Bracketology 101's Field of 68 - March 10

Wednesday Recap
Here are six things we learned from Wednesday's games:

1. All Big East Tournament games last 40 minutes, except when the referees are tired and just want to go home.

2. The Big East is going to get 11 bids, thanks to Marquette's win over West Virginia. The Golden Eagles are up to a 9 seed in today's bracket.

3. There's a very good chance that Villanova ends up the lowest seeded Big East team.

4. Colorado is the last Big XII bubble team left standing. Baylor and Nebraska are done after losing to Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, respectively.

5. If the Buffs want to stay on the right side of the bubble, they probably need to beat Kansas State today - and they definitely need to play better than they did against Iowa State.

6. Long Island (from the Northeast) and Northern Colorado (from the Big Sky) are going dancing. Both are on the 15 line in today's bracket.

Thursday Preview
Today is shaping up to be the biggest day of Championship Week for about a dozen residents of Bubbleville. Just about every major conference has games going on that feature teams fighting for tourney bids.

We'll start in the ACC, where Boston College and Virginia Tech will look to avoid upsets that would surely ensure them of top seeds in the NIT. Both teams will need two wins this week to ensure that their name is called on Sunday, but both will first need to get by ACC bottom feeders Wake Forest and Georgia Tech.

The Big Ten conference tourney also gets started today and features Penn State and Michigan State both playing for their bubble lives. As long as the Spartans avoid an upset against Iowa, they should be safe. Penn State, meanwhile, will need to beat Indiana today and then take down Wisconsin tomorrow to get any serious consideration.

The SEC tourney kicks off today with Georgia looking to take care of Auburn, which would set up another bubble battle against Alabama for tomorrow. Tennessee also needs to take care of Arkansas (who already beat them earlier in the year) in order to avoid being talked about in the same breath as Virginia Tech's and Michigan State on the bubble.

A few weeks ago, it looked like there would be no bubble battles in the Pac-10 tourney. Since then, the bubble has gotten even softer and USC won five of six down the stretch to finish above .500 in conference. Washington State also picked up wins over Washington and USC to keep their name in the mix. USC faces off with Cal today (who can also climb onto the bubble with a win), and if the Trojans can pick up the win, they will be in decent shape for a bid. A win over Arizona on Friday would likely lock down their spot. If Washington State is able to take down Washington for the third time this season, that could create an interesting scenario and potentially put Washington in danger.

Elsewhere on the bubble, Colorado will attempt to take down Kansas State for the third time this season and, in the process, solidify their tourney bid. In the MWC, Colorado State faces off against New Mexico in what is an at-large elimination game. In C-USA action, UAB needs to avoid an upset at the hands of East Carolina to stay in the at-large mix. If they do that, we like their chances to go dancing. Memphis, meanwhile, opens up with Southern Miss. The Tigers will need a deep tourney run (probably a trip to the finals) to get at-lare worthy. Fans of bubble teams throughout the country need to root hard against UTEP this week. The Miners are playing the C-USA tourney on their home floor, where they went 16-2 this year, and are looking like the best bid-stealer candidate left out there.

Bracket Breakdown
Last Four In
Michigan State, Alabama, Boston College, Colorado

First Four Out
Virginia Tech, Clemson, USC, Missouri State

Next Four Out
Penn State, VCU, Colorado State, Washington State

---------------------------------------------------------------

Conference Breakdown
Big East (11), Big XII (6), Big Ten (6), SEC (6), ACC (4), A-10 (3), MWC (3), Pac-10 (3), Colonial (2), Conference USA (2), WCC (2)

America East - Boston University

ACC - Duke, North Carolina, Florida State, Boston College

Atlantic Sun - Belmont

A-10 - Xavier, Temple, Richmond

Big East - Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Louisville, St. John's, Connecticut, West Virginia, Cincinnati, Georgetown, Marquette, Villanova

Big Sky - Northern Colorado

Big South - UNC-Asheville

Big Ten - Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State

Big XII - Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Missouri, Colorado

Big West - Long Beach State

Colonial - Old Dominion, George Mason

Conference USA - UTEP, UAB

Horizon - Butler

Ivy - Princeton

MAAC - St. Peter's

MAC - Kent State

MEAC - Bethune-Cookman

MVC - Indiana State

MWC - BYU, San Diego State, UNLV

Northeast - Long Island

Ohio Valley - Morehead State

Pac-10 - Arizona, UCLA, Washington

Patriot - Bucknell

SEC - Florida, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama

Southern - Wofford

Southland - McNeese State

Summit - Oakland

Sun Belt - Arkansas-Little Rock

SWAC - Texas Southern

WAC - Utah State

WCC - Gonzaga, St. Mary's

----------------------------------------------------------------

The Seeds
The 1s
Ohio State, Kansas, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame

