Championship | The Pi-Rate Ratings

April 4, 2016

NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship By The Numbers

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: Championship, Final Four, four factors, Men's Basketball, NCAA Tournament, North Carolina, Player Matchups, Predictions, Statistics, Villanova — piratings @ 7:24 am

PiRate Ratings For National Championship Game

Team	Team	Red	White	Blue
North Carolina	Villanova	1	1	4

Red Rating–Uses an algorithm based on the Four Factors statistics adjusted to strength of schedule

White Rating–The Red Rating with comparative scores added to the algorithm

Blue Rating–An independent rating using an algorithm that does not include any of the Four Factors.

Four Factor Statistics

Four Factors
North Carolina Offense vs. Villanova Defense
Stat	UNC-O	Vill-D
EFG%	52.6	46.5
Reb Rate	40.6	29.0
TO Rate	15.3	20.7
FT *	22.1	16.6

Villanova Offense vs. North Carolina Defense
Stat	Vill-O	UNC-D
EFG%	55.8	47.7
Reb Rate	28.6	30.2
TO Rate	16.3	18.4
FT *	22.2	18.1

Explanation of 4-Factors

EFG% = Effective Field Goal %. [FG+(3pt * 1.5)]/FGA

Reb Rate = Percentage of offensive rebounds off missed shots. (100* off. reb)/(off. reb + opp def. reb)

TO Rate=Turnovers committed (or forced for defense) per 100 Possessions

FT * = Free Throws Made per 100 Possessions

PiRate Criteria

PiRate Criteria	UNC	Vill.
Scoring Margin	13.2	14.7
FG% Diff	7.1	7.9
Reb Marg.	8.5	1.9
TO Marg.	2.1	2.9
R + T	22.8	10.5
Road W-L	18-5	19-4
SOS	57.74	58.54
Poss/G	70.2	67.5
Win Strk 1	12	9
Win Strk 2	10	7

Scoring Margin = Offense points per game minus opponents points per game

FG% Diff =Difference in offensive FG% and opponents FG%

Reb. Margin = Team rebounds per game minus opponents rebounds per game

TO Margin = Opponents turnovers per game minus team’s turnovers per game

R + T = PiRate Rating’s own invention to estimate additional scoring chances per game over the average team. The formula is: (Rebound Margin * 2) + (Steals per Game * 0.5) + (6 – Opponents’ Steals per Game) + (Turnover Margin)

An R+T over 20.0 is dominating. 15.0-19.9 is excellent. 10.0-14.9 is very good. 7.0-9.9 is good. 5.0-6.9 is fair. 0-4.9 is not good. Any negative R+T is bad. These ratings apply to the NCAA Tournament. Negative R+T rated teams almost always lose in the first game of the Tournament.

Road W-L is the teams record in Away and Neutral Games

SOS is strength of schedule as determined by CBS Sports Ratings and multiplied by 100

Poss/G is number of possessions per game

Win Strk 1 & 2 are the teams’ two best winning streaks

Player Comparisons By Position

Point Guard	PPG	RPG	APG	SPG	FG%	3pt%	FT%	Ast/TO
UNC–Berry II	12.6	3.4	3.8	1.5	44.2	36.8	86.4	2.49
VU–Arcidiacono	12.4	2.9	4.3	1.4	43.9	38.9	83.3	2.83

Shooting Guard	PPG	RPG	APG	SPG	FG%	3pt%	FT%	Ast/TO
UNC–Paige	12.3	2.5	3.7	1.2	39.8	34.8	77.5	2.98
VU–Brunson	9.7	1.8	2.6	0.7	45.5	38.1	77.9	1.39

Small Forward	PPG	RPG	APG	SPG	FG%	3pt%	FT%	TO/MP
UNC–Jackson	12.3	3.9	2.8	0.6	46.8	27.6	68.1	3.63%
VU–Hart	15.5	6.7	1.9	1.2	51.5	35.8	75.2	5.26%

Power Forward	PPG	RPG	APG	BPG	FG%	3pt%	FT%	TO/MP
UNC–Meeks	9.4	5.9	1.1	1.1	56.3	0.0	67.8	6.69%
VU–Jenkins	13.6	3.9	2.2	0.4	45.6	38.4	85.3	4.40%

Center	PPG	RPG	APG	BPG	FG%	3pt%	FT%	TO/MP
UNC–Johnson	17.0	10.5	1.5	1.5	61.4	0.0	78.5	6.42%
VU–Ochefu	10.1	7.6	1.7	1.5	62.3	0.0	68.8	5.76%

Bench Big	PPG	RPG	APG	BPG	FG%	3pt%	FT%	TO/MP
UNC–Hicks	9.1	4.6	0.7	0.6	61.6	0.0	75.6	6.54%
VU–Reynolds	3.7	4.6	0.4	0.5	64.9	0.0	72.3	4.15%

Bench Swing	PPG	RPG	APG	SPG	FG%	3pt%	FT%	TO/MP
UNC–Pinson	4.6	3.3	2.9	0.6	40.4	29.0	67.2	6.67%
VU–Bridges	6.5	3.2	0.9	1.1	51.8	29.9	78.7	3.01%

Bench Guard	PPG	RPG	APG	SPG	FG%	3pt%	FT%	Ast/TO
UNC–Britt	5.5	1.5	1.8	0.7	38.7	32.9	80.0	2.06
VU–Booth	6.7	2.1	2.2	0.7	35.3	30.6	86.6	1.52

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March 11, 2012

NCAA College Basketball Tournaments — March 11 Update

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: basketball, Big Dance, Bracketology, Championship, college, Conference, NCAA, Seed, Selection Sunday, tournament — piratings @ 8:17 am

Here is the up-to-date (as of Saturday Night, March 10) results of all conference tournaments as well as the pairings for today’s games.

America East

Preliminary Round

#9 Binghamton 73 #8 Md.-Balt. Co. 67

Quarterfinals

#1 Stony Brook 78 # 9 Binghamton 69

#4 Albany 63 #5 New Hampshire 45

#2 Vermont 50 #7 Maine 40

#6 Hartford 53 #3 Boston U 49

Semifinals

#1 Stony Brook 57 #4 Albany 55

#2 Vermont 77 #6 Hartford 73 2OT

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Vermont 51 #1 Stony Brook 43

Automatic Bid – VERMONT 23-11

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Vermont destroyed Stony Brook by 19 points during the regular season, and yesterday showed that the earlier game was not a fluke.

A C C

Opening Round

#8 Maryland 82 #9 Wake Forest 60

#5 North Carolina St. 78 #12 Boston College 57

#10 Virginia Tech 68 #7 Clemson 63

#6 Miami (FL) 54 #11 Georgia Tech 36

Quarterfinals

#1 North Carolina 85 #8 Maryland 69

#5 North Carolina St. 67 #4 Virginia 64

#2 Duke 60 #10 Virginia Tech 56

#3 Florida St. 82 #6 Miami (FL) 71

Semifinals

#1 North Carolina 69 #5 North Carolina St. 67

#3 Florida St. 62 #2 Duke 59

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 North Carolina (29-4) vs. #3 Florida St. (23-9)

At-Large: North Carolina, Duke, Florida St., Virginia

Upper Bubble: North Carolina St.

Lower Bubble: Miami (FL)

North Carolina already has a number one seed to the NCAA Tournament, but the Tar Heels will play all out today. UNC usually fares best in the Big Dance when they win the ACC Tournament.

Atlantic Sun

Quarterfinals

#1 Belmont 76 #8 Jacksonville 62

#4 East Tennessee 68 #5 N. Florida 66

#2 Mercer 61 #7 Lipscomb 53

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 71 #3 S. Carolina Upstate 61

Semifinals

#1 Belmont 69 #4 East Tennessee 61

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 62 #2 Mercer 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Belmont 83 Florida Gulf Coast 69

Automatic Bid – BELMONT 27-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Atlantic 10

1^st Round

#8 Massachusetts 92 #9 Duquesne 83

#5 St. Joe’s 80 #12 Charlotte 64

#7 LaSalle 80 #10 Richmond 72

#6 Dayton 67 #11 George Washington 50

Quarterfinals

#8 Massachusetts 77 #1 Temple 71

#4 St. Bonaventure 71 #5 St. Joe’s 68

#2 St. Louis 78 #7 LaSalle 71

#3 Xavier 70 #6 Dayton 69

Semifinals

#4 St. Bonaventure 84 #8 Massachusetts 80

#3 Xavier 71 #2 St. Louis 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Xavier (21-11) vs. #4 St. Bonaventure (19-11)

At-Large: Temple, St. Louis

Upper Bubble:

Lower Bubble: Xavier

There will be one less bubble team getting an at-large bid thanks to the A-10. Neither Xavier nor St. Bonaventure would have received a bid, so the winner becomes a bid-thief.

Big East

Opening Round

#9 Connecticut 81 #16 Dayton 67

#13 Pittsburgh 73 #12 St. John’s 59

#10 Seton Hall 79 #15 Providence 47

#14 Villanova 70 #11 Rutgers 49

2nd Round

#9 Connecticut 71 #8 West Virginia 67 OT

#5 Georgetown 64 #13 Pittsburgh 52

#7 Louisville 61 #10 Seton Hall 55

#6 South Florida 56 #14 Villanova 47

Quarterfinals

#1 Syracuse 58 #9 Connecticut 55

#4 Cincinnati 72 #5 Georgetown 70 2OT

#7 Louisville 84 #2 Marquette 71

#3 Notre Dame 57 #6 South Florida 52

Semifinals

#4 Cincinnati 71 #1 Syracuse 68

#7 Louisville 64 #3 Notre Dame 50

CHAMPIONSHIP

#7 Louisville 50 #4 Cincinnati 44

Automatic Bid – LOUISVILLE 26-9

At-Large Teams – Syracuse, Marquette, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Cincinnati, West Virginia, Connecticut

Bubble – Seton Hall, South Florida

Big Sky

Quarterfinals

#3 Portland St. 75 #6 Montana St. 53

#4 Eastern Washington 81 #5 Idaho St. 75

Semifinals

#1 Montana 74 #4 Eastern Washington 66

#2 Weber St. 69 #3 Portland St. 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Montana 85 #2 Weber St. 66

Automatic Bid: MONTANA 25-6

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

This is a one-bid league, but both Montana and Weber State are talented enough to win an opening round game in the NCAA Tournament. With an RPI around 70, the Wildcats are probably not on the bubble.

Big South

Preliminary Round

#8 High Point 68 #9 Gardner-Webb 58

#7 VMI 55 #10 Radford 53

Quarterfinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 86 #8 High Point 61

#4 Charleston Sou. 88 #5 Liberty 74

#6 Winthrop 71 #3 Campbell 55

#7 VMI 85 #2 Coastal Carolina 68

Semifinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 91 #4 Charleston Sou. 64

#7 VMI 75 #6 Winthrop 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 UNC-Asheville 80 #7 VMI 64

Automatic Bid – UNC-ASHEVILLE 24-9

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Big Ten

Opening Round

#8 Iowa 64 #9 Illinois 61

#5 Indiana 75 #12 Penn State 58

#10 Minnesota 75 #7 Northwestern 68

#6 Purdue 79 #11 Nebraska 61

Quarterfinals

#1 Michigan St. 92 #8 Iowa 75

#4 Wisconsin 79 #5 Indiana 71

#2 Michigan 73 #10 Minnesota 69

#3 Ohio St. 88 #6 Purdue 71

Semifinals

#1 Michigan St. 65 #4 Wisconsin 52

#3 Ohio St. 77 #2 Michigan 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Michigan St. (26-7) vs. #3 Ohio St. (27-6)

At-Large: Ohio St., Michigan St., Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Purdue

Upper Bubble:

Lower Bubble: Northwestern

The two best teams in the league face off for the final conference championship. All bids will be decided by the final horn.

Big 12

Opening Round

#9 Texas A&M 62 #8 Oklahoma 53

#7 Oklahoma St. 76 #10 Texas Tech 60

Quarterfinals

#1 Kansas 83 #9 Texas A&M 66

#4 Baylor 82 #5 Kansas St. 74

#2 Missouri 88 #7 Oklahoma St. 70

#3 Iowa St. 65 #6 Texas 71

Semifinals

#4 Baylor 81 #1 Kansas 72

#2 Missouri 81 #6 Texas 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Missouri 90 #4 Baylor 75

Automatic Bid – MISSOURI 30-4

At-Large Teams – Kansas, Baylor, Iowa St., Kansas St.,

Bubble – Texas

Missouri has a decent shot at moving up to a number one seed, but not as much as if they had defeated Kansas instead of Baylor for the title.

Big West

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Beach St. 80 #8 UC-Davis 46

#4 Cal Poly SLO 66 #5 UC-Riverside 54

#7 UC-Irvine 65 #2 Cal State Fullerton 59

#3 U C S B 72 #6 Pacific 52

Semifinals

#1 Long Beach St. 68 #7 UC-Irvine 57

#3 U C S B 64 #4 Cal Poly SLO 52

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Long Beach St. 77 #3 U C S B 64

Automatic Bid – LONG BEACH ST. 25-8

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Long Beach State deserves a number 12 seed. The 49ers will be a dangerous opponent in the first two rounds.

Colonial Athletic

Opening Round

#9 UNC-Wilmington 70 #8 James Madison 59

#5 Delaware 72 #12 Towson St. 65

#6 Georgia St. 85 #11 Hofstra 50

#7 Northeastern 57 #10 William & Mary 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Drexel 59 #9 UNC-Wilmington 47

#4 Old Dominion 88 #5 Delaware 74

#3 George Mason 61 #6 Georgia St. 59

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 75 #10 William & Mary 65

Semifinals

#1 Drexel 68 #4 Old Dominion 51

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 74 #3 George Mason 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 59 #1 Drexel 56

Automatic Bid – VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH 28-6

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Drexel

Drexel has a chance of earning an at-large bid, but their RPI is on the low side at 68.

Conference USA

Opening Round

#5 U A B 72 #12 Tulane 64

#8 U T E P 67 #9 Houston 62 OT

#10 East Carolina 68 #7 Rice 66

#6 Marshall 74 #11 S M U 56

Quarterfinals

#1 Memphis 65 #8 U T E P 47

#4 Central Florida 51 #5 U A B 43

#2 Southern Mississippi 81 #10 East Carolina 78

#6 Marshall 105 #3 Tulsa 100 3 OT

Semifinals

#1 Memphis 83 #4 Central Florida 52

#6 Marshall 73 #2 Southern Mississippi 62

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Memphis 83 #6 Marshall 57

Automatic Bid – MEMPHIS 26-8

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Southern Miss

Memphis’s blowout win over Marshall definitely kept the Thundering Herd out of any discussion. Southern Miss is not a high bubble team. The Golden Eagles could be disappointed around 7 PM EDT today.

Horizon League

Opening Round

#4 Milwaukee 68 #9 Illinois-Chi. 55

#5 Butler 70 #8 Wright St. 52

#3 Detroit 80 #10 Loyola (Chi) 71

#6 Youngstown 77 #7 Green Bay 60

Quarterfinals

#5 Butler 71 #4 Milwaukee 49

#3 Detroit 93 #6 Youngstown St. 76

Semifinals

#1 Valparaiso 65 #5 Butler 46

#3 Detroit 63 #2 Cleveland St. 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Detroit 70 #1 Valparaiso 50

Automatic Bid – DETROIT 22-13

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Neither Valpo, Cleveland State nor Butler will earn at-large bids.

M A A C

Preliminary Round

#8 Marist 64 #9 St. Peter’s 57

#7 Niagara 80 #10 Canisius 70

Quarterfinals

#1 Iona 87 #8 Marist 63

#4 Fairfield 65 #5 Rider 63

#2 Loyola (MD) 86 #7 Niagara 73

#6 Siena 84 #3 Manhattan 82

Semifinals

#4 Fairfield 85 #1 Iona 75

#2 Loyola (MD) 70 #6 Siena 60

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Loyola (MD) 48 #4 Fairfield 44

Automatic Bid – LOYOLA (MD) 24-8

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Iona played their way out of the Big Dance and into the NIT.

M A C

Opening Round

#12 Northern Illinois 55 #5 Eastern Michigan 52

#8 Western Michigan 69 #9 Ball St. 63

#7 Toledo 60 #10 (Miami (O) 53

#11 Central Michigan 54 #6 Bowling Green 53

2^nd Round

#8 Western Michigan 71 #12 Northern Illinois 54

#7 Toledo 75 #11 Central Michigan 72

Quarterfinals

#4 Kent St. 76 #8 Western Michigan 72

#3 Ohio 65 #7 Toledo 57

Semifinals

#1 Akron 78 #4 Kent St. 74

#3 Ohio 77 #2 Buffalo 74

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Ohio 64 #1 Akron 63

Automatic Bid – OHIO 26-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Akron

Akron fell to #58 in the RPI, so the Zips have a chance to get an at-large bid.

M E A C

Opening Round

#8 Hampton 69 #9 Morgan St. 65

#5 North Carolina Central 60 #12 Md. Eastern Shore 43

#4 Bethune-Cookman 62 #13 South Carolina St. 53

#11 Florida A& M 74 #6 Coppin St. 72

#10 Howard 51 #7 North Carolina A&T 50

Quarterfinals

#8 Hampton 59 #1 Savannah St. 46

#4 Bethune-Cookman 60 #5 North Carolina Central 59

#2 Norfolk St. 71 #7 Howard 61

#11 Florida A&M 65 #3 Delaware St. 55

Semfinals

#4 Bethune-Cookman 81 #8 Hampton 72

#2 Norfolk St. 58 #11 Florida A&M 46

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Norfolk St. 73 #4 Bethune-Cookman 70

Automatic Bid – NORFOLK ST. 25-9

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

Norfolk State makes its first trip to the NCAA Tournament, and the Spartans have a chance to avoid the first round in Dayton.

Missouri Valley

Opening Round

#8 Indiana St. 66 #9 Southern Illinois 51

#7 Drake 65 #10 Bradley 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Wichita St. 72 #8 Indiana St. 48

#4 Illinois St. 54 #5 Northern Iowa 42

#2 Creighton 68 vs. #7 Drake 61

#3 Evansville 72 vs. #6 Missouri St. 64

Semifinals

#4 Illinois St. 65 #1 Wichita St. 64

#2 Creighton 99 #3 Evansville 71

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Creighton 83 #4 Illinois St. 79 OT

Automatic Bid – CREIGHTON 27-5

At-Large – Wichita St. 27-5

Bubble – None

Mountain West

Quarterfinals

#1 San Diego St. 65 #8 Boise St. 62

#4 Colorado St. 81 #5 T C U 60

#2 New Mexico 79 #7 Air Force 64

#3 U N L V 56 #6 Wyoming 48

Semifinals

#1 San Diego St. 79 #4 Colorado St. 69

#2 New Mexico 72 #3 U N L V 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 New Mexico 68 #1 San Diego St. 59

Automatic Bid – NEW MEXICO 27-6

At-Large – San Diego St., U N L V

Bubble – Colorado St.

Anything other than four bids would be disappointing and even ridiculous. Colorado State’s RPI is #24, and the Rams are tournament-worthy.

Northeast

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Island 80 #8 Sacred Heart 68

#5 Quinnipiac 80 #4 St. Francis (NY) 72

#3 Robert Morris 87 #6 Monmouth 68

#2 Wagner 87 #7 Central Conn. St. 77

Semifinals

#1 Long Island 78 #5 Quinnipiac 75

#3 Robert Morris 71 #2 Wagner 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Long Island 90 #3 Robert Morris 73

Automatic Bid: LONG ISLAND 25-8

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

Wagner’s slim chances for getting in as a wildcard team went bye-bye with their semifinal loss to RMU.

LIU enters the Big Dance winning 20 of their last 22 games.

Ohio Valley

Opening Round

#5 Southeast Missouri 75 #8 E. Kentucky 65

#7 Jacksonville St. 75 #6 Austin Peay 70

Quarterfinals

#4 Tennessee Tech 77 #5 Southeast Missouri 73

#3 Morehead St. 68 #7 Jacksonville St. 54

Semifinals

#1 Murray St. 78 #4 Tennessee Tech 58

#2 Tennessee St. 59 #3 Morehead St. 52

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Murray St. 54 #2 Tennessee St. 52

Automatic Bid – MURRAY ST. 30-1

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

Murray State should receive a #4 or #5 seed, a #6 at worst.

