Tuesday, November 20, 2018

New Season!

A new season is upon us!

Check back for first seed list of the year coming soon!


Sunday, March 11, 2018

Bracketology Results

Well, Selection Sunday is in the books!  Hopefully most of you are happy where your team ended up.

To see a full NCAA tournament bracket, click HERE.

My final statistics for my personal predictions:

67/68 teams picked correctly.  I had USC instead of Arizona State.

63/68 seeded correctly or within one line.

4 teams seeded wrong by 2 lines.

I submitted the seed list to Bracket Matrix for inclusion in the final matrix.

Total score for the matrix: 342

I don't think I did too bad, especially for someone who only started doing this a week ago.  Seeding is tough, but I learned a lot this year.  There is definitely a learning curve, most especially when it comes to seeding the 4-8 range.

 I've wanted to do something like this for years, and I'm happy I did.  I had a lot of fun working the numbers and talking brackets with everyone.  It is definitely harder than it looks and very time consuming, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

I am definitely going to keep doing this each season, so please save this link and check back with me throughout the year.

I hope you enjoyed the blog, and thank you to everyone who visited!  I'm sure I'll make a few posts during the tournament and off-season so stand by!


Follow me on Twitter for updates! @Tcw8848








FINAL SEED LIST

1's- Virginia, Villanova, Kansas, Xavier

2’s- North Carolina, Cincinnati, Duke, Purdue

3’s- Michigan, Michigan St., Arizona, Tennessee

4’s- West Virginia, Gonzaga, Kentucky, Auburn

5’s- Wichita St., Texas Tech, Clemson, Ohio St

6’s- Houston, Florida, Texas A&M, Arkansas

7’s- TCU, Seton Hall, Miami, Missouri

8’s- Virginia Tech, Nevada, Providence, Rhode Island

9’s- Butler, Creighton, NC State, St Bonaventure

10’s- Florida St., Kansas St., Texas, UCLA

11’s- Davidson, Loyola-Chicago, USC, Alabama, Oklahoma, Syracuse

12’s- San Diego St., Buffalo, New Mexico St, Murray St.

13’s- South Dakota St, College of Charleston, Marshall, UNC Greensboro

14’s- Bucknell, SFA, Montana, Wright State

15’s-  Iona, Georgia State., Lipscomb, Pennsylvania

16’s- Radford, Cal-State Fullerton, UMBC, LIU Brooklyn, NC Central, Texas Southern


First out: Az St, St Mary's, Oklahoma St, MTSU, Marquette

Submitted to: Bracket Matrix.

Comment below and follow me on Twitter @Tcw8848

Selection Sunday Preview


The time has arrived.  It is Selection Sunday.  Teams, and fans alike, are waiting anxiously to see if and where their team is seeded in the NCAA Tournament.  So much excitement, so many nerves, all comes down to today.

If you missed it, I have a Championship Saturday recap you can see HERE.

My most recent seed list is available HERE.

And finally, bubble stats, based on the Bracket Matrix rankings, are HERE.

Championship Tournament Finals

Atlantic-10- Rhode Island vs Davidson 1pm, CBS.  This is the game everyone will have their eyes on, most especially bubble team fans.  Rhode Island is essentially a lock for a bid, whether they win the A-10 tournament or not.  Davidson, however, must win the tournament and is not an at-large contender.  Last night, a tweet from insider Andy Katz revealed the field is already set.  So it looks like a Davidson win would directly knock a bubble team from the tournament.

SEC- Kentucky and Tennessee (1pm ESPN) will battle for the SEC Tournament crown.  Both of these teams are assuredly in the field, but there could be some seeding implications with this game.  Tennessee has looked very strong lately and may be in contention for as high as a 2 seed.  We shall see.

American Athletic- (3:30pm, CBS) The final game of the day and of Championship Week, will decide the American Athletic Tournament Champion.  Houston and Cincinnati will matchup, and this is another game, that while both teams are locks for the NCAA Tournament, the results could have a factor on seeding.

Others:

Ivy League- Penn vs Harvard (12pm, ESPN2)

Sun Belt- UT Arlington vs Georgia St. (2pm, ESPN2)

Final Bracket and Bubble Statistics 

I will reveal my final bracket seed list immediately following the American Athletic Tournament Championship game.  Check back here for that to see a bracket preview before the Selection Sunday show begins.

After the show, don't forget to stop back in to see how well I did predicting the bracket.  I will also have a full breakdown of the tournament field, and talk about snubs, etc.


As always, thank you for visiting, and don't forget to follow me on Twitter @Tcw8848

Saturday, March 10, 2018

Championship Saturday Recap, Look Ahead to Selection Sunday

We're getting down to the nitty gritty.  The bubble picture is becoming clearer, the race for the #1's is essentially over, and the committee is deep into the seeding process.  So much to get to on this Championship Saturday.

