17 Mar 6 - Titles Aplenty (PRETOURNAMENT)
Volume XXI, No. 18 - 17 Mar 6: PRETOURNAMENT - [] Top 25 Ballot
Titles Aplenty
With Kansas already having won the title, the remainder of the BIG 12 regular season was just jockeying for position for the conference tournament. Baylor beat West Virginia (@71-62 on 26-for-34 free-throw shooting); but WVU rebounded (literally) to handle Iowa State (@87-76 dominating the boards 47-24). Oklahoma State fell twice: tripping at Iowa State (83-@86 with the Cyclones' shooting 15-for-31 on three-pointers as pMatt Thomas[25p5a;7/11 3s] countered 29p6a from pJawun Evans) and tripping at home against Kansas (@85-90 as the Jayhawks' pFrank Mason III[27p9a] countered 27p from Jeffrey Caroll). Kansas State won twice: handling Texas Tech (@61-48) and edging TCU on the road (75-@74); TCU tripped again at Oklahoma.
&nbp With Villanova already having won the title, the remainder of the BIG EAST regular season was just jockeying for position for the conference tournament. Seton Hall won on the road at Butler (70-@64 led by cAngel Delgado[20p16r6to]). Marquette edged slumping Xavier on the road (85-@74 on 61 percent shooting) and also beat Creighton (@91-83).
With North Carolina already having won the title, the remaineder of the ACC regular season was just jockeying for position for the conference tournament. Virginia handled North Carolina (@53-43 committing only 4 turnovers). Louisville fell at Wake Forest (81-@88 as cJohn Collins[25p11r] dominated). UNC paid back Duke (@90-83 as Joel Berry[28p] dueled 28p5r from bLuke Kennard). Louisville beat Notre Dame (@71-64 dominating the boards 47-27). Duke edged Florida State (@75-70). Miami(Florida) fell twice on the road: tripping at Virginia Tech (61-@66) and falling at Florida State (57-@66). Wake Forest continued its big week, edging Virginia Tech on the road (89-@84 led by pBryant Crawford[26p5a]).
In the PACIFIC-12, the top contenders all took care of their business as both Oregon and Arizona beat their arch-rivals on the road to share the regular season title -- (the second-straight for Oregon and the THIRD IN FOUR YEARS for Arizona).
In the SEC, Florida handled Arkansas (@78-65) but tripped at Vanderbilt. Meanwhile, Kentucky went 2-0 to clinch the regular season title -- (its third-straight) -- with a two-game gap.
That makes FIVE OF THE TOP SIX CONFERENCES who have repeat champions: BIG 12(Kansas/13), BIG EAST(Villanova/4), SEC(Kentucky/3), PAC-12(Oregon/2) and ACC(UNC/2), and add on the WCC(Gonzaga/5) to boot. Although it's probably a down year for college basketball in terms of star power; that kind of dominance suggests a cadre of mature teams at the top all of whom should go deep into the NCAA tournament.
Meanwhile, the BIG 10 had its fourth different regular season champion in the past four years. Wisconsin tripped at Iowa but dumped Minnesota (@66-49). Purdue went 2-0 on the road to clinch its first title in seven years: handling Indiana and then edging Northwestern (69-@65 as pVince Edwards[25p5a] dueled 25p6a from pBryant McIntosh).
In the AMERICAN, Cincinnati dumped Houston (@65-47); but it was SMU who routed Memphis (@103-62) to clinch the regular season title.
In the MOUNTAIN WEST, Nevada came through in the conference showdown against Colorado State, winning (@85-72 as xCameron Oliver[29p17r] outdueled 33p3a9r from tGlen Clavell) to clinch the regular season title. Meanwhile, Boise State fell at home to Fresno State.
In the ATLANTIC 10, Dayton beat VCU (@79-72 holding the Rams to 2-for-15 on threes) in the showdown for the regular season title (its second-straight) but later fell at George Washington (81-@87 led by fTyler Cavanuagh[30p8r]).
The final chapter of the SUN BELT Wars was written with Texas-Arlington going 2-1 on the week to clinch the regular season title. Arkansas State handled Georgia State (@78-67 despite 15p4a6r from bJeremy Hollowell) but fell at Troy and tripped at South Alabama. Meanwhile, Georgia State edged arch-rival Georgia Southern (@72-67 as xJeremy Hollowell[15p5a12r] dueled 27p1a from Ike Smith).
UNC-Greensboro beat East Tennessee State (@72-66) to create a three-way tie for the SOUTHERN title (along with Furman).
After leaving Division I (due to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina) and returning, New Orleans has come all the way back to win the SOUTHLAND -- its first regular season title in 20 years -- Congrats!
In the BIG SKY, North Dakota, Eastern Washington and Weber State all went 1-1 on the week, leaving the (newly minted) "Fighting Hawks" with their first-ever conference regular season title (since entering Division I in 2008-09).
