Final Field Of 68 Projection (Sad Face): The Year The Lights Went Out In March

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SelectionSunday

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:cry::cry::cry::cry::cry:
With much sadness, here's my final projection of the 2020 NCAA Tournament Field of 68. It's been a surreal couple days.

Anyways, no need to go on & on about anything. I will say one thing. I don't understand why they didn't at least announce the Field of 68 so at the bare minimum (it's not much) teams like Rutgers, Penn State, etc., could officially hear their name called. They earned that. That's the very least the Selection Committee could have done.

Here's what I came up with, with automatic bids of conferences that didn't complete their conference tournament going to the #1 seed.

FIELD OF 68 (March Sadness)
America East (1): Vermont (79)

American (2): Houston (20), *Cincinnati (51)

ACC (5): Duke (6), Louisville (8), *Florida State (10), Virginia (44), NC State (53)

ASUN (1): Liberty (67)

Atlantic 10 (2): *Dayton (3), Richmond (38)

Big East (7): *Creighton (11), Villanova (13), Seton Hall (15), Butler (19), Marquette (26), Providence (37), Xavier (47)

Big Sky (1): Eastern Washington (135)

Big South (1): Winthrop (148)

Big Ten (10): Michigan State (7), Ohio State (16), Maryland (18), *Wisconsin (23), Michigan (24), Rutgers (30), Iowa (34), Penn State (35), Illinois (39), Indiana (56)

Big XII (4): *Kansas (2), Baylor (5), West Virginia (17), Oklahoma (46)

Big West (1): UC-Irvine (114)

Colonial (1): Hofstra (118)

Conference USA (1): North Texas (95)

Horizon (1): Northern Kentucky (150)

Ivy (1): Yale (69)

MAAC (1): Siena (151)

MAC (1): Akron (73)

MEAC (1): NCCU (256)

Missouri Valley (2): Northern Iowa (48), *Bradley (102)

Mountain West (2): San Diego State (4), *Utah State (40)

NEC (1): Robert Morris (203)

OVC (1): Belmont (101)

Pac 12 (6): *Oregon (12), Arizona (14), Colorado (25), USC (45), Arizona State (54), UCLA (76)

Patriot (1): Boston U (160)

SEC (4): *Kentucky (21), Auburn (27), LSU (28), Florida (29)

SoCon (1): East Tennessee State (36)

Southland (1): Stephen F. Austin (77)

SWAC (1): Prairie View A&M (201)

Summit (1): North Dakota State (130)

Sun Belt (1): Little Rock (140)

WCC (3): *Gonzaga (1), BYU (9), Saint Mary's (31)

WAC (1): New Mexico State (104)
________________________________

Last 4 In: Richmond (38), Xavier (47), Northern Iowa (48), UCLA (76)

Last Team In: UCLA

First 4 Out: Stanford (33), Wichita State (41), Saint Louis (49), Memphis (58)

First Team Out: Wichita State

Non-Power 6 At-Larges (6): San Diego State (4), BYU (9), Houston (20), Saint Mary's (31), Richmond (38), Northern Iowa (48)
 
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Agree. They should have just announced a bracket but that is a bit unfair to UNI or others that completed their tourneys.

I'd put Xavier out and Wichita State in based on X losing to DePaul. But maybe the Shockers would have lost as well.

I'm just sad we don't see how the committee would have judged these resumes. Only 2nd year using the NET, would TexasTech being high in that metric have saved them? What seed do they deem right for Arizona (high in NET, lacking in Q1 wins)? Does the B1G set a record for % of qualifiers?

Bummer...
 

obobo55 said:
Agree. They should have just announced a bracket but that is a bit unfair to UNI or others that completed their tourneys.

I'd put Xavier out and Wichita State in based on X losing to DePaul. But maybe the Shockers would have lost as well.

I'm just sad we don't see how the committee would have judged these resumes. Only 2nd year using the NET, would TexasTech being high in that metric have saved them? What seed do they deem right for Arizona (high in NET, lacking in Q1 wins)? Does the B1G set a record for % of qualifiers?

Bummer...
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All excellent points. I just feel like crap for the entire Rutgers program, and then specifically for a guy like Lamar Stevens. Stevens came back in large part to get his program to the NCAA Tournament, and essentially he did that, but didn’t get a final reward.
 

Geno says seniors should get an extra year of eligibility. Would the NCAA expand scholarships if they did this?
 

Rings hollow, but here's Joe Lunardi's final bracket. We differed on 2 at-larges. Lunardi selected Texas and Texas Tech, in their place I had Northern Iowa and Xavier.

Lunardi Last 4 In
NC State
UCLA
Texas
Richmond (last team in)

My Last 4 In
Northern Iowa
Richmond
Xavier
UCLA (last team in)

Lunardi First 4 Out
Xavier (first team out)
Wichita State
Memphis
Stanford

My First 4 Out
Wichita State (first team out)
Saint Louis
Stanford
Memphis
www.espn.com

Zach Edey returning to Purdue shakes up Bracketology in a big way

Kansas remains the clear preseason No. 1, but the Boilermakers have slipped in behind the Jayhawks as a probable repeat 1-seed with revenge on their minds.
www.espn.com
 
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SelectionSunday said:
:cry::cry::cry::cry::cry:
With much sadness, here's my final projection of the 2020 NCAA Tournament Field of 68. It's been a surreal couple days.
Click to expand...

