New Bracketology - Championship Week - 3/7/17

It’s Championship Week and the best league in the country, the ACC, begins its conference tournament today in Brooklyn. The stakes are high, but the bubble has greatly contracted. Only a couple of teams are in play for the last few automatic bids and they can either play themselves in or out this week.

In this latest edition of bracketology, here’s a look at the NCAA Tournament field as if the season were to end today.

Caution: The predicted field/seeding is highly likely to change from day to day or minute to minute.

*Automatic bids in italics.

1 SEEDS: Kansas; Villanova; North Carolina; Gonzaga.

2 SEEDS: Oregon; Baylor; UCLA; Louisville.

3 SEEDS: Kentucky; Duke; Florida State; Arizona.

4 SEEDS: Butler; Florida; West Virginia; Purdue.

5 SEEDS: Virginia; Cincinnati; Notre Dame; SMU.

6 SEEDS: Iowa State; Wisconsin; Minnesota; Creighton.

7 SEEDS: Miami; St. Mary’s; Dayton; Maryland.

8 SEEDS: Oklahoma State; South Carolina; Virginia Tech; Michigan.

9 SEEDS: Wichita State; Michigan State; Northwestern; VCU.

10 SEEDS: Arkansas; Marquette; Seton Hall; Wake Forest.

11 SEEDS: Xavier; Vanderbilt; USC vs. Rhode Island; Syracuse vs. Providence.

12 SEEDS: Middle Tennessee State; North Carolina Wilmington; Nevada; Texas Arlington.

13 SEEDS: Vermont; Akron; Princeton; East Tennessee State.

14 SEEDS: Bucknell; Winthrop; CSU Bakersfield; Florida Gulf Coast.

15 SEEDS: Northern Kentucky; Iona; Texas Southern; Nebraska Omaha.

16 SEEDS: UC Irvine; Jacksonville State; Mount St. Mary’s vs. NC Central; North Dakota vs. New Orleans.

LAST FOUR IN: USC; Syracuse; Providence; Rhode Island.

FIRST FOUR OUT: Illinois State; California; Kansas State; Georgia.

NEXT FOUR OUT: Illinois; Iowa; Houston; Indiana.

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN: ACC (10); Big East (7); Big Ten (7); Big 12 (5); SEC (5); Pac 12 (4); Atlantic 10 (3); AAC (2); West Coast (2).

Note: Automatic bids are determined by the conference tournament champion or the highest seeded team remaining in their conference tournament.

New Blacketology

As of games through Friday, February 26.

WARNING: The predicted field/seeding is highly likely to change from day to day or minute to minute.

*Automatic bids in italics

1 SEEDS: Kansas; Oklahoma; Villanova; Virginia.

2 SEEDS: Xavier; Michigan State; Oregon; Duke.

3 SEEDS: North Carolina; Miami; Iowa; West Virginia.

4 SEEDS: Iowa State; Texas; Utah; Maryland.

5 SEEDS: Kentucky; Notre Dame; Texas A&M; Baylor.

6 SEEDS: Purdue; California; Arizona; Indiana.

7 SEEDS: Texas Tech; Dayton; Wisconsin; Colorado.

8 SEEDS: USC; Syracuse; Connecticut; Oregon State.

9 SEEDS: Providence; St. Joe's; Michigan; South Carolina.

10 SEEDS: Seton Hall; Florida; Butler; Wichita State.

11 SEEDS: Pittsburgh vs. St. Bonaventure; Tulsa; Vanderbilt vs. Cincinnati; Monmouth.

12 SEEDS: Saint Mary’s; Valparaiso; Princeton; San Diego State.

13 SEEDS: Arkansas Little Rock; Hofstra; Chattanooga; South Dakota State.

14 SEEDS: Akron; Stony Brook; UAB; UC Irvine.

15 SEEDS: Belmont; S. F. Austin; New Mexico State; Winthrop.

16 SEEDS: Montana; North Florida; Bucknell vs. Hampton; Texas Southern vs. Wagner.

LAST FOUR IN: Pittsburgh; Vanderbilt; Cincinnati; St. Bonaventure.

FIRST FIVE OUT: Alabama; UCLA; VCU; George Washington; Gonzaga.