The 2s
Duke, BYU, Syracuse, Purdue

The 3s
North Carolina, San Diego State, Florida, Texas

The 4s
Louisville, Wisconsin, St. John's, Kentucky

The 5s
Connecticut, Xavier, Arizona, Kansas State

The 6s
West Virginia, Cincinnati, Temple, Texas A&M

The 7s
Georgetown, UCLA, Vanderbilt, Old Dominion

The 8s
UNLV, Missouri, Utah State, George Mason

The 9s
Illinois, Florida State, Tennessee, Marquette

The 10s
Villanova, Gonzaga, Butler, Washington

The 11s
Richmond, Michigan, Georgia, St. Mary's

The 12s
UAB, Michigan State vs. Alabama (FF), Boston College vs. Colorado (FF), UTEP

The 13s
Belmont, Princeton, Oakland, Kent State

The 14s
Bucknell, Indiana State, St. Peter's, Wofford

The 15s
Morehead State, Long Beach State, Long Island, Northern Colorado

The 16s
Boston University, UNC-Asheville, McNeese State vs. Texas Southern (FF), Bethune-Cookman vs. Arkansas-Little Rock (FF)

The Bracket
(Bracket courtesy Matt Reeves)
















Questions? Comments? E-mail us at bracketologyblog@yahoo.com or send us a tweet at twitter.com/Bracketology101.

Bracketology 101's Field of 68 - March 9

Tuesday Recap
The Big East Tournament kicked off with a big upset as South Florida took down Villanova. The Wildcats finished the season in absolute free-fall mode, losing five straight, which has dropped them from a 4 seed just over two weeks ago all the way down to a 9 now. It will be interesting to see what the committee does with the Wildcats, but we can see anything from an 8-11 seed come Sunday. Elsewhere in Big East action, Marquette took care of business against Providence and are now just playing for tournament seeding the rest of the way.

Three more automatic bids were handed out on Tuesday, the most important of which was Butler winning the Horizon by (finally) beating Milwaukee. We thought the Bulldogs were safe regardless, but now there's no need to debate their at-large credentials. Butler's win really had no effect on our bracket, since we already anticipated the Bulldogs winning the Horizon title. The most thrilling finish of the night happened in the Sun Belt with lowly Arkansas-Little Rock taking down North Texas in the closing seconds to earn a bid (and an almost certain appearance in one of the First Four games.) In the Summit final, Oakland stamped their ticket with a convincing win over Oral Roberts.

The final notable result of the night was Princeton's win over Penn, which sets up a de facto conference title game against Harvard on Saturday.

Wednesday Preview
The Big XII, Pac-10, C-USA, MWC, and WAC all begin their conference tournaments today. The most important game in any of those tournaments is in the Big XII, as Colorado looks to keep its at-large hopes alive with a win over Iowa State. Missouri will be looking to avoid a Villanova-esque ending to its season as they take on Texas Tech. Baylor and Nebraska will also try to get off to strong starts and climb back into the bubble discussion with deep Big XII tourney runs.

In the Big East tournament, every game is crucial in regards to tournament seeding. A high noon showdown between Georgetown and UConn will decide which of these teams will be on the 5 line tomorrow, as both teams try to right the ship after late season slides. In other second round action, hometown favorite St. John's will continue its quest for a top 4 seed as they take on Rutgers. Cincinnati will try to solidify their spot on the 6 line with a win over USF, while the defending Big East tourney champ, West Virignia, will try to defend its title in the late game against Marquette.

Two more automatic bids will also be handed out tonight. Montana plays at Northern Colorado in the Big Sky final, and Robert Morris takes on Long Island in the Northeast final.

