Monday, March 2, 2009

Bracket Watch - Who wants in?

It's become increasingly crazy over the past few weeks as more teams are trying to play their way out as opposed to those trying to play their way in. This weekend alone, bubble teams like Cincinnati, Kentucky and Virginia Tech more or less played their way out of contention, Arizona and Ohio State came close to moving out and Maryland, Georgetown and Texas A&M made strong plays to try to get in the field.

How does it reflect on today's projection? Well here goes...

Final Four pairings
East(1) vs. West(4)
Midwest(2) vs. South(3)

East region
@Philadelphia
1-Connecticut/Big East vs. 16-Morgan State/Mid-Eastern
8-Dayton vs. 9-Oklahoma State
@Minneapolis
4-Purdue vs. 13-Bowling Green/Mid-American
5-Louisiana State/Southeastern vs. 12-Virginia Commonwealth/Colonial
@Greensboro
2-Duke vs. 15-Binghamton/America East
7-Brigham Young vs. 10-Arizona
@Minneapolis
3-Kansas/Big 12 vs. 14-North Dakota State/Summit
6-Butler/Horizon vs. 11-Creighton

West region
@Kansas City
1-Oklahoma vs. 16-Northridge State/Big West
8-Syracuse vs. 9-Minnesota
@Portland
4-Ucla vs. 13-Davidson/Southern
5-Xavier/Atlantic 10 vs. 12-Miami(FL)
@Kansas City
2-Memphis/Conference USA vs. 15-Stephen F. Austin/Southland
7-Illinois vs. 10-South Carolina
@Philadelphia
3-Villanova vs. 14-American/Patriot
6-Clemson vs. 11-Utah State/Western Athletic

Midwest region
@Dayton
1-Pittsburgh vs. 16-Opening Round winner
Opening Round: Tennessee-Martin/Ohio Valley vs. Alabama State/Southwestern
8-Tennessee vs. 9-California
@Boise
4-Florida State vs. 13-Western Kentucky/Sun Belt
5-Utah/Mountain West vs. 12-St. Mary's
@Dayton
2-Michigan State/Big Ten vs. 15-Cornell/Ivy
7-West Virginia vs. 10-Texas A&M
@Miami
3-Wake Forest vs. 14-Robert Morris/Northeast
6-Arizona State vs. 11-Providence

South region
@Greensboro
1-North Carolina/Atlantic Coast vs. 16-Radford/Big South
8-Wisconsin vs. 9-Nevada-Las Vegas
@Boise
4-Missouri vs. 13-Northern Iowa/Missouri Valley
5-Marquette vs. 12-Siena/Metro Atlantic
@Miami
2-Louisville vs. 15-Jacksonville/Atlantic Sun
7-Texas vs. 10-Boston College
@Portland
3-Washington/Pacific-10 vs. 14-Weber State/Big Sky
6-Gonzaga/West Coast vs. 11-Ohio State

New to the field: Providence, Texas A&M, Northridge State, Bowling Green, Nevada-Las Vegas

Last four in the field(by seed list): Creighton, Miami(FL), St. Mary's, Providence
First four left out: Maryland, New Mexico, Penn State, Florida
Next four left out: Georgetown, Kentucky, Michigan, Virginia Tech
Also on the at-large board: Rhode Island, Temple, Notre Dame, Kansas State, Nebraska, Tulsa, San Diego State, Southern California, Auburn

2 comments:

  1. Howard, just a question about Florida State. I notice that you currently have them playing Western Kentucky in the first round. They have already played each other this year. Isn't there a rule that says you can't have rematches in the first round, or is it just a guideline to try to avoid rematches in the first round? Thanks!

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  2. Thanks Bryan for catching that one. Reading the principles, however, it may be more a guideline rather than an actual rule. When I do the next projections, I'll try to pair the two away from each other.

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