NEXT FIVE OUT: Florida State; Washington; Stanford; Georgetown; LSU.

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN: ACC (7); Big Ten (7); Big 12 (7); Pac 12 (7); Big East (5); SEC (5); AAC (3); Atlantic 10 (3).

Note: Automatic bids are determined at this point by the highest RPI in each league.

New Bracketology - 2/2/16

It’s February, which means it is officially time to start projecting the NCAA Tournament field.

Here's a look at my first in-season Bracketology for 2015-16.

As of games through Monday, February 1.

WARNING: The predicted field/seeding is highly likely to change from day to day or minute to minute.

*Automatic bids in italics

1 SEEDS: Oklahoma; Iowa; North Carolina; Villanova.

2 SEEDS: Xavier; Virginia; Iowa State; Kansas.

3 SEEDS: Michigan State; Oregon; Texas A&M; Texas.

4 SEEDS: West Virginia; Maryland; Louisville; Miami.

5 SEEDS: Purdue; Kentucky; Providence; Utah.

6 SEEDS: USC; Duke; Arizona; Dayton.

7 SEEDS: Baylor; Florida; Michigan, Indiana.

8 SEEDS: Notre Dame; Wichita State; Colorado; California.

9 SEEDS: St. Mary’s; VCU; Pittsburgh; Syracuse.

10 SEEDS: Florida State; South Carolina; Seton Hall; UConn.

11 SEEDS: Valparaiso; St. Joe’s; Washington; Butler vs. Cincinnati.

12 SEEDS: Monmouth; Clemson vs. Texas Tech; San Diego State; Ark. Little Rock.

13 SEEDS: Chattanooga; William & Mary; South Dakota State; Stony Brook.

14 SEEDS: Princeton; Akron; UC Irvine; Middle Tenn. State.

15 SEEDS: Belmont; Grand Canyon; North Florida; Montana.

16 SEEDS: S. F. Austin; NC Asheville; Navy vs. Wagner; Southern vs. Hampton.

LAST FOUR IN: Butler; Clemson; Texas Tech; Cincinnati.

FIRST FOUR OUT: Vanderbilt; Kansas State; UCLA; Gonzaga.

NEXT FOUR OUT: Oregon State; Georgia Tech; Georgetown; George Washington.

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN: ACC (10); Big 12 (7); Pac 12 (7); Big Ten (6); Big East (5); SEC (4); Atlantic 10 (3); AAC (2).

Note: Automatic bids are determined at this point by the highest RPI in each league.

Last Night's Recap - Tonight's Game To Watch

Last Night's Recap:

Big Wins:

St. John's at Providence, 83-70. - The Johnnies got their first Big East win of the season (now 1-3) and did so in a tough spot. Could this be the start of a Red Storm re-brewing?

Baylor vs. Iowa State, 74-73. - The Bears finally got that big win they were looking for, but it wasn't easy. They will need a solid road win or two to be considered a legitimate tourney team.

LSU at Mississippi, 75-71. - The Tigers, now 2-1 in the SEC, got their second league road win in a spot where they could have easily slipped up. LSU could be on the road to legitimacy.

SMU at Temple, 60-55. - The Mustangs have now won three straight and 11 of their last 12. They are 4-1 in the AAC and collected a nice road win over a fellow AAC contender.

San Diego State at Wyoming, 60-52. - The Aztecs are now 3-1 in the Mountain West, after a bit of a shaky stretch in November/December. They now may be able to lay claim to being the conference's best, after a nice road win versus an upstart.

Bad Losses:

Mississippi - Coming off of a strong performance in a loss at Kentucky and a nice win versus South Carolina, Ole Miss needed another solid home win to keep the momentum going. They could not get it done against LSU, a team in a similar position.

Wyoming - this was a bad loss only because they had a chance to claim legitimacy with a win over nationally respected SDSU. The loss throws shade on the Cowboys, who need to take advantage of their home opportunities versus tournament caliber opponents.

