Here is my bracket as of right now… Saturday, February 11 @ 11:55 AM EST. Results from yesterday’s games were taken into consideration even though team records were not updated. Principles & procedures are extremely hard to follow this year (especially avoiding rematches from recent years). If I’m not mistaken, all of these rules come into play (among many others) when creating a bracket:
- BYU can’t play on Sundays.
- St. Louis can’t play in the Midwest Regional.
- Ohio State can’t play in Columbus.
- New Mexico can’t play in Albuquerque.
- Louisville can’t play in Louisville.
- Creighton can’t play in Omaha.
Following all of the other rules while trying to place 17 Big Ten and Big East teams is another monumental task! The play-in games add a whole new level of complexity as you need to look at both possible teams and ensure no conflicts arise regardless of the outcome. Besides all of that, I basically had to flip a coin to determine the last few teams. Take Dayton for example… their last few games have been nothing short of awful but their overall resume still looks way better than most bubble teams.
Out: Dayton 14-9 (4-5), RPI: 77, SOS: 39 [25W: 0, 50W: 3, 100W: 4, BL:2]…In: Minnesota (63), Alabama (31), Saint Louis (29), Temple (21), Xavier (59), Bubble: Mississippi (53)
In: Miami (Fla.) 15-7 (6-3), RPI: 35, SOS: 40 [25W: 1, 50W: 0, 100W: 3, BL:0]…In: Duke (2), Bubble: Massachusetts (64)
In: Xavier 16-8 (7-3), RPI: 59, SOS: 66 [25W: 0, 50W: 2, 100W: 4, BL:1]…In: Vanderbilt (27), Purdue (61), Cincinnati (93), Bubble: Saint Joseph's (49)
In: Colorado State 14-7 (4-3), RPI: 28, SOS: 10 [25W: 1, 50W: 0, 100W: 2, BL:0]…In: San Diego State (19), Bubble: None
In: Cincinnati 17-7 (7-4), RPI: 93, SOS: 130 [25W: 1, 50W: 2, 100W: 2, BL:3]…In: Notre Dame (43), Georgetown (13), Connecticut (24), Bubble: Oklahoma (83), Pittsburgh (69)
In: North Carolina State 18-7 (7-3), RPI: 48, SOS: 52 [25W: 0, 50W: 2, 100W: 2, BL:1]…In: Miami (Fla.) (35), Bubble: Texas (54)
In: Northwestern 15-8 (5-6), RPI: 37, SOS: 12 [25W: 1, 50W: 2, 100W: 1, BL:0]…In: Michigan State (7), Illinois (45), Bubble: Seton Hall (33)
That’s all I’ve got for now… I’m sure it will look totally different after today’s games!
Auto bids are in CAPS and First Four games are italicized. Championship: Atlanta (S) / Phoenix (W) winner vs. Boston (E) / St. Louis (M) winner.
Atlanta (S)
(1S) KENTUCKY (24-1) vs. (16S) TEXAS-ARLINGTON (17-5) @Louisville
(8S) Kansas State (17-6) vs. (9S) Illinois (16-8) @Louisville
(5S) Florida State (16-7) vs. (12S) LONG BEACH STATE (16-6) @Columbus
(4S) Marquette (20-5) vs. (13S) MIDDLE TENNESSEE (21-4) @Columbus
(6S) Louisville (19-5) vs. (11S) CALIFORNIA (19-6) @Portland
(3S) Wisconsin (19-6) vs. (14S) NEVADA (18-4) @Portland
(7S) SOUTHERN MISS (18-4) vs. (10S) Saint Louis (18-5) @Albuquerque
(2S) Baylor (20-3) vs. (15S) WEBER STATE (17-4) @Albuquerque
Phoenix (W)
(1W) MISSOURI (22-2) vs. (16W) NORFOLK STATE (16-7) / MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE (12-11) @Omaha
(8W) WICHITA STATE (20-4) vs. (9W) West Virginia (16-9) @Omaha
