Section 400’s Bracketology, February 26

Welcome to Views from 400 Bracketology! 

Can you believe it? This is the last bracketology before postseason play begins! Now, that postseason play may be the A-Sun, Horizon, and MVC tournaments but it’s postseason play nonetheless. Also if there’s anything you’ve learned about us by now it’s that we don’t care if we’re watching the Big 10 or the Big Sky, ball is ball.

Anyway, check out where your favorite team ranks in our penultimate bracketology.

First Four Out: Butler, Oregon, Michigan State, Villanova

• Butler has been hanging around, but head coach Thad Matta needs to lead his team to a 3-0 finish for a chance at the first four. Even with an undefeated finish, the Bulldogs may need a win or two in the Big East tourney to get in.
• Oregon has become the fourth best team in a bad PAC 12. The Ducks need a 3-1 finish with games @ Arizona, vs. Colorado, and vs. Utah.
• Michigan State is in serious danger of missing the tournament after losses to Iowa and Ohio State. Tom Izzo needs to pull of his March magic by beating Purdue on the road to give the Spartans a shot.
• Like Michigan State, Villanova is a historically dominant program in danger of missing the tournament.

Last Four In: Seton Hall, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Nevada

• Seton Hall is hanging on by a thread, but a win over Butler has the Pirates on the right side of the bubble for now. A win over Creighton or UConn would catapult the Pirates to a 10 seed or better, but two losses would create a must win situation against Villanova.
• Texas A&M is going in the absolute wrong direction as the Aggies have lost three in a row. Anything less than a 2-2 finish will have them in trouble.
• After an undefeated start to the season Ole Miss hasn’t done much of anything. We’ll see if Chris Beard’s team can hold on.
• Nevada had a 2-0 week against the basement dwellers in the Mountain West. Nonetheless, the two wins put them as the 65th team in the field. The Wolf Pack still have two home games against Fresno State and UNLV. As long as they win those, they’ll be on the right side of the bubble.

Projected Field of 68

16 seeds: Oakland/NC Central, Colgate, Southern/Eastern Washington, Merrimack

15 seeds: Sam Houston State, High Point, Morehead State, Quinnipiac

14 seeds: UNCW, Vermont, Eastern Kentucky, South Dakota State

13 seeds: Akron, UC Irvine, Appalachian State, Samford

12 seeds: Princeton, McNeese State, Grand Canyon, Indiana State

11 seeds: Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada/Texas A&M, Ole Miss/Seton Hall

10 seeds: Boise State, Virginia, Texas, Wake Forest

9 seeds: Gonzaga, Mississippi State, Oklahoma, Nebraska

8 seeds: Colorado State, Washington State, Northwestern Clemson

7 seeds: Florida, South Florida, South Carolina, Utah State

6 seeds: FAU, TCU, Texas Tech, BYU

5 seeds: Wisconsin, Duke, Dayton, San Diego State

4 seeds: Alabama, Creighton, St. Mary’s, Auburn

3 seeds: Illinois, Kentucky, Baylor, Marquette

2 seeds: Iowa State, UNC, Kansas, Tennessee

1 seeds: Purdue, Houston, Arizona, UConn

 

Projected Major Conference Champions

Purdue, Houston, UCONN, Tennessee, Arizona, San Diego State

 

Bids by Conference

AAC: 2

A-10: 1

ACC: 5

Big 10: 4

Big 12: 10

Big East: 5

Ivy League: 1

MVC: 1

MWC: 6

SEC: 10

WCC: 2

PAC 12: 2