Bracketology 165 – 3/11 Edition
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The March 11th, 2008 Bracket (Click to Enlarge):
Next Bracket: Wednesday, March 12th.
Note- There were one error that was notced in Yesterday’s bracket, the first in the new jpeg format. I accidently listed Memphis as a regional site, instead of Memphis. Thanks to the readers who pointed it out. If you notice anything, or just have comments, you can do so by emailing me HERE.
Today’s Top Story-lines:
It’s been a baaaaaaaaaaad couple of days for bubble teams. Even when some of the fringe teams decided to pick up key wins over the weekend (Ohio State over Michigan State, Syracuse over Marquette), the conference tournaments aren’t helping their cause. Already, three conference tournament upsets have stolen bids away from certain teams. First, VCU dopped one to William and Mary. Then, last night, Gonzaga and South Alabama fell in their respective tournaments.
Last night’s upsets left us with two fewer bids for the bubble teams, and Ohio State and VCU were removed from the field. While the Buckeyes can help their cause by upsetting Michigan State (again) on Friday, Anthony Grant’s Rams won’t have another chance to impress the committee, and therefore will have a tough time making the cut.
This bracket’s big winner is Davidson, whose stock rose significantly after sweeping the SoCon titles, going 23-0 along the way. The Wildcats haven’t lost since December 21st, and could fall anywhere between an 8 and a 12 seed depending on how the conference tournaments shake out this week.
South Alabama is this bracket’s big loser after being upset by Middle Tennessee. Many believed a trip to the Sun Belt Title Game, espically with the tournament on their home floor, would punch USA’s ticket to the dance. Coming up one round short not only moves the Jags down to an 11 seed, but places them squarely on the bubble.
Tonight’s Big Games-
Cleveland State @ Butler, Horizon Championship: Could another conference upset strip another bubble team of a bid? The two teams split the regular season series, each winning on their home floor. Good news for bubble teams – this one’s in friendly territory for the Bulldogs.
IUPUI vs. Oral Roberts, Summit Championship: IUPUI has 26 wins, while ORU has 23. It’s a 1 vs. 2 showdown for the Summit League Championship, with guarenteed highlights from engertic IUPUI Coach Ron Hunter.
Middle Tennessee State vs. Western Kentucky: Many believed that if WKU made it to the championship game and lost a competitive game to USA, they would have stated their case for a bubble bid. But now, it’s must win, as a loss to MTSU would mean the committee would have to award th Sun Belt three bids to put the Hilltoppers in the field, an unlikely scenario.
Bracket Info:
I operate on a “if the season ended today” scenario.
I do my best to abide by the Official NCAA Bracketing Procedure
tHe BrEaKdOwN:
LAST FOUR IN: South Alabama, Illinois State, Oregon, Syracuse
FIRST FOUR OUT: Ohio State, VCU, Arizona State, Villanova
NEXT FOUR OUT: UAB, Temple, Ole Miss, Florida
(They’re saying) Moooooooovers:
New to the show: Western Kentucky, San Diego
Show’s over: Ohio State, VCU
Conference-by-Conference (*Current Conference Leaders/Highest Remaining Seed, all teams are placed where they would be without the protection of an automatic bid )
Conference Champions, Bids Locked: Cornell (Ivy), Belmont (A-Sun), Winthrop (Big South), Drake (MVC), Austin Peay (OVC), Davidson (SoCon), George Mason (Colonial), Siena (MAAC), San Diego (WCC)
Big East (8 Bids)
Locked In: *Georgetown, Louisville, UConn, Marquette, Notre Dame
Nearly Locked In: Pitt, West Virginia
Solidly In:
On the Bubble, but in: Syracuse
On the Bubble, but out: Villanova
Big 12 (6 Bids)
Locked In: *Texas, Kansas
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In: Kansas State, Oklahoma, Baylor
On the Bubble, but in: Texas A&M
On the Bubble, but out:
Pac-10 (6 Bids)
Locked In: *UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, USC
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In: Arizona
On the Bubble, but in: Oregon
On the Bubble, but out: Arizona State
SEC (5 Bids)
Locked In: *Tennessee, Vanderbilt
Nearly Locked In: Mississippi State
Solidly In: Kentucky
On the Bubble, but in: Arkansas
On the Bubble, but out: Florida, Ole Miss
Big Ten (4 Bids)
Locked In: *Wisconsin, Indiana, Purdue, Michigan State
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In:
On the Bubble, but in:
On the Bubble, but out: Ohio State
ACC (4 Bids)
Locked In: Duke, *UNC
Nearly Locked In: Clemson
Solidly In: Miami (FL)
On the Bubble, but in:
On the Bubble, but out: Maryand, Virginia Tech
West Coast (3 Bids)
Locked In: Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In:
On the Bubble, but in:
On the Bubble, but out: **San Diego
A10 (2 Bids)
Locked In: *Xavier
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In:
On the Bubble, but in: UMass
On the Bubble, but out: Temple, Dayton, St. Joe’s
Missouri Valley (2 Bids)
Locked In: **Drake
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In:
On the bubble, but in: Illinois State
On the bubble, but out:
Mountain West (2 Bids)
Locked In: *BYU
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In: UNLV
On the Bubble, but in: New Mexico
On the Bubble, but out:
Colonial (1 Bid)
Locked In:
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In:
On the Bubble, but in:
On the Bubble, but out: **George Mason, VCU
Sun Belt (2 Bids)
Locked In:
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In:
On the Bubble, but in: South Alabama
On the Bubble, but out: *Western Kentucky Conference USA (1 Bid)
Locked In: *Memphis
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In:
On the Bubble, but in:
On the Bubble, but out: UAB
The One-and-Done Conference Leaders
Locked In: Butler (Horizon)
Nearly Locked In:
Solidly In:
On the Bubble, but in: Kent State (MAC),
On the Bubble, but out: Stephen F. Austin (Southland)
Gotta win the tournament: Portland State (Big Sky), Winthrop (Big South), Morgan State (MEAC), Sacred Heart (Northeast), American (Patriot), Alabama State (SWAC), Utah State (WAC), UCSB (Big West)
Mike Fahmie
Vincent Coughlin
Andrew Fousek
