season ended last night.
Final Four pairings
Southeast(1) vs. West(4)
East(2) vs. Southwest(3)
The First Four:
Tuesday Game A: Lamar(Southland) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
Tuesday Game B: Colorado State vs. Butler
Wednesday Game A: Long Island(Northeast) vs. Tennessee State(Ohio Valley)
Wednesday Game B: George Mason vs. UCLA
Southeast Region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Maine(America East)
8-Missouri State(Missouri Valley) vs. 9-Miami(FL)
@ Tampa
4-Missouri vs. 13-Colorado State/Butler
5-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 12-Cincinnati
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Northern Colorado(Big Sky)
7-St. Mary's(West Coast) vs. 10-Boston College
@ Washington, DC
3-Syracuse vs. 14-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
6-Arizona vs. 11-Memphis
West region
@ Tucson
1-San Diego State vs. 16-Lamar/Texas Southern
8-Tennessee vs. 9-Utah State(Western Athletic)
@ Denver
4-Washington(Pacific-10) vs. 13-Hofstra(Colonial)
5-Minnesota vs. 12-Valparaiso(Horizon)
@ Tulsa
2-Kansas vs. 15-Hampton(Mid-Eastern)
7-North Carolina vs. 10-Marquette
@ Charlotte
3-Connecticut vs. 14-Ball State(Mid-American)
6-Illinois vs. 11-Marquette
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Long Island/Tennessee State
8-Nevada-Las Vegas vs. 9-Temple
@ Tampa
4-Kentucky vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Wisconsin vs. 12-Virginia Tech
@ Tulsa
2-Texas(Big 12) vs. 15-Bucknell(Patriot)
7-Louisville vs. 10-Wichita State
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Notre Dame vs. 11-Cleveland State
Southwest region
@ Charlotte
1-Duke vs. 16-Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
8-West Virginia vs. 9-Baylor
@ Chicago
4-Michigan State vs. 13-Harvard(Ivy)
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-George Mason/UCLA
@ Washington, DC
2-Villanova vs. 15-Coastal Carolina(Big South)
7-Florida State(Atlantic Coast) vs. 10-Xavier(Atlantic 10)
@ Tucson
3-Texas A&M vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Georgetown vs. 11-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
New to the field: Miami(FL), Richmond, Marquette, George Mason, Hofstra, Memphis, Cleveland State, Fairfield, Hampton, Colorado State, Tennessee State, UCLA, College of Charleston, Lamar
Leaving the field: St. John's, Colorado, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Virginia Commonwealth, Central Florida, Southern Mississippi, Iona, Morgan State, Austin Peay, Georgia, Chattanooga, McNeese State, Gonzaga
Last four in the field: George Mason, UCLA, Colorado State, Butler
First four left out: Oklahoma State, Old Dominion, Virginia Commonwealth, Gonzaga
Next four left out: St. John's, Alabama, Indiana State, Duquesne
The rest of the under-consideration board: Maryland, Providence, Penn State, Kansas State, Nebraska, Iowa State, Colorado, UTEP, Central Florida, Princeton, Southern California, Washington State, Georgia, South Carolina
After next week's projections, I'll have my annual State of the Bubble series, thouorghly examining all 31 AQ conferences and their chances for at-large bids.
Central Florida
To paraphrase Dennis Green, the Golden Knights are who we thought they were, a pretender to Conference USA's throne. Back-to-back HOME losses to East Carolina and Rice put UCF into the conference cellar and with a trip to Memphis looming this week, don't look for the Knights to resurface anytime soon.
Kansas State
Why, oh why did I have to put up a preseason bracket? Yes, if you recall, I had the Wildcats as a #1 seed, but now with a 1-4 record in Big 12 play, including rough road losses to Missouri and Texas A&M, they're really reeling. And of course it gets worse, they have to go to Lawrence to help Kansas start another homecourt winning streak.
Gonzaga
I fear that the Bulldogs' bloom has finally worn off. Their weekend trip to the Bay Area to face San Francisco and Santa Clara ended with two losses. Now they must face St. Mary's at home in a must win game. If the Bulldogs lose, the hill they have to climb will become a very difficult mountain.