Pac-12

Opening Round

#9 Oregon St. 69 #8 Washington St. 64

#5 U C L A 55 #12 U S C 40

#7 Stanford 85 #10 Arizona St. 65

#6 Colorado 53 #11 Utah 41

Quarterfinals

#9 Oregon State 86 #1 Washington 84

#4 Arizona 66 #5 U C L A 58

#2 California 77 #7 Stanford 71

#6 Colorado 63 #3 Oregon 62

Semifinals

#4 Arizona 72 #9 Oregon St. 61

#6 Colorado 70 #2 California 59

CHAMPIONSHIP

#6 Colorado 53 #4 Arizona 51

Automatic Bid – COLORADO 23-11

At-Large – None

Bubble – California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona

Colorado is the only sure bid in this league. However, we believe that no ‘Big Six” conference will receive just one bid. Politics must be considered, even if “they” claim that all at-large teams are considered as independents. Look for at least one from the bubble above to make the Dance.

Patriot League

Quarterfinals

#1 Bucknell 87 #8 Navy 63

#5 Lafayette 84 #4 Holy Cross 76

#2 Lehigh 70 #7 Colgate 57

#3 American 57 #6 Army 40

Semifinals

#1 Bucknell 79 #5 Lafayette 52

#2 Lehigh 85 #3 American 66

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Lehigh 82 #1 Bucknell 77

Automatic Bid: LEHIGH 26-7

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

The Mountain Hawks search for the first NCAA Tournament win in their fifth trip to the Big Dance, and they have the one-two punch in C J McCollum and Gabe Knutson. Lehigh lost at Michigan State by just nine points earlier in the year, and they enter the NCAA Tournament having won eight games in a row and 12 of 13.

Southern

Opening Round

#5N Appalachian St. 93 #4S College of Charleston 81

#3N Western Carolina 68 #6S Citadel 56

#5S Furman 75 #4N Samford 66

#3S Georgia Southern 76 #6N Chattanooga 70

Quarterfinals

#1N UNC-Greensboro 65 #5N Appalachian St. 55

#3N Western Carolina 82 #2S Wofford 59

#1S Davidson 73 #5S Furman 54

#2N Elon 65 #3S Georgia Southern 58

Semifinals

#3N Western Carolina 82 #1N UNC-Greensboro 77

#1S Davidson 83 #2N Elon 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1S Davidson 93 #1N UNC-Greensboro 91

Automatic Bid – DAVIDSON 25-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Davidson might not have earned a ticket as an at-large team. Tell that to Kansas coach Bill Self, and he would say you were crazy.

S E C

Opening Round

#8 L S U 70 #9 Arkansas 54

#5 Alabama 63 #12 South Carolina 57

#7 Ole Miss 68 #10 Auburn 54

#11 Georgia 71 #6 Mississippi St. 61

Quarterfinals

#1 Kentucky 60 #8 L S U 51

#4 Florida 66 #5 Alabama 63

#7 Ole Miss 77 #2 Tennessee 72 OT

#3 Vanderbilt 63 #11 Georgia 41

Semifinals

#1 Kentucky 74 #4 Florida 71

#3 Vanderbilt 65 #7 Ole Miss 53

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Kentucky (32-1) vs. #3 Vanderbilt (23-10)

At-Large: Kentucky, Florida, Vanderbilt

Upper Bubble: Alabama

Lower Bubble: Ole Miss, Mississippi St.

The two teams picked to finish one-two at the beginning of the year meet for the tournament championship. Kentucky won two close games during the year. The Wildcats are just one last second jump shot away from being undefeated and considered the best team since Bill Walton’s 1973 UCLA Bruins went 30-0. Look for the Wildcats to turn Royal Street into Royal Blue Street around 2:30 PM today.

Southland

Quarterfinals

#1 UT-Arlington 96 #8 Nicholls St. 48

#4 McNeese St. 78 #5 TX-San Antonio 74 OT

#2 Stephen F Austin 68 #7 Sam Houston 46

#3 Lamar 76 #6 Northwestern State (LA) 69

Semifinals

#4 McNeese St. 92 #1 UT-Arlington 72

#3 Lamar 55 #2 Stephen F Austin 44

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Lamar 70 #4 McNeese St. 49

Automatic Bid – LAMAR 23-11

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

Lamar probably has a date in Dayton in two or three days.

S W A C

Quarterfinals

#1 Mississippi Valley St. 63 #8 Jackson St. 60

#5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 60 #4 Alabama St. 56

#2 Texas Southern 75 #7 Alabama A&M 62

#6 Alcorn St. 103 #3 Prairie View 79

Semifinals

#1 Mississippi Valley St. 71 #5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 64

#2 Texas Southern 60 #6 Alcorn St. 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Mississippi Valley St. 71 #2 Texas Southern 69

Automatic Bid – MISSISSIPPI VALLEY ST. 21-12

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

The Delta Devils began the season 1-11 but have gone 20-1 since. Still, they most likely will be forced to play in Dayton.

Summit League

Quarterfinals

#1 Oral Roberts 71 #8 I P F W 67

#4 Western Illinois 58 #5 North Dakota St. 53

#2 South Dakota St. 77 I U P U I 56

#6 Southern Utah 84 #3 Oakland 82

Semifinals

#4 Western Illinois 54 #1 Oral Roberts 53

#2 South Dakota St. 63 #6 Southern Utah 47

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 South Dakota St. 52 #4 Western Illinois 50

Automatic Bid – SOUTH DAKOTA ST. 27-7

At-Large Teams –None

Bubble – Oral Roberts

Had South Dakota St. and Oral Roberts advanced to the Championship Game, and Oral Roberts’ lost instead of losing to WIU in the semis, ORU would be on the at-large line and not the bubble. With an RPI of 55, the Golden Eagles are in a precarious position.

Sunbelt

Opening Round

#6 South Alabama 87 #11 Troy 81

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #10 Florida Int’l 63

#9 Arkansas St. 70 #8 Florida Atlantic 55

Quarterfinals

#9 Arkansas St. 64 #1 Middle Tennessee 61

#5 North Texas 65 #4 Louisiana-Lafayette 62

#7 Western Kentucky 68 #2 U A L R 63

#3 Denver 61 #6 South Alabama 50

Semifinals

#5 North Texas 76 #9 Arkansas St. 72

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #3 Denver 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#7 Western Kentucky 74 #3 Denver 70

Automatic Bid –WESTERN KENTUCKY 15-18

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Middle Tennessee

This is probably a one-bid league. The top two seeds lost in their first games in this unique tournament played in two separate gyms in the same building. Middle Tennessee may still be on the bubble with an RPI of 65, but they are more than likely headed to the NIT. Western Kentucky will be headed to the first round in Dayton. However, their 15-18 record is very misleading. The Hilltoppers were supposed to contend for the regular season championship; however, major dissension led to a poor start and a dismissal of head coach Ken McDonald. Since Ray Harper assumed command, WKU has sported a 10-7 record, and a 7-4 finish. This team cannot be overlooked in Dayton and could very well advance to the second round.

W A C

Quarterfinals

#1 Nevada 54 #8 San Jose St. 44

#5 Louisiana Tech 72 #4 Utah St. 70

#2 New Mexico St. 65 #7 Fresno St. 49

#6 Hawaii 72 #3 Idaho 70

Semifinals

#5 Louisiana Tech 78 #1 Nevada 73

#2 New Mexico St. 92 #6 Hawaii 81

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 New Mexico St. 82 #5 Louisiana Tech 57

Automatic Bid – NEW MEXICO ST. 26-9

At-Large – None

Bubble – Nevada.

Nevada fell to #63 in the RPI, and the Wolfpack are on the cusp of falling off the bubble.

West Coast

Opening Round

#8 Portland 74 #9 Santa Clara 70

2^nd Round

#5 San Francisco 87 #8 Portland 66

#6 San Diego 76 #7 Pepperdine 54

Quarterfinals

#5 San Francisco 67 #4 Loyola Marymount 60

#3 B Y U 73 vs. #6 San Diego 68

Semifinals

#1 Saint Mary’s 83 #5 San Francisco 78

#2 Gonzaga 77 #3 B Y U 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Saint Mary’s 78 #2 Gonzaga 74 OT

Automatic Bid – SAINT MARY’S 26-5

At-Large Teams – Gonzaga

Bubble – B Y U

This has the look of a three-bid league, with the two behemoths and BYU all headed to the Big Dance. Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga are now the true powers of the West. If you remember UCLA versus USC or Oregon State in the 1970’s and 1980’s, this is what this rivalry has become. Both teams could easily advance to the Elite 8.

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March 10, 2012

NCAA College Basketball Conference Tournaments–March 10 Update

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: basketball, Big Dance, Bracketology, Championship, college, Conference, NCAA, Seed, Selection Sunday, tournament — piratings @ 6:26 am

Here is the up-to-date (as of Friday Night, March 9) results of all conference tournaments as well as the pairings for today’s games.

America East

Preliminary Round

#9 Binghamton 73 #8 Md.-Balt. Co. 67

Quarterfinals

#1 Stony Brook 78 # 9 Binghamton 69

#4 Albany 63 #5 New Hampshire 45

#2 Vermont 50 #7 Maine 40

#6 Hartford 53 #3 Boston U 49

Semifinals

#1 Stony Brook 57 #4 Albany 55

#2 Vermont 77 #6 Hartford 73 2OT

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Stony Brook (21-8) vs. Vermont (22-11)

This is a one-bid league. Stony Brook has won 19 of its last 21 games, but one of those two losses was a 19-point humiliation at the hands of Vermont. The Sea Wolves defeated the Catamounts at Stony Brook Arena earlier in the season, and that is where this game will be played Saturday afternoon.

A C C

Opening Round

#8 Maryland 82 #9 Wake Forest 60

#5 North Carolina St. 78 #12 Boston College 57

#10 Virginia Tech 68 #7 Clemson 63

#6 Miami (FL) 54 #11 Georgia Tech 36

Quarterfinals

#1 North Carolina 85 #8 Maryland 69

#5 North Carolina St. 67 #4 Virginia 64

#2 Duke 60 #10 Virginia Tech 56

#3 Florida St. 82 #6 Miami (FL) 71

Semifinals

#1 North Carolina (28-4) vs. #5 North Carolina St. (22-11)

#2 Duke (27-5) vs. #3 Florida St. (22-9)

At-Large: North Carolina, Duke, Florida St., Virginia

Upper Bubble: North Carolina St.

Lower Bubble: Miami (FL)

The North Carolina St.-Virginia game lived up to our predicted billing. We believe the Wolf Pack have a better than 50-50 chance of getting into the Big Dance.

North Carolina knocked off the Wolf Pack by 19 and by 12 during the regular season. Duke and Florida State split during conference play, with the Seminoles winning in Durham and the Blue Devils winning in Tallahassee.

Atlantic Sun

Quarterfinals

#1 Belmont 76 #8 Jacksonville 62

#4 East Tennessee 68 #5 N. Florida 66

#2 Mercer 61 #7 Lipscomb 53

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 71 #3 S. Carolina Upstate 61

Semifinals

#1 Belmont 69 #4 East Tennessee 61

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 62 #2 Mercer 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Belmont 83 Florida Gulf Coast 69

Automatic Bid – BELMONT 27-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Atlantic 10

1^st Round

#8 Massachusetts 92 #9 Duquesne 83

#5 St. Joe’s 80 #12 Charlotte 64

#7 LaSalle 80 #10 Richmond 72

#6 Dayton 67 #11 George Washington 50

Quarterfinals

#8 Massachusetts 77 #1 Temple 71

#4 St. Bonaventure 71 #5 St. Joe’s 68

#2 St. Louis 78 #7 LaSalle 71

#3 Xavier 70 #6 Dayton 69

Semifinals

#4 St. Bonaventure (18-11) vs. #8 Massachusetts (22-10)

#2 St. Louis (25-6) vs. #3 Xavier (20-11)

At-Large: Temple, St. Louis

Upper Bubble:

Lower Bubble: Xavier, St. Joe’s, and Dayton

As we told you a couple days ago, the eight quarterfinal teams were not that far apart talent-wise. All four games were close, exciting contests, and the number one seed was sent home by the number eight seed. Temple and St. Louis are sure locks for bids, and if one of the other three remaining semifinalist win the tournament, there will be one less at-large bid going to the bubble.

Big East

Opening Round

#9 Connecticut 81 #16 Dayton 67

#13 Pittsburgh 73 #12 St. John’s 59

#10 Seton Hall 79 #15 Providence 47

#14 Villanova 70 #11 Rutgers 49

2nd Round

#9 Connecticut 71 #8 West Virginia 67 OT

#5 Georgetown 64 #13 Pittsburgh 52

#7 Louisville 61 #10 Seton Hall 55

#6 South Florida 56 #14 Villanova 47

Quarterfinals

#1 Syracuse 58 #9 Connecticut 55

#4 Cincinnati 72 #5 Georgetown 70 2OT

#7 Louisville 84 #2 Marquette 71

#3 Notre Dame 57 #6 South Florida 52

Semifinals

#4 Cincinnati 71 #1 Syracuse 68

#7 Louisville 64 #3 Notre Dame 50

CHAMPIONSHIP

#4 Cincinnati (24-9) vs. #7 Louisville (25-9)

At-Large: Syracuse, Marquette, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Louisville, Cincinnati

Upper Bubble: West Virginia, Seton Hall, Connecticut

Lower Bubble: South Florida

This is definitely one championship game to watch. Both teams are playing their best ball of the year, and this rivalry goes back a very long way through multiple conferences.

Big Sky

Quarterfinals

#3 Portland St. 75 #6 Montana St. 53

#4 Eastern Washington 81 #5 Idaho St. 75

Semifinals

#1 Montana 74 #4 Eastern Washington 66

#2 Weber St. 69 #3 Portland St. 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Montana 85 #2 Weber St. 66

Automatic Bid: MONTANA 25-6

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

This is a one-bid league, but both Montana and Weber State are talented enough to win an opening round game in the NCAA Tournament. With an RPI around 70, the Wildcats are probably not on the bubble.

Big South

Preliminary Round

#8 High Point 68 #9 Gardner-Webb 58

#7 VMI 55 #10 Radford 53

Quarterfinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 86 #8 High Point 61

#4 Charleston Sou. 88 #5 Liberty 74

#6 Winthrop 71 #3 Campbell 55

#7 VMI 85 #2 Coastal Carolina 68

Semifinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 91 #4 Charleston Sou. 64

#7 VMI 75 #6 Winthrop 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 UNC-Asheville 80 #7 VMI 64

Automatic Bid – UNC-ASHEVILLE 24-9

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Big Ten

Opening Round

#8 Iowa 64 #9 Illinois 61

#5 Indiana 75 #12 Penn State 58

#10 Minnesota 75 #7 Northwestern 68

#6 Purdue 79 #11 Nebraska 61

Quarterfinals

#1 Michigan St. 92 #8 Iowa 75

#4 Wisconsin 79 #5 Indiana 71

#2 Michigan 73 #10 Minnesota 69

#3 Ohio St. 88 #6 Purdue 71

Semifinals

#1 Michigan St. (25-7) vs. #4 Wisconsin (24-8)

#2 Michigan (24-8) vs. #3 Ohio St. (26-6)

At-Large: Ohio St., Michigan St., Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Purdue

Upper Bubble:

Lower Bubble: Northwestern

The folks in Indianapolis can claim their final four is as good as the Big East’s. They might be wrong, because this one could be better!

The top four seeds advanced, and this is definitely the toast of the tournaments. Any of these four could cut down the nets Sunday. The cherry on top is that yesterday’s games were high-scoring shootouts reminiscent of the old run and gun days of Big Ten days of yore.

Big 12

Opening Round

#9 Texas A&M 62 #8 Oklahoma 53

#7 Oklahoma St. 76 #10 Texas Tech 60

Quarterfinals

#1 Kansas 83 #9 Texas A&M 66

#4 Baylor 82 #5 Kansas St. 74

#2 Missouri 88 #7 Oklahoma St. 70

#3 Iowa St. 65 #6 Texas 71

Semifinals

#4 Baylor 81 #1 Kansas 72

#2 Missouri 81 #6 Texas 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Missouri (29-4) vs. #4 Baylor (27-6)

At-Large: Kansas, Missouri, Iowa St., Baylor, Kansas St.

Upper Bubble: Texas

Lower Bubble: None

Missouri has a lot to play for today. A win over Baylor more than likely moves the Tigers to a number one seed. However, Baylor will be tough to defeat three times in one season. MU beat BU by 15 and by one during the regular season.

Big West

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Beach St. 80 #8 UC-Davis 46

#4 Cal Poly SLO 66 #5 UC-Riverside 54

#7 UC-Irvine 65 #2 Cal State Fullerton 59

#3 U C S B 72 #6 Pacific 52

Semifinals

#1 Long Beach St. (23-8) vs. #7 UC-Irvine (12-19)

#3 U C S B (19-9) vs. #4 Cal Poly SLO (18-15)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: Long Beach St.

Lower Bubble: None

Long Beach State could possibly earn an at-large bid if they lose today or tomorrow, but the 49ers should have minimal competition in the semifinals and not much more in the finals.

Colonial Athletic

Opening Round

#9 UNC-Wilmington 70 #8 James Madison 59

#5 Delaware 72 #12 Towson St. 65

#6 Georgia St. 85 #11 Hofstra 50

#7 Northeastern 57 #10 William & Mary 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Drexel 59 #9 UNC-Wilmington 47

#4 Old Dominion 88 #5 Delaware 74

#3 George Mason 61 #6 Georgia St. 59

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 75 #10 William & Mary 65

Semifinals

#1 Drexel 68 #4 Old Dominion 51

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 74 #3 George Mason 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 59 #1 Drexel 56

Automatic Bid – VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH 28-6

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Drexel

Drexel has a chance of earning an at-large bid, but their RPI is on the low side at 68.

Conference USA

Opening Round

#5 U A B 72 #12 Tulane 64

#8 U T E P 67 #9 Houston 62 OT

#10 East Carolina 68 #7 Rice 66

#6 Marshall 74 #11 S M U 56

Quarterfinals

#1 Memphis 65 #8 U T E P 47

#4 Central Florida 51 #5 U A B 43

#2 Southern Mississippi 81 #10 East Carolina 78

#6 Marshall 105 #3 Tulsa 100 3 OT

Semifinals

#1 Memphis 83 #4 Central Florida 52

#6 Marshall 73 #2 Southern Mississippi 62

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Memphis (25-8) vs. #6 Marshall (21-12)

At-Large: Memphis

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: Southern Miss

Central Florida will be placed in the lower bubble with a win today against the top seed in the conference tournament. Should Central Florida and Marshall meet in tomorrow’s championship game, the bubble will burst for somebody else.

Horizon League

Opening Round

#4 Milwaukee 68 #9 Illinois-Chi. 55

#5 Butler 70 #8 Wright St. 52

#3 Detroit 80 #10 Loyola (Chi) 71

#6 Youngstown 77 #7 Green Bay 60

Quarterfinals

#5 Butler 71 #4 Milwaukee 49

#3 Detroit 93 #6 Youngstown St. 76

Semifinals

#1 Valparaiso 65 #5 Butler 46

#3 Detroit 63 #2 Cleveland St. 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Detroit 70 #1 Valparaiso 50

Automatic Bid – DETROIT 22-13

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Neither Valpo, Cleveland State nor Butler will earn at-large bids.

M A A C

Preliminary Round

#8 Marist 64 #9 St. Peter’s 57

#7 Niagara 80 #10 Canisius 70

Quarterfinals

#1 Iona 87 #8 Marist 63

#4 Fairfield 65 #5 Rider 63

#2 Loyola (MD) 86 #7 Niagara 73

#6 Siena 84 #3 Manhattan 82

Semifinals

#4 Fairfield 85 #1 Iona 75

#2 Loyola (MD) 70 #6 Siena 60

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Loyola (MD) 48 #4 Fairfield 44

Automatic Bid – LOYOLA (MD) 24-8

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Iona played their way out of the Big Dance and into the NIT.

M A C

Opening Round

#12 Northern Illinois 55 #5 Eastern Michigan 52

#8 Western Michigan 69 #9 Ball St. 63

#7 Toledo 60 #10 (Miami (O) 53

#11 Central Michigan 54 #6 Bowling Green 53

2^nd Round

#8 Western Michigan 71 #12 Northern Illinois 54

#7 Toledo 75 #11 Central Michigan 72

Quarterfinals

#4 Kent St. 76 #8 Western Michigan 72

#3 Ohio 65 #7 Toledo 57

Semifinals

#1 Akron 78 #4 Kent St. 74

#3 Ohio 77 #2 Buffalo 74

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Akron (22-10) vs. #3 Ohio (25-7)

Akron is now #52 in the RPI and Ohio is #60. The loser of this game will fall a few spots, but they should have a small chance of getting in as one of the last four in. That small chance is close to a slim and none chance.