In the BIG WEST, it was UC-Irvine who dumped UC-Davis (@79-49 behind bLuke Nelson[29p5r5to]) in the conference showdown for its second-straight title (and THIRD IN FOUR YEARS).
In the SWAC, Texas Southern beat Alcorn State (@94-88) and Southern (@82-69) to clinch its third-straight title (and FOURTH IN FIVE YEARS).
- - - - - -
In conference tournament play, the one true Anti-Spoiler team this year, [1b]Wichita State, did everyone on the NCAA Bubble a huge favor by going TiTo in the MISSOURI VALLEY, crushing [1a]Illinois State in the final (71-51). Now it's IllSt that's likely on the outside looking in. Despite dominating the regular season race as well, the Redbirds' margins weren't comparable to WichSt's and the MVC overall was middle of the pack at best among the ordinary 1BCs.
Once again, we've lost some big Off-Broadway stars. For the second-straight year, [1]Monmouth(pJustin Robinson) couldn't come through in the METRO ATLANTIC tournament. After dominating the league (with a FOUR-GAP MARGIN), they tripped in the semis against host [3b]Siena (85-@89 as bNico Clareth[27p5r;7/9 3s] starred). Last year, Monmth was the poster child for "the team that should have gotten a bid"; but although they dominated inside the strong MAAC even more this year, they didn't have any out-of-conference wins over a brand-name team like last year.
Likewise, HORIZON co-title champ [1b]Valparaiso(cAlec Peters) bombed out of the conference tournament for the second-straight year, this time losing 41-43 to [10]Milwaukee. But co-title champ [1a]Oakland tripped as well against [8b]Youngstown State (@80-81 as pCameron Morse[34p5a] outdueled 27p from Jalen Hayes).
Worse still, FIVE-GAP REGULAR SEASON TITLE CHAMP [1]Belmont(cEvan Bradds) has failed once again to win the OHIO VALLEY tourney after dominating the regular season, falling at home to eventual champ [4a]Jacksonville State (@59-65) -- that's three times in the last four years
that the Bruins have pulled that stunt.
Stars pRobinson and cBradds never made the NCAAs at all, and cPeters only made it once as a sophomore. (Now all three are destined for sideshow exits in the NIT on the road against B-Major also-rans -- Ugh! This needs to be fixed. 1BC title champs should not only get the automatic bid to the NIT that they now enjoy, but they should get to host as well so their star players get a proper curtain call exit at home.)
Lower down in 1BC-land: [1b]Furman tripped in the SOCON tourney against lowly [7]Samford.
In the BIG SOUTH tourney, [7a]Campbell edged [1b]UNC-Asheville (81-79 thanks to 5-9 Chris Clemons'[51p] outburst); but [1a]Winthrop dumped [7a]Campbell in the final (@76-59 as 5-7 Keon Johnson[26p] dueled 29p from Clemons) to claim the crown.
Home court was a big key as [1]Florida Gulf Coast rolled to its second-straight ATLANTIC SUN crown (including @77-61 over [3]North Florida in the final).
- - - - - -
With 36 at-large bids, we're no longer arguing about quality teams that don't get into the NCAAs. Now, it's a question of how many poor-quality teams get in anyway. This hasn't been a year when splashworthy 1BC teams have made much noise in the preseason, either; so brace yourself for a slew of undeserving B-Major also-rans in the NCAAs this time around. Here are the locks (and nots) for this year's at-large bids among the B-Major and MM leagues:
- - - - - -
Three weeks later, three of the top four "PRESIXTEEN" No.1-seeds still look like locks: Kansas, Villanova and Gonzaga don't even have to win their conference tournaments to remain top seeds. The fourth "PRE" No.1, Baylor, fell back too much to remain in contention. Now the final spot is up for grabs among whichever team goes TiTo among North Carolina, Oregon/Arizona and Kentucky. Only if none of those comes through might UCLA or West Virginia/Baylor be in the running by having gone through those conferencemates above them.
The BIG 12 was the strongest/deepest league overall but the top half of the ACC was more dangerous than any other. The PAC-12's Big Three were all Final Four-calibre. The BIG EAST was deep (but key injuries meant a couple of teams are far less dangerous than they could have been). The BIG 10 had a couple of serious postseason threats (and a handful of so-so squads). The SEC's Top Two were tough (but little else was special below that). The WCC's Big Two are dangerous. The AMERICAN's Top Two are quality squads (but no one else in the league is). The ATLANTIC 10 had three teams that were bidworthy (but nothing else).
