18 Mar19 - Not With A Bang (Golden Retrievers) (SWEET SIXTEEN)

Volume XXII, No. 20 - 17 Mar20: SWEET SIXTEEN

Not With A Bang (Golden Retrievers)

What can you say about THE GREATEST UPSET IN THE HISTORY OF THE NCAA TOURNAMENT!!!???

Maryland(Baltimore County) (24-10) became the FIRST #16-SEED EVER TO BEAT A #1-SEED!!! ... and it wasn't a fluke -- it wasn't even close!!! [S16]MdBc beat top-ranked [S1]Virginia (31-2) in a rout, 74-54! Yeah, "Virginia always struggles in the tournament." Yeah, "The Cavaliers are all defense, but what's going to happen when they get behind and have to win with offense?" People said it, to be sure; but who really believed it would happen in this game!? ... I daresay, "Nobody." (We didn't even get a capricious "just for fun" upset pick in the Hoops Contest on this one -- the CONSENSUS was 107-0 for UVa!) Words fail.

Hats off, on your knees, all hail, let's hear all you've got for

The Maryland(Baltimore County) Retrievers!!!

Oh, yeah. Virginia now has THE WORST POSTSEASON UPSET OF ALL TIME to go along with THE WORST REGULAR SEASON UPSET OF ALL TIME (when nobody's-heard-of-you {Chaminade} beat #1 Virginia[Ralph Sampson] @77-72 back in 1982 on what was supposed to be a Hawaii vacation over Christmas, but turned into the impetus for giving us the MAUI INVITATIONAL.)

[S16]MD-Baltimore Co 74 [S1]Virginia 54
It was an ugly defensive game to start, but [S1]UVa led 16-10 with six minutes to go in the first half and it didn't seem like anything special was afoot. A 9-0 run by [S16]MdBc put it ahead 19-16 with three minutes left and things were tied at the half at 21-21. The Retrievers led 29-24 three minutes into the second half, but a 9-0 run made it 38-24 and, all of a sudden, "this could really happen" started to set in. Yes, the Cavaliers were without sixth man fDe'Andre Hunter; but they shouldn't have needed him to beat a 16-seed. But the Wahoos couldn't generate offense either on the drive (4-for-8 free throws), with movement (5 total assists) or with shooting (4-for-22 on threes) -- thoroughly inept. What was supposed to be the cushy "ACC" Pod wasn't the advantage for UVa that it usually is for UNC and Duke as the crowd really turned in support of watching the greatest NCAA tourney upset of all time. gJarius Lyles(28p3a) led the way for [S16]MdBc (which shot 54% percent from the floor [including 12-for-24 on threes]). UNREAL!!!

- - - - - -

The BIG 12 went 4-3 in Round One and 4-0 in Round Two for a solid presence in the Sweet 16. [M1]@Kansas had no trouble with [M16]Pennsylvania (@76-60 on pDevonte' Graham[29p6a6r] star turn) but needed the help of the Wichita "home" crowd to hold off [M8]Seton Hall (@83-79). [E3]@Texas Tech needed the Dallas "home" crowd to fight off two tough foes: [E14]@Stephen F. Austin (@70-@60) and [E6]Florida (@69-66). [E5]West Virginia thumped tough [E12]Murray State (85-68 as pJevon Carter[21p8a5r8s] dueled 27p17r from xTerrell Miller) and giant-killer [E13]Marshall (94-71 as pJevon Carter[28p5a5s] starred). [S9]Kansas State toughed out the mild upset of [S8]Creighton (69-59) and then beat Cinderella-after-midnight [S16]MdBc (50-43). Only [M6]TCU was a true disappointment, falling to shouldn't-have-gotten-a-bid [M11b]Syracuse (52-57 as both teams struggled from three: 6-for-31 combined). But [M10]Oklahoma (lost 78-83[OT] to [M7]Rhode Island despite 28p7a5r6to from pTrae Young) and [S10]Texas (lost in overtime to [S7]Nevada despite 26p5r from bKerwin Roach Jr. and 25p4a from gMatt Coleman) both put up good fights before losing to better teams.
     The BIG EAST went 4-2 but then just 1-3 to send only [E1]Villanova into the Sweet 16. [E1]'Nova thumped [E16a]Radford (87-61 as six double-figure scorers shot 60 percent) and then dumped [E9]Alabama (81-58 sinking 17-for-41 threes) -- (no other team in the country is as potent as the VU/Wildcats are on offense).

Almost as disappointing as UVa's exit was [W1]Xavier's failure to even get to the Sweet 16. [W1]Xav thumped [W16b]Texas Southern (102-83 as bJ.P. Macura[29p6r5s] and bTrevon Bluiett[26p5r] both starred) no problem but then tripped against nothing-special [W9]Florida State (70-75 as Bluiett[8p1a5to] was shut down) -- (the regular season title was a gift but this team had way too many quality wins not to make a deep run ... Ugh).