Bracket Breakdown
Last Four In
Michigan State, Alabama, Boston College, Colorado

First Four Out
Virginia Tech, Clemson, USC, Missouri State

Next Four Out
Penn State, VCU, Colorado State, Washington State

---------------------------------------------------------------

Conference Breakdown
Big East (11), Big XII (6), Big Ten (6), SEC (6), ACC (4), A-10 (3), MWC (3), Pac-10 (3), Colonial (2), Conference USA (2), WCC (2)

America East - Boston University

ACC - Duke, North Carolina, Florida State, Boston College

Atlantic Sun - Belmont

A-10 - Xavier, Temple, Richmond

Big East - Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Louisville, St. John's, West Virginia, Connecticut, Cincinnati, Georgetown, Villanova, Marquette

Big Sky - Northern Colorado

Big South - UNC-Asheville

Big Ten - Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State

Big XII - Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Missouri, Colorado

Big West - Long Beach State

Colonial - Old Dominion, George Mason

Conference USA - UTEP, UAB

Horizon - Butler

Ivy - Princeton

MAAC - St. Peter's

MAC - Kent State

MEAC - Bethune Cookman

MVC - Indiana State

MWC - BYU, San Diego State, UNLV

Northeast - Long Island

Ohio Valley - Morehead State

Pac-10 - Arizona, UCLA, Washington

Patriot - Bucknell

SEC - Florida, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama

Southern - Wofford

Southland - McNeese State

Summit - Oakland

Sun Belt - Arkansas-Little Rock

SWAC - Texas Southern

WAC - Utah State

WCC - Gonzaga, St. Mary's

----------------------------------------------------------------

The Seeds
The 1s
Ohio State, Kansas, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame

The 2s
Duke, BYU, Syracuse, Purdue

The 3s
North Carolina, San Diego State, Florida, Texas

The 4s
Louisville, Wisconsin, St. John's, Kentucky

The 5s
West Virginia, Xavier, Arizona, Connecticut

The 6s
Kansas State, Cincinnati, Temple, Georgetown

The 7s
Texas A&M, UCLA, Vanderbilt, Old Dominion

The 8s
UNLV, Missouri, Utah State, George Mason

The 9s
Villanova, Illinois, Florida State, Tennessee

The 10s
Gonzaga, Butler, Richmond, Washington

The 11s
Michigan, Marquette, Georgia, St. Mary's

The 12s
UAB, Michigan State vs. Alabama (FF), Boston College vs. Colorado (FF), UTEP

The 13s
Belmont, Princeton, Oakland, Kent State

The 14s
Bucknell, Indiana State, St. Peter's, Wofford

The 15s
Morehead State, Long Beach State, Long Island, Northern Colorado

The 16s
Boston University, UNC-Asheville, McNeese State vs. Texas Southern (FF), Bethune Cookman vs. Arkansas-Little Rock (FF)

The Bracket
(Bracket courtesy Matt Reeves)
















Questions? Comments? E-mail us at bracketologyblog@yahoo.com or send us a tweet at twitter.com/Bracketology101.

Bracketology 101's Field of 68 - March 8

Monday Recap
The residents of Bubbleville dodged their first bullet of Championship Week on Monday as Old Dominion held off VCU in the Colonial final. The win moved the Monarchs up to the top of the 8 line in today's bracket, but they could end up as high as a 7 depending on what happens the rest of the week. Elsewhere, Gonzaga avenged last year's WCC finals loss to St. Mary's by knocking off the Gaels 75-63 in Vegas. We thought both teams were fairly safe to get at-larges regardless of the outcome Monday night, and we still feel that way now. The Zags moved up to the top of the 10 line in today's bracket with the win, while St. Mary's fell to the bottom of the 11 line. Depending on what happens the rest of the week, we can see the Gaels perhaps slipping to the 12 line (and maybe to the First Four) on Selection Sunday because of how they finished up (losing four of six), but in the end, we fully expect their name to be called.

There were two other automatic bids handed out Monday night. Wofford knocked off top-seeded Charleston in the Southern final and St. Peter's, who got blown out by Iona twice during the regular season, beat the Gaels 62-57 in the MAAC final. Wofford and St. Peter's are both on the 14 line in today's bracket.

In other small conference action, North Texas and Arkansas-Little Rock advanced to today's Sun Belt final and top-seeded Oakland and Oral Roberts advanced to today's Summit final.

Tuesday Preview
The Big East Tournament gets underway at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday with four first round games - UConn vs. DePaul, Rutgers vs, Seton Hall, Villanova vs. South Florida, and Marquette vs. Providence. If the Big East is going to get 11 bids, Marquette is going to have to avoid the upset against the Friars. The Golden Eagles lost two very winnable games last week (at home against Cincinnati and at Seton Hall) and if they end the season on a three-game skid, we think there's a good chance they end up on the wrong side of the bubble. On the flip side, if Marquette does win tonight, we think they're safe going forward.