M E A C

Opening Round

#8 Hampton 69 #9 Morgan St. 65

#5 North Carolina Central 60 #12 Md. Eastern Shore 43

#4 Bethune-Cookman 62 #13 South Carolina St. 53

#11 Florida A& M 74 #6 Coppin St. 72

#10 Howard 51 #7 North Carolina A&T 50

Quarterfinals

#8 Hampton 59 #1 Savannah St. 46

#4 Bethune-Cookman 60 #5 North Carolina Central 59

#2 Norfolk St. 71 #7 Howard 61

#11 Florida A&M 65 #3 Delaware St. 55

Semfinals

#4 Bethune-Cookman 81 #8 Hampton 72

#2 Norfolk St. 58 #11 Florida A&M 46

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Norfolk St. (24-9) vs. #4 Bethune-Cookman (18-16)

This is a one-bid league. With Savannah State suffering an early exit, only Norfolk State can possibly avoid a trip to Dayton for the first round.

Missouri Valley

Opening Round

#8 Indiana St. 66 #9 Southern Illinois 51

#7 Drake 65 #10 Bradley 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Wichita St. 72 #8 Indiana St. 48

#4 Illinois St. 54 #5 Northern Iowa 42

#2 Creighton 68 vs. #7 Drake 61

#3 Evansville 72 vs. #6 Missouri St. 64

Semifinals

#4 Illinois St. 65 #1 Wichita St. 64

#2 Creighton 99 #3 Evansville 71

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Creighton 83 #4 Illinois St. 79 OT

Automatic Bid – Creighton 27-5

At-Large – Wichita St. 27-5

Bubble – None

Mountain West

Quarterfinals

#1 San Diego St. 65 #8 Boise St. 62

#4 Colorado St. 81 #5 T C U 60

#2 New Mexico 79 #7 Air Force 64

#3 U N L V 56 #6 Wyoming 48

Semifinals

#1 San Diego St. 79 #4 Colorado St. 69

#2 New Mexico 72 #3 U N L V 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 San Diego St. (26-6) vs. #2 New Mexico (26-6)

At-Large: San Diego St., UNLV, New Mexico

Upper Bubble: Colorado St.

Lower Bubble: None

Anything other than four bids would be disappointing and even ridiculous. Colorado State’s RPI is #24, and the Rams are tournament-worthy.

Northeast

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Island 80 #8 Sacred Heart 68

#5 Quinnipiac 80 #4 St. Francis (NY) 72

#3 Robert Morris 87 #6 Monmouth 68

#2 Wagner 87 #7 Central Conn. St. 77

Semifinals

#1 Long Island 78 #5 Quinnipiac 75

#3 Robert Morris 71 #2 Wagner 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Long Island 90 #3 Robert Morris 73

Automatic Bid: LONG ISLAND 25-8

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

Wagner’s slim chances for getting in as a wildcard team went bye-bye with their semifinal loss to RMU.

LIU enters the Big Dance winning 20 of their last 22 games.

Ohio Valley

Opening Round

#5 Southeast Missouri 75 #8 E. Kentucky 65

#7 Jacksonville St. 75 #6 Austin Peay 70

Quarterfinals

#4 Tennessee Tech 77 #5 Southeast Missouri 73

#3 Morehead St. 68 #7 Jacksonville St. 54

Semifinals

#1 Murray St. 78 #4 Tennessee Tech 58

#2 Tennessee St. 59 #3 Morehead St. 52

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Murray St. 54 #2 Tennessee St. 52

Automatic Bid – Murray St. 30-1

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

Murray State should receive a #4 or #5 seed, a #6 at worst.

Pac-12

Opening Round

#9 Oregon St. 69 #8 Washington St. 64

#5 U C L A 55 #12 U S C 40

#7 Stanford 85 #10 Arizona St. 65

#6 Colorado 53 #11 Utah 41

Quarterfinals

#9 Oregon State 86 #1 Washington 84

#4 Arizona 66 #5 U C L A 58

#2 California 77 #7 Stanford 71

#6 Colorado 63 #3 Oregon 62

Semifinals

#4 Arizona 72 #9 Oregon St. 61

#6 Colorado 70 #2 California 59

CHAMPIONSHIP

#4 Arizona (23-10) vs. #6 Colorado (22-11)

At-Large:

Upper Bubble: California

Lower Bubble: Colorado, Washington, Arizona, Oregon

The only sure thing is that today’s championship game winner will get an automatic bid. California’s RPI is #36, and that should be enough to get a bid, but stranger things have happened before. We cannot call them a lock for an at-large bid.

The RPIs for the other four teams are iffy. Oregon is #66; Washington is #68, Colorado is #70, and Arizona is #76. Today’s loser will stay in the 70’s, which is the lowest range possible for an at-large bid.

Colorado’s defense has been swarming in the first three games, and the Buffaloes have not played this type of defense since the 1960’s. CU is our bet to cut down the nets Saturday.

Patriot League

Quarterfinals

#1 Bucknell 87 #8 Navy 63

#5 Lafayette 84 #4 Holy Cross 76

#2 Lehigh 70 #7 Colgate 57

#3 American 57 #6 Army 40

Semifinals

#1 Bucknell 79 #5 Lafayette 52

#2 Lehigh 85 #3 American 66

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Lehigh 82 #1 Bucknell 77

Automatic Bid: LEHIGH 26-7

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

Southern

Opening Round

#5N Appalachian St. 93 #4S College of Charleston 81

#3N Western Carolina 68 #6S Citadel 56

#5S Furman 75 #4N Samford 66

#3S Georgia Southern 76 #6N Chattanooga 70

Quarterfinals

#1N UNC-Greensboro 65 #5N Appalachian St. 55

#3N Western Carolina 82 #2S Wofford 59

#1S Davidson 73 #5S Furman 54

#2N Elon 65 #3S Georgia Southern 58

Semifinals

#3N Western Carolina 82 #1N UNC-Greensboro 77

#1S Davidson 83 #2N Elon 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1S Davidson 93 #1N UNC-Greensboro 91

Automatic Bid – DAVIDSON 25-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Davidson might not have earned a ticket as an at-large team. Tell that to Kansas coach Bill Self, and he would say you were crazy.

S E C

Opening Round

#8 L S U 70 #9 Arkansas 54

#5 Alabama 63 #12 South Carolina 57

#7 Ole Miss 68 #10 Auburn 54

#11 Georgia 71 #6 Mississippi St. 61

Quarterfinals

#1 Kentucky 60 #8 L S U 51

#4 Florida 66 #5 Alabama 63

#7 Ole Miss 77 #2 Tennessee 72 OT

#3 Vanderbilt 63 #11 Georgia 41

Semifinals

#1 Kentucky (31-1) vs. #4 Florida (23-9)

#3 Vanderbilt (22-10) vs. #7 Ole Miss (20-12)

At-Large: Kentucky, Florida, Vanderbilt

Upper Bubble: Alabama

Lower Bubble: Ole Miss, Mississippi St.

Ole Miss is the hot team that could surprise and make it to the championship game on Sunday. The Rebels would move to the upper bubble with a win today over an inconsistent Vanderbilt team.

Florida does not match up well with Kentucky. If the Gators pull off the big upset, it will be because the Wildcats did not show up to play for a second consecutive day.

Tennessee is now NIT-bound, and Mississippi State is probably headed that way as well. We cannot see the committee taking the Bulldogs if they do not take their rival Rebels as well.

Southland

Quarterfinals

#1 UT-Arlington 96 #8 Nicholls St. 48

#4 McNeese St. 78 #5 TX-San Antonio 74 OT

#2 Stephen F Austin 68 #7 Sam Houston 46

#3 Lamar 76 #6 Northwestern State (LA) 69

Semifinals

#4 McNeese St. 92 #1 UT-Arlington 72

#3 Lamar 55 #2 Stephen F Austin 44

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Lamar (22-11) vs. #4 McNeese St. (17-14)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

The top two seeds fell in the semifinals, and now the Southland champion may be looking to make reservations in Dayton.

S W A C

Quarterfinals

#1 Mississippi Valley St. 63 #8 Jackson St. 60

#5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 60 #4 Alabama St. 56

#2 Texas Southern 75 #7 Alabama A&M 62

#6 Alcorn St. 103 #3 Prairie View 79

Semifinals

#1 Mississippi Valley St. 71 #5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 64

#2 Texas Southern 60 #6 Alcorn St. 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Mississippi Valley St. (20-12) vs. #2 Texas Southern (15-17)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

Today’s championship game winner will be headed to Dayton for the opening round. At least, the top two seeds advanced to the finals, and it gives the SWAC a fighting chance to compete in the “play-in.”

Summit League

Quarterfinals

#1 Oral Roberts 71 #8 I P F W 67

#4 Western Illinois 58 #5 North Dakota St. 53

#2 South Dakota St. 77 I U P U I 56

#6 Southern Utah 84 #3 Oakland 82

Semifinals

#4 Western Illinois 54 #1 Oral Roberts 53

#2 South Dakota St. 63 #6 Southern Utah 47

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 South Dakota St. 52 #4 Western Illinois 50

Automatic Bid – SOUTH DAKOTA ST. 27-7

At-Large Teams –None

Bubble – Oral Roberts

Sunbelt

Opening Round

#6 South Alabama 87 #11 Troy 81

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #10 Florida Int’l 63

#9 Arkansas St. 70 #8 Florida Atlantic 55

Quarterfinals

#9 Arkansas St. 64 #1 Middle Tennessee 61

#5 North Texas 65 #4 Louisiana-Lafayette 62

#7 Western Kentucky 68 #2 U A L R 63

#3 Denver 61 #6 South Alabama 50

Semifinals

#5 North Texas 76 #9 Arkansas St. 72

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #3 Denver 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#7 Western Kentucky 74 #3 Denver 70

Automatic Bid –WESTERN KENTUCKY 15-18

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Middle Tennessee

W A C

Quarterfinals

#1 Nevada 54 #8 San Jose St. 44

#5 Louisiana Tech 72 #4 Utah St. 70

#2 New Mexico St. 65 #7 Fresno St. 49

#6 Hawaii 72 #3 Idaho 70

Semifinals

#1 Nevada (26-5) vs. #5 Louisiana Tech (17-15)

#2 New Mexico St. (24-9) vs. #6 Hawaii (16-15)

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 New Mexico St. (25-9) vs. #5 Louisiana Tech (18-15)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: Nevada.

Nevada fell to #63 in the RPI, and the Wolfpack are on the cusp of falling off the bubble. New Mexico State is at #69, so their chances to get in as an at-large if they lose today are nil.

West Coast

Opening Round

#8 Portland 74 #9 Santa Clara 70

2^nd Round

#5 San Francisco 87 #8 Portland 66

#6 San Diego 76 #7 Pepperdine 54

Quarterfinals

#5 San Francisco 67 #4 Loyola Marymount 60

#3 B Y U 73 vs. #6 San Diego 68

Semifinals

#1 Saint Mary’s 83 #5 San Francisco 78

#2 Gonzaga 77 #3 B Y U 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Saint Mary’s 78 #2 Gonzaga 74 OT

Automatic Bid – SAINT MARY’S 26-5

At-Large Teams – Gonzaga

Bubble – B Y U

Coming Saturday Evening: We release Bracketnomics 505–the 2012 edition with more detailed grading than ever before. We’ve made it even more scientific than ever! Tell all your friends, but only those playing in a different bracket contest than you.

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March 9, 2012

NCAA College Basketball Conference Tournaments–March 9 Update

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: basketball, Big Dance, Bracketology, Championship, college, Conference, NCAA, tournament — piratings @ 6:37 am

Here is the up-to-date (as of Thursday Night, March 8) results of all conference tournaments as well as the pairings for today’s games.

America East

Preliminary Round

#9 Binghamton 73 #8 Md.-Balt. Co. 67

Quarterfinals

#1 Stony Brook 78 # 9 Binghamton 69

#4 Albany 63 #5 New Hampshire 45

#2 Vermont 50 #7 Maine 40

#6 Hartford 53 #3 Boston U 49

Semifinals

#1 Stony Brook 57 #4 Albany 55

#2 Vermont 77 #6 Hartford 73 2OT

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Stony Brook (21-8) vs. Vermont (22-11)

This is a one-bid league.

A C C

Opening Round

#8 Maryland 82 #9 Wake Forest 60

#5 North Carolina St. 78 #12 Boston College 57

#10 Virginia Tech 68 #7 Clemson 63

#6 Miami (FL) 54 #11 Georgia Tech 36

Quarterfinals

#1 North Carolina (27-4) vs. #8 Maryland (17-14)

#4 Virginia (22-8) vs. #5 North Carolina St. (21-11)

#2 Duke (26-5) vs. #10 Virginia Tech (16-16)

#3 Florida St. (21-9) vs. #6 Miami (FL) (19-11)

At-Large: North Carolina, Duke, Florida St., Virginia

Upper Bubble: North Carolina St.

Lower Bubble: Miami (FL)

Today’s North Carolina St.-Virginia game should be the most interesting game of the tournament. This is basically a play-in game with the winner moving into the upper echelon of the bubble.

Miami can move to the upper bubble with a win over the rival Seminoles.

Atlantic Sun

Quarterfinals

#1 Belmont 76 #8 Jacksonville 62

#4 East Tennessee 68 #5 N. Florida 66

#2 Mercer 61 #7 Lipscomb 53

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 71 #3 S. Carolina Upstate 61

Semifinals

#1 Belmont 69 #4 East Tennessee 61

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 62 #2 Mercer 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Belmont 83 Florida Gulf Coast 69

Automatic Bid – BELMONT 27-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Atlantic 10

1^st Round

#8 Massachusetts 92 #9 Duquesne 83

#5 St. Joe’s 80 #12 Charlotte 64

#7 LaSalle 80 #10 Richmond 72

#6 Dayton 67 #11 George Washington 50

Quarterfinals

#1 Temple (24-6) vs. #8 Massachusetts (21-10)

#4 St. Bonaventure (17-11) vs. #5 St. Joe’s (20-12)

#2 St. Louis (24-6) vs. #7 LaSalle (21-11)

#3 Xavier (19-11) vs. #6 Dayton (20-11)

At-Large: Temple

Upper Bubble: St. Louis

Lower Bubble: Xavier, St. Joe’s, and Dayton

The eight remaining teams in this tournament are not that far apart, and the final three days should be highly competitive. Literally, any of this octet can cut down the nets in Atlantic City on Sunday.

Big East

Opening Round

#9 Connecticut 81 #16 Dayton 67

#13 Pittsburgh 73 #12 St. John’s 59

#10 Seton Hall 79 #15 Providence 47

#14 Villanova 70 #11 Rutgers 49

2nd Round

#9 Connecticut 71 #8 West Virginia 67 OT

#5 Georgetown 64 #13 Pittsburgh 52

#7 Louisville 61 #10 Seton Hall 55

#6 South Florida 56 #14 Villanova 47

Quarterfinals

#1 Syracuse 58 #9 Connecticut 55

#4 Cincinnati 72 #5 Georgetown 70 2OT

#7 Louisville 84 #2 Marquette 71

#3 Notre Dame 57 #6 South Florida 52

Semifinals

#1 Syracuse (31-1) vs. #4 Cincinnati (23-9)

#3 Notre Dame (22-10) vs. #7 Louisville (24-9)

At-Large: Syracuse, Marquette, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Louisville, Cincinnati

Upper Bubble: West Virginia, Seton Hall, Connecticut

Lower Bubble: South Florida

The Final Four in this tournament could be as strong as the Final Four in the Big Dance. Cincinnati and Syracuse should give basketball fans something to watch today. The Bearcats might be a little tired from yesterday, or else we would call them an odds-on favorite to upset the Orangemen. Syracuse already knows they will earn a top seed in one of the four regionals.

Louisville appears to be the hot team. The Cardinals are peaking at just the right time.

Big Sky

Quarterfinals

#3 Portland St. 75 #6 Montana St. 53

#4 Eastern Washington 81 #5 Idaho St. 75

Semifinals

#1 Montana 74 #4 Eastern Washington 66

#2 Weber St. 69 #3 Portland St. 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Montana 85 #2 Weber St. 66

Automatic Bid: MONTANA 25-6

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

This is a one-bid league, but both Montana and Weber State are talented enough to win an opening round game in the NCAA Tournament. With an RPI around 70, the Wildcats are probably not on the bubble.

Big South

Preliminary Round

#8 High Point 68 #9 Gardner-Webb 58

#7 VMI 55 #10 Radford 53

Quarterfinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 86 #8 High Point 61

#4 Charleston Sou. 88 #5 Liberty 74

#6 Winthrop 71 #3 Campbell 55

#7 VMI 85 #2 Coastal Carolina 68

Semifinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 91 #4 Charleston Sou. 64

#7 VMI 75 #6 Winthrop 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 UNC-Asheville 80 #7 VMI 64

Automatic Bid – UNC-ASHEVILLE 24-9

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Big Ten

Opening Round

#8 Iowa 64 #9 Illinois 61

#5 Indiana 75 #12 Penn State 58

#10 Minnesota 75 #7 Northwestern 68

#6 Purdue 79 #11 Nebraska 61

Quarterfinals

#1 Michigan St. (24-7) vs. #8 Iowa (17-15)

#4 Wisconsin (23-8) vs. #5 Indiana (25-7)

#2 Michigan (23-8) vs. #10 Minnesota (19-13)

#3 Ohio St. (25-6) vs. #6 Purdue (21-11)

At-Large: Ohio St., Michigan St., Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Purdue

Upper Bubble:

Lower Bubble: Northwestern

Iowa and Minnesota need to keep winning in order to move onto the lower bubble. As for Illinois, today’s loss probably signaled the end of the Bruce Weber tenure in Champaign-Urbana. Another coaching change could come at Nebraska. The Cornhuskers haven’t been really good since 1966.

Big 12

Opening Round

#9 Texas A&M 62 #8 Oklahoma 53

#7 Oklahoma St. 76 #10 Texas Tech 60

Quarterfinals

#1 Kansas 83 #9 Texas A&M 66

#4 Baylor 82 #5 Kansas St. 74

#2 Missouri 88 #7 Oklahoma St. 70

#3 Iowa St. 65 #6 Texas 71

Semifinals

#1 Kansas (27-5) vs. #4 Baylor (26-6)

#2 Missouri (28-4) vs. #6 Texas (19-12)

At-Large: Kansas, Missouri, Iowa St., Baylor, Kansas St.

Upper Bubble: Texas

Lower Bubble: None

If the Longhorns beat Missouri today, they will move into the at-large field.

Big West

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Beach St. 80 #8 UC-Davis 46

#4 Cal Poly SLO (17-14) vs. #5 UC-Riverside (14-16) **********

#7 UC-Irvine 65 #2 Cal State Fullerton 59

#3 U C S B 72 #6 Pacific 52

Semifinals

#1 Long Beach St. (23-8) vs. #7 UC-Irvine (12-19)

#3 U C S B (19-9) vs.

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: Long Beach St.

Lower Bubble: None

Long Beach State could possibly earn an at-large bid if they lose today or tomorrow, but the 49ers should have minimal competition in the semifinals and not much more in the finals.

Colonial Athletic

Opening Round

#9 UNC-Wilmington 70 #8 James Madison 59

#5 Delaware 72 #12 Towson St. 65

#6 Georgia St. 85 #11 Hofstra 50

#7 Northeastern 57 #10 William & Mary 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Drexel 59 #9 UNC-Wilmington 47

#4 Old Dominion 88 #5 Delaware 74

#3 George Mason 61 #6 Georgia St. 59

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 75 #10 William & Mary 65

Semifinals

#1 Drexel 68 #4 Old Dominion 51

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 74 #3 George Mason 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 59 #1 Drexel 56

Automatic Bid – VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH 28-6

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Drexel

Drexel has a chance of earning an at-large bid, but their RPI is on the low side at 68.

Conference USA

Opening Round

#5 U A B 72 #12 Tulane 64

#8 U T E P 67 #9 Houston 62 OT

#10 East Carolina 68 #7 Rice 66

#6 Marshall 74 #11 S M U 56

Quarterfinals

#1 Memphis 65 #8 U T E P 47

#4 Central Florida 51 #5 U A B 43

#2 Southern Mississippi 81 #10 East Carolina 78

#6 Marshall 105 #3 Tulsa 100 3 OT

Semifinals

#1 Memphis (24-8) vs. #4 Central Florida (21-9)

#2 Southern Mississippi (25-7) vs. #6 Marshall (20-12)

At-Large: Memphis

Upper Bubble: Southern Miss

Lower Bubble: None

Central Florida will be placed in the lower bubble with a win today against the top seed in the conference tournament.