I could go on and on with the bad losses(Butler, Georgia, Colorado, etc.), but I can't, we must move on with the projections.
Projection done as if the season ended last night.
Final Four pairings
Southeast(1) vs. West(4)
East(2) vs. Southwest(3)
The First Four:
Tuesday Game A: Lamar(Southland) vs. Texas Southern(Southwestern)
Tuesday Game B: Colorado State vs. Butler
Wednesday Game A: Long Island(Northeast) vs. Tennessee State(Ohio Valley)
Wednesday Game B: George Mason vs. UCLA
Southeast Region
@ Cleveland
1-Ohio State(Big Ten) vs. 16-Maine(America East)
8-Missouri State(Missouri Valley) vs. 9-Miami(FL)
@ Tampa
4-Missouri vs. 13-Colorado State/Butler
5-Florida(Southeastern) vs. 12-Cincinnati
@ Denver
2-Brigham Young(Mountain West) vs. 15-Northern Colorado(Big Sky)
7-St. Mary's(West Coast) vs. 10-Boston College
@ Washington, DC
3-Syracuse vs. 14-Fairfield(Metro Atlantic)
6-Arizona vs. 11-Memphis
West region
@ Tucson
1-San Diego State vs. 16-Lamar/Texas Southern
8-Tennessee vs. 9-Utah State(Western Athletic)
@ Denver
4-Washington(Pacific-10) vs. 13-Hofstra(Colonial)
5-Minnesota vs. 12-Valparaiso(Horizon)
@ Tulsa
2-Kansas vs. 15-Hampton(Mid-Eastern)
7-North Carolina vs. 10-Marquette
@ Charlotte
3-Connecticut vs. 14-Ball State(Mid-American)
6-Illinois vs. 11-Marquette
East region
@ Cleveland
1-Pittsburgh(Big East) vs. 16-Long Island/Tennessee State
8-Nevada-Las Vegas vs. 9-Temple
@ Tampa
4-Kentucky vs. 13-Oakland(Summit)
5-Wisconsin vs. 12-Virginia Tech
@ Tulsa
2-Texas(Big 12) vs. 15-Bucknell(Patriot)
7-Louisville vs. 10-Wichita State
@ Chicago
3-Purdue vs. 14-College of Charleston(Southern)
6-Notre Dame vs. 11-Cleveland State
Southwest region
@ Charlotte
1-Duke vs. 16-Florida Atlantic(Sun Belt)
8-West Virginia vs. 9-Baylor
@ Chicago
4-Michigan State vs. 13-Harvard(Ivy)
5-Vanderbilt vs. 12-George Mason/UCLA
@ Washington, DC
2-Villanova vs. 15-Coastal Carolina(Big South)
7-Florida State(Atlantic Coast) vs. 10-Xavier(Atlantic 10)
@ Tucson
3-Texas A&M vs. 14-Long Beach State(Big West)
6-Georgetown vs. 11-Belmont(Atlantic Sun)
New to the field: Miami(FL), Richmond, Marquette, George Mason, Hofstra, Memphis, Cleveland State, Fairfield, Hampton, Colorado State, Tennessee State, UCLA, College of Charleston, Lamar
Leaving the field: St. John's, Colorado, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Virginia Commonwealth, Central Florida, Southern Mississippi, Iona, Morgan State, Austin Peay, Georgia, Chattanooga, McNeese State, Gonzaga
Last four in the field: George Mason, UCLA, Colorado State, Butler
First four left out: Oklahoma State, Old Dominion, Virginia Commonwealth, Gonzaga
Next four left out: St. John's, Alabama, Indiana State, Duquesne
The rest of the under-consideration board: Maryland, Providence, Penn State, Kansas State, Nebraska, Iowa State, Colorado, UTEP, Central Florida, Princeton, Southern California, Washington State, Georgia, South Carolina
After next week's projections, I'll have my annual State of the Bubble series, thouorghly examining all 31 AQ conferences and their chances for at-large bids.
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