[S8]Creighton lost a tough opener to [S9]KansSt (59-69). [M8]Seton Hall beat [M9]N.C. State (94-85) and gave [M1]@Kansas a go before falling (79-@83 despite the impressive swan song of career rebound-leader cAngel Delgado[24p23r5a]). [E10]Butler was solid in a thumping "upset" of [E7]Arkansas (79-62 dominating the boards 45-25) and then barely lost to [E2]Purdue (73-76) ... bKelan Martin gave it his all (averaging 28p7r in two games). No shame in a squeak loss for shouldn't-have-gotten-a-bid-anyway [W10]Providence to [W7]Texas A&M (69-73).
     The Mega-ACC parlayed 9 bids into 4 spots in the Sweet 16 (1-0; 5-4; 4-1) ... not bad. [S1]Virginia's bewildering blowout loss to [S16]MDBC was one for the ages. [M2]Duke didn't need a cushy Charlotte Pod to cruise twice: (89-67 over [M15]Iona and 87-62 past a good [M7]Rhode Island team). [W2]@North Carolina couldn't get there even "at home": [W2]@UNC thumped [W15]Lipscomb (@84-66 controlling the boards 47-29 as gGarrison Mathews[8p4a;3/14fg,1/7 3s] was totally shut down) but then was controlled on the boards 36-50 themselves in falling (@65-86) to surprising [W7]Texas A&M. [M5]Clemson turned in two solid performances: handling [M12]New Mexico State (79-68) and then dumping [M4]Auburn (84-53). [S6]Miami(Florida) tripped at the buzzer to underappreciated [S11]Loyola(Illinois) (62-64). [E8]Virginia Tech played no defense in tripping against GC-led [E9]Alabama (83-86). Similarly, [M9]N.C. State couldn't stop [M8]Seton Hall (85-94 despite 36p7r from bAllerik Freeman). Two ACC also-rans came up with huge wins to break through to Week Two: Play-In [M11b]Syracuse edged [M11a]Arizona State (60-56), edged [M6]TCU (57-52) and edged juggernaut [M2]@Michigan State (55-@53) to make an improbable Sweet 16 run. Even better, [W9]Florida State beat didn't-deserve-a-bid [W8]Missouri (67-54) then shocked [W1]Xav (75-70).
     Depth (not quality) was the theme of this year's SEC season so a 6-2 Round One followed by a 2-4 Round Two was no surprise. Neither title co-champ made it through to the second week. [S3]Tennessee dumped [S14]Wright State (73-47) but tripped on [S11]Loyola(Illinois)' second-straight endplay win (62-63). [M4]Auburn had trouble getting by [M13]College of Charleston (62-58) but then was dumped by [M5]Clem (53-84). [S5]Kentucky couldn't put away Party-Crasher [S12]Davidson (78-73 as fKevin Knox[25p6r] starred) but had no trouble with Cinderella-after-midnight [S13]Buffalo (95-75 as pShai Gilgeous-Alexander[27p6a6r] starred). [E6]Florida thumped decent [E11b]St. Bonaventure and played well before tripping to tough [E3]@Texas Tech in Dallas (66-@69). [E7]Arkansas disappointingly couldn't stay with [E10]Butl, tanking (62-79). [W7]Texas A&M had surprising trouble separating from [W10]Prov (73-69) but road-thumped new-Emperor-clohted [S2]@UNC (in Charlotte, mind you) (86-@65) as the Aggies controlled the boards against both (47-31, on average). Didn't-need-to-be-there [W8]Missouri fell to [W9]FlaSt (54-67). GC-led [E9]Alabama did out run [E8]VaTech (86-83 shooting 60 percent as pCollin Sexton[25p6a5to] starred) but had no answer for mighty [E1]'Nova (58-81).
     The BIG 10's top four were all high-quality ... 4-0 in Round One was no surprise but only 2-2 in Round Two was disappointing. [M2]@Michigan State (playing in Detroit, no less) turned in two underwhelming performances: couldn't shake off [M14]Bucknell (@82-78 as tMiles Bridges[29p9r] starred) and tripped against shouldn't-be-there [M11b]'Cuse (@53-55) ... (all year, the sum seemed less than the parts with the MSU/Spartans). [E2]Purdue made it two Week Two (but at what cost?): the Boilermakers dumped [E15]Cal State-Fullerton (74-48 but cIsaac Haas fractured his elbow in a hard fall) and then survived (without cHaas) against [E10]Butler (76-73 on Dakota Mathias' game-winning three). [W3]Michigan, kept its intensity going from winning the conference tourney (even after a week off): handling [W14]Montana (61-47) and winning in an endplay against [W6]Houston (64-63 on Jordan Poole's game-winning three-pointer). [W5]Ohio State handled [W12]South Dakota State (81-73 despite 27p6r from bMike Daum) and gave [W4]@Gonzaga a run before falling (80-@94 despite 28p1a from Keita Bates-Diop).
     None of the AMERICAN's Big Three made it through to the Sweet 16. [S2]Cincinnati had no trouble beating Jack Dawson [S15]Georgia State (68-53 dominating the boards 46-26 on xJarron Cumberland[27p11r]'s star turn) but lost an endplay to underappreciated [S7]Nevada (73-75). Being "The Hunted" B-Major didn't suit used-to-be-"America's Team" [W4]Wichita State as the Wheatshockers fell right away to Jack Dawson [E13]Marshall (75-81). [W6]Houston split two squeak decisions: edging Party-Crasher [W11]San Diego State (67-65 all on tRob Gray Jr.[39p8r]'s One-Man Show [including the game-winner]) but tripping against [W3]Mich (63-64 on a buzzer-beater despite 23p3a10r from xGray).

The Mid-Majors placed a very respectable 3 teams into the Sweet 16. New "America's Team" [S11]MVC/Loyola(Illinois) got there via two endplay game-winners: first, edging [S6]Miami(Florida) (64-62 on Donte Ingram's game-winning three) and then edging [S3]Tennessee (63-62 on Clayton Custer's game-winner) ... (the Rambler fans' "Work, Worship, Win" shirts were instant classics!)
     The PACIFIC-12 was a disappointing bust: Neither [M11a]Arizona State (lost 56-60 to [M11b]Syracuse) nor [E11a]UCLA (lost 58-65 to [E11b]St. Bonaventure as pAaron Holiday had 20p7a5r10to in defeat) made it out of the FIRST FOUR Play-In games. Then, [S4]Arizona went belly-up to the perimeter attack of [S13]Buffalo, tanking (68-89 as the AU/Wildcats shot 2-for-18 on threes playing catch-up) ... Ugh. (Az's loss meant the PAC-12 became the first Mid-Major to fail to place a single team in the Round of 32 since 1997 ... Yikes!)
     [W4]@Gonzaga (playing "at home" in Boise) made it to the Sweet 16 as the lone representative from the WEST COAST, edging [W13]UNC-Greensboro (@68-64) then outpacing solid [W5]OhioSt (@90-84 as xZach Norvell Jr.[28p12r] and fRui Hachimura[25p5r] both starred).
     [S7]Nevada took its 'tweener attack into Week Two thanks to two squeak wins, edging [S10]Tx in overtime (87-83[OT]) and edging [S2]Cincy (75-73 as pCody Martin[25p7a6r] starred). Party-Crasher [S11]San Diego State put up a good fight before tripping against [W6]Hous (65-67).
     The ATLANTIC 10's three teams couldn't get beyond splashworthiness. [M7]Rhode Island escaped in overtime past GC-led [M10]Oklahoma (83-78[OT]) but had no answer for [M2]Duke, falling (62-87). [E11b]St. Bonaventure got out of its FIRST FOUR Play-In game with [E11a]UCLA (65-58 led by Courtney Stockard[25p]) but came up empty against [E6]Fla (62-77). Party-Crasher [S12]Davidson did well to stay close to [S5]Kentucky before falling (73-78).
     Jack Dawson [S15]Georgia State didn't have much fight against [S2]Cincy, falling (53-68).

The 1BCs managed 3 first-round splash wins and all three were huge. Jack Dawson [S16]AMERE/Maryland-Baltimore County's win over [S1]UVa (74-54 as gJairus Lyles[28p3a] starred) was nothing short of historic; the second-round loss to [S9]KansSt (43-50 as bJairus Lyles[12p4a6r;4/15 fg] was stymied) wasn't a bad effort. Jack Dawson [E13]CUSA/Marshall's win over [W4]WichSt (81-75 as gJon Elmore[27p4a] starred) was just as unexpected ... (and it marks FOUR-STRAIGHT YEARS FOR CONFERENCE USA SCORING A 32-SPLASH WIN); but the Thundering Herd had nothing left against [E5]WVa (71-94). [S13]MAC/Buffalo was a solid team but the thumping of [S4]Az (89-68 sinking 15-for-30 threes as pWes Clark[25p7a] starred) wasn't on anybody's radar, either; but they couldn't deal with [S5]UK's size on the perimeter, tanking (75-95 despite 26p6a from pWes Clark).

- - - - - -

It was definitely the right decision not to play Purdue's cIsaac Haas with a fractured elbow -- why risk your entire career for one win/lose game just to make the Sweet 16? That said, it's curious to me that the NCAA wouldn't approve the brace they wanted him to wear. It's been years, so maybe the rules have changed, but I distinctly remember Indiana's fScott May wearing a hard cast on his broken arm when the 1974-75 team (that was 31-0) lost in the Regional Final against Kentucky[Kevin Greevey]. (If fMay hadn't broken his arm, they could very easily have had two-straight undefeated seasons.) The brace cHaas wanted to wear didn't seem any more egregious than that hard cast years ago.