Horizon League

Opening Round

#4 Milwaukee 68 #9 Illinois-Chi. 55

#5 Butler 70 #8 Wright St. 52

#3 Detroit 80 #10 Loyola (Chi) 71

#6 Youngstown 77 #7 Green Bay 60

Quarterfinals

#5 Butler 71 #4 Milwaukee 49

#3 Detroit 93 #6 Youngstown St. 76

Semifinals

#1 Valparaiso 65 #5 Butler 46

#3 Detroit 63 #2 Cleveland St. 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Detroit 70 #1 Valparaiso 50

Automatic Bid – DETROIT 22-13

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Neither Valpo, Cleveland State nor Butler will earn at-large bids.

M A A C

Preliminary Round

#8 Marist 64 #9 St. Peter’s 57

#7 Niagara 80 #10 Canisius 70

Quarterfinals

#1 Iona 87 #8 Marist 63

#4 Fairfield 65 #5 Rider 63

#2 Loyola (MD) 86 #7 Niagara 73

#6 Siena 84 #3 Manhattan 82

Semifinals

#4 Fairfield 85 #1 Iona 75

#2 Loyola (MD) 70 #6 Siena 60

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Loyola (MD) 48 #4 Fairfield 44

Automatic Bid – LOYOLA (MD) 24-8

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Iona played their way out of the Big Dance and into the NIT.

M A C

Opening Round

#12 Northern Illinois 55 #5 Eastern Michigan 52

#8 Western Michigan 69 #9 Ball St. 63

#7 Toledo 60 #10 (Miami (O) 53

#11 Central Michigan 54 #6 Bowling Green 53

2^nd Round

#8 Western Michigan 71 #12 Northern Illinois 54

#7 Toledo 75 #11 Central Michigan 72

Quarterfinals

#4 Kent St. 76 #8 Western Michigan 72

#3 Ohio 65 #7 Toledo 57

Semifinals

#1 Akron (21-10) vs. #4 Kent St. (20-10)

#2 Buffalo (19-9) vs. #3 Ohio (24-7)

The top four seeds are in the semifinals. This gives the MAC a fighting chance for two bids, but it may be a losing fight.

M E A C

Opening Round

#8 Hampton 69 #9 Morgan St. 65

#5 North Carolina Central 60 #12 Md. Eastern Shore 43

#4 Bethune-Cookman 62 #13 South Carolina St. 53

#11 Florida A& M 74 #6 Coppin St. 72

#10 Howard 51 #7 North Carolina A&T 50

Quarterfinals

#8 Hampton 59 #1 Savannah St. 46

#4 Bethune-Cookman 60 #5 North Carolina Central 59

#2 Norfolk St. 71 #7 Howard 61

#11 Florida A&M 65 #3 Delaware St. 55

Semfinals

#4 Bethune-Cookman (17-16) vs. #8 Hampton (12-20)

#2 Norfolk St. (23-9) vs. #11 Florida A&M (10-22)

This is a one-bid league. With Savannah State suffering an early exit, only Norfolk State can possibly avoid a trip to Dayton for the first round.

Missouri Valley

Opening Round

#8 Indiana St. 66 #9 Southern Illinois 51

#7 Drake 65 #10 Bradley 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Wichita St. 72 #8 Indiana St. 48

#4 Illinois St. 54 #5 Northern Iowa 42

#2 Creighton 68 vs. #7 Drake 61

#3 Evansville 72 vs. #6 Missouri St. 64

Semifinals

#4 Illinois St. 65 #1 Wichita St. 64

#2 Creighton 99 #3 Evansville 71

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Creighton 83 #4 Illinois St. 79 OT

Automatic Bid – Creighton 27-5

At-Large – Wichita St. 27-5

Bubble – None

Mountain West

Quarterfinals

#1 San Diego St. 65 #8 Boise St. 62

#4 Colorado St. 81 #5 T C U 60

#2 New Mexico 79 #7 Air Force 64

#3 U N L V 56 #6 Wyoming 48

Semifinals

#1 San Diego St. (25-6) vs. #4 Colorado St. (20-10)

#2 New Mexico (25-6) vs. #3 U N L V (26-7)

At-Large: San Diego St., UNLV, New Mexico

Upper Bubble: Colorado St.

Lower Bubble: None

Colorado St. is at the very top of the bubble today, and the Rams are almost assured to receive an at-large bid.

Northeast

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Island 80 #8 Sacred Heart 68

#5 Quinnipiac 80 #4 St. Francis (NY) 72

#3 Robert Morris 87 #6 Monmouth 68

#2 Wagner 87 #7 Central Conn. St. 77

Semifinals

#1 Long Island 78 #5 Quinnipiac 75

#3 Robert Morris 71 #2 Wagner 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Long Island 90 #3 Robert Morris 73

Automatic Bid: LONG ISLAND 25-8

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

Wagner’s slim chances for getting in as a wildcard team went bye-bye with their semifinal loss to RMU.

LIU enters the Big Dance winning 20 of their last 22 games.

Ohio Valley

Opening Round

#5 Southeast Missouri 75 #8 E. Kentucky 65

#7 Jacksonville St. 75 #6 Austin Peay 70

Quarterfinals

#4 Tennessee Tech 77 #5 Southeast Missouri 73

#3 Morehead St. 68 #7 Jacksonville St. 54

Semifinals

#1 Murray St. 78 #4 Tennessee Tech 58

#2 Tennessee St. 59 #3 Morehead St. 52

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Murray St. 54 #2 Tennessee St. 52

Automatic Bid – Murray St. 30-1

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

Murray State should receive a #4 or #5 seed, a #6 at worst.

Pac-12

Opening Round

#9 Oregon St. 69 #8 Washington St. 64

#5 U C L A 55 #12 U S C 40

#7 Stanford 85 #10 Arizona St. 65

#6 Colorado 53 #11 Utah 41

Quarterfinals

#9 Oregon State 86 #1 Washington 84

#4 Arizona 66 #5 U C L A 58

#2 California 77 #7 Stanford 71

#3 Oregon 63 #6 Colorado 62

Semifinals

#4 Arizona (22-10) vs. #9 Oregon St. (19-13)

#2 California (24-8) vs. #6 Colorado (21-11)

At-Large: California

Upper Bubble: Arizona

Lower Bubble: Colorado, Washington

UCLA and Stanford are NIT-bound following yesterday’s losses. Colorado needs to win today to have any chance at an at-large bid and may really need to reach the Championship Game to have a legitimate shot. The Buffs’ RPI moved from 82 to 77. A win over Cal could move CU’s RPI into the lower 70’s, and we project they would need to move up to at least 65 to have a fighting chance.

California looks to be safely in the field of 68 following yesterday’s win over rival Stanford.

Patriot League

Quarterfinals

#1 Bucknell 87 #8 Navy 63

#5 Lafayette 84 #4 Holy Cross 76

#2 Lehigh 70 #7 Colgate 57

#3 American 57 #6 Army 40

Semifinals

#1 Bucknell 79 #5 Lafayette 52

#2 Lehigh 85 #3 American 66

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Lehigh 82 #1 Bucknell 77

Automatic Bid: LEHIGH 26-7

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

Southern

Opening Round

#5N Appalachian St. 93 #4S College of Charleston 81

#3N Western Carolina 68 #6S Citadel 56

#5S Furman 75 #4N Samford 66

#3S Georgia Southern 76 #6N Chattanooga 70

Quarterfinals

#1N UNC-Greensboro 65 #5N Appalachian St. 55

#3N Western Carolina 82 #2S Wofford 59

#1S Davidson 73 #5S Furman 54

#2N Elon 65 #3S Georgia Southern 58

Semifinals

#3N Western Carolina 82 #1N UNC-Greensboro 77

#1S Davidson 83 #2N Elon 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1S Davidson 93 #1N UNC-Greensboro 91

Automatic Bid – DAVIDSON 25-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Davidson might not have earned a ticket as an at-large team. Tell that to Kansas coach Bill Self, and he would say you were crazy.

S E C

Opening Round

#8 L S U 70 #9 Arkansas 54

#5 Alabama 63 #12 South Carolina 57

#7 Ole Miss 68 #10 Auburn 54

#11 Georgia 71 #6 Mississippi St. 61

Quarterfinals

#1 Kentucky (30-1) vs. #8 L S U (18-13)

#4 Florida (22-9) vs. #5 Alabama (21-10)

#2 Tennessee (18-13) vs. #7 Ole Miss (19-12)

#3 Vanderbilt (21-10) vs. #11 Georgia (15-16)

At-Large: Kentucky, Florida, Vanderbilt

Upper Bubble: Alabama

Lower Bubble: Tennessee, Ole Miss, Mississippi St.

Tennessee and Ole Miss are the two hot teams other than Kentucky, and their game today should be the best one of the tournament. Should one of these teams make it to Sunday, it would be hard to keep them out of the field.

Mississippi State may have dropped too far to make the Dance now, and Coach Rick Stansbury could be out of work. Georgia won four games in three days a few years ago. If they upset Vanderbilt today, Bulldog fans might start believing it could happen again.

Southland

Quarterfinals

#1 UT-Arlington 96 #8 Nicholls St. 48

#4 McNeese St. 78 #5 TX-San Antonio 74 OT

#2 Stephen F Austin 68 #7 Sam Houston 46

#3 Lamar 76 #6 Northwestern State (LA) 69

Semifinals

#4 McNeese St. 92 #1 UT-Arlington 72

#3 Lamar 55 #2 Stephen F Austin 44

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Lamar (22-11) vs. #4 McNeese St. (17-14)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

The top two seeds fell in the semifinals, and now the Southland champion may be looking to make reservations in Dayton.

S W A C

Quarterfinals

#1 Mississippi Valley St. 63 #8 Jackson St. 60

#5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 60 #4 Alabama St. 56

#2 Texas Southern 75 #7 Alabama A&M 62

#6 Alcorn St. 103 #3 Prairie View 79

Semifinals

#1 Mississippi Valley St. (19-12) vs. #5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff (11-21)

#2 Texas Southern (14-17) vs. #6 Alcorn St. (10-21)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

The Wacky SWAC is the only league where a 9-21 team blows out the #3 seed by 24 points in the quarterfinals. Yesterday, Alcorn State looked more like Southern U of the 1960’s and 1970’s.

Mississippi Valley may be the only one of the remaining four that can avoid a trip to Dayton, but we highly doubt it.

Summit League

Quarterfinals

#1 Oral Roberts 71 #8 I P F W 67

#4 Western Illinois 58 #5 North Dakota St. 53

#2 South Dakota St. 77 I U P U I 56

#6 Southern Utah 84 #3 Oakland 82

Semifinals

#4 Western Illinois 54 #1 Oral Roberts 53

#2 South Dakota St. 63 #6 Southern Utah 47

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 South Dakota St. 52 #4 Western Illinois 50

Automatic Bid – SOUTH DAKOTA ST. 27-7

At-Large Teams –None

Bubble – Oral Roberts

Sunbelt

Opening Round

#6 South Alabama 87 #11 Troy 81

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #10 Florida Int’l 63

#9 Arkansas St. 70 #8 Florida Atlantic 55

Quarterfinals

#9 Arkansas St. 64 #1 Middle Tennessee 61

#5 North Texas 65 #4 Louisiana-Lafayette 62

#7 Western Kentucky 68 #2 U A L R 63

#3 Denver 61 #6 South Alabama 50

Semifinals

#5 North Texas 76 #9 Arkansas St. 72

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #3 Denver 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#7 Western Kentucky 74 #3 Denver 70

Automatic Bid –WESTERN KENTUCKY 15-18

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Middle Tennessee

W A C

Quarterfinals

#1 Nevada 54 #8 San Jose St. 44

#5 Louisiana Tech 72 #4 Utah St. 70

#2 New Mexico St. 65 #7 Fresno St. 49

#6 Hawaii 72 #3 Idaho 70

Semifinals

#1 Nevada (26-5) vs. #5 Louisiana Tech (17-15)

#2 New Mexico St. (24-9) vs. #6 Hawaii (16-15)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: Nevada

Nevada has moved up to #52 in the RPI, and the Wolfpack are on the cusp of moving up to the upper bubble. A win today will not improve their lot very much, and if they don’t win the tournament and are to get in as an at-large selection, they need New Mexico State to win today.

A Nevada-New Mexico State final would make this tournament most worth watching.

West Coast

Opening Round

#8 Portland 74 #9 Santa Clara 70

2^nd Round

#5 San Francisco 87 #8 Portland 66

#6 San Diego 76 #7 Pepperdine 54

Quarterfinals

#5 San Francisco 67 #4 Loyola Marymount 60

#3 B Y U 73 vs. #6 San Diego 68

Semifinals

#1 Saint Mary’s 83 #5 San Francisco 78

#2 Gonzaga 77 #3 B Y U 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Saint Mary’s 78 #2 Gonzaga 74 OT

Automatic Bid – SAINT MARY’S 26-5

At-Large Teams – Gonzaga

Bubble – B Y U

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March 8, 2012

NCAA College Basketball Tournaments–March 8 Update

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: basketball, Big Dance, Bracketology, Championship, college, Conference, NCAA, tournament — piratings @ 7:06 am

Here is the up-to-date (as of Wednesday Night, March 7) results of all conference tournaments as well as the pairings for today’s games.

America East

Preliminary Round

#9 Binghamton 73 #8 Md.-Balt. Co. 67

Quarterfinals

#1 Stony Brook 78 # 9 Binghamton 69

#4 Albany 63 #5 New Hampshire 45

#2 Vermont 50 #7 Maine 40

#6 Hartford 53 #3 Boston U 49

Semifinals

#1 Stony Brook 57 #4 Albany 55

#2 Vermont 77 #6 Hartford 73 2OT

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Stony Brook (21-8) vs. Vermont (22-11)

This is a one-bid league.

A C C

Opening Round

#8 Maryland (16-14) vs. #9 Wake Forest (13-17)

#5 North Carolina St. (20-11) vs. #12 Boston College (9-21)

#7 Clemson (16-14) vs. #10 Virginia Tech (15-16)

#6 Miami (FL) (18-11) vs. #11 Georgia Tech (11-19)

At-Large: North Carolina, Duke, Florida St., Virginia

Upper Bubble: North Carolina St.

Lower Bubble: Virginia

Atlantic Sun

Quarterfinals

#1 Belmont 76 #8 Jacksonville 62

#4 East Tennessee 68 #5 N. Florida 66

#2 Mercer 61 #7 Lipscomb 53

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 71 #3 S. Carolina Upstate 61

Semifinals

#1 Belmont 69 #4 East Tennessee 61

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 62 #2 Mercer 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Belmont 83 Florida Gulf Coast 69

Automatic Bid – BELMONT 27-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Atlantic 10

1^st Round

#8 Massachusetts 92 #9 Duquesne 83

#5 St. Joe’s 80 #12 Charlotte 64

#7 LaSalle 80 #10 Richmond 72

#6 Dayton 67 #11 George Washington 50

Quarterfinals (Friday, March 9)

#1 Temple (24-6) vs. #8 Massachusetts (21-10)

#4 St. Bonaventure (17-11) vs. #5 St. Joe’s (20-12)

#2 St. Louis (24-6) vs. #7 LaSalle (21-11)

#3 Xavier (19-11) vs. #6 Dayton (20-11)

At-Large: Temple

Upper Bubble: St. Louis

Lower Bubble: Xavier, St. Joe’s, and Dayton

Big East

Opening Round

#9 Connecticut 81 #16 Dayton 67

#13 Pittsburgh 73 #12 St. John’s 59

#10 Seton Hall 79 #15 Providence 47

#14 Villanova 70 #11 Rutgers 49

2nd Round

#9 Connecticut 71 #8 West Virginia 67 OT

#5 Georgetown 64 #13 Pittsburgh 52

#7 Louisville 61 #10 Seton Hall 55

#6 South Florida 56 #14 Villanova 47

Quarterfinals

#1 Syracuse (30-1) vs. #9 Connecticut (20-12)

#4 Cincinnati (22-9) vs. #5 Georgetown (23-7)

#2 Marquette (25-6) vs. #7 Louisville (23-9)

#3 Notre Dame (21-10) vs. #6 South Florida (19-12)

At-Large: Syracuse, Marquette, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Louisville, Cincinnati

Upper Bubble: West Virginia, Seton Hall, South Florida, Connecticut

Lower Bubble: None

Can the Huskies do it again? After winning five games in five days last year, UConn has now won two games in two days. An upset over the top-seeded Orangemen just may make UConn the odds-on favorite to repeat the feat.

Big Sky

Quarterfinals

#3 Portland St. 75 #6 Montana St. 53

#4 Eastern Washington 81 #5 Idaho St. 75

Semifinals

#1 Montana 74 #4 Eastern Washington 66

#2 Weber St. 69 #3 Portland St. 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Montana 85 #2 Weber St. 66

Automatic Bid: MONTANA 25-6

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

This is a one-bid league, but both Montana and Weber State are talented enough to win an opening round game in the NCAA Tournament. With an RPI around 70, the Wildcats are probably not on the bubble.

Big South

Preliminary Round

#8 High Point 68 #9 Gardner-Webb 58

#7 VMI 55 #10 Radford 53

Quarterfinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 86 #8 High Point 61

#4 Charleston Sou. 88 #5 Liberty 74

#6 Winthrop 71 #3 Campbell 55

#7 VMI 85 #2 Coastal Carolina 68

Semifinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 91 #4 Charleston Sou. 64

#7 VMI 75 #6 Winthrop 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 UNC-Asheville 80 #7 VMI 64

Automatic Bid – UNC-ASHEVILLE 24-9

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Big Ten

Opening Round

#8 Iowa (16-15) vs. #9 Illinois (17-14)

#5 Indiana (24-7) vs. #12 Penn State (12-19)

#7 Northwestern (18-12) vs. #10 Minnesota (18-13)

#6 Purdue (20-11) vs. #11 Nebraska (12-17)

At-Large: Ohio St., Michigan St., Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Purdue

Upper Bubble: Northwestern

Lower Bubble: None (Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois have too much ground to make up and need to win the tournament. The three teams have no chance of sneaking in with a loss in the Championship Game).

Big 12

Opening Round

#9 Texas A&M 62 #8 Oklahoma 53

#7 Oklahoma St. 76 #10 Texas Tech 60

Quarterfinals

#1 Kansas (26-5) vs. #9 Texas A&M (14-17)

#4 Baylor (25-6) vs. #5 Kansas St. (21-9)

#2 Missouri (27-4) vs. #7 Oklahoma St. (15-17)

#3 Iowa St. (22-9) vs. #6 Texas (19-12)

At-Large: Kansas, Missouri, Iowa St., Baylor, Kansas St.

Upper Bubble: Texas

Lower Bubble: None (If Texas loses to Iowa St., the Longhorns could fall here.

Big West

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Beach St. (22-8) vs. #8 UC-Davis (5-25)

#4 Cal Poly SLO (17-14) vs. #5 UC-Riverside (14-16)

#2 Cal State Fullerton (21-8) vs. #7 UC_Irvine (11-19)

#3 U C S B (18-9) vs. #6 Pacific (11-18)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: Long Beach St.

Lower Bubble: None

Long Beach State played one of the hardest schedules in the nation and fared admirably. Their body of work gives the 49ers the look of a NCAA Tournament team. A loss to Cal State Fullerton in the Championship Game should still keep LBSU safe. A loss in the earlier rounds will throw the 49ers down to the lower bubble.

Colonial Athletic

Opening Round

#9 UNC-Wilmington 70 #8 James Madison 59

#5 Delaware 72 #12 Towson St. 65

#6 Georgia St. 85 #11 Hofstra 50

#7 Northeastern 57 #10 William & Mary 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Drexel 59 #9 UNC-Wilmington 47

#4 Old Dominion 88 #5 Delaware 74

#3 George Mason 61 #6 Georgia St. 59

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 75 #10 William & Mary 65

Semifinals

#1 Drexel 68 #4 Old Dominion 51

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 74 #3 George Mason 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 59 #1 Drexel 56

Automatic Bid – VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH 28-6

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Drexel

Drexel has a chance of earning an at-large bid, but their RPI is on the low side at 68.

Conference USA

Opening Round

#5 U A B 72 #12 Tulane 64

#8 U T E P 67 #9 Houston 62 OT

#10 East Carolina 68 #7 Rice 66

#6 Marshall 74 #11 S M U 56

Quarterfinals

#1 Memphis (23-8) vs. #8 U T E P (15-16)

#4 Central Florida (21-9) vs. #5 U A B (14-15)

#2 Southern Mississippi (24-7) vs. #10 East Carolina (15-15)

#3 Tulsa (17-13) vs. #6 Marshall (19-12)

At-Large: Memphis

Upper Bubble: Southern Miss

Lower Bubble: None

Central Florida has a chance to move up to the lower bubble with a run to the finals, but it would still be a remote shot if they lost in the Championship Game.