(5W) Indiana (19-6) vs. (12W) Colorado State (14-7) / Cincinnati (17-7) @Nashville
(4W) Florida (19-5) vs. (13W) ORAL ROBERTS (22-5) @Nashville
(6W) Gonzaga (19-4) vs. (11W) Minnesota (17-8) @Albuquerque
(3W) UNLV (19-4) vs. (14W) CLEVELAND STATE (19-5) @Albuquerque
(7W) TEMPLE (18-5) vs. (10W) Connecticut (15-8) @Greensboro
(2W) North Carolina (20-4) vs. (15W) LOYOLA-MARYLAND (18-5) @Greensboro
Boston (E)
(1E) SYRACUSE (24-1) vs. (16E) LIU-BROOKLYN (18-7) / STONY BROOK (16-7) @Pittsburgh
(8E) Memphis (17-7) vs. (9E) Alabama (16-7) @Pittsburgh
(5E) Creighton (21-4) vs. (12E) Miami (Fla.) (15-7) @Columbus
(4E) Michigan (17-7) vs. (13E) DAVIDSON (18-5) @Columbus
(6E) Mississippi State (19-5) vs. (11E) Brigham Young (18-6) @Louisville
(3E) Michigan State (18-5) vs. (14E) VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH (21-5) @Louisville
(7E) MURRAY STATE (20-1) vs. (10E) New Mexico (18-4) @Greensboro
(2E) DUKE (20-4) vs. (15E) BUCKNELL (18-6) @Greensboro
St. Louis (M)
(1M) OHIO STATE (21-3) vs. (16M) NC-ASHEVILLE (15-7) @Pittsburgh
(8M) Notre Dame (16-8) vs. (9M) Iowa State (17-7) @Pittsburgh
(5M) ST. MARY'S (20-3) vs. (12M) Xavier (16-8) @Portland
(4M) SAN DIEGO STATE (18-3) vs. (13M) North Carolina State (18-7) / Northwestern (15-8) @Portland
(6M) Virginia (19-4) vs. (11M) Purdue (15-9) @Nashville
(3M) Georgetown (17-5) vs. (14M) AKRON (16-7) @Nashville
(7M) Vanderbilt (17-7) vs. (10M) HARVARD (19-2) @Omaha
(2M) Kansas (19-5) vs. (15M) BELMONT (17-7) @Omaha
Last Six Pack: Miami (Fla.) (15-7), Xavier (16-8), Colorado State (14-7), Cincinnati (17-7), North Carolina State (18-7), Northwestern (15-8)
Added: Miami (Fla.) (15-7), Cincinnati (17-7), North Carolina State (18-7), Northwestern (15-8), LOYOLA-MARYLAND (18-5)
Dropped: Seton Hall (16-8), Arkansas (16-8), Dayton (14-9), Mississippi (14-9), Iona (19-5)
Moving Up: MISSOURI (22-2), Georgetown (17-5), Wisconsin (19-6), Florida (19-5), Florida State (16-7), Virginia (19-4), Mississippi State (19-5), Louisville (19-5), TEMPLE (18-5), SOUTHERN MISS (18-4)
Moving Down: Baylor (20-3), Marquette (20-5), Creighton (21-4), MURRAY STATE (20-1), Vanderbilt (17-7), Kansas State (17-6), West Virginia (16-9), Illinois (16-8), Connecticut (15-8), CALIFORNIA (19-6)
Top 5 First Round Individual Matchups
Game 1: (4W) Florida vs. (13W) Oral Roberts @ Nashville: Kenny Boynton (17.6 PPG) / Dominique Morrison (20.6 PPG)
Game 2: (7W) Temple vs. (10W) Connecticut @ Greensboro: Ramone Moore (18.3 PPG) / Jeremy Lamb (17.2 PPG)
Game 3: (6E) Mississippi State vs. (11E) Brigham Young @ Louisville: Arnett Moultrie (17 PPG) / Noah Hartsock (17.6 PPG)
Game 4: (1M) Ohio State vs. (16M) NC-Asheville @ Pittsburgh: Jared Sullinger (17.4 PPG) / Matt Dickey (16.9 PPG)
Game 5: (2S) Baylor vs. (15S) Weber State @ Albuquerque: Perry Jones III (14.3 PPG) / Damian Lillard (25.2 PPG)
Top 5 Potential Second Round Individual Matchups (Assumes Seeds 12 or Better Advance)
Game 1: (1W) Missouri vs. (9W) West Virginia @ Omaha: Marcus Denmon (18 PPG) / Kevin Jones (20.6 PPG)