In case you missed it earlier, I posted an updated seed list HERE.  I also posted an updated bubble metric spreadsheet, based on the current bracket matrix, HERE.

I will post a preview of the remaining Championship Tournament games in the morning and give you an early preview of the day.  I will also be posting my final seed list immediately after the last game of the afternoon, and before the Selection Sunday show begins.  Be sure to check back for that.

So, let's get to the Championship Saturday Recap.

Champions Crowned

ACC-  The Virginia Cavaliers finished their amazingly good season with a win over UNC.  The game was close throughout, but the Hoos were able to pull away from the Tar Heels late with superb defense and timely shooting, locking up their place as the overall #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Big East- Villanova topped Providence in an old-school Big East Tournament classic at Madison Square Garden.  It was a back and forth affair that went to overtime, where eventually Jay Wright's Wildcats pulled out the victory and a cut and dry claim to a #1 seed.

Big 12-  Who do you think won?  Yep.  Kansas is king in the Big 12 once again and is in line for the third #1 seed after topping Bob Huggins and West Virginia.

PAC-12-  Arizona dispatched of USC for the 2018 tourney title.  Arizona looks strong heading into the tournament and Deandre Ayton looks like a man among boys.

America East-  UMBC beat Vermont in an upset in the AE.  Vermont, contrary to some crazy radio rumors, has no chance at an at-large bid.

MEAC-  North Carolina Central upset favored Hampton to win it's way into, likely, Dayton and a 16 vs. 16 play-in game.

SWAC- Texas Southern defeats Arkansas Pine-Bluff, in a battle of two under .500 teams.  At 12-6 in conference play, but only 15-19 overall, TS will be dancing.

Mountain West-  San Diego State kept it's underdog hot streak alive to win the MW.  The Aztecs showed no signs of a hangover after beating heavy favorite Nevada on Friday.

Big Sky- Montana wins the Big Sky and we will all anxiously await the selection show to see if Seth Davis decides to pick them to win in upset fashion.

C-USA-  Marshall is heading to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1987.

Southland-  The Lumber Jacks of Stephen F. Austin are heading back to the tournament.  SFA took last year off from the tourney after a 3 year run from '14-'16.

MAC-  Buffalo wins the visitmyrtlebeach.com sponsored MAC tourney with a win over a pretty decent Toledo team.  The MAC, from top to bottom, looked better this year.

WAC- New Mexico State wins the WAC tournament and could be seeded as high as a 12 on Sunday.

Big West- Cal-State Fullerton dispatches of UC Irvine to receive and NCAA birth.

Bubble Watch

The bubble picture seems to be clearing out and slimming down.  The at-large potential teams from today's action are all relatively safe.

Alabama suffered a 15th loss in the SEC tournament to Kentucky, but their quality wins should keep them from being snubbed on Sunday.

The USC-Arizona game is still going on as I type this, but even with a loss, I see USC as pretty safe at this point, and a loss to a team like Arizona won't hurt their resume.

There is a potential bid stealer still remaining as Davidson prepares to make a run at Rhode Island for the A-10 Tournament Championship.

Look Ahead

Tomorrow, the remaining conference tournament championship games take place followed by....SELECTION SUNDAY!  The big day is only hours away, and I will be here in the morning to give you a full schedule of the days games and, of course, a full updated and final seed list before the beginning of the selection show.  Be sure to stop by in the morning and before the show to get some insight into what you might see from the committee.



Thanks for stopping by.  Comment below with your thoughts, and follow me on Twitter @Tcw8848


March 10th Mid-Day Seed List and Bubble Metric Chart 4:30pm

1's- Virginia, Villanova, Kansas, Xavier

2's- North Carolina, Purdue, Cincinnati, Duke

3’s- Tennessee, Wichita State, West Virginia, Arizona

4’s- Michigan, Michigan St., Texas Tech, Auburn

5’s- Kentucky, Gonzaga, Clemson, Houston
6’s- Ohio St, Florida, Arkansas, Texas A&M

7’s- Miami, Rhode Island, TCU, Butler

8’s- Seton Hall, Missouri, Virginia Tech, Nevada

9’s- Creighton, St. Bonaventure, NC State, Florida St

10’s- Texas, UCLA, Kansas St, Providence

11’s-  USC, Alabama, Oklahoma, Syracuse, Arizona St. SDSU

12’s- Loyola-Chicago, Buffalo, New Mexico St., Murray St

13’s- South Dakota StCharleston, Georgia Southern, UMBC

14’s- Bucknell, Old Dominion, UNC-Greensboro, Montana

15’s- UC Irvine, Wright StIona, Lipscomb

16’s- Pennsylvania, Radford, SFA, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, LIU-Brooklyn, NC Central


Last Four In: Alabama, Oklahoma, Syracuse, Arizona St,

First Four Out: Oklahoma St, Marquette, Middle Tennessee St., St Mary’s,


Next Four Out: Baylor, Louisville, Notre Dame, Mississippi St.