Horizon League

Opening Round

#4 Milwaukee 68 #9 Illinois-Chi. 55

#5 Butler 70 #8 Wright St. 52

#3 Detroit 80 #10 Loyola (Chi) 71

#6 Youngstown 77 #7 Green Bay 60

Quarterfinals

#5 Butler 71 #4 Milwaukee 49

#3 Detroit 93 #6 Youngstown St. 76

Semifinals

#1 Valparaiso 65 #5 Butler 46

#3 Detroit 63 #2 Cleveland St. 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Detroit 70 #1 Valparaiso 50

Automatic Bid – DETROIT 22-13

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Neither Valpo, Cleveland State nor Butler will earn at-large bids.

M A A C

Preliminary Round

#8 Marist 64 #9 St. Peter’s 57

#7 Niagara 80 #10 Canisius 70

Quarterfinals

#1 Iona 87 #8 Marist 63

#4 Fairfield 65 #5 Rider 63

#2 Loyola (MD) 86 #7 Niagara 73

#6 Siena 84 #3 Manhattan 82

Semifinals

#4 Fairfield 85 #1 Iona 75

#2 Loyola (MD) 70 #6 Siena 60

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Loyola (MD) 48 #4 Fairfield 44

Automatic Bid – LOYOLA (MD) 24-8

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Iona played their way out of the Big Dance and into the NIT.

M A C

Opening Round

#5 Eastern Michigan (14-17) vs. #12 Northern Illinois (4-25)

#8 Western Michigan (12-19) vs. #9 Ball St. (15-14)

#7 Toledo (16-15) vs. #10 (Miami (O) (9-20)

#6 Bowling Green (16-14) vs. #11 (Central Michigan (10-20)

2^nd Round

#8 Western Michigan 71 #12 Northern Illinois 54

#7 Toledo 75 #11 Central Michigan 72

Quarterfinals

#4 Kent St. (20-10) vs. #8 Western Michigan (13-19)

#3 Ohio (24-7) vs. #7 Toledo (17-15)

This could develop into a two-bid league. Akron has moved up to #62 in the RPI and Ohio is #70. Akron has one more bye to the semifinals and will face the winner of the Kent St.-Western Michigan game.

M E A C

Opening Round

#8 Hampton 69 #9 Morgan St. 65

#5 North Carolina Central 60 #12 Md. Eastern Shore 43

#4 Bethune-Cookman 62 #13 South Carolina St. 53

#11 Florida A& M 74 #6 Coppin St. 72

#10 Howard 51 #7 North Carolina A&T 50

Quarterfinals

#8 Hampton 59 #1 Savannah St. 46

#4 Bethune-Cookman (16-16) vs. #5 North Carolina Central (17-14)

#2 Norfolk St. 71 #7 Howard 61

#3 Delaware St. (15-13) vs. #11 Florida A&M (9-22)

This is a one-bid league. With Savannah State suffering an early exit, only Norfolk State can win the automatic bid and avoid a trip to Dayton for the first round.

Missouri Valley

Opening Round

#8 Indiana St. 66 #9 Southern Illinois 51

#7 Drake 65 #10 Bradley 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Wichita St. 72 #8 Indiana St. 48

#4 Illinois St. 54 #5 Northern Iowa 42

#2 Creighton 68 vs. #7 Drake 61

#3 Evansville 72 vs. #6 Missouri St. 64

Semifinals

#4 Illinois St. 65 #1 Wichita St. 64

#2 Creighton 99 #3 Evansville 71

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Creighton 83 #4 Illinois St. 79 OT

Automatic Bid – Creighton 27-5

At-Large – Wichita St. 27-5

Bubble – None

Mountain West

Quarterfinals

#1 San Diego St. (24-6) vs. #8 Boise St. (13-16)

#4 Colorado St. (19-10) vs. #5 T C U (17-13)

#2 New Mexico (24-6) vs. #7 Air Force (13-15)

#3 U N L V (25-7) vs. #6 Wyoming (20-10)

At-Large: San Diego St., UNLV, New Mexico

Upper Bubble: Colorado St.

Lower Bubble: None

TCU and Wyoming lost too many times in February. Both teams can only get there by earning the automatic bid. Colorado State can secure a bid with a win over T C U.

Northeast

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Island 80 #8 Sacred Heart 68

#5 Quinnipiac 80 #4 St. Francis (NY) 72

#3 Robert Morris 87 #6 Monmouth 68

#2 Wagner 87 #7 Central Conn. St. 77

Semifinals

#1 Long Island 78 #5 Quinnipiac 75

#3 Robert Morris 71 #2 Wagner 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Long Island 90 #3 Robert Morris 73

Automatic Bid: LONG ISLAND 25-8

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

Wagner’s slim chances for getting in as a wildcard team went bye-bye with their semifinal loss to RMU.

LIU enters the Big Dance winning 20 of their last 22 games.

Ohio Valley

Opening Round

#5 Southeast Missouri 75 #8 E. Kentucky 65

#7 Jacksonville St. 75 #6 Austin Peay 70

Quarterfinals

#4 Tennessee Tech 77 #5 Southeast Missouri 73

#3 Morehead St. 68 #7 Jacksonville St. 54

Semifinals

#1 Murray St. 78 #4 Tennessee Tech 58

#2 Tennessee St. 59 #3 Morehead St. 52

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Murray St. 54 #2 Tennessee St. 52

Automatic Bid – Murray St. 30-1

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

Murray State should receive a #4 or #5 seed, a #6 at worst.

Pac-12

Opening Round

#9 Oregon St. 69 #8 Washington St. 64

#5 U C L A 55 #12 U S C 40

#7 Stanford 85 #10 Arizona St. 65

#6 Colorado 53 #11 Utah 41

Quarterfinals

#1 Washington (21-9) vs. #9 Oregon State (18-13)

#4 Arizona (21-10) vs. #5 U C L A (19-13)

#2 California (23-8) vs. #7 Stanford (20-10)

#3 Oregon (22-8) vs. #6 Colorado (20-11)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: California, Washington, Arizona

Lower Bubble: Colorado

UCLA and Stanford could move to the lower bubble if they made it to the Championship Game and lost to one of the three current upper bubble teams. Colorado needs to win two games to have any chance at an at-large bid and may really need to reach the Championship Game to have a legitimate shot. The Buffs’ RPI is 82; wins over Utah, Oregon, and Cal with a loss to Washington could elevate CU to around #65-70, and that is still iffy for an RPI ranking.

Patriot League

Quarterfinals

#1 Bucknell 87 #8 Navy 63

#5 Lafayette 84 #4 Holy Cross 76

#2 Lehigh 70 #7 Colgate 57

#3 American 57 #6 Army 40

Semifinals

#1 Bucknell 79 #5 Lafayette 52

#2 Lehigh 85 #3 American 66

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Lehigh 82 #1 Bucknell 77

Automatic Bid: LEHIGH 26-7

At-Large: None

Bubble: None

Southern

Opening Round

#5N Appalachian St. 93 #4S College of Charleston 81

#3N Western Carolina 68 #6S Citadel 56

#5S Furman 75 #4N Samford 66

#3S Georgia Southern 76 #6N Chattanooga 70

Quarterfinals

#1N UNC-Greensboro 65 #5N Appalachian St. 55

#3N Western Carolina 82 #2S Wofford 59

#1S Davidson 73 #5S Furman 54

#2N Elon 65 #3S Georgia Southern 58

Semifinals

#3N Western Carolina 82 #1N UNC-Greensboro 77

#1S Davidson 83 #2N Elon 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1S Davidson 93 #1N UNC-Greensboro 91

Automatic Bid – DAVIDSON 25-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Davidson might not have earned a ticket as an at-large team. Tell that to Kansas coach Bill Self, and he would say you were crazy.

S E C

Opening Round

#8 L S U (17-13) vs. #9 Arkansas (18-13)

#5 Alabama (20-10) vs. #12 South Carolina (10-20)

#7 Ole Miss (18-12) vs. #10 Auburn (15-15)

#6 Mississippi St. (21-10) vs. #11 Georgia (14-16)

At-Large: Kentucky, Florida, Vanderbilt

Upper Bubble: Alabama, Mississippi St.

Lower Bubble: Tennessee, Ole Miss

Tennessee and Ole Miss are the two hot teams other than Kentucky as the tournament commences. Should one of these teams make it to Sunday, it would be hard to keep them out of the field.

Southland

Quarterfinals

#1 UT-Arlington 96 #8 Nicholls St. 48

#4 McNeese St. 78 #5 TX-San Antonio 74 OT

#2 Stephen F Austin 68 #7 Sam Houston 46

#3 Lamar 76 #6 Northwestern State (LA) 69

Semifinals

#1 UT-Arlington (24-7) vs. #4 McNeese St. (16-14)

#2 Stephen F Austin (20-11) vs. #3 Lamar (21-11)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

Texas-Arlington ran away from the field in the regular season standings, but the Mavericks did not run teams out of the gym like they did against Nicholls State yesterday. UT-A is no shoo-in to cop the conference tournament. SF Austin is a worthy competitor, as is Lamar.

S W A C

Quarterfinals

#1 Mississippi Valley St. 63 #8 Jackson St. 60

#4 Alabama St. (12-18) vs. #5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff (10-21)

#2 Texas Southern 75 #7 Alabama A&M 62

#3 Prairie View (14-17) vs. #6 Alcorn St. (9-21)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

In a conference where half of the members lost 20 or more games and 80% had losing records, there is a high probability that the winner of the league’s automatic bid will be playing in Dayton in the opening round. The top two seeds advanced Wednesday and receive a day off until the semifinals.

Summit League

Quarterfinals

#1 Oral Roberts 71 #8 I P F W 67

#4 Western Illinois 58 #5 North Dakota St. 53

#2 South Dakota St. 77 I U P U I 56

#6 Southern Utah 84 #3 Oakland 82

Semifinals

#4 Western Illinois 54 #1 Oral Roberts 53

#2 South Dakota St. 63 #6 Southern Utah 47

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 South Dakota St. 52 #4 Western Illinois 50

Automatic Bid – SOUTH DAKOTA ST. 27-7

At-Large Teams –None

Bubble – Oral Roberts

Sunbelt

Opening Round

#6 South Alabama 87 #11 Troy 81

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #10 Florida Int’l 63

#9 Arkansas St. 70 #8 Florida Atlantic 55

Quarterfinals

#9 Arkansas St. 64 #1 Middle Tennessee 61

#5 North Texas 65 #4 Louisiana-Lafayette 62

#7 Western Kentucky 68 #2 U A L R 63

#3 Denver 61 #6 South Alabama 50

Semifinals

#5 North Texas 76 #9 Arkansas St. 72

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #3 Denver 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#7 Western Kentucky 74 #3 Denver 70

Automatic Bid –WESTERN KENTUCKY 15-18

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Middle Tennessee

W A C

#1 Nevada (25-5) vs. #8 San Jose St. (9-21)

#4 Utah St. (17-14) vs. #5 Louisiana Tech (16-15)

#2 New Mexico St. (23-9) vs. #7 Fresno St. (13-19)

#3 Idaho (18-12) vs. #6 Hawaii (15-15)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: Nevada

For Nevada to earn an at-large bid, all of the major conference tournaments need to be one by high seeds without any other lower bubble teams making a splash.

The dark horse here is Utah State. The 4^th-seeded Aggies have been there before and must be respected as a well-coached team that knows how to win.

West Coast

Opening Round

#8 Portland 74 #9 Santa Clara 70

2^nd Round

#5 San Francisco 87 #8 Portland 66

#6 San Diego 76 #7 Pepperdine 54

Quarterfinals

#5 San Francisco 67 #4 Loyola Marymount 60

#3 B Y U 73 vs. #6 San Diego 68

Semifinals

#1 Saint Mary’s 83 #5 San Francisco 78

#2 Gonzaga 77 #3 B Y U 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Saint Mary’s 78 #2 Gonzaga 74 OT

Automatic Bid – SAINT MARY’S 26-5

At-Large Teams – Gonzaga

Bubble – B Y U

Coming Sometime Before Sunday–A renewable of PiRate Bracketnomics, a mechanical system using backtested data to determine which teams have Final Four resumes.

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March 7, 2012

NCAA College Basketball Conference Tournaments–March 7 Update

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: basketball, Big Dance, Bracketology, Championship, college, Conference, NCAA, tournament — piratings @ 8:48 am

Congratulations are in order to the Harvard Crimson for securing their first bid to the NCAA Tournament since 1946. Harvard (26-4) clinched the Ivy League title following last night’s Princeton win over Penn.

Here is the up-to-date (as of Tuesday Night, March 6) results of all conference tournaments as well as the pairings for today’s games.

America East

Preliminary Round

#9 Binghamton 73 #8 Md.-Balt. Co. 67

Quarterfinals

#1 Stony Brook 78 # 9 Binghamton 69

#4 Albany 63 #5 New Hampshire 45

#2 Vermont 50 #7 Maine 40

#6 Hartford 53 #3 Boston U 49

Semifinals

#1 Stony Brook 57 #4 Albany 55

#2 Vermont 77 #6 Hartford 73 2OT

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Stony Brook (21-8) vs. Vermont (22-11)

This is a one-bid league.

Atlantic Sun

Quarterfinals

#1 Belmont 76 #8 Jacksonville 62

#4 East Tennessee 68 #5 N. Florida 66

#2 Mercer 61 #7 Lipscomb 53

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 71 #3 S. Carolina Upstate 61

Semifinals

#1 Belmont 69 #4 East Tennessee 61

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 62 #2 Mercer 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Belmont 83 Florida Gulf Coast 69

Automatic Bid – BELMONT 27-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Atlantic 10

1^st Round

#8 Massachusetts 92 #9 Duquesne 83

#5 St. Joe’s 80 #12 Charlotte 64

#7 LaSalle 80 #10 Richmond 72

#6 Dayton 67 #11 George Washington 50

Quarterfinals (Friday, March 9)

#1 Temple (24-6) vs. #8 Massachusetts (21-10)

#4 St. Bonaventure (17-11) vs. #5 St. Joe’s (20-12)

#2 St. Louis (24-6) vs. #7 LaSalle (21-11)

#3 Xavier (19-11) vs. #6 Dayton (20-11)

At-Large: Temple

Upper Bubble: St. Louis

Lower Bubble: Xavier, St. Joe’s, and Dayton

Big East

Opening Round

#9 Connecticut 81 #16 Dayton 67

#13 Pittsburgh 73 #12 St. John’s 59

#10 Seton Hall 79 #15 Providence 47

#14 Villanova 70 #11 Rutgers 49

2nd Round

#8 West Virginia (19-12) vs. #9 Connecticut (19-12)

#5 Georgetown (22-7) vs. #13 Pittsburgh (17-15)

#7 Louisville (22-9) vs. #10 Seton Hall (20-11)

#6 South Florida (19-12) vs. #14 Villanova (13-18)

At-Large: Syracuse, Marquette, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Louisville, Cincinnati

Upper Bubble: West Virginia, Seton Hall, South Florida, Connecticut

Lower Bubble: None (Pitt is the only bottom half team with a chance to pull off five upsets and break through with an automatic bid.) South Florida could be in jeopardy if they are upset by Villanova.

Big Sky

Quarterfinals

#3 Portland St. 75 #6 Montana St. 53

#4 Eastern Washington 81 #5 Idaho St. 75

Semifinals

#1 Montana 74 #4 Eastern Washington 66

#2 Weber St. 69 #3 Portland St. 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Montana (24-6) vs. #2 Weber St. (24-5)

This is a one-bid league, but both Montana and Weber State are talented enough to win an opening round game in the NCAA Tournament.

Big South

Preliminary Round

#8 High Point 68 #9 Gardner-Webb 58

#7 VMI 55 #10 Radford 53

Quarterfinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 86 #8 High Point 61

#4 Charleston Sou. 88 #5 Liberty 74

#6 Winthrop 71 #3 Campbell 55

#7 VMI 85 #2 Coastal Carolina 68

Semifinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 91 #4 Charleston Sou. 64

#7 VMI 75 #6 Winthrop 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 UNC-Asheville 80 #7 VMI 64

Automatic Bid – UNC-ASHEVILLE 24-9

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Big 12

Opening Round

#8 Oklahoma (15-15) vs. #9 Texas A&M (13-17)

#7 Oklahoma St. (14-17) vs. #10 Texas Tech (8-22)

At-Large: Kansas, Missouri, Iowa St., Baylor, Kansas St.

Upper Bubble: Texas

Lower Bubble: None (A Texas loss in the quarterfinals would move the Longhorns here.

Colonial Athletic

Opening Round

#9 UNC-Wilmington 70 #8 James Madison 59

#5 Delaware 72 #12 Towson St. 65

#6 Georgia St. 85 #11 Hofstra 50

#7 Northeastern 57 #10 William & Mary 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Drexel 59 #9 UNC-Wilmington 47

#4 Old Dominion 88 #5 Delaware 74

#3 George Mason 61 #6 Georgia St. 59

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 75 #10 William & Mary 65

Semifinals

#1 Drexel 68 #4 Old Dominion 51

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 74 #3 George Mason 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 59 #1 Drexel 56

Automatic Bid – VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH 28-6

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Drexel

Drexel has a chance of earning an at-large bid, but their RPI is on the low side at 68.

Conference USA

Opening Round

#5 U A B (14-15) vs. #12 Tulane (15-15)

#8 U T E P (14-16) vs. #9 Houston (15-14)

#7 Rice (17-14) vs. #10 East Carolina (14-15)

#6 Marshall (18-12) vs. #11 S M U (13-18)

At-Large: Memphis

Upper Bubble: Southern Miss

Lower Bubble: None

Central Florida has a chance to move up to the lower bubble with a run to the finals, but it would still be a remote shot if they lose in the Championship Game.

Horizon League

Opening Round

#4 Milwaukee 68 #9 Illinois-Chi. 55

#5 Butler 70 #8 Wright St. 52

#3 Detroit 80 #10 Loyola (Chi) 71

#6 Youngstown 77 #7 Green Bay 60

Quarterfinals

#5 Butler 71 #4 Milwaukee 49

#3 Detroit 93 #6 Youngstown St. 76

Semifinals

#1 Valparaiso 65 #5 Butler 46

#3 Detroit 63 #2 Cleveland St. 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#3 Detroit 70 #1 Valparaiso 50

Automatic Bid – DETROIT 22-13

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Neither Valpo, Cleveland State nor Butler will earn at-large bids.

M A A C

Preliminary Round

#8 Marist 64 #9 St. Peter’s 57

#7 Niagara 80 #10 Canisius 70

Quarterfinals

#1 Iona 87 #8 Marist 63

#4 Fairfield 65 #5 Rider 63

#2 Loyola (MD) 86 #7 Niagara 73

#6 Siena 84 #3 Manhattan 82

Semifinals

#4 Fairfield 85 #1 Iona 75

#2 Loyola (MD) 70 #6 Siena 60

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Loyola (MD) 48 #4 Fairfield 44

Automatic Bid – LOYOLA (MD) 24-8

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

This is a one-bid league. Iona played their way out of the Big Dance and into the NIT.

M A C

Opening Round

#5 Eastern Michigan (14-17) vs. #12 Northern Illinois (4-25)

#8 Western Michigan (12-19) vs. #9 Ball St. (15-14)

#7 Toledo (16-15) vs. #10 (Miami (O) (9-20)

#6 Bowling Green (16-14) vs. #11 (Central Michigan (10-20)

2^nd Round

#8 Western Michigan (13-19) vs. #12 Northern Illinois (5-25)

#7 Toledo (17-15) vs. #11 Central Michigan (11-20)

This could develop into a two-bid league. Akron has moved up to #62 in the RPI and Ohio is #70. Ohio has a bye to the quarterfinals and Akron has two more byes to the semifinals.

M E A C

Opening Round

#8 Hampton 69 #9 Morgan St. 65

#5 North Carolina Central 60 #12 Md. Eastern Shore 43

#4 Bethune-Cookman 62 #13 South Carolina St. 53

#11 Florida A& M 74 #6 Coppin St. 72

#10 Howard 51 #7 North Carolina A&T 50

Quarterfinals

#1 Savannah St. (21-10) vs. #8 Hampton (11-20)

#4 Bethune-Cookman (16-16) vs. #5 North Carolina Central (17-14)

#2 Norfolk St. (22-9) vs. #7 Howard (10-20)

#3 Delaware St. (15-13) vs. #11 Florida A&M (9-22)

This is a one-bid league. If Savannah St. or Norfolk St. win the tournament, there is a chance for the winner to avoid the opening round in Dayton.