[1]@Kansas won't have a cakewalk past the likes of [2a]West Virginia and [2b]Baylor in the BIG 12 tournament (and surging [5]Oklahoma State and [2c]Iowa State are plenty capable of breaking through as well). The ACC tournament is as much of a toss-up as it has been recently (especially being played in Brooklyn at the BARCLAYS CENTER) as any one of [1]North Carolina, [5a]Duke, [5b]Virginia, [2a]Florida State, [2c]Louisville and [2b]Notre Dame could go all the way (and rising [7c]Miami{Florida} could make noise as well). Key injuries at [3d]Creighton(pMaurice Watson Jr.) and [7]Xavier(bTrevor Bluiett,pEdmond Sumner) will make the job easier for [1]Villanova to roll through the BIG EAST tourney; but [2]Butler did sweep them in the regular season. [1]Purdue is head-and-shoulders above a scramble of teams from [2a]Wisconsin down to [5c]Iowa in the BIG 10 tourney. [1]@Kentucky and [2]Florida should cruise to the SEC final past [3a]Arkansas and [3b]South Carolina with no one else with a chance to spoil. The PAC-12 tourney might give us the best matchups with the winner of a [3]UCLA/[1b]Arizona semi facing [1a]Oregon in the final. Only [2]St. Mary's even has a chance to stay close to [1]Gonzaga in the WCC tourney (but [3]BYU probably needs to win it all to make the NCAAs). Look for [1]SMU to win the rubber match with [2]Cincinnati in the AMERICAN tourney final. [1]Dayton is the favorite in the ATLANTIC 10 tourney, but [2]VCU and [3b]Rhode Island could well pull off an upset.
[1]Nevada probably needs to win the MOUNTAIN WEST tourney to guarantee an NCAA bid (but that shouldn't be a problem). [1]Texas-Arlington won't have it easy in the SUN BELT tourney as the regular season Wars will only ramp up as this year's champ will need three wins instead of two to make the NCAAs. [1]UNC-Wilmington has to beat host [2]College of Charleston in the COLONIAL final to make The Dance. [1]Middle Tennessee shouldn't have much trouble in the CONFERENCE USA tourney. Unbeaten [1]Vermont has no peers in the AMERICA EAST tourney.
In the SOUTHERN final, [1c]East Tennessee State was swept head-to-head against [1a]UNC-Greensboro, but the Buccaneers are the stronger team overall on paper. [1]Cal State-Bakersfield still has to go through [2x]New Mexico State to win the WAC crown. [1/E1]@Akron dominated the MID-AMERICAN regular season and should have no business failing to come through in the tourney. Any of five other teams will challenge [1]New Orleans in the SOUTHLAND tourney. It would be a real shame if unbeaten [1]Princeton can't come through in the new 4-team IVY LEAGUE tourney -- and the Tigers face arch-rival @[4]Penn right away in the semis (at home in The PALESTRA, no less -- Yikes!) @[1]Bucknell should come through at home in the PATRIOT final.
The topsy-turvy BIG SKY was tough to figure all season; the tourney should be no less of a mess-around. [1]@UC-Irvine should get past [2]@UC-Davis again in the BIG WEST tourney. Home-crowd support should only make it easier for [1]Texas Southern to roll through the SWAC draw. North Carolina Central has to get past host [2]Norfolk State in the MEAC tourney to get to The Dance.
-- Ron
P.S. Look for the official Hoops Contest invite Sunday overnight.
(And don't forget the deadline is TUESDAY 6:30P because of the FIRST FOUR games.)
Top 25 - 17 Mar 6: PRETOURNAMENT - [] Column
Titles Aplenty
With Kansas already having won the title, the remainder of the BIG 12 regular season was just jockeying for position for the conference tournament. Baylor beat West Virginia (@71-62 on 26-for-34 free-throw shooting); but WVU rebounded (literally) to handle Iowa State (@87-76 dominating the boards 47-24). Oklahoma State fell twice: tripping at Iowa State (83-@86 with the Cyclones' shooting 15-for-31 on three-pointers as pMatt Thomas[25p5a;7/11 3s] countered 29p6a from pJawun Evans) and tripping at home against Kansas (@85-90 as the Jayhawks' pFrank Mason III[27p9a] countered 27p from Jeffrey Caroll). Kansas State won twice: handling Texas Tech (@61-48) and edging TCU on the road (75-@74); TCU tripped again at Oklahoma.
&nbp With Villanova already having won the title, the remainder of the BIG EAST regular season was just jockeying for position for the conference tournament. Seton Hall won on the road at Butler (70-@64 led by cAngel Delgado[20p16r6to]). Marquette edged slumping Xavier on the road (85-@74 on 61 percent shooting) and also beat Creighton (@91-83).