Tonight's Game To Watch:

Cincinnati (11-4) at Memphis (9-6) 7PM, Memphis, TN, ESPN2

There isn't much to choose from tonight, but this is a big game in the AAC. The Bearcats have won four of their last five, are 2-1 in league play, and can't afford to drop a game against a team they should probably beat, home or away. Memphis (2-2, AAC) has been shaky all season - by their standards - but has played slightly better of late. Prediction: Cincinnati 59, Memphis 54.

Other games of note...

Colorado (9-6) at #12 Arizona (14-2) 9PM, Tucson, AZ, ESPN2
Nebraska (10-6) at #8 Wisconsin (15-2) 9PM, Madison, WI, ESPN
#6 Utah (12-2) at Arizona State (8-8) 10PM, Tempe, AZ, FS1

Other Top 25 Games:

#3 Gonzaga (15-1) at Pepperdine (10-5) 10:30PM, Malibu, CA

Vegas Pick (4-3):

BYU -9 at Pacific 11PM

Today's Games To Watch - New Year's Eve

Yep, it's New Year's Eve. The last day of 2014. Get ready for the horrible New Year's Eve shows, the hazy sight of the ball dropping and, of course, the sunglasses and Advil. But first, there is a bunch of college basketball to digest. The Big Ten got underway yesterday and today the Big East, AAC, and the Mountain West follow suit.

#18 St. John's (10-1) at Seton Hall (10-2) 12PM, Newark, NJ, FS1

The Big East gets rolling at noon with a tri-state area match-up in rough and tumble Newark. Don't worry, the game will be played inside and there will be plenty of security. The Johnnies have looked really good lately. They handled Long Beach State and Tulane last week with relative ease, which shows they are no longer playing to the level of the competition, their previous M.O. Seton Hall has been surprisingly solid, as well. The Pirates have mixed experience with youth nicely, but their no-show at Georgia over a week ago showed they may not be ready for primetime. The Hall is also likely to be without their primary offensive threat, freshman phenom Isaiah Whitehead, who has been sidelined with a stress fracture in his foot. Prediction: St. John's 69, Seton Hall 62.

Butler (10-3) at #7 Villanova (12-0) 2:30PM, Villanova, PA, FS1

The second Big East game of the season features the league's presumptive best team. Nova has been hitting on all cylinders since the start of the season. They are not invincible, by any means, as evidenced by Syracuse taking the Wildcats to overtime in Philadelphia. But, Jay Wright has one of the deepest, most balanced teams in the nation, so in order to beat them, the opposing team will have to be on their A-game. Butler is capable. They are balanced, as well, and have beaten the likes of North Carolina and Georgetown already this season. Prediction: Villanova 73, Butler 67.

Georgetown (8-3) at Xavier (9-3) 10PM, Cincinnati, OH, FS1

The last game of the Big East triumvirate is a good one that will likely end while many are stumbling to the television and looking for someone to kiss. But, if you can manage to sneak away to check out this match-up, you're almost sure to see a spirited battle that will tell you a lot about both teams. Xavier has been up-and-down so far this season. They are notoriously tough at home and their three losses have all come away from the friendly confines of the Cintas Center. Georgetown is coming off a big win over a good Indiana team at Madison Square Garden, but this will be the Hoyas' first true road game. A fourth referee may be needed just for the low post to keep an eye on Georgetown's Josh Smith and Xavier's Matt Stainbrook, which is a 600-plus pound match-up. Prediction: Xavier 72, Georgetown 70. 

Other games of note...

Temple (9-4) at Connecticut (6-4) 1PM, Hartford, CT, ESPN2
Minnesota (10-2) at Purdue (8-5) 3:15PM, West Lafayette, IN, BTN
Georgia (7-3) at Kansas State (7-5) 4PM, Manhattan, KS, ESPNU
Indiana (10-3) at Nebraska (8-4) 5:30PM, Lincoln, NE, BTN
Creighton (9-4) at Providence (10-3) 7:30PM, Providence, RI, FS1
Boise State (8-3) at #24 Colorado State (12-0) 9PM, Fort Collins, CO, ROOT

Other Top 25 games...