Missouri Valley

Opening Round

#8 Indiana St. 66 #9 Southern Illinois 51

#7 Drake 65 #10 Bradley 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Wichita St. 72 #8 Indiana St. 48

#4 Illinois St. 54 #5 Northern Iowa 42

#2 Creighton 68 vs. #7 Drake 61

#3 Evansville 72 vs. #6 Missouri St. 64

Semifinals

#4 Illinois St. 65 #1 Wichita St. 64

#2 Creighton 99 #3 Evansville 71

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Creighton 83 #4 Illinois St. 79 OT

Automatic Bid – Creighton 27-5

At-Large – Wichita St. 27-5

Bubble – None

Mountain West

Quarterfinals

#1 San Diego St. (24-6) vs. #8 Boise St. (13-16)

#4 Colorado St. (19-10) vs. #5 T C U (17-13)

#2 New Mexico (24-6) vs. #7 Air Force (13-15)

#3 U N L V (25-7) vs. #6 Wyoming (20-10)

At-Large: San Diego St., UNLV, New Mexico

Upper Bubble: Colorado St.

Lower Bubble: None

TCU and Wyoming lost too many times in February. Both teams can only get there by earning the automatic bid. Colorado State can secure a bid with a win over T C U.

Northeast

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Island 80 #8 Sacred Heart 68

#5 Quinnipiac 80 #4 St. Francis (NY) 72

#3 Robert Morris 87 #6 Monmouth 68

#2 Wagner 87 #7 Central Conn. St. 77

Semifinals

#1 Long Island 78 #5 Quinnipiac 75

#3 Robert Morris 71 #2 Wagner 64

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Long Island (23-8) vs. #3 Robert Morris (23-9)

This is a one-bid league.

Ohio Valley

Opening Round

#5 Southeast Missouri 75 #8 E. Kentucky 65

#7 Jacksonville St. 75 #6 Austin Peay 70

Quarterfinals

#4 Tennessee Tech 77 #5 Southeast Missouri 73

#3 Morehead St. 68 #7 Jacksonville St. 54

Semifinals

#1 Murray St. 78 #4 Tennessee Tech 58

#2 Tennessee St. 59 #3 Morehead St. 52

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Murray St. 54 #2 Tennessee St. 52

Automatic Bid – Murray St. 30-1

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

Murray State should receive a #4 or #5 seed, a #6 at worst.

Pac-12

Opening Round

#8 Washington St. (15-15) vs. #9 Oregon St. (17-13)

#5 U C L A (18-13) vs. #12 U S C (6-25)

#7 Stanford (20-10) vs. #10 Arizona St. (10-20)

#6 Colorado (19-11) vs. #11 Utah (6-24)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: California, Washington, Arizona

Lower Bubble: Colorado

Patriot League

Quarterfinals

#1 Bucknell 87 #8 Navy 63

#5 Lafayette 84 #4 Holy Cross 76

#2 Lehigh 70 #7 Colgate 57

#3 American 57 #6 Army 40

Semifinals

#1 Bucknell 79 #5 Lafayette 52

#2 Lehigh 85 #3 American 66

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Bucknell 24-8 vs. #2 Lehigh 25-7

This is a one-bid league.

Southern

Opening Round

#5N Appalachian St. 93 #4S College of Charleston 81

#3N Western Carolina 68 #6S Citadel 56

#5S Furman 75 #4N Samford 66

#3S Georgia Southern 76 #6N Chattanooga 70

Quarterfinals

#1N UNC-Greensboro 65 #5N Appalachian St. 55

#3N Western Carolina 82 #2S Wofford 59

#1S Davidson 73 #5S Furman 54

#2N Elon 65 #3S Georgia Southern 58

Semifinals

#3N Western Carolina 82 #1N UNC-Greensboro 77

#1S Davidson 83 #2N Elon 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1S Davidson 93 #1N UNC-Greensboro 91

Automatic Bid – DAVIDSON 25-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Davidson might not have earned a ticket as an at-large team. Tell that to Kansas coach Bill Self, and he would say you were crazy.

Southland

Quarterfinals

#1 UT-Arlington (23-7) vs. #8 Nicholls St. (10-19)

#4 McNeese St. (15-14) vs. #5 TX-San Antonio (18-13)

#2 Stephen F Austin (19-11) vs. #7 Sam Houston (13-18)

#3 Lamar (20-11) vs. #6 Northwestern State (LA) (16-15)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

Texas-Arlington ran away from the field in the regular season standings, but the Mavericks did not run teams out of the gym. They are no shoo-in to cop the conference tournament. SF Austin is a worthy competitor, as is Lamar.

S W A C

Quarterfinals

#1 Mississippi Valley St. (18-12) vs. #8 Jackson St. (7-23)

#4 Alabama St. (12-18) vs. #5 Arkansas-Pine Bluff (10-21)

#2 Texas Southern (13-17) vs. #7 Alabama A&M (7-20)

#3 Prairie View (14-17) vs. #6 Alcorn St. (9-21)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

In a conference where half of the members lost 20 or more games and 80% had losing records, there is a high probability that the winner of the league’s automatic bid will be playing in Dayton in the opening round. Top seed Mississippi Valley State went 1-11 outside of league play.

Summit League

Quarterfinals

#1 Oral Roberts 71 #8 I P F W 67

#4 Western Illinois 58 #5 North Dakota St. 53

#2 South Dakota St. 77 I U P U I 56

#6 Southern Utah 84 #3 Oakland 82

Semifinals

#4 Western Illinois 54 #1 Oral Roberts 53

#2 South Dakota St. 63 #6 Southern Utah 47

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 South Dakota St. 52 #4 Western Illinois 50

Automatic Bid – SOUTH DAKOTA ST. 27-7

At-Large Teams –None

Bubble – Oral Roberts

Sunbelt

Opening Round

#6 South Alabama 87 #11 Troy 81

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #10 Florida Int’l 63

#9 Arkansas St. 70 #8 Florida Atlantic 55

Quarterfinals

#9 Arkansas St. 64 #1 Middle Tennessee 61

#5 North Texas 65 #4 Louisiana-Lafayette 62

#7 Western Kentucky 68 #2 U A L R 63

#3 Denver 61 #6 South Alabama 50

Semifinals

#5 North Texas 76 #9 Arkansas St. 72

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #3 Denver 63

CHAMPIONSHIP

#7 Western Kentucky 74 #3 Denver 70

Automatic Bid –WESTERN KENTUCKY 15-18

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – Middle Tennessee

W A C

#1 Nevada (25-5) vs. #8 San Jose St. (9-21)

#4 Utah St. (17-14) vs. #5 Louisiana Tech (16-15)

#2 New Mexico St. (23-9) vs. #7 Fresno St. (13-19)

#3 Idaho (18-12) vs. #6 Hawaii (15-15)

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: Nevada

For Nevada to earn an at-large bid, all of the major conference tournaments need to be one by high seeds without any other lower bubble teams making a splash.

The dark horse here is Utah State. The 4^th-seeded Aggies have been there before and must be respected as a well-coached team that knows how to win.

West Coast

Opening Round

#8 Portland 74 #9 Santa Clara 70

2^nd Round

#5 San Francisco 87 #8 Portland 66

#6 San Diego 76 #7 Pepperdine 54

Quarterfinals

#5 San Francisco 67 #4 Loyola Marymount 60

#3 B Y U 73 vs. #6 San Diego 68

Semifinals

#1 Saint Mary’s 83 #5 San Francisco 78

#2 Gonzaga 77 #3 B Y U 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Saint Mary’s 78 #2 Gonzaga 74 OT

Automatic Bid – SAINT MARY’S 26-5

At-Large Teams – Gonzaga

Bubble – B Y U

A Look At The Remaining Conferences

A C C

Tournament Begins March 8 in Atlanta

At-Large: North Carolina, Duke, Florida St., Virginia

Upper Bubble: North Carolina St.

Lower Bubble: Virginia

Big Ten

Tournament Begins March 8 in Indianapolis

At-Large: Ohio St., Michigan St., Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Purdue

Upper Bubble: Northwestern

Lower Bubble: None (Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois have too much ground to make up and need to win the tournament. The three teams have no chance of sneaking in with a loss in the Championship Game).

Big West

Tournament Begins March 8 in Anaheim

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: Long Beach St.

Lower Bubble: None

S E C

Tournament Begins March 8 in New Orleans

At-Large: Kentucky, Florida, Vanderbilt

Upper Bubble: Alabama, Mississippi St.

Lower Bubble: Tennessee, Ole Miss

Tennessee and Ole Miss are the two hot teams other than Kentucky as the tournament commences. Should one of these teams make it to Sunday, it would be hard to keep them out of the field.

Next Update: Thursday, March 8

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March 5, 2012

NCAA Basketball Conference Tournaments–March 5 Update

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: basketball, Big Dance, Bracketology, Championship, college, Conference, NCAA, tournament — piratings @ 3:59 am

Here is an updated look at tournament action to date with the dates and matchups for their next round. This includes all games played through Sunday, March 4.

America East

Preliminary Round

#9 Binghamton 73 #8 Md.-Balt. Co. 67

Quarterfinals

#1 Stony Brook 78 # 9 Binghamton 69

#4 Albany 63 #5 New Hampshire 45

#2 Vermont 50 #7 Maine 40

#6 Hartford 53 #3 Boston U 49

Semifinals

#1 Stony Brook 57 #4 Albany 55

#2 Vermont 77 #6 Hartford 73 2OT

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Stony Brook (21-8) vs. Vermont (22-11)

This is a one-bid league.

Atlantic Sun

Quarterfinals

#1 Belmont 76 #8 Jacksonville 62

#4 East Tennessee 68 #5 N. Florida 66

#2 Mercer 61 #7 Lipscomb 53

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 71 #3 S. Carolina Upstate 61

Semifinals

#1 Belmont 69 #4 East Tennessee 61

#6 Florida Gulf Coast 62 #2 Mercer 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Belmont 83 Florida Gulf Coast 69

Automatic Bid – BELMONT 27-7

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Big Sky

Quarterfinals

#3 Portland St. 75 #6 Montana St. 53

#4 Eastern Washington 81 #5 Idaho St. 75

Semifinals (Tuesday)

#1 Montana (23-6) vs. #4 Eastern Washington (15-16)

#2 Weber St. (23-5) vs. #3 Portland St. 17-13

This is a one-bid league, but both Montana and Weber State are talented enough to win an opening round game in the NCAA Tournament.

Big South

Preliminary Round

#8 High Point 68 #9 Gardner-Webb 58

#7 VMI 55 #10 Radford 53

Quarterfinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 86 #8 High Point 61

#4 Charleston Sou. 88 #5 Liberty 74

#6 Winthrop 71 #3 Campbell 55

#7 VMI 85 #2 Coastal Carolina 68

Semifinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 91 #4 Charleston Sou. 64

#7 VMI 75 #6 Winthrop 55

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 UNC-Asheville 80 #7 VMI 64

Automatic Bid – UNC-ASHEVILLE 24-9

At-Large Teams – None

Bubble – None

Colonial Athletic

Opening Round

#9 UNC-Wilmington 70 #8 James Madison 59

#5 Delaware 72 #12 Towson St. 65

#6 Georgia St. 85 #11 Hofstra 50

#7 Northeastern 57 #10 William & Mary 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Drexel 59 #9 UNC-Wilmington 47

#4 Old Dominion 88 #5 Delaware 74

#3 George Mason 61 #6 Georgia St. 59

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 75 #10 William & Mary 65

Semifinals

#1 Drexel 68 #4 Old Dominion 51

#2 Virginia Commonwealth 74 #3 George Mason 64

CHAMPIONSHIP (Monday)

#1 Drexel (26-5) vs. #2 Virginia Commonwealth (26-6)

The loser of this game should stand a decent chance of earning an at-large bid.

Horizon League

Opening Round

#4 Milwaukee 68 #9 Illinois-Chi. 55

#5 Butler 70 #8 Wright St. 52

#3 Detroit 80 #10 Loyola (Chi) 71

#6 Youngstown 77 #7 Green Bay 60

Quarterfinals

#5 Butler 71 #4 Milwaukee 49

#3 Detroit 93 #6 Youngstown St. 76

Semifinals

#1 Valparaiso 65 #5 Butler 46

#3 Detroit 63 #2 Cleveland St. 58

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Valparaiso (22-10) vs. #3 Detroit (21-13) – Tuesday, March 6

This is a one-bid league. Neither Valpo, Cleveland State nor Butler will earn at-large bids.

M A A C

Preliminary Round

#8 Marist 64 #9 St. Peter’s 57

#7 Niagara 80 #10 Canisius 70

Quarterfinals

#1 Iona 87 #8 Marist 63

#4 Fairfield 65 #5 Rider 63

#2 Loyola (MD) 86 #7 Niagara 73

#6 Siena 84 #3 Manhattan 82

Semifinals

#4 Fairfield 85 #1 Iona 75

#2 Loyola (MD) 70 #6 Siena 60

CHAMPIONSHIP (Monday)

#2 Loyola (MD) (22-8) vs. #4 Fairfield (18-13)

This is a one-bid league. Iona played their way out of the Big Dance and into the NIT.

M A C

Opening Round (Monday)

#5 Eastern Michigan (14-17) vs. #12 Northern Illinois (4-25)

#8 Western Michigan (12-19) vs. #9 Ball St. (15-14)

#7 Toledo (16-15) vs. #10 (Miami (O) (9-20)

#6 Bowling Green (16-14) vs. #11 (Central Michigan (10-20)

This is a one-bid league. The top five teams are in the East Division.

M E A C

Opening Round (Monday)

#8 Hampton (10-20) vs. #9 Morgan St. (9-19)

#5 North Carolina Central (16-14) vs. #12 Md. Eastern Shore (7-22)

#4 Bethune-Cookman (15-16) vs. #13 South Carolina St. (5-25)

#6 Coppin St. (14-15) vs. #11 Florida A&M (8-22)

#7 North Carolina A&T (12-19) vs. #10 Howard (10-20)

This is a one-bid league. If Savannah St. or Norfolk St. win the tournament, there is a chance for the winner to avoid the opening round in Dayton.

Missouri Valley

Opening Round

#8 Indiana St. 66 #9 Southern Illinois 51

#7 Drake 65 #10 Bradley 49

Quarterfinals

#1 Wichita St. 72 #8 Indiana St. 48

#4 Illinois St. 54 #5 Northern Iowa 42

#2 Creighton 68 vs. #7 Drake 61

#3 Evansville 72 vs. #6 Missouri St. 64

Semifinals

#4 Illinois St. 65 #1 Wichita St. 64

#2 Creighton 99 #3 Evansville 71

CHAMPIONSHIP

#2 Creighton 83 #4 Illinois St. 79 OT

Automatic Bid – Creighton 27-5

At-Large – Wichita St. 27-5

Bubble – None

Northeast

Quarterfinals

#1 Long Island 80 #8 Sacred Heart 68

#5 Quinnipiac 80 #4 St. Francis (NY) 72

#3 Robert Morris 87 #6 Monmouth 68

#2 Wagner 87 #7 Central Conn. St. 77

Semifinals

#1 Long Island 78 #5 Quinnipiac 75

#3 Robert Morris 71 #2 Wagner 64

CHAMPIONSHIP (Wednesday)

#1 Long Island (23-8) vs. #3 Robert Morris (23-9)

This is a one-bid league.

Ohio Valley

Opening Round

#5 Southeast Missouri 75 #8 E. Kentucky 65

#7 Jacksonville St. 75 #6 Austin Peay 70

Quarterfinals

#4 Tennessee Tech 77 #5 Southeast Missouri 73

#3 Morehead St. 68 #7 Jacksonville St. 54

Semifinals

#1 Murray St. 78 #4 Tennessee Tech 58

#2 Tennessee St. 59 #3 Morehead St. 52

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Murray St. 54 #2 Tennessee St. 52

Automatic Bid – Murray St. 30-1

At-Large – None

Bubble – None

Murray State should receive a #4 or #5 seed, a #6 at worst.

Patriot League

Quarterfinals

#1 Bucknell 87 #8 Navy 63

#5 Lafayette 84 #4 Holy Cross 76

#2 Lehigh 70 #7 Colgate 57

#3 American 57 #6 Army 40

Semifinals

#1 Bucknell 79 #5 Lafayette 52

#2 Lehigh 85 #3 American 66

CHAMPIONSHIP (Wednesday)

#1 Bucknell 24-8 vs. #2 Lehigh 25-7

This is a one-bid league.

Southern

Opening Round

#5N Appalachian St. 93 #4S College of Charleston 81

#3N Western Carolina 68 #6S Citadel 56

#5S Furman 75 #4N Samford 66

#3S Georgia Southern 76 #6N Chattanooga 70

Quarterfinals

#1N UNC-Greensboro 65 #5N Appalachian St. 55

#3N Western Carolina 82 #2S Wofford 59

#1S Davidson 73 #5S Furman 54

#2N Elon 65 #3S Georgia Southern 58

Semifinals

#3N Western Carolina 82 #1N UNC-Greensboro 77

#1S Davidson 83 #2N Elon 67

CHAMPIONSHIP

#1N UNC-Greensboro (13-19) vs. Davidson (24-7)

Davidson cannot get in as an at-large team, so Wildcats must win to dance.

Summit League

Quarterfinals

#1 Oral Roberts 71 #8 I P F W 67

#4 Western Illinois 58 #5 North Dakota St. 53

#2 South Dakota St. 77 I U P U I 56

#6 Southern Utah 84 #3 Oakland 82

Semifinals

#1 Oral Roberts (27-5) vs. #4 Western Illinois (16-13)

#2 South Dakota St. (25-7) vs. #6 Southern Utah (14-16)

If South Dakota St. and Oral Roberts advance to the Championship Game, and Oral Roberts’ loses, we should see two invitations doled out to the Summit League.

Sunbelt

Opening Round

#6 South Alabama 87 #11 Troy 81

#7 Western Kentucky 67 #10 Florida Int’l 63

#9 Arkansas St. 70 #8 Florida Atlantic 55

Quarterfinals

#9 Arkansas St. 64 #1 Middle Tennessee 61

#5 North Texas 65 #4 Louisiana-Lafayette 62

#7 Western Kentucky 68 #2 U A L R 63

#3 Denver 61 #6 South Alabama 50

Semifinals

#5 North Texas (17-13) vs. #9 Arkansas St. (14-19)

#3 Denver (22-8) vs. #7 Western Kentucky (13-18)

This is a one-bid league. The top two seeds lost in their first games in this unique tournament played in two separate gyms in the same building. Middle Tennessee may still be on the bubble, but they are more than likely headed to the NIT. If Arkansas St. or Western Kentucky win this tournament, they will be headed to the first round in Dayton.

West Coast

Opening Round

#8 Portland 74 #9 Santa Clara 70

2^nd Round

#5 San Francisco 87 #8 Portland 66

#6 San Diego 76 #7 Pepperdine 54

Quarterfinals

#5 San Francisco 67 #4 Loyola Marymount 60

#3 B Y U 73 vs. #6 San Diego 68

Semifinals

#1 Saint Mary’s 83 #5 San Francisco 78

#2 Gonzaga 77 #3 B Y U 58

CHAMPIONSHIP (Monday)

#1 Saint Mary’s 26-5 vs. #2 Gonzaga 25-5

This looks like a three-bid league, with the two finalists and BYU all headed to the Big Dance.

A Look At The Remaining Conferences

Atlantic 10

Tournament Begins March 6 on Campus Sites and moves to Atlantic City on March 9

At-Large: Temple

Upper Bubble: St. Louis

Lower Bubble: Xavier, St. Joe’s, and Dayton

A C C

Tournament Begins March 8 in Atlanta

At-Large: North Carolina, Duke, Florida St., Virginia

Upper Bubble: North Carolina St.

Lower Bubble: Virginia

Big East

Tournament Begins March 6 in New York City

At-Large: Syracuse, Marquette, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Louisville, Cincinnati

Upper Bubble: West Virginia, Seton Hall, South Florida, Connecticut

Lower Bubble: None (Pitt is the only bottom half team with a chance to pull off five upsets and break through with an automatic bid.

Big Ten

Tournament Begins March 8 in Indianapolis

At-Large: Ohio St., Michigan St., Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, Purdue

Upper Bubble: Northwestern

Lower Bubble: None (Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois have too much ground to make up and need to win the tournament. The three teams have no chance of sneaking in with a loss in the Championship Game).