With North Carolina already having won the title, the remaineder of the ACC regular season was just jockeying for position for the conference tournament. Virginia handled North Carolina (@53-43 committing only 4 turnovers). Louisville fell at Wake Forest (81-@88 as cJohn Collins[25p11r] dominated). UNC paid back Duke (@90-83 as Joel Berry[28p] dueled 28p5r from bLuke Kennard). Louisville beat Notre Dame (@71-64 dominating the boards 47-27). Duke edged Florida State (@75-70). Miami(Florida) fell twice on the road: tripping at Virginia Tech (61-@66) and falling at Florida State (57-@66). Wake Forest continued its big week, edging Virginia Tech on the road (89-@84 led by pBryant Crawford[26p5a]).
In the PACIFIC-12, the top contenders all took care of their business as both Oregon and Arizona beat their arch-rivals on the road to share the regular season title -- (the second-straight for Oregon and the THIRD IN FOUR YEARS for Arizona).
In the SEC, Florida handled Arkansas (@78-65) but tripped at Vanderbilt. Meanwhile, Kentucky went 2-0 to clinch the regular season title -- (its third-straight) -- with a two-game gap.
That makes FIVE OF THE TOP SIX CONFERENCES who have repeat champions: BIG 12(Kansas/13), BIG EAST(Villanova/4), SEC(Kentucky/3), PAC-12(Oregon/2) and ACC(UNC/2), and add on the WCC(Gonzaga/5) to boot. Although it's probably a down year for college basketball in terms of star power; that kind of dominance suggests a cadre of mature teams at the top all of whom should go deep into the NCAA tournament.
Meanwhile, the BIG 10 had its fourth different regular season champion in the past four years. Wisconsin tripped at Iowa but dumped Minnesota (@66-49). Purdue went 2-0 on the road to clinch its first title in seven years: handling Indiana and then edging Northwestern (69-@65 as pVince Edwards[25p5a] dueled 25p6a from pBryant McIntosh).
In the AMERICAN, Cincinnati dumped Houston (@65-47); but it was SMU who routed Memphis (@103-62) to clinch the regular season title.
In the MOUNTAIN WEST, Nevada came through in the conference showdown against Colorado State, winning (@85-72 as xCameron Oliver[29p17r] outdueled 33p3a9r from tGlen Clavell) to clinch the regular season title. Meanwhile, Boise State fell at home to Fresno State.
In the ATLANTIC 10, Dayton beat VCU (@79-72 holding the Rams to 2-for-15 on threes) in the showdown for the regular season title (its second-straight) but later fell at George Washington (81-@87 led by fTyler Cavanuagh[30p8r]).
The final chapter of the SUN BELT Wars was written with Texas-Arlington going 2-1 on the week to clinch the regular season title. Arkansas State handled Georgia State (@78-67 despite 15p4a6r from bJeremy Hollowell) but fell at Troy and tripped at South Alabama. Meanwhile, Georgia State edged arch-rival Georgia Southern (@72-67 as xJeremy Hollowell[15p5a12r] dueled 27p1a from Ike Smith).
UNC-Greensboro beat East Tennessee State (@72-66) to create a three-way tie for the SOUTHERN title (along with Furman).
After leaving Division I (due to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina) and returning, New Orleans has come all the way back to win the SOUTHLAND -- its first regular season title in 20 years -- Congrats!
In the BIG SKY, North Dakota, Eastern Washington and Weber State all went 1-1 on the week, leaving the (newly minted) "Fighting Hawks" with their first-ever conference regular season title (since entering Division I in 2008-09).
In the BIG WEST, it was UC-Irvine who dumped UC-Davis (@79-49 behind bLuke Nelson[29p5r5to]) in the conference showdown for its second-straight title (and THIRD IN FOUR YEARS).
In the SWAC, Texas Southern beat Alcorn State (@94-88) and Southern (@82-69) to clinch its third-straight title (and FOURTH IN FIVE YEARS).
- - - - - -
In conference tournament play, the one true Anti-Spoiler team this year, [1b]Wichita State, did everyone on the NCAA Bubble a huge favor by going TiTo in the MISSOURI VALLEY, crushing [1a]Illinois State in the final (71-51). Now it's IllSt that's likely on the outside looking in. Despite dominating the regular season race as well, the Redbirds' margins weren't comparable to WichSt's and the MVC overall was middle of the pack at best among the ordinary 1BCs.
Once again, we've lost some big Off-Broadway stars. For the second-straight year, [1]Monmouth(pJustin Robinson) couldn't come through in the METRO ATLANTIC tournament. After dominating the league (with a FOUR-GAP MARGIN), they tripped in the semis against host [3b]Siena (85-@89 as bNico Clareth[27p5r;7/9 3s] starred). Last year, Monmth was the poster child for "the team that should have gotten a bid"; but although they dominated inside the strong MAAC even more this year, they didn't have any out-of-conference wins over a brand-name team like last year.
