Blogging the Bracket
Blogging the Bracket, College Basketball Bracketology
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... and a new at-large in the First Four.
We’re back in the midweek with more about the mighty Southeastern Conference, the Big Ten and some NCAA Tournament "bubble talk" on the latest episode of College Basketball Coast to Coast!
... there has been quite a shakeup elsewhere in the Top 16.
Since there are only eight men’s games on Super Bowl Sunday, with none tipping off after 2 p.m. Eastern, today’s schedule is beyond loaded with top 10, top 30, and top 50 matchups, along with a whole slew of Championship Fortnight previews. I’m just going to let the schedule speak for itself.
... this week 14 of its current 16 members are projected NCAA Tournament teams.
Tonight’s schedule is highlighted by a surprising matchup at the top of the SEC, Oregon’s attempt to keep winning in a situation where its peers have had no success so far, and Arkansas’s attempt to build upon Saturday’s win at Rupp and a road winning streak in the process.
These three conferences currently hold 29 of the 37 available at-large bids, with the ACC slipping to a three-bid league after North Carolina and Pitt managed to lose a total of three times since Friday’s projection was released.
Get ready for a full day of college hoops action, bookended by games of the day at noon ET and 11 p.m. ET.
In the span of a week, the Cougars suddenly went from having no Quad 1 wins to owning three. Given how backloaded their Big 12 slate is, I wouldn’t expect to see them fall from the top line unless they hit a rough patch.
While there are some vital matchups that could shake up mid-major races from coast to coast, the Big Ten is bubble central on this Thursday night.
Tonight’s slate features significant matchups in College Park, Morgantown, Omaha, and in both SEC arenas in the Magnolia State.
Of the conference’s 16 members, 13 are in this projected field, four more than its nearest rival. That number will likely drop to 11 or 12, but there is a decent chance that it doesn’t in the end.
A regularly updated list of the 2024-25 men’s college basketball season’s neutral-site games—be they showcases, classics, or standalone contests. Note that this page does not include info on neutral-site games tied to exempt multi-team events (MTEs).
The final iteration of this event for Conference USA 3.0 could very well end with the league sending two teams to March Madness.
Last season, second-seeded Saint Peter’s claimed the title, then became America’s darlings thanks to a run to the Elite Eight as a 15 seed. While the Peacocks are unlikely to repeat, Iona, Rider, Siena, Quinnipiac, and the rest will look to repeat SPU’s success—starting in Atlantic City.
The MAC’s top eight head to Cleveland for an event that is known for unpredictability thanks to how closely matched the contenders typically are.
Howard has a great chance to make its first NCAA trip in over 30 years, while a first-ever trip for Maryland-Eastern Shore is also a possibility.
Second-seeded Grambling State may never have a better chance to earn its first-ever NCAA bid. However, the SWAC’s traditional powers will stand in the Tigers’ way in Birmingham.
A trio of University of California campuses head up this season’s field, with Cal State Fullerton and Hawai’i capable of taking the title from them in Henderson, Nevada.
After one year with a stepladder bracket, the WAC returns to a traditional format this season—other than the way the field was seeded, that is.
Vermont won the conference title by three games over UMass Lowell, so naturally the perennial champs from Burlington are a heavy favorite yet again.
Many of this season’s conference tourney innovations are realignment-driven, and more will surely be in the pipeline as expansion continues over the next few seasons.
Can Colgate pull off the three-peat and secure a fourth straight bid (apologies for 2020, BU)?
This season, the Big Sky Tournament will be played earlier in Selection Week than in the past, which will give the conference improved exposure on actual television.
This year’s Southland Tournament has a new site and new schedule, which will see the final played three days earlier than in the recent past.
Once again, I made only slight changes to the previous bracket, but the days of early Selection Week stability are about to disappear.
The 1-68 seed list and, for those using screen readers, a text-only version of Wednesday’s bracket.
Things are getting crowded at both the top of the bracket (positively) and near the cut line (derogatory). Friday’s schedule may help provide a bit more clarity there, however.
There’s a titanic showdown in the Big 12, along with a potentially big contest in Houston, along with an intriguing home game for Tennessee, particularly after a pair of their SEC rivals could not protect their home floors last night.
Or me realizing that Florida has a 9 Eastern tip at home against a team from the Central Time Zone.
A surprising number of decent-to-potentially-great teams do not yet have many high-quality wins to go along with their metrics. That should change, but it makes for some weird projections with two months to go before Selection Sunday.
You’re getting nine ACC games today and will like it! (Or you could watch something else. You will have options!)
Thanks to conference consolidation, it is likely that Selection Sunday will result in very few multi-bid leagues. Today’s entry also includes a quick Friday night viewing guide.
Some alternate viewing options in case the Orange Bowl doesn’t interest you—along with some pre-kickoff tips. There are plenty of potential Championship Fortnight previews on a night (and afternoon) where mid-majors will dominate the schedule.
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