- - - - - -

In the NIT, home court held form for all 16 first-round games. Mid-Majors went 6-3 (powered by the PAC-12 at 5-0) while 1BCs were only 2-10 (with only C-USA's [s3]Middle Tennessee {@91-64 over [s6]AMERE/Vermont} and [m4]Western Kentucky {@79-62 over [m5]ACC/Boston College} claiming wins). Two #1-seeds fell at home in the second round: [e1]ACC/Notre Dame lost to [e4]BIG10/Penn State (@63-73) and [s1]BIG12/Baylor tripped against [4]SEC/Mississippi State (@77-78).
     In the CBI, [seA2]OVC/Jacksonville State came through on the road, edging in overtime at [seA1]MAAC/Canisius (80-@78[OT]). [seB2]SLAND/Central Arkansas did well edging [seB1]Seattle (92-@90[OT]). Also in Round One, [swB2]CUSA/North Texas handled host [swB1]SUMMIT/South Dakota (90-@77) and [swA2]SOCON/Mercer edged [swA1]WAC/Grand Canyon (78-@73).
     In the CIT, MAC/Central Michigan won two road games (94-@84 at SUMMIT/Ft. Wayne; and 98-@94 at [1x]SOCON/Wofford). OVC/Austin Peay handled host SUNB/Louisiana-Monroe (80-@66) in the JOHN McLENDON CLASSIC. Favorite WCC/San Diego edged [1x]Portland State (the only seed to have to go on the road), @67-64. Four first-round winners were granted byes directly into the quarters: OVC/Austin Peay, CUSA/Texas-San Antonio, HORIZ/Illinois-Chicago and BIGS/Liberty.

- - - - - -

[E1]Villanova's offensive efficiency (and overall intensity) makes it look like the most dominant team. [M2]Duke is intimidating but it's living off its massive individual talent (especially cBagley) way more than making the right play each possession. [W4]Gonzaga's individual skill level is impressive with multiple players capable of huge games and they have an intense belief in their destiny. [S5]Kentucky's individual talent is just below Duke's, but the Wildcats are more intense and take each possession more seriously. [M1]Kansas' talent level doesn't compare, but its overachieving role players are executing at a level second only to 'Nova (but it's clearly vulnerable at the post position). The top 4 seeds are gone, so it's going to be another "Kentucky Invitational in 'Cat-lanta'". From here, it looks like [E1]Villanova, [W4]Gonzaga, [M1]Kansas and [S5]Kentucky to the Final Four. I still like [E1]'Nova over [W4]Gonz.
     In the NIT, look for [w1]WCC/St. Mary's, [s2]ACC/Louisville, [m2]BIG12/Oklahoma State and [e2]BIGE/Marquette to make it to New York for the semis.
     In the CBI, "slumming" MM [nwA1]WCC/San Francisco still looks to be the favorite; [swA1]CUSA/North Texas should roll at home against [swB2]SOCON/Mercer; no reason [mwA1]SUNB/New Orleans and [seA2]OVC/Jacksonville State can't come through on the road against lesser opponents.
     In the CIT, "slumming" MM WCC/San Diego and MAC/Central Michigan look as good as anyone among the remaining teams in the draw.

-- Ron

Key games this week:

NCAA

Thursday, Saturday:

WEST REGIONAL Semis,Final @LosAngelesCA
• [W3]Michigan v [W7]Texas A&M
  
• [W4]Gonzaga v [W9]Florida St
  

SOUTH REGIONAL Semis,Final @AtlantaGA/PHILIPS/
• [S5]@Kentucky v [S9]Kansas St
  
• [S7]Nevada v [S11]Loyola-IL
  

Friday, Sunday

EAST REGIONAL Semis,Final @BostonMA
• [E1]Villanova v [E5]W Virginia
  
• [E2]Purdue v [S3]Texas Tech
  

MIDWEST REGIONAL Semis,Final @OmahaNE
• [M1]Kansas v [M5]Clemson
  
• [M2]Duke v [M11b]Syracuse
  

Sat 31 Mar, Mon 2 Apr:

FINAL FOUR,NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP @SanAntonioTX
• {[1/SOUTH]} v {[4/WEST]}
  
• {[2/EAST]} v {[3/MIDWEST]}
  

NIT

Monday:

16s on-campus
• @ [w1]St Mary's v [w5]Washington
  
• @ [m1]USC v [m4]We Kentucky
  
• @ [m2]Oklahoma St v [m3]Stanford
  
• @ [w2]Utah v [w3]LSU
  

Tuesday:

Qtrs on-campus
• @ [w2]Louisville v [s4]Mississippi St
  
• @ [e2]Marquette v [e4]Penn St
  

Wednesday:

Qtrs on-campus
• {[w1]StMarys/[w5]Washington} v {[w2]Utah/[w3]LSU}
  
• {[m1]USC/[m4]WeKentucky} v {[m2]OklahomaSt/[m3]Stanford}
  

Tuesday week, Thursday week:

Semis, Finals @NewYorkNY/MSG/
• {[w]/StMarys} v {[m]/USC}
  
• {[w]/Louisville} v {[e]/Marquette}
  

CBI

Monday:

Qtrs on-campus
• @ [nwA1]San Francisco v [nwB1]UT Valley
  
• @ [mwB1]Campbell v [mwA1]New Orleans
  
• @ [seB2]C Arkansas v [seA2]Jacksonville St
  
• @ [swA2]N Texas v [swB2]Mercer
  

Wednesday:

Semis on-campus (re-seeded)

Monday week, Wednesday week, (if necessary: Friday week):

Finals on-campus (Best of 3)

CIT

Monday:

16s on-campus (re-seeded)
• @ [1x]Sam Houston St v Ea Michigan
  

Thursday-Sunday:

Qtrs on-campus (re-seeded)
• San Diego, Austin Peay, C Michigan, TX-San Antonio, [1x]No Colorado, IL-Chicago, Liberty
  

Wednesday week:

Semis on-campus (re-seeded)

Friday week:

Final on-campus

18 Mar12 - 'Hoos Got Game (PRECONTEST)

Volume XXII, No. 19 - 18 Mar12: PRECONTEST - [] FINAL TOP 25 BALLOT

'Hoos Got Game

Despite its record-setting streak of (14) regular season titles, [1]Kansas hasn't had matching success in the conference tournament (winning "only" 7 of the last 13 crowns). This year's Jayhawks took full advantage of playing "at home" in Kansas City. By seeding, form held through the entire draw: [6c]Oklahoma State beat arch-rival (and fellow Bubble team) [6d]Oklahoma (71-60 as the Cowboys dominated the boards 53-27). In the quarters, [4]@Kansas State edged [5]TCU in overtime (66-64[OT]) while [2a]Texas Tech edged [6b]Texas (73-69 as gKeenan Evans[25p3a] countered 29p from Jacob Young). In the semis, [2b]West Virginia edged [2a]TxT (66-63) while [1]@Kans thumped rival [4]@KanSt (@83-@67 despite 29p4r from Makol Mawien). In the final, [1]@Kansas handled [2b]WVa (@81-70 sinking 15-for-27 on threes), locking up a No.1 seed for the NCAA tournament.
     The BIG EAST tournament at MADISON SQUARE GARDEN was supposed to be [1]Xavier's chance to legitimize its regular season title with a head-to-head win over [2]Villanova but that expected final didn't materialize. [6a]Butler upset [3a]Seton Hall in the quarters, (75-74 as gKamar Baldwin[32p3a] starred [and thanks to Tyler Wideman's game-winner]). The real noise in the tourney came from Bubble-team [3c]Providence, who parlayed a glorious run into an NCAA bid. First, [3c]Prov edged [3b]Creighton in overtime (72-68[OT]) in the quarters; then, the Friars emerged in OT again against [1]Xav (75-72[OT]) in the semis. Meanwhile, [2]Nova thumped [6a]Butl in the semis (87-68 as the VU/Wildcats bolted to a 19-0 lead and coasted). In the final, [3c]Prov gave [2]Nova all it wanted (and them some) before the V-'Cats escaped in overtime (76-66[OT] as bJalen Brunson[31p4a6r] starred), claiming their second-straight crown (and third in four years), locking up a No.1 NCAA seed of their own. (Despite going out early to [3c]Prov, [1]Xav also got a No.1 seed for the NCAAs.)
     The [1]Virginia Cavaliers hardly put a foot wrong all season (losing at West Virginia in December, and in overtime at arch-rival Virginia Tech in February). Still, the Tony Bennett Era has been mostly disappointing in the postseason; but the Wahoos backed up their great regular season by running through the draw of the deepest league in the land. In the 16s, [3c]North Carolina State tripped against lowly [12]Boston College (87-91 as pJerome Robinson[25p6a] starred); Bubble-teams [10a]Notre Dame and [8b]Louisville both pulled off upsets: [10a]ND beat [7]VaTech (71-65 led by pMatt Farrell[22p5a5r]) while [8b]Lville beat [8a]Florida State (82-74 led by pQuentin Snider[19p6a5r]). [3d]North Carolina had a strong run, thumping [3a]Miami(Florida) (82-65 as fTheo Pinson[25p11r] starred) in the quarters; then winning the rubber game with arch-rival [2]Duke (74-69) in the semis. Even better was [1]UVa who dumped [8b]Lville (75-58), beat [3b]Clemson (64-58) in the semis, and finished the job with a win over [3d]UNC (71-63) in the final, claiming the overall No.1 seed for the NCAAs.
     The SEC has been deeper than in many years, but there was no one dominant team (the regular season even finished with co-title champs, [1a]Auburn and [1b]Tennessee). That being the case, the default favorite to win is always "Old Reliable" [4a]@Kentucky playing in front of its "home-away-from-home" Wildcat Nation travelling fans. First, Bubble-team [4b]Missouri tripped against lowly [11b]Georgia (@60-62) (and yet somehow still got an NCAA bid). Bubble [9a]Alabama at least improved its lot, edging [7b]Texas A&M (71-70 as pCollin Sexton[27p5a] starred) and them dumping arch-rival [1a]Aub (81-63 as bSexton[31p7r6to] starred again). [4c]Arkansas upset [3]Florida in the quarters (80-72 controlling the boards 43-28 led by xJaylen Barford[27p10r]) but tanked in the semis against [1b]Tenn (66-84). Meanwhile, "Old Reliable" [4a]@UK thumped [9a]Bama in the semis (@86-63 shooting 64 percent) and edged [1b]UTn in the final (@77-72 as bShai Gilgeous-Alexander[29p3a7r] starred), claiming the UK/Wildcats' FOURTH-STRAIGHT SEC TOURNEY CROWN (but only a No.5 NCAA seed).
     Not much was settled during the regular season in the AMERICAN as the top three teams ([1]Cincinnati, [2a]Wichita State and [2b]Houston) each went 1-1 against the other two. So it was no surprise that two squeak decisions were the results in the tourney. First, [2b]Hous upset [2a]WichSt (77-74 on Rob Gray[33p1a]'s star turn); then, [1]Cincy edged [2b]Hous in the final (56-55 on xGary Clark[20p12r]'s game-winning free throw), earning a No.2 seed for the NCAAs.

The spectacular preseason turned in by [8b]Arizona State ended with a whimper as the Sun Devils fell right away in the PACIFIC-12 tournament to [8a]Colorado (85-97 as six Buffalo players posted double-figures). Otherwise, the only story was [1]Arizona edging in overtime against [3b]UCLA in the semis (78-67[OT] as cDeAndre Ayton[32p14r] dominated) and handling national disappointment [2]USC in the final (75-61 dominating the boards 42-19 led by cAyton[32p18r]), claiming their second-straight TiTo crown (and THIRD IN FOUR YEARS; and a No.4 NCAA seed.)
     All [2]St. Mary's had to do was live up to its seed in the WEST COAST tourney and an NCAA bid should have been assured. Instead, the Gaels fell in the semis to also-ran [3]BYU (72-85 as fYoeli Childs[33p6r;13/18fg] was the difference) only to find no bid waiting in their mailbox ... AAARRRGGGHHH!!! Of course, [1]Gonzaga had no problem cruising past the BY/Cougars (74-54) in the final, claiming its SIXTH-STRAIGHT TiTo CROWN for the GU/Bulldogs(Mark Few)--- OUTSTANDING!!! (and a No.4 NCAA seed.)
     [1]Nevada had an NCAA bid locked up whether or not it won the MOUNTAIN WEST tourney. Whether the MWC turned out to be a two-bid Mid-Major or an Anti-Spoiler 1BC was in the hands of how [2]Boise State closed the second half of the regular season. Finishing a gap behind the UN/Wolf Pack in the final standings didn't help; but tripping in the quarters to lowly [7a]Utah State (75-78 as pSam Merrill[28p5a5r] starred) turned out to be the Kiss of Death as the NCAA didn't come calling. Then, [1]Nev failed in its role as Anti-Spoiler by tanking in the semis "at home" in Las Vegas against [4b]San Diego State (@73-90 despite 25p10r from xJordan Caroline). The Aztecs completed the job, beating [3]New Mexico in the final (82-75 led by gTony Kell[28p]), claiming a Party-Crasher bid (i.e., forcing Nev to take an At-Large bid away from a deserving team on the Bubble).
     Speaking of Party-Crashers, [3]Davidson stole another bid by winning the ATLANTIC 10 tournament. First, the DU/Wildcats knocked off [2]St. Bonaventure (82-70 shooting 16-for-29 on three-pointers); then, they edged [1]Rhode Island in the final (58-57 on xKevin Grady's game-winner). That forced URI to take an At-Large bid to get into the NCAAs (and put coach Dan Hurley into a twisted moment
feeling his team's failure had taken a bid directly away from brother Bob Hurley's Arizona State squad. It hadn't, as AzSt got in also.)
     Despite the (bottom of) Mid-Major rating of the SUN BELT, [1]Louisiana's lack of quality wins in the preseason meant it wasn't even an Anti-Spoiler as it turned out. (Last week, MVC/[1]Loyola(Illinois) came through a similar challenge in flying colors; not so Lsiana). The Ragin' Cajuns' FOUR-GAP regular season campaign was all for naught when they tripped in the semis ("at home" in New Orleans, no less) against [4]Texas-Arlington (@68-71 as pErick Neal[18p5a6r] led the way). Grateful [2]Georgia State took advantage of the void, handling [4]TxArl in the final (74-61 as bD'Marcus Simonds[27p4a5r] starred), claiming the Jack Dawson bid while Lsiana (the best team [this side of St. Mary's] not to make it into the NCAAs) was NIT-bound.