Likewise, HORIZON co-title champ [1b]Valparaiso(cAlec Peters) bombed out of the conference tournament for the second-straight year, this time losing 41-43 to [10]Milwaukee. But co-title champ [1a]Oakland tripped as well against [8b]Youngstown State (@80-81 as pCameron Morse[34p5a] outdueled 27p from Jalen Hayes).
Worse still, FIVE-GAP REGULAR SEASON TITLE CHAMP [1]Belmont(cEvan Bradds) has failed once again to win the OHIO VALLEY tourney after dominating the regular season, falling at home to eventual champ [4a]Jacksonville State (@59-65) -- that's three times in the last four years
that the Bruins have pulled that stunt.
Stars pRobinson and cBradds never made the NCAAs at all, and cPeters only made it once as a sophomore. (Now all three are destined for sideshow exits in the NIT on the road against B-Major also-rans -- Ugh! This needs to be fixed. 1BC title champs should not only get the automatic bid to the NIT that they now enjoy, but they should get to host as well so their star players get a proper curtain call exit at home.)
Lower down in 1BC-land: [1b]Furman tripped in the SOCON tourney against lowly [7]Samford.
In the BIG SOUTH tourney, [7a]Campbell edged [1b]UNC-Asheville (81-79 thanks to 5-9 Chris Clemons'[51p] outburst); but [1a]Winthrop dumped [7a]Campbell in the final (@76-59 as 5-7 Keon Johnson[26p] dueled 29p from Clemons) to claim the crown.
Home court was a big key as [1]Florida Gulf Coast rolled to its second-straight ATLANTIC SUN crown (including @77-61 over [3]North Florida in the final).
- - - - - -
With 36 at-large bids, we're no longer arguing about quality teams that don't get into the NCAAs. Now, it's a question of how many poor-quality teams get in anyway. This hasn't been a year when splashworthy 1BC teams have made much noise in the preseason, either; so brace yourself for a slew of undeserving B-Major also-rans in the NCAAs this time around. Here are the locks (and nots) for this year's at-large bids among the B-Major and MM leagues:
- BIG 12 (4/3) - Kansas + (lock: West Virginia, Baylor, Oklahoma State, Iowa State;
not: Kansas State, Texas Tech, TCU)
- BIG EAST (5/1) - Villanova + (lock: Butler, Creighton, Seton Hall, Marquette, Providence;
not: Xavier)
- WCC (1/1) - Gonzaga + (lock: St. Mary's;
not: BYU)
- ACC (6/2) - North Carolina + (lock: Duke, Virginia, Florida State, Louisville, Notre Dame, Miami[Florida];
not: Virginia Tech, Syracuse)
- PAC-12 (2/3) - Arizona + (lock: UCLA, Oregon;
not: USC, Utah, California)
- SEC (3/0) - Kentucky + (lock: Florida, Arkansas, South Carolina;
not: NONE)
- BIG 10 (3/4) - Purdue + (lock: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Maryland;
not: Northwestern, Michigan, Michigan State, Iowa)
- AMERICAN (1/0) - SMU + (lock: Cincinnati;
not: NONE)
- MVC (0/0) - *Wichita State + (lock: NONE
not: NONE)
- MWC (0/0) - Nevada + (lock: NONE;
not: NONE)
- A-10 (1/1) - Dayton + (lock: VCU;
not: Rhode Island)
- SUN BELT (0/0) - Texas-Arlington + (lock: NONE;
not: NONE)
- - - - - -
Three weeks later, three of the top four "PRESIXTEEN" No.1-seeds still look like locks: Kansas, Villanova and Gonzaga don't even have to win their conference tournaments to remain top seeds. The fourth "PRE" No.1, Baylor, fell back too much to remain in contention. Now the final spot is up for grabs among whichever team goes TiTo among North Carolina, Oregon/Arizona and Kentucky. Only if none of those comes through might UCLA or West Virginia/Baylor be in the running by having gone through those conferencemates above them.
The BIG 12 was the strongest/deepest league overall but the top half of the ACC was more dangerous than any other. The PAC-12's Big Three were all Final Four-calibre. The BIG EAST was deep (but key injuries meant a couple of teams are far less dangerous than they could have been). The BIG 10 had a couple of serious postseason threats (and a handful of so-so squads). The SEC's Top Two were tough (but little else was special below that). The WCC's Big Two are dangerous. The AMERICAN's Top Two are quality squads (but no one else in the league is). The ATLANTIC 10 had three teams that were bidworthy (but nothing else).
