Bracketology 2024

I've been following Arizona a lot this year. They have the talent to be a #1 seed and make a deep run in March. They're extremely soft though. Boswell doesn't handle ball pressure at all and Love is generally out of control. He reminds me a lot of Marcus Carr.
 
The year we beat KU in the finals and then lost as a 3 seed to UAB we absolutely jumped a seed line between Friday and selection Sunday.

ISU probably did climb a line that season, but also keep in mind, two wins were over OU (ranked 15th at the time, got 3 seed in NCAAT) and KU (#9, 2 seed). So it was quality of wins, not that we won the tournament.

Not to claim that's what you suggested, but a general note.
 
ISU probably did climb a line that season, but also keep in mind, two wins were over OU (ranked 15th at the time, got 3 seed in NCAAT) and KU (#9, 2 seed). So it was quality of wins, not that we won the tournament.

Not to claim that's what you suggested, but a general note.
Don't you just assume you will get a couple of quality wins if you win the conference tournament?
 
Palm is a moron but we are far from a lock to Omaha. Likely in position for now. Need to stay ahead of Baylor and preferably Alabama and Auburn too.

Illinois would have to get real hot to pass us now I think. They do have three Quad 1 opportunities left at Wisconsin, vs Purdue, and at Iowa.
Why would we need to worry about Auburn and Alabama? If one of them gets seeded ahead of us they will go to Memphis.

It's actually a joke they are both being talked about as 2 seeds. Alabama is 3-7 in Quad 1 games and Auburn is 2-6.
 
Don't you just assume you will get a couple of quality wins if you win the conference tournament?

That's a good point. In most situations, probably so.

Maybe wouldn't apply if you happen to meet the lowest seed possible in each round on the way to the title, but even wins in those keep you at least steady, unless your conference is extremely weak.

So really no "blanket" formula.
 
One thing I always find interesting is how much weight the committee does or does not put into the Conference tournaments. If Iowa State would win out and the beat Houston in the title game, how do you keep us off the 2 line? It just seems like some years the seeding is already decided by mid day Saturday.
Meh, we could be a 1 before the conference finals. Teams in front of us just need to lose in the last two weeks of the season and we need to win outright for us to have a shot. Hopefully Tennessee, Arizona, and Houston lose during the season and we could find ourselves teetering in the 3-5 ranking in the poll. Even at 5 in the final AP Poll before the tourney begins should get us to a 1 if we win the conference tournament (going 2-1 against Houston, assuming we would play them in the conference championship, should give us the nod over Houston if they lose another game during the season). If we don't beat Houston in the conference championship I think we end up as a 3 seed.
 
Why would we need to worry about Auburn and Alabama? If one of them gets seeded ahead of us they will go to Memphis.

It's actually a joke they are both being talked about as 2 seeds. Alabama is 3-7 in Quad 1 games and Auburn is 2-6.

Probably not a major concern, I think it's mainly to leave Memphis as "open" as possible in case Baylor is in position to get sent there vs. going to Omaha.

If ISU takes care of business, that'll be moot.
 
Why would we need to worry about Auburn and Alabama? If one of them gets seeded ahead of us they will go to Memphis.

It's actually a joke they are both being talked about as 2 seeds. Alabama is 3-7 in Quad 1 games and Auburn is 2-6.

It Auburn or Alabama are ahead of us in addition to Baylor it knocks Baylor to Omaha instead of Memphis.

We would of not of been in Omaha based on the seed list at the Top 16 reveal. We are definitely ahead of Baylor now. Should be ahead of Alabama as well after Saturday but it's close. Hopefully they lose at Ole Miss on Wednesday. Beard really needs that win.
 
Big 12 as of 2/26/2024

Locks: Houston, Kansas, Iowa State, Baylor

Probably in: Texas Tech, BYU, TCU

Work to Do: Oklahoma, Texas

Probably Out: Cincinnati, Kansas St

No Shot: UCF, West Virginia, Ok State

Texas is falling fast. They are 6-8 in league play with an upcoming road trip to Lubbock. They may need to win one in KC to feel completely safe on Selection Sunday depending on how these next two weeks go.

Cincinnati did what they could not do last week and dropped a home game to Oklahoma St and lost convincingly over the weekend in Ft Worth. They are really up against it with a road game against newly minted #1 Houston on Wednesday. Good luck. They probably will need to win all 3 of their remaining games and 1 in KC. Likely a NIT host for Wes Miller and company.

KState kept their season alive with a win vs BYU on Saturday. They get WVU at home tonight and then play at Cincinnati on Saturday in a pseudo elimination game. Things look pretty bleak for the Tang gang but they're not completely dead yet.

Oklahoma could join the bubble talk with an 0-2 week. They're in Ames Wednesday night and get Houston at home on Saturday. The Sooners were pretty fortunate to escape Stillwater with an OT win.
 
Big 10 as of 2/26/2024

Locks: Purdue, Wisconsin, Illinois

Probably in: Michigan St, Northwestern, Nebraska

Work To Do: Nebraska, Iowa

Probably Out: Ohio St

No Shot: Indiana, Minnesota, Maryland, Penn St, Rutgers, Michigan

Northwestern is safe. For now. They need to notch a couple more victories down the stretch to become a lock. That Ty Berry injury lowers their ceiling.

Nebraska got a road win at Indiana and followed it up with a win over Minnesota at home. The Huskers feel pretty safe right now barring a colossal collapse down the stretch. The remaining schedule is very manageable.

Michigan State had an absolute nightmare week. Got beat soundly by Iowa in the Breslin Center and then let Ohio State hang around only to lose on a buzzer beater. They maintain great metrics but the losses are adding up. A trip to West Lafayette looms with the potential to extend this slide to 3 games and really start to make things interesting for Sparty. One of Izzo's worst coaching jobs.

Iowa did what they needed to last week and split their road tests against NCAA tourney teams. The bubble having a bad day Saturday also helps their cause. The formula for the Hoks seems pretty simple - Win 2 of their remaining 3 games (Penn St, @ Northwestern, Illinois) and then 2 games in Minneapolis. Anything short of that probably isn't good enough. However, they have a much better shot than the CF consensus realizes.

Ohio State's two key wins since firing Holtmann give them a very faint shot. They need to finish 3-0 against Nebraska, Michigan, and at Rutgers and then win 2 in the Big Ten tourney. Unlikely to happen but the talented roster has at least showed signs of life under interim Jon Diebler.
 

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