Big 12

Tournament Begins March 7 in Kansas City

At-Large: Kansas, Missouri, Iowa St., Baylor, Kansas St.

Upper Bubble: Texas

Lower Bubble: None (A Texas loss in the quarterfinals would move the Longhorns here.

Big West

Tournament Begins March 8 in Anaheim

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: Long Beach St.

Lower Bubble: None

Conference USA

Tournament Begins March 7 in Memphis

At-Large: Memphis

Upper Bubble: Southern Miss

Lower Bubble: None

Central Florida has a chance to move up to the lower bubble with a run to the finals, but it would still be a remote shot if they lose in the Championship Game.

Mountain West

Tournament Begins March 6 in Las Vegas

At-Large: San Diego St., UNLV, New Mexico

Upper Bubble: Colorado St.

Lower Bubble: None

TCU and Wyoming lost too many times in February. Both teams can only get there by earning the automatic bid.

Pac-12

Tournament Begins March 7 in Los Angeles

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: California, Washington, Arizona

Lower Bubble: Colorado

UCLA and Stanford could move to the lower bubble if they lost in the Championship Game. Colorado needs to win two games to have any chance at an at-large bid.

S E C

Tournament Begins March 8 in New Orleans

At-Large: Kentucky, Florida, Vanderbilt

Upper Bubble: Alabama, Mississippi St.

Lower Bubble: Tennessee, Ole Miss

Tennessee and Ole Miss are the two hot teams other than Kentucky as the tournament commences. Should one of these teams make it to Sunday, it would be hard to keep them out of the field.

Southland

Tournament Begins March 7 in Katy, TX

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

Texas-Arlington ran away from the field in the regular season, but the Mavericks did not run teams out of the gym. They are no shoo-in to cop the conference tournament.

S W A C

Tournament Begins March 7 in Garland, TX

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: None

In a conference where half of the members lost 20 or more games and 80% had losing records, there is a high probability that the winner of the league’s automatic bid will be playing in Dayton in the opening round. Top seed Mississippi Valley State went 1-11 outside of league play.

W A C

Tournament Begins March 7 in Las Vegas

At-Large: None

Upper Bubble: None

Lower Bubble: Nevada

For Nevada to earn an at-large bid, all of the major conference tournaments need to be one by high seeds without any other lower bubble teams making a splash.

Next Update: Wednesday March 7

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March 2, 2012

NCAA Basketball Conference Tournaments–1st Update

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: basketball, Big Dance, Bracketology, Championship, college, Conference, NCAA, tournament — piratings @ 10:16 am

Conference Tournament action has begun in several conferences with more set to tip off this weekend. Here is a look at tournament action to date with the dates and matchups for their next round.

America East

Preliminary Round

#9Binghamton73 #8 Md.-Balt.Co.67

Quarterfinals (Saturday)

#1 Stony Brook (20-8) vs. # 9Binghamton(2-28)

#4Albany(18-13) vs. #5New Hampshire(13-15)

#2Vermont(20-11) vs. #7Maine(12-16)

#3BostonU (16-15) vs. #6Hartford(8-21)

Atlantic Sun

Quarterfinals

#1Belmont76 #8Jacksonville62

#4 East Tennessee 68 #5N. Florida66

#2 Mercer 61 #7 Lipscomb 53

#6FloridaGulfCoast71 #3S. CarolinaUpstate 61

Semifinals (Friday)

#1Belmont(25-7) vs. #4East Tennessee(17-13)

#2 Mercer (22-10) vs. #6FloridaGulfCoast(14-16)

Big South

Preliminary Round

#8High Point68 #9 Gardner-Webb 58

#7 VMI 55 #10 Radford 53

Quarterfinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 86 #8High Point61

#4CharlestonSou. 88 #5Liberty74

#6Winthrop71 #3Campbell55

#7 VMI 85 #2 CoastalCarolina68

Semifinals

#1 UNC-Asheville 91 #4CharlestonSou. 64

#7 VMI 75 #6Winthrop55

Championship Game (Saturday @ Noon EST)

#1 UNC-Asheville (23-9) vs. #7 VMI (17-15)

Horizon League

Opening Round

#4Milwaukee68 #9 Illinois-Chi. 55

#5Butler70 #8 WrightSt.52

#3Detroit80 #10 Loyola (Chi) 71

#6Youngstown77 #7Green Bay60

Quarterfinals (Friday)

#4Milwaukee(20-12) vs. #5Butler(19-13)

#3Detroit(19-13) vs.#6 Youngstown St.(16-14)

M A A C

Preliminary Round (Friday)

#8 Marist (13-17) vs. #9St.Peter’s (5-25)

#7Niagara(13-18) vs. #10 Canisius (5-24)

Missouri Valley

Opening Round

#8 Indiana St.66 #9Southern Illinois51

#7 Drake 65 #10 Bradley 49

Quarterfinals (Friday)

#1 Wichita St.(26-4) vs.#8 Indiana St.(18-13)

#4 Illinois St.(18-12) vs. #5Northern Iowa(19-12)

#2 Creighton (25-5) vs. #7 Drake (17-14)

#3Evansville(15-14) vs.#6 Missouri St.(15-15)

Northeast

Quarterfinals

#1Long Island80 #8 Sacred Heart 68

#5 Quinnipiac 80 #4St.Francis (NY) 72

#3 Robert Morris 87 #6 Monmouth 68

#2 Wagner 87 #7 CentralConn.St.77

Semifinals (Sunday)

#1Long Island(23-8) vs. #5 Quinnipiac (18-12)

#2 Wagner (25-5) vs. #3 Robert Morris (23-9)

Ohio Valley

Opening Round

#5 Southeast Missouri 75 #8E. Kentucky65

#7 Jacksonville St.75 #6AustinPeay 70

Quarterfinals

#4TennesseeTech 77 #5Southeast Missouri73

#3 Morehead St.68 #7 Jacksonville St.54

Semifinals (Friday)

Note: This tournament could be delayed due to severe weather threat in Nashville)

#1 Murray St.(28-1) vs. #4TennesseeTech (19-12)

#2 Tennessee St.(19-11) vs.#3 Morehead St.(18-14)

Patriot League

Quarterfinals

#1 Bucknell 87 #8 Navy 63

#5Lafayette84 #4 Holy Cross 76

#2 Lehigh 70 #7 Colgate 57

#3 American 57 #6 Army 40

Semifinals (Saturday)

#1 Bucknell (23-8) vs. #5Lafayette(13-17)

#2 Lehigh (24-7) vs. #3 American (20-10)

West Coast

Opening Round

#8Portland74 #9Santa Clara70

2^nd Round

#5San Francisco87 #8Portland66

#6San Diego76 #7 Pepperdine 54

Quarterfinals (Friday)

#4 Loyola Marymount (19-11) vs. #5San Francisco(19-12)

#3 B Y U (24-7) vs. #6San Diego(13-17)

Mid-Major Teams in Top 65 of RPI (On the Bubble)

Sure Things

11Temple

12WichitaState

16 SouthernMississippi

17 U N L V

18Memphis

High Chances

20 Colorado St.

24 Gonzaga

25 Creighton

26 San Diego St.

29St. Louis

Good Chances

31 Murray St.

33New Mexico

36 Long Beach St.

37 Saint Mary’s

38 Harvard

Need To Do Some Work

43 Oral Roberts

44Iona

47 tie Middle Tennessee

47 tie Nevada

52 B Y U

Need A Miracle

53St.Joe’s

55 Xavier

58 South Dakota St.

Probably Need To Earn Automatic Bid

61VirginiaCommonwealth

62Northern Iowa

63 tie Drexel

63 tie Belmont

65 CentralFlorida

Major Conference At-large Candidates

A C C

Sure Things

North Carolina

Duke

FloridaState

Need To Do Some Work

Virginia

Miami(Fla)

North Carolina St.

Need A Miracle

Clemson

Big East

Sure Things

Syracuse

Marquette

Georgetown

Louisville

Notre Dame

Need To Do Some Work

Connecticut

Seton Hall

West Virginia

Cincinnati

South Florida

Big Ten

Sure Things

MichiganState

OhioState

Michigan

Wisconsin

Indiana

Need To Do Some Work

Purdue

Need A Miracle

Northwestern

Big 12

Sure Things

Kansas

Missouri

Baylor

IowaState

KansasState

Need To Do Some Work

Texas

Pac-12

Sure Things

Need To Do Some Work

California

Oregon

Washington

Need A Miracle

Arizona

Next Update: Sunday, March 4

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April 5, 2009

A PiRate Look At The 2009 NCAA Basketball Championship Game

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: basketball, Championship, Danny Green, Delvon Roe, Deon Thompson, Detroit, Ford Field, Goran Suton, Kalin Lucas, Michigan State, NCAA, North Carolina, Raymar Morgan, Roy Williams, Spartans, Tar Heels, Tom Izzo, tournament, Travis Walton, Ty Lawson, Tyler Hansbrough, Wayne Ellington — piratings @ 8:32 pm

A PiRate Look At The NCAA Final Four

The National Championship Game

April 6, 2009

Ford Field: Detroit

Tip Time: 9:21 PM EDT

Michigan State (31-6) vs. North Carolina (33-4)

Note: Team info courtesy of the two schools’ official athletic websites

Michigan State Spartans

No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Pos.	Year	Hometown/High School
00	Ibok, Idong	6-11	260	C	RS SR	Lagos, Nigeria/Montverde (Fla.) Academy
1	Lucas, Kalin	6-0	180	G	SO	Sterling Heights, Mich./Orchard Lake St. Mary’s
2	Morgan, Raymar	6-8	225	F	JR	Canton, Ohio/McKinley
3	Allen, Chris	6-3	205	G	SO	Lawrenceville, Ga./Meadowcreek
5	Walton, Travis	6-2	190	G	SR	Lima, Ohio/Lima Senior
10	Roe, Delvon	6-8	225	F	FR	Lakewood, Ohio/St. Edward
13	Thornton, Austin	6-5	210	G	RS FR	Sand Lake, Mich./Cedar Springs
14	Suton, Goran	6-10	245	C	RS SR	Lansing, Mich./Everett
15	Summers, Durrell	6-4	195	G	SO	Detroit, Mich./Redford Covenant Christian
20	Kebler, Mike	6-4	200	G	SO	Okemos, Mich./Okemos
22	Dahlman, Isaiah	6-6	200	G	JR	Braham, Minn./Braham Area
23	Green, Draymond	6-6	235	F	FR	Saginaw, Mich./Saginaw
25	Crandell, Jon	6-8	225	F	JR	Rochester, Mich./Rochester Adams
34	Lucious, Korie	5-11	170	G	FR	Milwaukee, Wis./Pius XI
40	Herzog, Tom	7-0	240	C	RS SO	Flint, Mich./Powers
41	Gray, Marquise	6-8	235	F	RS SR	Flint, Mich./Beecher

Coaches

Tom Izzo – Head Coach

Mark Montgomery – Associate Head Coach

Dwayne Stephens – Assistant Coach

Mike Garland – Assistant Coach

Jordan Ott – Video Coordinator

Richard Bader – Director of Basketball Operations

2008-09 Michigan State Basketball

Michigan State Combined Team Statistics (as of Apr 05, 2009)

All games

RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL

ALL GAMES……….. (31-6) (12-2) (9-1) (10-3)

CONFERENCE………. (15-3) (7-2) (8-1) (0-0)

NON-CONFERENCE…… (16-3) (5-0) (1-0) (10-3)

DATE OPPONENT W/L SCORE ATTEND

———— ——————– — —– ——

11/16/08 IDAHO W 100-62 14759

11/19/08 at IPFW W 70-59 6704

11/27/08 vs Maryland L 62-80 4464

11/28/08 vs Oklahoma State W 94-79 4658

11/30/08 vs Wichita State W 65-57 3768

12/03/08 vs North Carolina L 63-98 25267

12/07/08 BRADLEY W 75-59 14759

12/13/08 ALCORN STATE W 118-60 14759

12/17/08 THE CITADEL W 79-65 14759

12/20/08 vs Texas W 67-63 17074

@12/27/08 vs Oakland University W 82-66 15361

*12/31/08 at Minnesota W 70-58 14625

*1/3/09 at Northwestern W 77-66 8117

*01/06/09 OHIO STATE W 67-58 14759

01/10/09 KANSAS W 75-62 14759

*1/14/09 at Penn State W 78-73 10270

*1/17/09 ILLINOIS W 63-57 14759

*1/21/09 NORTHWESTERN L 63-70 14759

*01/25/09 at Ohio State W 78-67 18767

*01/29/09 at Iowa Hawkeyes W 71-56 13640

*02/01/09 PENN STATE L 68-72 14759

*2/4/09 MINNESOTA W 76-47 14759

*2/7/09 INDIANA W 75-47 14759

*02/10/09 at Michigan W 54-42 13751

*02/17/09 at Purdue L 54-72 14123

*02/22/09 WISCONSIN W 61-50 14759

*02/25/09 IOWA HAWKEYES W 62-54 14759

*03/01/09 at Illinois W 74-66 16618

*3-3-09 at Indiana W 64-59 15006

*03/08/09 PURDUE W 62-51 14759

3-13-09 vs Minnesota W 64-56 13023

3-14-09 vs Ohio State L 70-82 15728

03/20/09 vs Robert Morris W 77-62 12814

03/22/09 vs Southern Cal W 74-69 14279

3/27/09 vs Kansas W 67-62 33780

3/29/09 vs Louisville W 64-52 36084

4/4/09 vs Connecticut W 82-73 72456

* = Conference game

## SUMMARY GP-GS Min FG% 3PT% FT% R/G A/G STL BLK PTS/G

—————————————————————————–

01 Lucas, Kalin…….. 37-36 31.8 .397 .394 .810 2.2 4.6 39 6 14.7

02 Morgan, Raymar…… 34-25 22.6 .526 .238 .654 5.4 1.2 23 7 10.4

14 Suton, Goran…….. 31-28 26.6 .513 .409 .848 8.3 1.6 36 14 10.2

03 Allen, Chris…….. 37-5 19.1 .371 .325 .800 2.3 1.3 14 0 8.5

15 Summers, Durrell…. 37-13 21.4 .436 .387 .719 3.4 0.8 25 12 8.5

10 Roe, Delvon……… 37-30 18.0 .563 .000 .459 5.1 0.9 16 28 5.7

05 Walton, Travis…… 37-36 27.9 .415 .600 .578 2.3 3.4 56 1 5.2

41 Gray, Marquise…… 37-5 9.7 .584 .000 .674 2.9 0.3 4 12 3.2

23 Green, Draymond….. 36-0 11.4 .544 .000 .617 3.2 0.9 20 9 3.2

34 Lucious, Korie…… 37-1 8.9 .376 .351 .667 0.9 1.3 10 2 3.1

13 Thornton, Austin…. 26-0 3.7 .375 .235 .750 0.7 0.3 4 0 1.2

00 Ibok, Idong……… 27-5 6.1 .375 .000 .667 0.9 0.2 0 7 0.4

40 Herzog, Tom……… 15-1 2.1 .600 .000 .571 0.7 0.1 0 4 0.7

22 Dahlman, Isaiah….. 15-0 1.8 .500 .333 .250 0.6 0.0 0 0 0.7

25 Crandell, Jon……. 9-0 1.1 1.000 .000 1.000 0.0 0.0 0 0 0.4

20 Kebler, Mike…….. 8-0 1.3 .500 .000 1.000 0.3 0.1 0 0 0.5

TM Team……………. 37-0 0.0 .000 .000 .000 3.2 0.0 0 0 0.0

Total…………… 37 .452 .357 .697 38.9 16.2 247 102 72.0

Opponents……….. 37 .414 .316 .696 29.5 11.5 220 131 63.0

SCORING GP FG-FGA FG% 3FG-FGA 3PT% FT-FTA FT% PTS PTS/G

——————————————————————————–

Lucas, Kalin…….. 37 169-426 .397 41-104 .394 166-205 .810 545 14.7

Morgan, Raymar…… 34 131-249 .526 5-21 .238 87-133 .654 354 10.4

Suton, Goran…….. 31 116-226 .513 18-44 .409 67-79 .848 317 10.2

Allen, Chris…….. 37 104-280 .371 52-160 .325 56-70 .800 316 8.5

Summers, Durrell…. 37 112-257 .436 43-111 .387 46-64 .719 313 8.5

Roe, Delvon……… 37 80-142 .563 0-0 .000 51-111 .459 211 5.7

Walton, Travis…… 37 81-195 .415 3-5 .600 26-45 .578 191 5.2

Gray, Marquise…… 37 45-77 .584 0-0 .000 29-43 .674 119 3.2

Green, Draymond….. 36 43-79 .544 0-1 .000 29-47 .617 115 3.2

Lucious, Korie…… 37 38-101 .376 27-77 .351 12-18 .667 115 3.1

Thornton, Austin…. 26 9-24 .375 4-17 .235 9-12 .750 31 1.2

Ibok, Idong……… 27 3-8 .375 0-0 .000 4-6 .667 10 0.4

Herzog, Tom……… 15 3-5 .600 0-0 .000 4-7 .571 10 0.7

Dahlman, Isaiah….. 15 4-8 .500 1-3 .333 1-4 .250 10 0.7

Crandell, Jon……. 9 1-1 1.000 0-0 .000 2-2 1.000 4 0.4

Kebler, Mike…….. 8 1-2 .500 0-1 .000 2-2 1.000 4 0.5

Total…………… 37 940-2080 .452 194-544 .357 591-848 .697 2665 72.0

Opponents……….. 37 811-1957 .414 224-708 .316 485-697 .696 2331 63.0

REBOUNDS

TOTALS GP MIN OFF DEF TOT PF FO A TO A/TO HI

————————————————————————-

Lucas, Kalin…….. 37 1178 26 54 80 47 0 169 78 2.2 24

Morgan, Raymar…… 34 768 62 121 183 85 2 41 61 0.7 29

Suton, Goran…….. 31 824 91 167 258 78 1 50 55 0.9 20

Allen, Chris…….. 37 706 27 57 84 62 0 47 50 0.9 21

Summers, Durrell…. 37 791 49 75 124 57 0 28 53 0.5 26

Roe, Delvon……… 37 665 76 113 189 80 1 35 41 0.9 16

Walton, Travis…… 37 1031 24 60 84 94 1 124 48 2.6 18

Gray, Marquise…… 37 358 38 69 107 57 0 12 35 0.3 12

Green, Draymond….. 36 410 37 78 115 63 2 31 22 1.4 16

Lucious, Korie…… 37 330 4 28 32 36 1 47 40 1.2 16

Thornton, Austin…. 26 97 4 14 18 14 0 7 6 1.2 9

Ibok, Idong……… 27 164 9 15 24 28 0 5 13 0.4 2

Herzog, Tom……… 15 31 3 8 11 3 0 1 0 99.0 5

Dahlman, Isaiah….. 15 27 3 6 9 1 0 0 0 0.0 6

Crandell, Jon……. 9 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 2

Kebler, Mike…….. 8 10 1 1 2 0 0 1 0 99.0 2

Total…………… 37 7400 520 920 1440 706 8 598 511 1.2 118

Opponents……….. 37 7400 342 751 1093 734 – 427 508 0.8 98

TEAM STATISTICS MSU OPP

————————————————–

SCORING…………….. 2665 2331

Points per game……. 72.0 63.0

Scoring margin…….. +9.0 –

FIELD GOALS-ATT……… 940-2080 811-1957

Field goal pct…….. .452 .414

3 POINT FG-ATT………. 194-544 224-708

3-point FG pct…….. .357 .316

3-pt FG made per game. 5.2 6.1

FREE THROWS-ATT……… 591-848 485-697

Free throw pct…….. .697 .696

F-Throws made per game 16.0 13.1

REBOUNDS……………. 1440 1093

Rebounds per game….. 38.9 29.5

Rebounding margin….. +9.4 –

ASSISTS…………….. 598 427

Assists per game…… 16.2 11.5

TURNOVERS…………… 511 508

Turnovers per game…. 13.8 13.7

Turnover margin……. -0.1 –

Assist/turnover ratio. 1.2 0.8

STEALS……………… 247 220

Steals per game……. 6.7 5.9

BLOCKS……………… 102 131

Blocks per game……. 2.8 3.5

ATTENDANCE………….. 206626 400377

Home games-Avg/Game… 14-14759 10-13162

Neutral site-Avg/Game. – 13-20674

SCORE BY PERIODS: 1st 2nd Total

————————- —- —- —-

Michigan State……….. 1290 1375 – 2665

Opponents……………. 1096 1235 – 2331

North Carolina Tar Heels

No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Pos.	Yr.	Hometown (High School)
1	Marcus Ginyard	6-5	220	G/F	SR	Alexandria, Va. (Bishop O’Connell)
2	Marc Campbell	5-11	175	G	JR	Wilmington, N.C. (Ravenscroft)
4	Bobby Frasor	6-3	210	G	SR	Blue Island, Ill. (Brother Rice)
5	Ty Lawson	5-11	195	G	JR	Clinton, Md. (Oak Hill Academy (Va.))
11	Larry Drew II	6-1	180	G	FR	Encino, Calif. (Woodland Hills Taft)
13	Will Graves	6-6	245	F/G	SO	Greensboro, N.C. (Dudley)
14	Danny Green	6-6	210	F/G	SR	North Babylon, N.Y. (St. Mary’s)
15	J.B. Tanner	6-0	185	G	SR	Hendersonville, N.C. (West Henderson)
21	Deon Thompson	6-8	245	F	JR	Torrance, Calif. (Torrance)
22	Wayne Ellington	6-4	200	G	JR	Wynnewood, Pa. (The Episcopal Academy)
24	Justin Watts	6-4	205	G	FR	Durham, N.C. (Jordan)
30	Jack Wooten	6-2	190	G	SR	Burlington, N.C. (Williams)
32	Ed Davis	6-10	215	F	FR	Richmond, Va. (Benedictine)
35	Patrick Moody	6-4	195	F	SR	Asheville, N.C. (T.C. Roberson)
40	Mike Copeland	6-7	235	F	SR	Winston-Salem, N.C. (R.J. Reynolds)
44	Tyler Zeller	7-0	220	F	FR	Washington, Ind. (Washington)
50	Tyler Hansbrough	6-9	250	F	SR	Poplar Bluff, Mo. (Poplar Bluff)