Updated Bubble Spreadsheet based solely on Bracket Matrix rankings is posted HERE.


Let me know what you think, comment below.  Follow me on Twitter @Tcw8848

March 9th Recap, Bracket Updates, Today's Impact Games

It was yet another busy day in college hoops yesterday, a lot to cover.

Bubble Watch

Providence beat Xavier yesterday in the Big East Tournament to all but seal up a bid.  The Friars were already in on my most recent Seed List, but this win confirms any lingering doubts.

Kansas St. goes down to Kansas in the Big 12 Tourney, which shouldn't hurt them.  At this pint, I view Kansas St. as safely in the tournament.

UCLA fell to Arizona over in the PAC-12.  UCLA is another team who is close, but I think they have done enough to secure themselves a bid.

Alabama roared back from 10 down at the half to crush Auburn in the second half 50-22, resulting in an 81-63 victory.  Although the Crimson Tide have 14 losses on their resume, I think this win puts them safely in.  They now have eleven Q1/Q2 wins.

San Diego State takes down Nevada in the biggest upset of the day, to the dismay of bubble teams everywhere.  Nevada is still in line for an at-large bid, so the winner of the Mountain West will directly steal a bid from the bubble teams in waiting.

USC moved on against Oregon in the PAC-12 tournament.  The Trojans now have ten Q1/Q2 wins and are looking better and better for an at-large selection.

Full Bubble Stats were updated yesterday.  They will be updated again either late tonight or tomorrow morning.

Current Last 4 In: Oklahoma, USC, Syracuse, Arizona St.

Current First Four Out: Oklahoma St., Marquette, MTSU, Baylor

Today's Impact Games

Cincinnati vs Memphis 1pm CBS- This is a game for fans of bubble teams to keep an eye on.  Memphis is a potential bid stealer if they win 2 games in a row in the American Athletic Tournament.

St. Josephs vs Rhode Island 1pm CBSSN- The first of two potential bid stealers in the A-10.  Rhode Island is all setup for an at-large, St. Joe's looking to steal a selection.

Davidson vs St. Bonaventure 3:30pm CBSSN-  This is the second of two potential bid stealers in the A-10.  Davidson has been hot lately, and looks to move past the Bonnies for a shot at the A10 Tournament title.

Full list of games can be found Here.

Race for #1 Seeds

Virginia, Villanova, and Kansas all took care of business yesterday, beating Clemson, Butler, and Kansas St. respectively.

Xavier was defeated by a warming Providence team, clouding the waters of their push for a #1 seed.  As of right now, I think they stay in as the fourth #1 seed.

Duke lost to UNC in the ACC Semifinals, ending their chance at a #1 seed.


Check back later for another updated seed list!



Thanks for stopping by.  Comment below with your thoughts, and follow me on Twitter @Tcw8848


Friday, March 9, 2018

NEW Full Seed List! Bracketology Update 3/9- 4:30pm

1's- Virginia, Villanova, Xavier, Duke

2's- Kansas, North Carolina, Purdue, Cincinnati

3’s- Tennessee, Auburn, Wichita State, Texas Tech

4’s- Arizona, Michigan, West Virginia, Michigan St.

5’s- Kentucky, Clemson, Florida, Gonzaga

6’s- Houston, Ohio St, Arkansas, Miami

7’s- Texas A&M, TCU, Nevada, Rhode Island

8’s- Seton Hall, Butler, Missouri, Virginia Tech

9’s- Creighton, St. Bonaventure, NC State, Florida St

10’s- UCLA, Kansas St, Texas, Oklahoma

11’s-  Alabama, Providence, USC, Syracuse, Arizona St., Oklahoma St.

12’s- Loyola-Chicago, Buffalo, New Mexico St., Murray St

13’s- South Dakota St, Vermont, Louisiana-Lafeyette, Charleston

14’s- Bucknell, Old Dominion, UNC-Greensboro, Montana

15’s- UC Davis, Wright St, Iona, Lipscomb

16’s- Pennsylvania, Radford, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Nicholls State, Hampton, LIU-Brooklyn


Last Four In: USC, Syracuse, Arizona St, Oklahoma St.

First Four Out: Middle Tennessee St., Marquette, St Mary’s, Baylor

Next Four Out: Louisville, Notre Dame, Mississippi St., LSU

FOR COMPLETE BUBBLE BREAKDOWN SPREADSHEET CLICK HERE


Check back tomorrow morning for a recap of the evening and night games!



Comment with your thoughts below and Follow me on Twitter @Tcw8848