The other game with gigantic bubble implications tonight is the Horizon final between Butler and Milwaukee. If Butler wins, the Horizon is a one-bid league and the rest of the bubble can breathe a sigh of reilef. If Milwaukee can somehow find a way to beat the Bulldogs for a third time this season, though, the debate begins: is Butler at-large worthy? We, for one, think that they (barely) are. They have OOC wins over Florida State and Washington State, they tied for the Horizon regular season title, they beat Cleveland State three times, and (conspiracy theory alert) they're Butler. That resume, underwhelming as it is, is probably good enough this year.

The third and final key game of the night is Princeton at Penn. If the Tigers win, they'll face Harvard in a one-game playoff at Yale on Saturday for the Ivy's automatic bid. If the Quakers pull the upset, Harvard would make the tournament for the first time since 1946. The Crimson are the only Ivy League school to never won a regular season championship since the Ivy League was formed in 1956-57.

The Atlantic-10, MAC, and MEAC also begin first round conference tournament play today. The Big Sky plays its semifinals, as Weber State takes on Montana and Northern Arizona takes on Northern Colorado.

Bracket Breakdown
Last Four In
Michigan State, Alabama, Boston College, Colorado

First Four Out
Virginia Tech, Clemson, USC, Missouri State

Next Four Out
Penn State, VCU, Colorado State, Washington State

---------------------------------------------------------------

Conference Breakdown
Big East (11), Big XII (6), Big Ten (6), SEC (6), ACC (4), A-10 (3), MWC (3), Pac-10 (3), Colonial (2), Conference USA (2), WCC (2)

America East - Boston University

ACC - Duke, North Carolina, Florida State, Boston College

Atlantic Sun - Belmont

A-10 - Xavier, Temple, Richmond

Big East - Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Louisville, St. John's, West Virginia, Connecticut, Cincinnati, Georgetown, Villanova, Marquette

Big Sky - Northern Colorado

Big South - UNC-Asheville

Big Ten - Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State

Big XII - Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Missouri, Colorado

Big West - Long Beach State

Colonial - Old Dominion, George Mason

Conference USA - UTEP, UAB

Horizon - Butler

Ivy - Princeton

MAAC - St. Peter's

MAC - Kent State

MEAC - Bethune Cookman

MVC - Indiana State

MWC - BYU, San Diego State, UNLV

Northeast - Long Island

Ohio Valley - Morehead State

Pac-10 - Arizona, UCLA, Washington

Patriot - Bucknell

SEC - Florida, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama

Southern - Wofford

Southland - McNeese State

Summit - Oakland

Sun Belt - North Texas

SWAC - Texas Southern

WAC - Utah State

WCC - Gonzaga, St. Mary's

----------------------------------------------------------------

The Seeds
The 1s
Ohio State, Kansas, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame

The 2s
Duke, BYU, Syracuse, Purdue

The 3s
North Carolina, San Diego State, Florida, Texas

The 4s
Louisville, Wisconsin, St. John's, Kentucky

The 5s
West Virginia, Xavier, Arizona, Connecticut

The 6s
Kansas State, Cincinnati, Temple, Georgetown

The 7s
Texas A&M, UCLA, Vanderbilt, Villanova

The 8s
Old Dominion, UNLV, Missouri, Utah State

The 9s
George Mason, Illinois, Florida State, Tennessee

The 10s
Gonzaga, Richmond, Washington, Butler

The 11s
Michigan, Georgia, Marquette, St. Mary's

The 12s
UAB, Michigan State vs. Alabama (FF), Boston College vs. Colorado (FF), UTEP

The 13s
Belmont, Princeton, Oakland, Kent State

The 14s
Bucknell, Indiana State, St. Peter's, Wofford

The 15s
Morehead State, Long Beach State, Long Island, Northern Colorado

The 16s
Boston University, North Texas, UNC-Asheville vs. McNeese State (FF), Texas Southern vs. Bethune Cookman (FF)

The Bracket
(Bracket courtesy Matt Reeves)
















Questions? Comments? E-mail us at bracketologyblog@yahoo.com or send us a tweet at twitter.com/Bracketology101.

Bracketology 101's Field of 68 - March 7

It seems like a lot more than a week has passed since our last bracket, considering how many crucial games were played throughout the college basketball world. At times during the week, it looked like we would have to do a major overhaul to the bottom of the bracket, but ultimately, the seeds towards the top of the bracket actually saw the most changes. On each of our 3-8 lines, three of the four teams there this week weren't there last week. That's a crazy amount of movement that high in the bracket, especially this late in the season.