TiTo champs were the norm inside the Red Swirl:
     In the SOUTHERN final, [1]UNC-Greensboro won the rubber game with [2]East Tennessee State (@62-47 in a defensive struggle) to earn its first trip to the NCAAs in over 15 years.
     In the WAC final, [1]New Mexico State handled [3]Grand Canyon (72-58 led by cJemerrio Jones[15p19r]) for its second-straight crown (and SEVENTH IN NINE YEARS).
     In the MID-AMERICAN final, [1/E1]Buffalo handled [2/W1]@Toledo (76-@66 as bWes Clark[26p5r] starred) for its THIRD CROWN IN FOUR YEARS.
     CONFERENCE USA featured two splashworthy teams in [1]Middle Tennessee and [3]Western Kentucky (and [2]Old Dominion was solid as well); but neither one came through to win the tourney. [1]MidTenn tripped in the quarters in overtime against lowly [9a]Southern Mississippi (68-71[OT]). [3]Western Kentucky did upset [2]ODU in the semis (57-49); but tripped in the final against [4]Marshall (66-67
as pJon Elmore[27p6a5to] starred). It's the first NCAA trip in over 30 years for Jack Dawson [4]Marsh.
     In the BIG SKY, [1]Montana rolled to the TiTo crown, beating [3a]Eastern Washington in the final (82-65 despite 15p4a7r from the conference's career-leader bBogdan Bliznyuk).
     [1]Vermont joined SUNB/[1]Louisiana and CUSA/[1]Middle Tennessee as the best 1BC squads not to make the NCAA tournament. After going undefeated at home (including two head-to-head blowout wins), [1]@Vmt managed to trip in the final against [2]Maryland-Baltimore County (@62-65 on gJairus Lyles[27p]'s game-winning three at the buzzer) -- the first NCAA in 10 years (and second ever) for [2]MdBc.
     In the rubber-game SUMMIT final, [1]South Dakota State outpaced arch-rival [2]South Dakota (@97-@87 as bDavid Jenkins[29p6r] was the extra star difference-maker while xMike Daum[25p11r] dueled 30p4a7r from bMatt Mooney) -- the third-straight tourney crown (and FIFTH IN SEVEN YEARS) for the Jackrabbits.
     In the COLONIAL final, [1a]College of Charleston completed the three-game sweep of [1b]Northeastern in overtime (@83-76[OT] as bJoe Chealey[32p3a5r;16/16ft] dueled 30p4a from gVasa Pusica) -- it's the first trip to NCAAs in nearly 20 years for the CofC/Cougars.
     After the BIG WEST Wars of the regular season, it's no surprise things didn't produce a TiTo champ. Instead, [4]@Cal State-Fullerton edged [1]@UC-Davis in the semis (@55-@52), then dumped [2b]@UC-Irvine in the final (@75-@55 as bKyle Allman[26p6r] starred) -- it's the first crown in 10 years (and third ever) for the Titans.
     The SOUTHLAND Wars were no different. It was perennial favorite [3]Stephen F. Austin who went through both regular season co-champs: first, handling [1b]Nicholls in the semis (@78-66 as Shannon Bogues[27p] countered 26p3a12r from cRoddy Peters); then, edging [1a]Southeast Louisiana in the final (@59-55) to claim its FOURTH CROWN IN FIVE YEARS.

In Flop-land, Jack Dawsons or fair-swap replacements were the norm:
     With [1a]Rider and [1b]Canisius already out of the way; "Old Reliable" [4]Iona claimed its third-straight MAAC tourney crown (each without winning the regular season), beating [5b]Fairfield in the final (@83-71 as pRoland Griffin[29p5a7r;11/11ft] starred).
     With [1]Northern Kentucky already out of the way, [2]Wright State cruised in the HORIZON final, beating [8a]Cleveland State (74-57) -- it's the first trip to the NCAAs in over 10 years for the Raiders.
     After splitting in the regular sesaon, [1b]@Pennsylvania needed every bit of its home-court advantage playing the IVY tournament in The PALESTRA (as well a bad-luck injury to Crimson star fSeth Towns) to edge co-title champ [1a]Harvard (@68-65) to claim its first trip to the NCAAs in over 10 years.
     Perhaps no one (this side of SUNB/Louisiana and AMERE/Vermont) was more disappointing than gap-title-champ [1]Wagner (who went undefeated at home all season) until laying an egg in the NORTHEAST final, falling to lowly [4a]Long Island (@61-71 as fJoel Hernandez[32p7r] starred).
     After the regular-season SWAC Wars yielded title-champ [1]Grambling (ineligible for the postseason), it was up for grabs for the automatic NCAA bid. "Old Reliable" [2c]@Texas Southern claimed its second-straight crown (and FOURTH IN FIVE YEARS), thumping [2a]Arkansas-Pine Bluff in the final (@84-69 led by pDemontrae Jefferson[15p7a6r]). (Maybe it's time to move the conference tournament away from Houston?)
     With the regular-season MEAC Wars ending with tri-champs, it was more of a surprise that "Old Reliable" [6]North Carolina Central claimed its second-straight crown (and THIRD IN FIVE YEARS). [1b]Bethune-Cookman tripped right away in the quarters against [7a]Morgan State (77-78 as bTiwian Kendley[31p5r;GWFTs] dueled 30p5r from bBrandon Tabb). [6]NcCu took care of the other two itself: first, tripping [1c]Savannah State in the quarters (58-56 as cRaasean Davis[16p20r] dominated the paint); then, knocking of [1a]@Hampton in the final (71-@63).

- - - - - -

Here's the full list of Tito champions (including Anti-Spoilers) vs. the bid-stealing Party-Crashers as well as Jack Dawsons who are attending The Dance under false pretenses:

TiTo	Party Crasher	Jack Dawson
BIG 12: [1]+2 Kansas ACC: [1]+4 Virginia AMER: [1]+2 Cincinnati MVC: [1]+4 Loyola(IL)[AS] PAC-12: [1]+2 Arizona WCC: [1] Gonzaga OVC: [1] Murray State SOCON: [1] UNC-Greensboro WAC: [1]+2 New Mexico St. MAC: [1/E1]+2 Buffalo PAT: [1]+4 Bucknell SKY: [1]+2 Montana SUMMIT: [1]+2 South Dakota St. COLON: [1a]+2 Col.Charleston IVY: [1b]+3 Pennsylvania	MWC: [4b] San Diego St. A-10: [3]+3 Davidson	SUN B: "[1]+4 Louisiana" (4-[2]Georgia State) C-USA: "[1] Middle Tennessee" (2-[4]Marshall) AMER E: "[1]+3 Vermont" (3-[2]MD-Baltimore Co.) MAAC: "[1]+3 Rider/Canisius" ([4]+2 Iona) A-SUN: "[1]+2 FL Gulf Coast" (2-[2]+2 Lipscomb NEC: "[1]+2 Wagner" (2-[4a]Long Island) MEAC: "[1] Bethune-Cookman/Hampton/Savannah St." (2-[6]+2 N.C. Central)