Coaching Staff

Roy Williams – Head Coach

Joe Holladay – Assistant Coach

Steve Robinson – Assistant Coach

C.B. McGrath – Assistant Coach

Jerod Haase – Director of Basketball Operations

Chris Hirth – Head Athletic Trainer

Eric Hoots – Video Coordinator

Jonas Sahratian – Strength & Conditioning Coordinator

North Carolina Season Schedule/Results & Leaders (as of Apr 05, 2009)

North Carolina Combined Team Statistics (as of Apr 05, 2009)

All games

RECORD: OVERALL HOME AWAY NEUTRAL

ALL GAMES……….. (33-4) (14-1) (8-2) (11-1)

CONFERENCE………. (13-3) (7-1) (6-2) (0-0)

NON-CONFERENCE…… (20-1) (7-0) (2-0) (11-1)

DATE OPPONENT W/L SCORE ATTEND

———— ——————– — —– ——

11/15/08 PENN W 86-71 19623

11/18/08 KENTUCKY W 77-58 21538

11/21/08 at UC Santa Barbara W 84-67 6000

11-24-08 vs CHAMINADE W 115-70 2500

11-25-08 vs Oregon W 98-69 2500

11-26-08 vs Notre Dame W 102-87 2500

11/30/08 UNC ASHEVILLE W 116-48 18054

12/03/08 vs Michigan State W 98-63 25267

12/13/08 ORAL ROBERTS W 100-84 21269

12/18/08 EVANSVILLE W 91-73 21291

12/20/08 vs VALPO W 85-63 10645

12/28/08 RUTGERS W 97-75 21750

12-31-08 at Nevada W 84-61 10526

*01/04/09 BOSTON COLLEGE L 78-85 21750

01/07/09 COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON W 108-70 20543

*01/11/09 at Wake Forest L 89-92 14714

*01/15/09 at Virginia W 83-61 13811

*01/17/09 MIAMI W 82-65 21750

*01/21/09 CLEMSON W 94-70 21750

*01/28/09 at Florida State W 80-77 11333

*01/31/09 at NC State W 93-76 19700

*02/03/09 MARYLAND W 108-91 20863

*02/07/09 VIRGINIA W 76-61 20879

*2/11/09 at Duke W 101-87 9314

*2/15/09 at Miami W 69-65 7200

*02/18/09 NC STATE W 89-80 21750

*02/21/09 at Maryland LOT 85-88 17950

*02/28/09 GEORGIA TECH W 104-74 20959

*03/04/09 at Virginia Tech W 86-78 9847

*03/08/09 DUKE W 79-71 21750

3/13/09 vs Virginia Tech W 79-76 26352

3/14/09 vs Florida State L 70-73 26352

03/19/09 vs Radford W 101-58 20226

03/21/09 vs LSU W 84-70 22479

3/27/09 vs Gonzaga W 98-77 17103

3/29/09 vs Oklahoma W 72-60 17025

4/4/09 vs Villanova W 83-69 72456

## SUMMARY GP-GS Min FG% 3PT% FT% R/G A/G STL BLK PTS/G

—————————————————————————–

50 Tyler Hansbrough…. 33-33 30.2 .517 .429 .850 8.2 1.0 42 12 20.8

05 Lawson, Ty………. 34-34 29.7 .539 .486 .795 2.9 6.6 67 5 16.5

22 Wayne Ellington….. 37-36 30.3 .480 .408 .773 4.9 2.7 36 6 15.8

14 Danny Green……… 37-37 27.5 .470 .414 .852 4.7 2.7 66 51 13.3

21 Deon Thompson……. 37-36 24.9 .495 .000 .642 5.8 0.7 35 40 10.6

32 Ed Davis………… 37-2 19.0 .511 .000 .587 6.5 0.6 14 65 6.5

13 Will Graves……… 20-0 11.2 .437 .278 .889 2.6 0.8 7 2 4.0

44 Tyler Zeller…….. 14-2 8.3 .472 .000 .800 2.1 0.2 3 3 3.3

04 Frasor, Bobby……. 37-4 17.3 .330 .278 .462 2.0 1.4 22 5 2.6

11 Larry Drew II……. 37-0 9.7 .357 .231 .412 1.1 2.0 15 1 1.4

01 Ginyard, Marcus….. 3-0 12.3 .250 .000 .500 2.7 1.3 2 0 1.3

15 J.B. Tanner……… 20-0 2.2 .421 .357 .333 0.4 0.1 1 0 1.2

35 Patrick Moody……. 20-0 2.2 .583 .000 .615 0.8 0.0 2 3 1.1

40 Mike Copeland……. 16-1 2.6 .250 .000 1.000 0.8 0.1 0 0 0.8

24 Justin Watts…….. 26-0 3.2 .226 .000 .429 0.7 0.2 2 3 0.7

30 Jack Wooten……… 19-0 1.9 .364 .200 .250 0.3 0.1 0 0 0.5

02 Campbell, Marc…… 19-0 1.9 .500 .000 1.000 0.2 0.5 2 0 0.2

TM TEAM……………. 37-0 0.0 .000 .000 .000 3.1 0.0 0 0 0.0

Total…………… 37 .481 .387 .754 42.2 18.2 316 196 89.8

Opponents……….. 37 .411 .338 .692 35.5 13.6 265 162 72.0

SCORING GP FG-FGA FG% 3FG-FGA 3PT% FT-FTA FT% PTS PTS/G

——————————————————————————–

Tyler Hansbrough…. 33 217-420 .517 9-21 .429 243-286 .850 686 20.8

Lawson, Ty………. 34 179-332 .539 51-105 .486 151-190 .795 560 16.5

Wayne Ellington….. 37 208-433 .480 82-201 .408 85-110 .773 583 15.8

Danny Green……… 37 182-387 .470 75-181 .414 52-61 .852 491 13.3

Deon Thompson……. 37 161-325 .495 0-0 .000 70-109 .642 392 10.6

Ed Davis………… 37 94-184 .511 0-0 .000 54-92 .587 242 6.5

Will Graves……… 20 31-71 .437 10-36 .278 8-9 .889 80 4.0

Tyler Zeller…….. 14 17-36 .472 0-0 .000 12-15 .800 46 3.3

Frasor, Bobby……. 37 36-109 .330 20-72 .278 6-13 .462 98 2.6

Larry Drew II……. 37 20-56 .357 6-26 .231 7-17 .412 53 1.4

Ginyard, Marcus….. 3 1-4 .250 0-0 .000 2-4 .500 4 1.3

J.B. Tanner……… 20 8-19 .421 5-14 .357 2-6 .333 23 1.2

Patrick Moody……. 20 7-12 .583 0-0 .000 8-13 .615 22 1.1

Mike Copeland……. 16 4-16 .250 0-2 .000 5-5 1.000 13 0.8

Justin Watts…….. 26 7-31 .226 0-6 .000 3-7 .429 17 0.7

Jack Wooten……… 19 4-11 .364 1-5 .200 1-4 .250 10 0.5

Campbell, Marc…… 19 1-2 .500 0-1 .000 2-2 1.000 4 0.2

Total…………… 37 1177-2448 .481 259-670 .387 711-943 .754 3324 89.8

Opponents……….. 37 991-2413 .411 267-791 .338 414-598 .692 2663 72.0

REBOUNDS

TOTALS GP MIN OFF DEF TOT PF FO A TO A/TO HI

————————————————————————-

Tyler Hansbrough…. 33 995 102 167 269 74 1 32 61 0.5 34

Lawson, Ty………. 34 1011 23 77 100 59 0 224 65 3.4 25

Wayne Ellington….. 37 1120 55 127 182 55 0 101 62 1.6 34

Danny Green……… 37 1016 68 107 175 79 2 100 61 1.6 26

Deon Thompson……. 37 920 70 143 213 81 1 26 46 0.6 22

Ed Davis………… 37 702 81 161 242 70 1 22 40 0.6 15

Will Graves……… 20 224 22 29 51 32 0 15 23 0.7 10

Tyler Zeller…….. 14 116 11 18 29 19 0 3 8 0.4 18

Frasor, Bobby……. 37 639 22 52 74 49 0 53 26 2.0 9

Larry Drew II……. 37 360 5 36 41 36 0 74 45 1.6 5

Ginyard, Marcus….. 3 37 6 2 8 5 0 4 3 1.3 3

J.B. Tanner……… 20 44 2 5 7 4 0 1 1 1.0 9

Patrick Moody……. 20 43 4 11 15 7 0 0 3 0.0 6

Mike Copeland……. 16 41 4 9 13 8 0 1 2 0.5 5

Justin Watts…….. 26 84 6 13 19 6 0 5 9 0.6 9

Jack Wooten……… 19 37 0 5 5 1 0 2 2 1.0 4

Campbell, Marc…… 19 36 1 3 4 2 0 9 7 1.3 2

Total…………… 37 7425 545 1017 1562 587 5 672 465 1.4 116

Opponents……….. 37 7425 481 834 1315 757 – 505 584 0.9 92

TEAM STATISTICS NC OPP

————————————————–

SCORING…………….. 3324 2663

Points per game……. 89.8 72.0

Scoring margin…….. +17.9 –

FIELD GOALS-ATT……… 1177-2448 991-2413

Field goal pct…….. .481 .411

3 POINT FG-ATT………. 259-670 267-791

3-point FG pct…….. .387 .338

3-pt FG made per game. 7.0 7.2

FREE THROWS-ATT……… 711-943 414-598

Free throw pct…….. .754 .692

F-Throws made per game 19.2 11.2

REBOUNDS……………. 1562 1315

Rebounds per game….. 42.2 35.5

Rebounding margin….. +6.7 –

ASSISTS…………….. 672 505

Assists per game…… 18.2 13.6

TURNOVERS…………… 465 584

Turnovers per game…. 12.6 15.8

Turnover margin……. +3.2 –

Assist/turnover ratio. 1.4 0.9

STEALS……………… 316 265

Steals per game……. 8.5 7.2

BLOCKS……………… 196 162

Blocks per game……. 5.3 4.4

ATTENDANCE………….. 315519 365800

Home games-Avg/Game… 15-21035 10-12040

Neutral site-Avg/Game. – 12-20450

SCORE BY PERIODS: 1st 2nd OT Total

————————- —- —- —- —-

North Carolina……….. 1646 1669 9 – 3324

Opponents……………. 1259 1392 12 – 2663

Player Matchups

Point Guard

Michigan State: Kalin Lucas

North Carolina: Ty Lawson

Lawson is the best point guard in the nation, but Lucas isn’t totally outmanned in this matchup. Lucas is probably one of the top five point guards in the nation.

Lawson’s advantage here is small. Expect a great matchup at this most important position.

Shooting Guard

Michigan State: Travis Walton

North Carolina: Wayne Ellington

Walton is the best defensive player from the Big 10, but stopping Ellington will not beat North Carolina. Ellington may be held under 10 points, but North Carolina can win nine times out of ten when he scores in single digits.

We’ll give another slight advantage to North Carolina

Small Forward

Michigan State: Raymar Morgan

North Carolina: Danny Green

If Morgan plays as well as he did Saturday, then he should outpace Green. Green is at a size disadvantage against Morgan, and Morgan has the speed and quickness to stay with Green all night.

We give Michigan State the advantage.

Power Forward

Michigan State: Delvin Roe

North Carolina: Deon Thompson

This will be an interesting matchup. Thompson has the better moves around the basket, but Roe has the better power game. It will be a study in contrasts.

If North Carolina gets their offense running and gunning, Roe will have a tough time contributing on the defensive board.

An ever so slight advantage goes to Michigan State here.

Center

Michigan State: Goran Suton

North Carolina: Tyler Hansbrough

There haven’t been many classic matchups between two future NBA centers and major contributors in the NCAA Championship Game’s last 30 years (such as Rick Robey vs. Mike Gmisnki in 1978, Sam Perkins vs. Patrick Ewing in 1982, and Ewing vs. Akeem Olajuwon in 1984). This one looks like one of those few exceptions.

We believe that Suton will slow Hansbrough inside and force him to take several shots from outside his comfort zone. Meanwhile, Suton will try to force Hansbrough to guard some from outside the low post area.

Hansbrough’s advantage is not that large. Suton missed the first game between these two teams, so his presence will mean a major turnaround from the earlier game.

Bench Play

Michigan State

Chris Allen

Durrell Summers

Marquise Gray

Draymond Green

North Carolina

Ed Davis

Bobby Frasor

Larry Drew, Jr.

If Davis and Frasor have good games, this could be enough to throw the game in North Carolina’s favor. It’s not that these two guys will have to dominate to tilt the game, it’s that they will allow the Tar Heels to either make a run or play more consistently

Michigan State has a numbers’ advantage, but with the extra length of TV timeouts, this game will not require subs entering games.

A small advantage goes to North Carolina

PiRate Criteria see articles from the week of March 16-18 for explanation of this statistical formula

North Carolina had the second best criteria score of the 65 teams in the field, so the Tar Heels were selected to make it all the way to the last game.

Michigan State did not qualify as a superior team, but the Spartans have home court advantage of about three points. Combined with a criteria score of seven, it gives them an opportunity to be there at the end with a chance to win.

The strengths of schedule are nearly equal, as Michigan State gets one additional point here.

Prediction

We believe this game will be close and the lead will never be all that large for either team. Michigan State will desire to make this a lower possession game, while North Carolina will try to make it a game of race horse basketball. The Spartans will crash the offensive glass, and that will limit the Tar Heels’ fast breaking opportunities.

When all is said and done, North Carolina has too many weapons to ever pick against them.

North Carolina 74 Michigan State 69

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March 21, 2009

A PiRate Look At The NCAA Tournament: 2nd Round Games Played On Sunday, March 22, 2009

Filed under: College Basketball — Tags: A&M, Akron, Alabama, American, Arizona, basketball, Big Dance, Binghamton, Boston College, Butler, BYU, Cal State Northridge, California, Championship, Chattanooga, Clemson, Cleveland, college, Connecticut, Cornell, Dayton, Duke, East, East Tennessee, Elite 8, Field of 65, final, Final 4, Florida, four, Gonzaga, Illinois, Kansas, Louisville, LSU, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis, Michigan, Midwest, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Morehead, Morgan, National, NCAA, North Carolina, North Dakota, Northern Iowa, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, Portland, Purdue, Radford, Region, robert morris, Siena, South, Southern California, State, Stephen F. Austin, Sweet 16, Syracuse, Temple, Tennessee, Texas, tournament, UCLA, USC, Utah, VCU, Villanova, Virginia Commonwealth, Wake Forest, Washington, West, West Virginia, Western Kentucky, Wisconsin, Xavier — piratings @ 7:17 pm

A PiRate Look At The NCAA Tournament

2^nd Round Games Played On

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Friday’s games were a little more surprising than Thursday’s games, and several of the games that were won by the team expected to win were exciting and tough to the finish. Siena has now won first round games in consecutive years over teams from a power conference. The Saints could be on the verge of becoming Gonzaga East.

Our picks for day two went 11-5, bringing our total for round one to 24-8. FWIW, we not only picked Siena to beat Ohio State, we almost hit the score exactly, missing by just two points. Of course, a broken watch displays the correct time twice a day.

Here is a look at the Round of 32 games for Sunday.

(numbers in parentheses are PiRate Criteria scores)

East Region

Pittsburgh (14) vs. Oklahoma State (0) [Schedule strengths are equal]: The Panthers struggled against East Tennessee’s pressure defense, committing numerous turnovers. They could have easily become the first number one seed to lose to a 16-seed. Oklahoma State is a quicker, better version of ETSU, but Pittsburgh should be able to hold off the pesky Cowboys. We expect Pitt to be ready for OSU’s pressure and play less error-prone ball. Pittsburgh will advance to the Sweet 16.

Prediction: Pittsburgh 73 Oklahoma State 62

Wisconsin (2) vs. Xavier (8) [Wisconsin has a schedule 2 points per game stronger]: The Badgers held on tough to eke out an overtime win over Florida State Friday night, while Xavier had an easier workout against Portland State. The Musketeers could sneak into the Sweet 16. They are the type of team that can beat Pittsburgh and even Duke if their three big shooters are on their mark. We believe Wisconsin’s best days are two years down the road, and it is a credit to Coach Bo Ryan to get them to the second round this year. However, we expect the Badgers to be out of the Dance after this one.

Prediction: Xavier 64 Wisconsin 57

South Region

Arizona State (4) vs. Syracuse (4) [Syracuse has a schedule 3 points per game stronger]: This should be the best game of the day. Arizona State has two excellent three-point shooters, and it takes a good outside shooting team to beat Syracuse. The Orangemen will press the tempo and force the Sun Devils to play at a faster pace than they would like. If Syracuse can keep from hitting the wall, they should advance.

Prediction: Syracuse 80 Arizona State 71

Midwest Region

Louisville (10) vs. Siena (5) [Louisville has a schedule 4 points per game stronger]: Siena had enough talent to top Ohio State, but Louisville will be too much for the Saints to handle. The Saints will not be able to beat the Cardinals playing the same game against a team with better athletes.

Prediction: Louisville 79 Siena 62

Arizona (-2) vs. Cleveland State (7) [Arizona has a schedule 4 points per game stronger]: This should be a close game. Arizona’s PiRate criteria score is a negative number, but when you add the four points for strength of schedule advantage, this game becomes a virtual tossup. CSU plays terrific defense, while Arizona relies more on offense. This game will be decided on the Cardinal side of the court. If Jordan Hill can hit his inside shots, Arizona should prevail. If Hill cannot get open or cannot connect from his normal range, then the Vikings can be this year’s surprise team in the Sweet 16.

Prediction: Arizona 65 Cleveland State 61

Dayton (5) vs. Kansas (10) [Kansas has a schedule 5 points per game stronger]: Kansas never expected North Dakota State to keep their round one game close for 35 minutes. Dayton never really pulled away from West Virginia, but the Flyers led throughout their game. Round two should be a different bird. Kansas looked a little rusty after losing early in the Big 12 Tournament and going a week without playing. They should play much better in round two, and Dayton won’t have enough talent to stop KU.

Prediction: Kansas 74 Dayton 64

Southern California (2) vs. Michigan State (7) [Michigan State has a schedule 1 point per game stronger]: On paper, Michigan State looks to be better than USC by double digit points. However, USC has put it all together in the past two weeks and must be considered 7-10 points better today than they were in January. We’ll stick with the Spartans to sneak by in this game, but a Trojan win would be no big surprise.

Prediction: Michigan State 71 Southern Cal 64

West Region

Missouri (14) vs. Marquette (9) [Schedule strengths are equal]: Missouri will wear Marquette down as the game wears on. Eventually, the Tigers will go on a run in the second half and put this game out of reach. A Memphis-Missouri Sweet 16 match would be possibly the most exciting game of the entire tournament.

Prediction: Missouri 74 Marquette 65

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A PiRate Look At The NCAA Tournament: 2nd Round Games Played On Sunday, March 22, 2009

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