Penn State (12-1) at #5 Wisconsin (12-1) 1PM, Madison, WI, BTN
Wofford (7-3) at #2 Duke (11-0) 3PM, Durham, NC, ESPN3
George Mason (4-6) at #13 Oklahoma (8-3) 5PM, Norman, OK
#19 Wichita State (9-2) at Drake (2-9) 6:05PM, Des Moines, IA
Mississippi Valley State (1-11) at #9 Iowa State (9-1) 7PM, Ames, IA

Tonight's Games To Watch, Friday, Dec. 5th

We have moved from the ACC/Big Ten Challenge to the Big 12/SEC Challenge. Don't get dizzy yet, there are more challenges to come.

First, props to TCU for a big win at Ole Miss last night. Trent Johnson has things moving in the right direction down in Fort Worth. It looks like the Horned Frogs will at least be a tough out in the Big 12 this year.

Iowa State also made a statement last night for the Big 12, as they blew out a previously up-and-coming Arkansas squad.

On the SEC side, LSU got a very big win at previously undefeated West Virginia. The Tigers now look like possible contenders in the SEC, for second place, that is.

Tonight, the Big 12/SEC Challenge continues, headlined by a marquee match-up in Lexington.

#6 Texas (7-0) at #2 Kentucky (7-0) 7PM, Lexington, KY, ESPN

This is one of the most anticipated games so far this season. We all know about Kentucky. A roster full of McDonald's All-Americans, the "platoon" system, the 30-point win versus Kansas. But, guess what? There's more. They are playing selflessly on both ends of the floor, particularly on the defensive end where they've absolutely stifled opponents when they've wanted to. Texas is one of the few teams that doesn't look embarrassingly inadequate opposite the UK lay up line. The Longhorns have length and talent in their front court, led by freshman, Myles Turner, and have a very capable, athletic backcourt. They would have even more of a chance in this one if starting PG, Isaiah Taylor, were healthy. But, he's not. And even with him, winning in Lexington would be unlikely. Prediction: Kentucky 71, Texas 62.

#25 Providence (6-1) at Boston College (3-3) 7PM, Chestnut Hill, MA, ESPN3

Speaking of Kentucky, Providence just experienced their hospitality. Despite being hobbled by a couple of key nagging injuries, the Friars kept it close for 3/4s of the game. But eventually, Kentucky's superior length, depth and talent wore Ed Cooley's team down. It'll be a little different for them traveling the short distance to Chestnut Hill. Providence has shown in the early season that they are a solid, tough-minded squad. Boston College has been gritty and a little better than expected, so far, under 1st year head coach, Jim Cristian. But, this match-up of former Big East founding members should be a tough one for BC. Prediction: Providence 66, BC 60.

Wyoming (6-0) at SMU (4-3) 7PM, Dallas, TX, ESPNNews

Wyoming, from the Mountain West, has jumped out to an undefeated November and early December, including a 56-33 demolishment of Colorado. SMU and Larry Brown have been a disappointment so far this season. They have failed all of their non-conference tests to date, with losses at Gonzaga and Indiana and a home loss to Arkansas. So, you could say SMU needs this one. Prediction: SMU 59, Wyoming 53.

Florida (3-3) at #12 Kansas (5-1) 9PM, Lawrence, KS, ESPN

Florida was a little overrated to start the season, considering they lost four starters from last year's Final Four team. Billy Donovan will no doubt get them right, but it's a work in progress and they have lost to the three solid teams they've played thus far. Kansas is in a similar position, a young, inexperienced team, highly rated too soon and then taken to the woodshed by Kentucky. But, Bill Self seems to have put things together quickly, capped by a neutral court victory over Michigan State last weekend. Back home, in Lawrence, Kansas should continue its improved play. Prediction: Kansas 68, Florida 61.

Other games of note...

Yale (6-2) at Connecticut (3-2) 7PM, Storrs, CT, ESPNFC
Duquesne (2-1) vs. Pittsburgh (3-3) 7PM, Pittsburgh, PA, ESPN3
Long Beach State (4-4) at Stephen F. Austin (3-3) 8PM, Nacogdoches, TX

Other Top 25 games...

FIU (3-3) at #3 Louisville (6-0) 7PM, Louisville, KY, ESPNFC
Missouri (3-3) at #18 Oklahoma (4-2) 9:30PM, Norman, OK, ESPNU