That's 15 thoroughbreds against 9(7) imposters -- not as strong as last year (20 up, 8[6] down). Still, it's a solid representation of the best performing teams from the regular season.
     In an interview, an official from the NCAA Seeding Committee said "strength of schedule" was based on placing opponents into "four quadrants" -- (can you say: "B-Major, Mid-Major, Red Swirl and Flop"!?) with wins away from home counting extra, wins in November/December counting equally with wins in January/February as well as the "objective" RPI Rating. (To be honest, that description is very close to my own formula I use for rating teams for my Tableaus (see Ron's Team Tableau and Ron's Conference Tableau inside the Hoops Contest pages).
     Apparently, the "Last Four Teams In" were UCLA, St. Bonaventure, Arizona State and Syracuse with the "First Four Out" being Notre Dame, Baylor, St. Mary's and USC. For me, Even with the loss to BYU, St. Mary's should have been a lock for an At-Large NCAA bid. Don't see how St. Bonaventure gets in for finishing second in the A-10 over StMary for finishing second in WCC.
     Among last week's non-lock teams, only San Diego State(won @MWCt), Davidson(won A10t), Louisville(beat Florida State), Notre Dame(beat Virginia Tech), Alabama(edged Texas A&M, thumped Auburn), Providence(OT-edged Creighton, OT-edged Xavier) and Oklahoma State(beat Oklahoma) all improved their lot; while St. Bonaventure(lost Davidson), Florida State(lost Louisville), Oklahoma(lost Oklahoma State), Boise State(tripped Utah State), Missouri(tripped Georgia), Tulsa(tripped Memphis) and Utah(tripped Oregon) all took a step back.
     Missouri has absolutely no business receiving a bid. (If the argument is that superstar individuals make the difference, then Notre Dame is rated way better [even including the losses when cBonzie Colson was out]. OK, pTrae Young gets Oklahoma in despite a loss; but GC fMichael Porter Jr. is a superstar on paper, only -- he's done nothing on court to warrant getting the UM/Tigers in.) The splashworthy 1BC's who didn't get in (SUNB/Louisiana[tripped Texas-Arlington], CUSA/Middle Tennessee[tripped Southern Mississippi] and AMERE/Vermont[tripped Maryland-Baltimore County]) all had no quality preseason wins to recommend them. The Mega-ACC matched last year's all-time high of 9 bids. The SEC set a new all-time high with 8 bids. The BIG 12 matched its all-time high once again with 7 bids.
     On the plus side of the cut line, I had: Vermont, Louisiana, Middle Tennessee, South Dakota, Belmont, Western Kentucky, Butler(+Seton), Louisville(+FlaSt), East Tennessee State, Oklahoma(-OkSt), Arizona State(lost Utah) and USC. On the minus side, I had: Syracuse, Texas, Boise State(-UtahSt), UCLA, Alabama(+TxAm,+Aub), Missouri(-UGa) and Providence(+Creigh,+Xav).

4-GAP/TiTo champ Virginia as the overall No.1-seed is a no-brainer. Tourney champ Villanova and Gap/TiTo champ Kansas as No.2 and No.3 is sixes. I'd have taken gap/TiTo Cincinnati over didn't-really-earn-it title champ Xavier as the fourth No.1 seed. (Besides Providence), North Carolina and Arizona improved their lot the most since the PreSixteen (Week 15); Auburn and Rhode Island's's stock dropped the most. No real problem with any of the Top eight seeds, frankly.
     With at least a No.4 seed and multiple bids, the PACIFIC-12(Arizona) qualifies as a B-Major (by seed, if not by rating). With no second bid (but a No.4 seed), the WEST COAST(Gonzaga) qualifies as a "Power"-Anti-Spoiler. With multiple bids (all below No.4), the only official Mid-Major is the ATLANTIC 10. With its second bid being a Party-Crasher, the MOUNTAIN WEST is officially only an Anti-Spoiler league (along with the MISSOURI VALLEY); with no bid for Louisiana, the SUN BELT only qualifies as a regular 1BC.
     The BIG 12 got a raw deal with [E3]Texas Tech and [E5]West Virginia being placed in the same region; same for the BIG 10 with [W3]Michigan and [W5]Ohio State. For the splashworthy 1BCs who got in, some have very winnable matchups ([M12]New Mexico State/WAC, [S11]Loyola{Illinois}/MVC) but some don't ([E12]Murray State/OVC, [W14]Montana/SKY, [E14]Stephen F. Austin/SLAND, [S13]Buffalo/MAC, [W13]UNC-Greensboro/SOCON, [W12]South Dakota State/SUMMIT).
     Worst overseeding decisions: [W8]Missouri and [W10]Providence are not even close; [M4]Auburn, [E6]Florida, [W7]Texas A&M, [E9]Alabama (all from the SEC somehow) all rated significantly lower within the overall field than they were placed. Worst underseeding decisions: [M12]New Mexico State; [M6]TCU; [S11]Loyola(Illinois), [E12]Murray State, [W14]Montana, [E11b]St. Bonaventure all deserved better than they were given.
     The perennial powers Kansas(Wichita), North Carolina(Charlotte) and Michigan State(Detroit) all got cushy Pods that may as well be free passes through to the Sweet 16 -- Ugh. At least Virginia took Duke's traditional spot in Charlotte. (Will the young Blue Devils succumb to an upset-minded crowd in Pittsburgh?) Texas Tech got Dallas; but Tennessee didn't get Nashville.

Toughest first-round games: [M5]Clemson/[M12]New Mexico State, S6]Miami(Florida)/[S11]Loyola(Illinois), [E6]Florida/{E11b]St. Bonaventure} and [E7]Arkansas/[E10]Butler. Best chance for a 1BC upset: [S11]Loyola(Illinois) over [S6]Miami(Florida) and [M12]New Mexico State over [M5]Clemson. Pittsburgh gets the star power with [E1]Villanova and [M2]Duke. [E3]Texas Tech/[E14]Stephen F. Austin in Dallas will be a blast. [S2]Cincinnati vs [S7]Nevada in Round Two is massive; ditto [S4]Arizona vs [S5]Kentucky.

- - - - - -

This might be the first time since they created the First Four "Play-In" that the perennially two worst conferences (the MEAC and SWAC) were both put in
(and against each other, to boot). In the past, there was probably a reluctance to do so because of the terrible history of the NCAA's deliberately trying to exclude HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) from the tournament. It's a measure of progress that they can objectively place these conferences there and without much protest that I can tell.
     Even though the MEAC and SWAC have been markedly worse than the next lowest rated conferences on a perennial basis, it's also true that there is an entire cluster of Flop (i.e., "Quad Four"?) conferences all of whom have similar records of futility in the tournament. So a reasonable rotation among all of the Flop conferences from one year to the next is probably best (if not fully objective in any given year). To be sure, 1BC Jack Dawsons should always be placed in the Play-In games; but beyond that, it could get discriminatory to always put the MEAC and SWAC in year after year.
     Not counting Open Round Play-In wins, here are the tournament records of the least successful conferences:

PATRIOT        3-26 since 1992
                         (2005: 14/Bucknell[Charles Lee] > 3/Kansas[Keith Langford], 
                          2006:  9/Bucknell[Charles Lee] > 8/Arkansas[Ronnie Brewer], 
                          2012: 15/Lehigh[C.J. McCollum] > 2/Duke[Austin Rivers])
MEAC           3-36 since 1981 (no bid in 1991 when champ was ineligible)
                         (1997: 15/Coppin State[Terquin Mott] > 2/South Carolina[B.J. McKie], 
                          2001: 15/Hampton[Tarvis Williams] > 2/Iowa State[Jamaal Tinsley],
                          2012: 15/Norfolk State[Kyle O'Quinn] > 2/Missouri[Kim English])
SWAC:          2-37 since 1980 (no bid in 1991 when champ was ineligible)
                         (1980: 8/Alcorn State[Larry Smith] > 9/South Alabama[Ed Rains],
                          1993: 13/Southern[Leonard White] > 4/Georgia Tech[James Forrest])
AMERICA EAST:  1-21 since 1997
                         (2005: 13/Vermont[Taylor Coppenrath] > 4/Syracuse[Hakim Warrick]) 
BIG SOUTH:     1-26 since 1991
                         (2007: 11/Winthrop[Torrell Martin] > 6/Notre Dame[Russell Carter])
NORTHEAST:     0-29 since 1989