Game 2: (7M) Vanderbilt vs. (2M) Kansas @ Omaha: John Jenkins (19.7 PPG) / Thomas Robinson (17.8 PPG)
Game 3: (7W) Temple vs. (2W) North Carolina @ Greensboro: Ramone Moore (18.3 PPG) / Harrison Barnes (17.7 PPG)
Game 4: (12S) Long Beach State vs. (4S) Marquette @ Columbus: Casper Ware (17.2 PPG) / Darius Johnson-Odom (18.2 PPG)
Game 5: (7E) Murray State vs. (2E) Duke @ Greensboro: Isaiah Canaan (19.4 PPG) / Austin Rivers (15.1 PPG)
My First & Second Round Ticket For Thursday & Saturday Games
Portland: Tu Holloway (16.3 PPG), Jamaal Franklin (16 PPG), Allen Crabbe (16 PPG), Matthew Dellavedova (15.7 PPG), Deonte Burton (15.7 PPG)
My First & Second Round Ticket For Friday & Sunday Games
Greensboro: Isaiah Canaan (19.4 PPG), Ramone Moore (18.3 PPG), Harrison Barnes (17.7 PPG), Jeremy Lamb (17.2 PPG), Mike Muscala (16.1 PPG)
Average Distance Traveled
First & Second Round Matchups: 636 miles
Regional Matchups (Assumes Seeds 4 or Better Advance): Atlanta (S): 1394 miles, Phoenix (W): 3149 miles, Boston (E): 1224 miles, St. Louis (M): 1353 miles
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NATIONAL INVITATION TOURNAMENT
(1) Dayton (14-9) vs. (8) Mercer (18-7)
(4) Oregon (17-7) vs. (5) Missouri State (14-11)
(3) Pittsburgh (15-10) vs. (6) Ohio (18-5)
(2) Arkansas (16-8) vs. (7) Duquesne (13-9)
(1) Texas (15-9) vs. (8) Valparaiso (16-8)
(4) Iona (19-5) vs. (5) South Florida (13-10)
(3) Massachusetts (18-6) vs. (6) Marshall (13-10)
(2) Washington (16-8) vs. (7) South Dakota State (17-7)
(1) Arizona (17-8) vs. (8) Kent State (16-6)
(4) Oklahoma (13-10) vs. (5) LSU (13-10)
(3) Northern Iowa (15-10) vs. (6) Colorado (14-8)
(2) Wyoming (16-5) vs. (7) Wagner (20-4)
(1) Seton Hall (16-8) vs. (8) Virginia Tech (13-11)
(4) Saint Joseph's (15-10) vs. (5) Drexel (20-5)
(3) Mississippi (14-9) vs. (6) La Salle (17-8)
(2) UCF (16-6) vs. (7) Buffalo (14-6)
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COLLEGE BASKETBALL INVITATIONAL
(1M) Denver (17-8) vs. (4M) Richmond (13-12)
(2M) Montana (16-6) vs. (3M) Loyola Marymount (14-9)
(1W) Stanford (16-8) vs. (4W) Georgia State (17-8)
(2W) New Mexico State (16-8) vs. (3W) Illinois State (16-9)
(1E) Maryland (14-9) vs. (4E) Pennsylvania (12-10)
(2E) St. Bonaventure (12-9) vs. (3E) Tulsa (14-10)
(1S) UCLA (13-10) vs. (4S) Iowa (13-12)
(2S) George Mason (20-6) vs. (3S) Lamar (14-8)
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COLLEGEINSIDER POSTSEASON TOURNAMENT
(1) Robert Morris (18-8) vs. (4) American (16-8)
(2) Indiana State (13-11) vs. (3) Butler (13-12)
(1) Yale (13-5) vs. (4) Utah Valley (13-10)
(2) Old Dominion (16-10) vs. (3) Fairfield (14-10)
(1) Drake (12-12) vs. (4) North Dakota State (13-9)
(2) Wisconsin-Milwaukee (13-10) vs. (3) Santa Barbara (10-8)
(1) Lehigh (17-7) vs. (4) College of Charleston (15-10)
(2) Manhattan (17-9) vs. (3) Bowling Green (11-11)
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* I am aware of the potential Missouri-West Virginia (2010 Tourney, 2nd round) rematch and the Louisville-California (2010 Tourney, 1st round) rematch.
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