[1]@Kansas won't have a cakewalk past the likes of [2a]West Virginia and [2b]Baylor in the BIG 12 tournament (and surging [5]Oklahoma State and [2c]Iowa State are plenty capable of breaking through as well). The ACC tournament is as much of a toss-up as it has been recently (especially being played in Brooklyn at the BARCLAYS CENTER) as any one of [1]North Carolina, [5a]Duke, [5b]Virginia, [2a]Florida State, [2c]Louisville and [2b]Notre Dame could go all the way (and rising [7c]Miami{Florida} could make noise as well). Key injuries at [3d]Creighton(pMaurice Watson Jr.) and [7]Xavier(bTrevor Bluiett,pEdmond Sumner) will make the job easier for [1]Villanova to roll through the BIG EAST tourney; but [2]Butler did sweep them in the regular season. [1]Purdue is head-and-shoulders above a scramble of teams from [2a]Wisconsin down to [5c]Iowa in the BIG 10 tourney. [1]@Kentucky and [2]Florida should cruise to the SEC final past [3a]Arkansas and [3b]South Carolina with no one else with a chance to spoil. The PAC-12 tourney might give us the best matchups with the winner of a [3]UCLA/[1b]Arizona semi facing [1a]Oregon in the final. Only [2]St. Mary's even has a chance to stay close to [1]Gonzaga in the WCC tourney (but [3]BYU probably needs to win it all to make the NCAAs). Look for [1]SMU to win the rubber match with [2]Cincinnati in the AMERICAN tourney final. [1]Dayton is the favorite in the ATLANTIC 10 tourney, but [2]VCU and [3b]Rhode Island could well pull off an upset.
[1]Nevada probably needs to win the MOUNTAIN WEST tourney to guarantee an NCAA bid (but that shouldn't be a problem). [1]Texas-Arlington won't have it easy in the SUN BELT tourney as the regular season Wars will only ramp up as this year's champ will need three wins instead of two to make the NCAAs. [1]UNC-Wilmington has to beat host [2]College of Charleston in the COLONIAL final to make The Dance. [1]Middle Tennessee shouldn't have much trouble in the CONFERENCE USA tourney. Unbeaten [1]Vermont has no peers in the AMERICA EAST tourney.
In the SOUTHERN final, [1c]East Tennessee State was swept head-to-head against [1a]UNC-Greensboro, but the Buccaneers are the stronger team overall on paper. [1]Cal State-Bakersfield still has to go through [2x]New Mexico State to win the WAC crown. [1/E1]@Akron dominated the MID-AMERICAN regular season and should have no business failing to come through in the tourney. Any of five other teams will challenge [1]New Orleans in the SOUTHLAND tourney. It would be a real shame if unbeaten [1]Princeton can't come through in the new 4-team IVY LEAGUE tourney -- and the Tigers face arch-rival @[4]Penn right away in the semis (at home in The PALESTRA, no less -- Yikes!) @[1]Bucknell should come through at home in the PATRIOT final.
The topsy-turvy BIG SKY was tough to figure all season; the tourney should be no less of a mess-around. [1]@UC-Irvine should get past [2]@UC-Davis again in the BIG WEST tourney. Home-crowd support should only make it easier for [1]Texas Southern to roll through the SWAC draw. North Carolina Central has to get past host [2]Norfolk State in the MEAC tourney to get to The Dance.
-- Ron
P.S. Look for the official Hoops Contest invite Sunday overnight.