- - - - - -

Thanks to the weird snubs, the NIT field is strong. It completely sucks that two of the best 1BC title champs have to face each other in Round 1 ([s6]Vermont at [s3]Middle Tennessee). [w6]Louisiana goes on the road against "Big Brother" [w3]LSU. Splashworthy [m4]Western Kentucky actually gets a home game (against [m5]Boston College). [w4]Boise State has the bad luck of travelling against lower-seeded [w5]Washington due to a scheduling conflict. Look for a healthy [e1]Notre Dame to win it all past conferencemate/Bluegrass-rival [s2]Louisville in the semis and motivated [w1]St. Mary's in the final (in a squeak semi past the winner of undermanned [m1]USC/[m4]WeKy). (Pay attention to the experimental rules in play: four 10-minute quarters [with fouls resetting each time], wider lane, deeper three-point arc [international distance].)
     The CBI looks to be all about the WAC with four teams in the 16-team field. "Slumming" WCC/San Francisco should be the favorite; but splashworthy SUMMIT/South Dakota as well as OVC/Jacksonville State, WAC/Grand Canyon and title co-champ MAAC/Canisius all warranted tracking at some point this season.
     The CIT uses the old NIT format without a pre-set bracket. Four teams get byes (SKY/Northern Colorado, SKY/Portland State, SLAND/Sam Houston St and BIGS/Wofford) waiting for 8 teams who play opening-round Play-Ins while another 8 teams round out the first-round of 16s. Each subsequent round is re-seeded subjectively. "Slumming" teams MVC/Drake, WCC/San Diego and SUNB/Louisiana-Monroe should be favorites while MAC/Central Michigan, BIGS/Wofford and MEAC/North Carolina A&T all warranted tracking at some point this season.

- - - - - -

[M1]Kansas got no favors with [M2]Duke and [M3]Michigan State in its region as well (both of whom are arguably better [and certainly more talented]). [W1]Xavier's toughest opposition may well be [W4]Gonzaga even more than [W2]North Carolina. [S1]Virginia has tough [S2]Cincinnati and surging [S4]Arizona and [S5]Kentucky. [E1]Villanova probably has the least scary opposition in its region.
     [S11]Loyola(Illinois) and [M12]New Mexico State both have winnable paths to the Sweet 16.

-- Ron

P.S. If you're interested, the 35th Annual Hoops Contest is now open for entry (through 6:30PMet TUESDAY, 13 MARCH).

Key games this week:

NCAA

Tuesday:

OpenRd/128s FIRST FOUR @DaytonOH
• [E11a]UCLA v [E11b]St Bonaventure
  
• [E16a]Radford v [E16b]Long Island
  

Wednesday:

OpenRd/128s FIRST FOUR @DaytonOH
• [M11a]Arizona St v [M11b]Syracuse
  
• [W16a]NC Central v [W16b]Texas So
  

Thursday, Saturday:

1stRd/64s POD @PittsburghPA
• [E1]Villanova v {[E16a]Radford/[E16b]LongIsland}
  
• [E8]Virginia Tech v [E9]Alabama
  
• 
  
• [M2]Duke v [M15]Iona
  
• [M7]Rhode Island v [M10]Oklahoma
  

1stRd/64s POD @WichitaKS
• [M1]@Kansas v [M16]Penn
  
• [M8]Seton Hall v [M9]NC State
  
• 
  
• [W3]Michigan v [W14]Montana
  
• [W6]Houston v [W11]San Diego St
  

1stRd/64s POD @DallasTX
• [E3]@Texas Tech v [E14]@Stephen F Austin (TX)
  
• [E6]Florida v {[E11a]UCLA/[E11b]StBonaventure}
  
• 
  
• [S3]Tennessee v [S14]Wright St
  
• [S6]Miami-FL v [S11]Loyola-IL
  

1stRd/64s POD @BoiseID
• [W4]@Gonzaga v [W13]UNC-Grensboro
  
• [W5]Ohio St v [W12]SD State
  
• 
  
• [S4]Arizona v [S13]Buffalo
  
• [S5]Kentucky v [S12]Davidson
  

Friday, Sunday:

1stRd/64s POD @CharlotteNC
• [S1]Virginia v [S16]MD-Baltimore Co
  
• [S8]Creighton v [S9]Kansas St
  
• 
  
• [W2]@N Carolina v [W15]Lipscomb
  
• [W7]Texas A&M v [W10]Providence
  

1stRd/64s POD @NashvilleTN
• [W1]Xavier v {[W16a]NCCentral/[W16b]TexasSo}
  
• [W8]Missouri v [W9]Florida St
  
• 
  
• [S2]Cincinnati v [S15]Georgia St
  
• [S7]Nevada v [S10]Texas
  

1stRd/64s POD @DetroitMI
• [E2]Purdue v [E15]Cal St-Fullerton
  
• [E7]Arkansas v [E10]Butler
  
• 
  
• [M3]@Michigan St v [M14]Bucknell
  
• [M6]TCU v {[M11a]ArizonaSt/[M11b]Syracuse}
  

1stRd/64s POD @SanDiegoCA
• [E4]Wichita St v [E13]Marshall
  
• [E5]W Virginia v [E12]Murray St
  
• 
  
• [M4]Auburn v [M13]Col of Charleston
  
• [M5]Clemson v [M12]New Mexico St
  

NIT

Tuesday:

1stRd/32s on-campus
• @ [w1]St Mary's v [w8]SE Louisiana
  
• @ [e1]Notre Dame v [e8]Hampton
  
• @ [m1]USC v [m8]UNC-Asheville
  
• @ [s1]Baylor v [s8]Wagner
  
• @ [s2]Louisville v [s7]No Kentucky (KY)
  
• @ [m2]Oklahoma St v [m7]FL Gulf Coast
  
• @ [s3]Mid Tennessee v [s6]Vermont
  
• @ [e3]Oregon v [e6]Rider
  
• @ [m4]We Kentucky v [m5]Boston Col
  

Wednesday:

1stRd/32s on-campus
• @ [e2]Marquette v [e7]Harvard
  
• @ [w2]Utah v [w7]UC-Davis
  
• @ [w3]LSU v [w6]Louisiana (LA)
  
• @ [m3]Stanford v [m6]BYU
  
• @ [s4]Mississippi St v [s5]Nebraska
  
• @ [e4]Penn St v [e5]Temple
  
• @ [w4]Boise St v [m5]Washington
  

Friday-Monday week:

16s on-campus
• @{[w1]StMarys/[w8]SELouisiana} v {[w4]BoiseSt/[m5]Washington}
  
• @{[w2]Utah/[w7]UCDavis} v {[w3]LSU/[w6]Louisiana}
  
• 
  
• @{[e1]NotreDame/[e8]Hampton} v {[e4]PennSt/[e5]Temple}
  
• @{[e2]Marquette/[e7]Harvard} v {[e3]Oregon/[e6]Rider}
  
• 
  
• @{[m1]USC/[m8]UNCAsheville} v {[m4]WeKentucky/[m5]BostonCol}
  
• @{[m2]OklahomaSt/[m7]FLGulfCoast} v {[m3]Stanford/[m6]BYU}
  
• 
  
• @{[s1]Baylor/[s8]Wagner} v {[s4]MississippiSt/[s5]Nebraska}
  
• @{[s2]Louisville/[s7]NoKentucky} v {[s3]MidTennessee/[s6]Vermont}
  

Tuesday week-Wednesday week:

Qtrs on-campus

Tue 27 Mar, Thu 29 Mar

Semis,Final @ New York NY /MSG/
• {w/StMarys} v {m/USC}
  
• {e/NotreDame} v {s/Baylor}
  

CBI

Tuesday:

1stRd/16s on-campus
• (nwB): @ UT Valley v Ea Washington
  

Wednesday:

1stRd/16s on-campus
• (swA): @ S Dakota v N Texas
  
• (nwA): @ San Francisco v Colgate
  
• (mwA): @ New Orleans v TX-RG Valley
  
• (seA): @ Canisius v Jacksonville St
  
• (swB): @ Grand Canyon v Mercer
  
• (seB): @ Seattle v C Arkansas
  
• (mwB): @ Campbell v Miami-OH
  

Monday week:

Qtrs on-campus (by region)
• (sw): {SDakota/NTexas} v {Mercer/GrandCanyon}
  
• (nw): {SanFrancisco/Colgate} v {UTValley/EaWashington}
  
• (mw): {NewOrleans/TXRGValley} v {MiamiOH/Campbell}
  
• (se): {JacksonvilleSt/Canisius} v {Seattle/CArkansas}
  

Wednesday week:

Semis on-campus (re-seeded)

Mon 26 Mar, Wed 28 Mar, (if necessary: Fri 30 Mar):

Finals on-campus (Best of 3)

CIT

Monday:

1stRd/32s on-campus
• @ Drake v Abilene Christian (LOU HENSON CLASSIC)
  
• @ San Diego v Hartford (RILEY WALLACE CLASSIC)
  
• @ Ft Wayne v C Michigan (HUGH DURHAM CLASSIC)
  
• @ Liberty v NC A&T ((new)JIM PHELAN CLASSIC)
  

Wednesday:

1stRd/32s on-campus
• @ Ea Michigan v Niagara
  
• @ Lamar v TX-San Antonio (TX)
  
• @ IL-Chicago v St Francis-PA
  

Thursday:

1stRd/32s on-campus
• @ Austin Peay v LA-Monroe (JOHN McCLENDON CLASSIC)
  

Friday-Monday week:

2ndRd/16s on-campus ([1x]Wofford, [1x]Northern Colorado, [1x]Portland State and [1x]Sam Houston State all receive first-round byes.)

Thursday week-Sunday week:

Qtrs on-campus [re-seeded]
(4 first-round winners receive byes into the quarters.)

Wed 28 Mar:

Semis on-campus [re-seeded]

Fri 30 Mar:

Final on-campus

---

FINAL TOP 25 - 18 Mar12: PRECONTEST - [] Column

1. Virginia (31-2) ACC+4 [ACCt] [2v2:NIT.T-O] (vBIG10)
   
2. Kansas (27-7) 14-PEAT BIG12+2 [vBIG12t] [3v:HOFI-D-MIAMI] (@SI) (@@CHAMPS) (vSEC)
   
3. Villanova (30-4) 5-PEAT BIG5u 3rd/4 [BIG.Et] [3:ATLANTIS]
   
4. Xavier (28-5) BIG.E (@BIG10) (vXTOWN)
   
5. Michigan State (29-4) BIG10 [v3:PK80B] (@@HORIZ) (vACC)
   
6. Cincinnati (30-4) AMER+2 [AMERt] [v3:CAYMAN]
   
7. Gonzaga (30-4) 6-PEAT;17TH/18 WCC 6-PEAT;7TH/8 [WCCt] (@WA) (vJESUIT)
   
8. Michigan (27-7) repeat [BIG10t] (@@HORIZ)
   
9. Arizona (27-7) repeat;4TH/5 PAC12+2 repeat;3rd/4 [PAC12t] (vVAL-SUN)
   
10. North Carolina (25-10) (@@NO-A C/SPORTS) (vBIG10)
    
11. Duke (26-7) [v3:PK80A] (@BIG10) (@@CHAMPS)
    
12. West Virginia (24-10) [v3:A/ORLANDO] (@BACKYD)
    
13. Texas Tech (24-9) [2v2:HOF-C T-O] (@SEC)
    
14. Purdue (28-6) (@BIG10) (@@XROADS) (vACC)
    
15. Kentucky (24-10) 4-PEAT [vSECt] [rr4vRUPP] (@BIG12) (:C/HOOPS)
    
16. Houston (26-7) (:HOFS-B CT)
    
17. Wichita State (25-7)
    
18. Tennessee (25-8) .5SEC+2 (@BIG12)
    
19. Kansas State (22-11) (vSEC)
    
20. TCU (21-11) [v3:EMERALD] (:HOFC-A LA) (vDFW)
    
21. Nevada (27-7) repeat MWC+2 .2[2v2:LVC-XMAS] (vMVC)
    
22. Clemson (23-9) (@BIG10) (@ORANGE) (vSC)
    
23. Auburn (25-7) .5SEC+2
    
24. Loyola(Illinois) (27-5) MVC+4 [MVCt] .5[2v2:SAVANH]
    
25. Rhode Island (25-7) A10+2 (vRI)
    

Honorable Mention:

Providence (21-13) [2v2:2K], San Diego State [@MWCt] (vMVC), Alabama (19-15) (:VETERANS) (vBIG12), Davidson (21-11) [A10t], BYU (24-10).

Georgia State (22-10) [SUN.Bt],
UNC-Greensboro (24-7) repeat SOCON [vSOCONt],

New Mexico State (25-5) 3rd/4 WAC+2 7TH/9 [WACt] (@HENSON) (@vNM),
Marshall (23-10) [C-USAt],
Buffalo (25-8) MAC+2 3rd/4 [@MACt],
Bucknell (25-9) 4-PEAT;7TH/8 PAT+4 repeat [vPATt] [2@PK80Bcons],
Montana (24-7) SKY+2 [SKYt],
Maryland-Baltimore County (21-10) [@AMER.Et] [2vATLANTIScons],
South Dakota State (24-6) 4TH/6 SUMMIT+2 3-peat [@@SUMMITt],
College of Charleston (24-7) .5COLON+2 [vCOLONt],
Cal State-Fullerton (18-11) [@@BIG.Wt],
Stephen F. Austin (24-6) 4TH/5 [vSLANDt],

Wright State (23-9) [vHORIZt] [rr4vRAIDER],
Iona (20-13) 3-peat [vMAACt] (@@MAAC),
Pennsylvania (23-8) .5IVY+3 [vIVYt],
Long Island (17-16) [@NECt],
Texas Southern (15-19) 4TH/5 [vSWACt],
North Carolina Central (16-15) repeat;3rd/5 [@MEACt].