The only at-large teams that fell out of last week's bracket were Virginia Tech and Baylor. Virginia Tech was replaced by Boston College after the Eagles' 2-0 week, which included a road win against the Hokies. Virginia Tech would have still remained in the bracket, but we think their loss to Clemson may have been a bubble-bursting one. The Hokies have to win their first ACC tourney game against Georgia Tech to have any chance, and then likely will need to take down Florida State in the quarterfinals to secure a bid. We are not too confident in their ability to win that game against the 'Noles, so we left the Hokies out. The likely matchup between Boston College and Clemson in the quarterfinals is basically a tourney play-in game. (A play-in for a play-in?)

Baylor had a disasterous week, losing both of its games, and it will now take a run to the Big XII final to get them back into the discussion. The Bears ended up being replaced by UAB, who clinched the outright Conference USA title this week. We think that title should get them an at-large, as long as they avoid a loss in their first conference tourney game. We also included UTEP in the bracket as a bid-stealer out of C-USA. The Miners will be playing the conference tourney on their home floor, and with the draw they have, we like their chances. Elsewhere on the bubble, Michigan's win over Michigan State moved them ahead of the Spartans in the Big Ten pecking order and pushed Michigan State down to the Last Four In line. Alabama held onto their bid because of their victory over Georgia this weekend. The Tide will likely need to beat the Bulldogs again in their first SEC tourney game to secure their bid. Colorado, meanwhile, barely held onto their bid after their disappointing lose at Iowa State. The Buffs will get a rematch with the Cyclones in their first Big XII tourney game and then will look to beat Kansas State for the third time in the quarterfinals. A win in that game would lock down their bid.

We will update our bracket every day this week and our final bracket will be posted in the mid-afternoon on Selection Sunday. Enjoy the madness of Championship Week...

Bracket Breakdown
Last Four In
Michigan State, Alabama, Boston College, Colorado

First Four Out
Virginia Tech, Clemson, USC, Missouri State

Next Four Out
Penn State, VCU, Colorado State, Washington State

---------------------------------------------------------------

Conference Breakdown
Big East (11), Big XII (6), Big Ten (6), SEC (6), ACC (4), A-10 (3), MWC (3), Pac-10 (3), Colonial (2), Conference USA (2), WCC (2)

America East - Boston University

ACC - Duke, North Carolina, Florida State, Boston College

Atlantic Sun - Belmont

A-10 - Xavier, Temple, Richmond

Big East - Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Louisville, St. John's, West Virginia, Connecticut, Cincinnati, Georgetown, Villanova, Marquette

Big Sky - Northern Colorado

Big South - UNC-Asheville

Big Ten - Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State

Big XII - Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Missouri, Colorado

Big West - Long Beach State

Colonial - George Mason, Old Dominion

Conference USA - UTEP, UAB

Horizon - Butler

Ivy - Princeton

MAAC - Iona

MAC - Kent State

MEAC - Bethune Cookman

MVC - Indiana State

MWC - BYU, San Diego State, UNLV

Northeast - Long Island

Ohio Valley - Morehead State

Pac-10 - Arizona, UCLA, Washington

Patriot - Bucknell

SEC - Florida, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama

Southern - Charleston

Southland - McNeese State

Summit - Oakland

Sun Belt - North Texas

SWAC - Texas Southern

WAC - Utah State

WCC - Gonzaga, St. Mary's

----------------------------------------------------------------

The Seeds
The 1s
Ohio State, Kansas, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame

The 2s
Duke, BYU, Syracuse, Purdue

The 3s
North Carolina, San Diego State, Florida, Texas

The 4s
Louisville, Wisconsin, St. John's, Kentucky

The 5s
West Virginia, Xavier, Arizona, Connecticut

The 6s
Kansas State, Cincinnati, Temple, Georgetown

The 7s
Texas A&M, UCLA, Vanderbilt, Villanova

The 8s
UNLV, Missouri, Old Dominion, Utah State

The 9s
George Mason, Illinois, Florida State, Tennessee

The 10s
Richmond, Washington, Gonzaga, Butler

The 11s
Michigan, St. Mary's, Georgia, Marquette

The 12s
UAB, Michigan State vs. Alabama (FF), Boston College vs. Colorado (FF), UTEP

The 13s
Belmont, Princeton, Oakland, Charleston

The 14s
Iona, Bucknell, Kent State, Indiana State

The 15s
Morehead State, Long Beach State, Long Island, Northern Colorado

The 16s
Boston University, North Texas, UNC-Asheville vs. McNeese State (FF), Texas Southern vs. Bethune Cookman (FF)

The Bracket
(Bracket courtesy Matt Reeves)
















Questions? Comments? E-mail us at bracketologyblog@yahoo.com or send us a tweet at twitter.com/Bracketology101.