(And don't forget the deadline is TUESDAY 6:30P because of the FIRST FOUR games.)
- Key games this week:
- Monday:
- MAAC TOURNAMENT Final @AlbanyNY/Siena/
-(@[3b]Siena-[3a]@Iona[NY]),
COLONIAL TOURNAMENT Final @CharlestonSC/ColofCharleston/
-(@[2]ColofCharleston-[1]UNCWilmington),
SOCON TOURNAMENT Final @AshevilleNC
-([1a]@UNCGreensboro-[1b]ETennesseeSt),
- Monday-Tuesday:
- WCC TOURNAMENT Semis,Final @LasVegasNV/ORLEANS/
-([1]Gonzaga-[4a]SantaClara, [2]StMarys-[3]BYU),
HORIZON TOURNAMENT Semis,Final @DetroitMI/Detroit/
-([3b]NoKentucky-[8b]YoungstownSt[BG], [[6]ILChicago-[10]Milwaukee),
SUMMIT TOURNAMENT Semis,Final @SiouxFallSD/PENTAGON/
-([1]@SDakota-[4a]@SDState[SD], [3]Omaha-[7]IUPUI),
- Monday, Saturday:
- AMERICA EAST TOURNAMENT Semis,Final on-campus
-(@[1]Vermont-[3b]NewHampshire, @[2]StonyBrook-[3a]Albany[NY]),
- Monday, Thursday-Saturday:
- MAC TOURNAMENT on-campus, @ClevelandOH
-([1/E1]@Akron, [2a]@OhioU, [2b]Buffalo, [2c/W1a]BallSt, [2d/W1b]WeMichigan, @[6]KentSt),
- Monday-Saturday:
- MEAC TOURNAMENT @NorfolkVA/NorfolkSt/
-([1]NCCentral, @[2]NorfolkSt, [3a]MorganSt, [3b]Hampton),
- Tuesday:
- NORTHEAST TOURNAMENT Final on-campus
-(@[1]MtStMarys-[3b]StFrancisPA),
- Tuesday-Saturday:
- ACC TOURNAMENT @WashingtonDC
-(Tue Open/32s: [10]WakeForest-[15]BostonCol, [11]GeorgiaTech-[13b]Pittsburgh, [12]Clemson-[13a]NCState;
Wed 1st/16s: [5a]Duke-[12]/[13a], [5b]Virginia-[11]/[13b], [7a]VirginiaTech-[10]/[15], [7b]@Syracuse-[7c]MiamiFL;
Thu 2nd/Qtrs: [1]NCarolina-[7b]/[7c], [2a]FloridaSt-[7a]//[10]/[15], [2b]NotreDame-[5b]//[11]/[13b], [2c]Louisville-[5a]//[12]/[13a]),
- Tuesday, Thursday-Saturday:
- BIG SKY TOURNAMENT @RenoNV
-([1]NDakota, [2]EaWashington, [3a]WeberSt, [3b]Idaho-[5a]Montana, [5b]MontanaSt),
- Tuesday, Friday-Saturday:
- SWAC TOURNAMENT on-campus, @HoustonTX/TOYOTA//PrairieViewA&M,TexasSo/
-(@[1]TexasSo, [2]AlcornSt),
- Wednesday:
- PATRIOT TOURNAMENT Final on-campus
-(@[1]Bucknell-[2b]Lehigh[PA]),
- Wednesday-Saturday:
- BIG 12 TOURNAMENT @KansasCityMO
-(Wed 1st/16s: [7a]TexasTech-[10]Texas[TX], [7b]TCU-[9]Oklahoma;
Thu 2nd/Qtrs: [1]@Kansas-[7b]/[9], [2a]WVirginia-[7a]/[10], [2b]Baylor-[6]@KansasSt, [2c]IowaSt-[5]OklahomaSt),
BIG EAST TOURNAMENT @NewYorkNY/MSG/
-(Wed 1st/16s: [7]Xavier-[10]DePaul, @[8]StJohns-[9]Georgetown;
Thu 2nd/Qtrs: [1]Villanova-@[8]/[9], [2]Butler-[7]/[10], [3a]Providence-[3d]Creighton, [3b]Marquette-[3c]SetonHall),
PAC-12 TOURNAMENT @LasVegasNV/T-MOBILE/
-(Wed 1st/16s: [5a]California-[12]OregonSt, [5b]USC-[11]Washington, [7]Colorado-[9b]WashingtonSt, [8]ArizonaSt-[9a]Stanford;
Thu 2nd/Qtrs: [1a]Oregon-[8]/[9a], [1b]Arizona-[7]/[9b], [3]UCLA-[5b]/[11], [4]Utah-[5a]/[12]),
MWC TOURNAMENT @LasVegasNV/UNLV/
-([1]@Nevada, [2]ColoradoSt, [3]BoiseSt, [4]FresnoSt-[5]NewMexico, [6]SanDiegoSt, [7]Wyoming),
C-USA TOURNAMENT @BirminghamAL/UAB/
-([1]MidTennessee, [2]LouisianaTech, [3a]OldDominion, [3b]UTEP, [5]Rice, [6]Marshall),
SOUTHLAND TOURNAMENT @KatyTX
-([1]NewOrleans, [2a]@TexasA&MCC, [2b]@StephenFAustin, [2c]@HoustonBaptist, [5a]@SamHoustonSt, [5b]@Lamar),
- Wednesday-Sunday:
- SEC TOURNAMENT @NashvilleTN/BRIDGESTONE/Vanderbilt/
-(Wed Open/32s: [11]Auburn-[13b]Missouri, [12]MississippiSt-[13a]LSU;