Selection- thanks for all the work you did on these. In your estimation, how close were the Gophers? Was it conference tourney title or bust for them?

I know you don’t look at the NIT much, but any thoughts on if they would’ve made it to that? Or would they still have had more work to do to get there?
 

GopherPharmaBiz said:
Selection- thanks for all the work you did on these. In your estimation, how close were the Gophers? Was it conference tourney title or bust for them?

I know you don’t look at the NIT much, but any thoughts on if they would’ve made it to that? Or would they still have had more work to do to get there?
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Was not considering Gophers at all heading into Big Ten Tournament. Realistically stopped considering them after loss to Maryland, and then loss @ Wisconsin was the dagger.

I don't think NIT was in play unless they won 3 games in Indy.
 

Interesting thought on still announcing the field, John Beilein suggested it as well. I wonder if 1980 US Basketball Team feels better that they were announced as being on the team. I would guess so, tremendous individual accomplishment.

As for the actual field, the ADs/Conference Commissioners probably had/have other stuff going on to get to this. Maybe they can circle back in due time.

Just curious, what swung it for you on your Final Team in, UCLA, compared to Wichita St. Big gap in NET, which I know is not the end-all-be-all.
 



Ope3 said:
Interesting thought on still announcing the field, John Beilein suggested it as well. I wonder if 1980 US Basketball Team feels better that they were announced as being on the team. I would guess so, tremendous individual accomplishment.

As for the actual field, the ADs/Conference Commissioners probably had/have other stuff going on to get to this. Maybe they can circle back in due time.

Just curious, what swung it for you on your Final Team in, UCLA, compared to Wichita St. Big gap in NET, which I know is not the end-all-be-all.
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It came down to the quality of their top-end wins. Wichita State was 9-8 vs. Quads 1 & 2, but only 1 of those wins came vs. an opponent that made my field. UCLA was 9-10 vs. Quads 1 & 2, 5 wins vs. opponents that made my field.
 

Xavier 10-13 vs Q1/Q2 and 3-11 vs teams in your field?

I know it's close and X had better wins. Just think the Musketeers had shown they were a team very likely to lose. I had been arguing against the Shockers within these last few weeks as well, so not a big argument.
 

As some of you know, I usually spend a month or so as well doing my own work, comparing teams, submitting brackets... this year I totally procrastinated on it and wasn't going to do it until Saturday.

This is a fine example of why procrastination works out just as well as someone who is as dedicated as SS.


Here is my bracket:

In:
No one.

Out:
Everyone
 

NCAA weighing release of 68-team bracket despite cancellation of 2020 NCAA Tournament over coronavirus

NCAA senior vice president of basketball Dan Gavitt told CBS Sports on Friday that the NCAA has not yet completely killed the idea of putting together a 68-team bracket for the purposes of an official recognition of the 2019-20 men's Division I basketball season. While far from a sure thing, it's still on the table -- offering hope to coaches and players across the country that they could at least potentially get formal recognition for the work they put into their seasons over the past five-plus months.

www.cbssports.com

NCAA weighing release of 68-team bracket despite cancellation of 2020 NCAA Tournament over coronavirus

Though the bracket has not yet been built, there is interest in recognizing teams for their 2020 seasons
www.cbssports.com www.cbssports.com
 




GopherGangsta said:
Seems like a waste of time....Just have NCAA officials call the teams that made it and congratulate them.
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I am guessing it would at least permit schools like Rutgers and Penn St to hoist a banner. Coaches can also add to resumes.
 

Not saying it will happen, but the NIT could announce something like an 8-team championship and invite whatever teams they want. It'd give them a chance to be the focal point of college playoffs again.
 

Livingat45north said:
Not saying it will happen, but the NIT could announce something like an 8-team championship and invite whatever teams they want. It'd give them a chance to be the focal point of college playoffs again.
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No. The NCAA runs the NIT now. That won't happen.
 

howeda7 said:
No. The NCAA runs the NIT now. That won't happen.
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Bummer. Didn't know they had a monopoly on it all. That was kind of my last gasp hope of getting a tourney. Without any games to go to, guess I'll actually have to start talking to the wife and kids now :whistle:
 

Livingat45north said:
Bummer. Didn't know they had a monopoly on it all. That was kind of my last gasp hope of getting a tourney. Without any games to go to, guess I'll actually have to start talking to the wife and kids now :whistle:
Click to expand...
They say the # of "corona babies" will spike in 9 months, but divorces will spike in 2-3 months. Best of luck to us all!
 

Final BracketMatrix had Xavier & UNI out, TexasTech & WichitaSt in.

I can see any or all of those 4 teams with a tiny argument and TexasTech and WichitaSt still had games to play. Who knows?
 

obobo55 said:
Final BracketMatrix had Xavier & UNI out, TexasTech & WichitaSt in.

I can see any or all of those 4 teams with a tiny argument and TexasTech and WichitaSt still had games to play. Who knows?
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Definitely had a hard time taking Xavier. A lot of warts on X’s resume, and you pointed out a big one.

At the very, very end, I had 6 teams under consideration for the last 4 bids. For a comparison, here were their records vs. my final Field of 68:

Northern Iowa 3-1 (IN)
Richmond 1-2 (IN)
Saint Louis 3-4 (OUT)
UCLA 5-7 (IN)
Wichita State 1-5 (OUT)
Xavier 4-11 (IN)
 



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