Thu 1st/16s: [5a]Alabama-[12]/[13a], [5b]Mississippi-[11]/[13b], @[5c]Vanderbilt-[9b]TexasA&M, [8]Georgia-[9a]@Tennessee;
Fri 2nd/Qtrs: [1]@Kentucky-[8]/[9a], [2]Florida-@[5c]/[9b], [3a]Arkansas-[5b]//[11]/[13b], [3b]SCarolina-[5a]//[12]/[13a]),
BIG 10 TOURNAMENT @WashingtonDC
-(Wed Open/32s: [10b]OhioSt-[14]Rutgers, [12a]Nebraska-[12b]PennSt;
Thu 1st/16s: [5a]MichiganSt-[12a]/[12b], [5b]Northwestern-[10b]/[14], [5c]Iowa-[10a]Indiana, [5d]Michigan-[9]Illinois;
Fri 2nd/Qtrs: [1]Purdue-[5d]/[9], [2a]Wisconsin-[5c]/[10a], [2b]@Maryland-[5b]//[10b]/[14], [4]Minnesota-[5a]//[12a]/[12b]),
A-10 TOURNAMENT @PittsburghPA/PPG//Duquesne/
-(Wed Open/32s: @[14]Duquesne-[11]StLouis, [12a]Massachusetts-[12b]@StJosephs;
Thu 1st/16s: [5]StBonaventure-[12a]/[12b], [6]GeoWashington-[11]/@[14], [7a]GeoMason-[10]Fordham, [7b]@LaSalle-[9]Davidson;
Fri 2nd/Qtrs: [1]Dayton-[7b]/[9], [2]VCU-[7a]/[10], [3a]Richmond-[6]//[11]/@[14], [3b]RhodeIsland-[5]//[12a]/[12b]),
- Wednesday, Friday-Sunday:
- SUN BELT TOURNAMENT @NewOrleansLA
-([1]TXArlington, [2]GeorgiaSt, [3a]GeorgiaSo, [3b]TexasSt, [3c]ArkansasSt, [6a]Troy, [6b]Louisiana, [6c]CoCarolina),
- Thursday-Saturday:
- WAC TOURNAMENT @LasVegasNV/ORLEANS/
-([1]CalStBakersfield, [2x]NewMexicoSt),
BIG WEST TOURNAMENT @AnaheimCA/HONDA/
-([1]@UCIrvine, [2]@UCDavis, [3]@CalStFullerton),
- Thursday-Sunday:
- AMERICAN TOURNAMENT @StorrsCT/Connecticut/
-(Thu 1st/16s: @[5b]Connecticut, [7]Tulsa-[10]Tulane, [8]Temple-[9]ECarolina;
Fri 2nd/Qtrs: [1]SMU-[8]/[9], [2]Cincinnati-[7]/[10], [3]Houston-@[5b]/[11], [4]UCF-[5a]Memphis),
- Saturday-Sunday:
- (new)IVY TOURNAMENT @PhiladlephiaPA/PALESTRA//Penn/
-(@[4]Penn-[1]Princeton, [2]Harvard-[3]Yale),
- Sunday:
- (NCAA BRACKET SELECTION),
(NIT BRACKET SELECTION),
(CBI [COLLEGE BASKETBALL INVITATIONAL] BRACKET SELECTION),
(CIT [COLLEGEINSIDER.COM TOURNAMENT] BRACKET SELECTION),
(V16 [VEGAS 16] BRACKET SELECTION)-- CANCELED.
Top 25 - 17 Mar 6: PRETOURNAMENT - [] Column
- Kansas (28-3) (@SEC) 13-PEAT BIG12+4
- Villanova (28-3) 4-PEAT BIG5u;4-PEAT BIGE+3
- Gonzaga (30-1) 5-PEAT;16TH/17 WCC
- North Carolina (24-5) repeat ACC+2
- Oregon (26-4) repeat .5PAC12
- Arizona (27-4) 3RD/4 .5PAC12
- Kentucky (26-5) 3-PEAT SEC+2
- West Virginia (24-7) (vSEC)
- UCLA (28-3)
- Baylor (24-6) (@SEC)
- Purdue (25-6) BIG10+2
- Iowa State (20-10)
- Florida (24-7) (@BIG12)
- SMU (27-4) AMER
- Duke (23-8)
- Louisville (24-7)
- Butler (23-7)
- Florida State (24-7)
- Notre Dame (23-8)
- Virginia (21-9)
- St. Mary's (27-3)
- Cincinnati (27-4) (vXTOWN)
- Creighton (22-8)
- Wisconsin (23-8)
- Wichita State (29-4) 4-PEAT;5TH/6 .5MVC+8 [:MVCt]
- Honorable Mention:
Seton Hall (20-10), Vanderbilt (17-14), Wake Forest (18-12), Virginia Tech (21-9), Marquette (19-11), Iowa (18-13).
Dayton (23-6) repeat A10,
Nevada (25-6) MWC,
Texas-Arlington (22-7) SUNB+2.
Jacksonville State(18-14) [@OVCt],
Winthrop(24-6) coBIGS [vBIGSt].
East Tennessee State (24-7)/UNC-Greensboro(22-8)/Furman(19-11) SOCON+4,
New Orleans(13-10) SLAND,
Florida Gulf Coast(23-7) ASUN;repeat [vASUNt],
North Dakota(16-9) SKY,
UC-Irvine(17-13) repeat;3RD/4 BIGW,
Texas Southern(20-11) 3-PEAT;4TH/5 SWAC+3.
posted by Ron @ Sunday, July 23, 2017
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