SelectionSunday
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By Buzz King (@Fieldof68Freak)
ROAD TO SELECTION SUNDAY – As always, we start with a weekly “Field of 68” projection. In multiple-bid conferences, projected automatic qualifiers (current #1 seed for conference tournament) are noted with a *.
FIELD OF 68 PROJECTION (through games played 2/23/25)
America East (1): Bryant (162)
American (1): Memphis (47)
ACC (5): *Duke (2), Clemson (22), Louisville (24), North Carolina (45), Wake Forest (63)
ASUN (1): North Alabama (124)
Atlantic 10 (1): VCU (31)
Big East (4): *Saint John’s (18), Marquette (27), Creighton (35), UConn (37)
Big Sky (1): Montana (153)
Big South (1): High Point (86)
Big Ten (10): Maryland (11), Wisconsin (13), *Michigan State (14), Purdue (19), Michigan (21), Illinois (23), UCLA (25), Oregon (32) Ohio State (34), Nebraska (54)
Big XII (8): *Houston (3), Texas Tech (7), Iowa State (8), Arizona (9), Kansas (20), BYU (29), Baylor (30), West Virginia (48)
Big West (1): UC-San Diego (36)
Coastal (1): Towson (145)
Conference USA (1): Jacksonville State (113)
Horizon (1): Robert Morris (155)
Ivy (1): Yale (68)
MAAC (1): Marist (210)
MAC (1): Akron (97)
MEAC (1): Norfolk State (175)
Missouri Valley (1): Drake (58)
Mountain West (4): Utah State (33), *New Mexico (42), Boise State (46), San Diego State (49)
NEC (1): Central Connecticut (154)
OVC (1): Southeast Missouri State (184)
Patriot (1): American (236)
SEC (11): *Auburn (1), Florida (4), Tennessee (5), Alabama (6), Kentucky (12), Missouri (15), Texas A&M (17), Ole Miss (26), Mississippi State (28), Vanderbilt (43), Oklahoma (51)
SoCon (1): Chattanooga (128)
Southland (1): McNeese (66)
SWAC (1): Southern (214)
Summit (1): Omaha (194)
Sun Belt (1): James Madison (143)
WCC (2): Gonzaga (10), *Saint Mary’s (16)
WAC (1): Utah Valley (119)
--------------------------------------
Last 4 In: Oklahoma (51), North Carolina (45), Boise State (46), (last team in) Ohio State (34)
First 4 Out: (first team out) Texas (38), Indiana (56), George Mason (65), Arkansas (40)
Next 4 Out: Xavier (53), TCU (74), UC-Irvine (67), Santa Clara (52)
On the Radar O’Reilly (5): SMU (39), San Francisco (61), Villanova (50), Cincinnati (44), Georgia (41)
Last 4 Automatic Qualifiers: Omaha (194), Marist (210), Southern (214), American (236)
Non-Power 5 At-Large Bids (5): Gonzaga (10), Utah State (33), Boise State (46), San Diego State (49)
-----------------------------------------
Record vs. the Field (all 68 teams)
Drake (1-0)
Auburn (14-2, .875)
New Mexico (6-2, .750)
Saint John’s (6-2, .750)
Saint Mary’s (6-2, .750)
Michigan State (8-3, .727)
Memphis (5-2, .714)
Florida (7-3, .700)
Alabama (11-5, .688)
Tennessee (11-5, .688)
Chattanooga (2-1, .667)
Duke (6-3, .667)
Texas A&M (10-5, .667)
UC-San Diego (2-1, .667)
Houston (7-4, .636)
Texas Tech (5-3, .625)
Utah State (5-3, .625)
Missouri (8-5, .615)
Kentucky (9-6, .600)
Maryland (6-4, .600)
Clemson (4-3, .571)
Michigan (5-4, .556)
BYU (4-4, .500)
High Point (1-1. 500)
Iowa State (5-5, .500)
Marquette (4-4, .500)
Nebraska (6-6, .500)
Norfolk State (2-2, .500)
Oregon (7-7, .500)
Purdue (7-7, .500)
Robert Morris (1-1, .500)
San Diego State (5-5, .500)
Towson (2-2, .500)
UCLA (6-6, .500)
UConn (4-4, .500)
Yale (1-1, .500)
Mississippi State (6-7, .462)
Wisconsin (5-6, .455)
Louisville (4-5, .444)
Arizona (6-8, .429)
Boise State (3-4, .429) – LAST 4 IN
Oklahoma (5-7, .417) – LAST 4 IN
West Virginia (5-7, .417)
Illinois (5-8, .385)
Ole Miss (5-8, .385)
Wake Forest (3-5, .375)
Creighton (4-7, .364)
Kansas (4-7, .364)
Akron (1-2, .333)
Jacksonville State (1-2, .333)
James Madison (2-4, .333)
Baylor (4-9, .308)
Vanderbilt (4-9, .308)
Gonzaga (2-6, .250)
Ohio State (3-10, .231) – LAST TEAM IN
North Carolina (2-9, 182) – LAST 4 IN
Central Connecticut (0-0)
Marist (0-0)
North Alabama (0-1)
VCU (0-1)
American (0-2)
McNeese (0-2)
Omaha (0-2)
Southeast Missouri State (0-2)
Utah Valley (0-2)
Bryant (0-3)
Montana (0-3)
Southern (0-3)
Received Consideration
UC-Irvine (2-1, .667)
Santa Clara (2-2, .500)
San Francisco (3-4, .429)
TCU (4-7, .364)
Villanova (3-6, .333)
Xavier (3-6, .333)
Indiana (4-9, .308) – FIRST 4 OUT
Texas (4-9, .308) – FIRST TEAM OUT
George Mason (1-3, .250) – FIRST 4 OUT
Arkansas (3-10, .231) – FIRST 4 OUT
Georgia (3-10, .231)
Cincinnati (1-8, .111)
SMU (0-6)
Heart of Bubblicious (NET #45-55)
45 North Carolina (IN)
46 Boise State (IN)
47 Memphis (IN)
48 West Virginia (IN)
49 San Diego State (IN)
50 Villanova (OUT)
51 Oklahoma (IN)
52 Santa Clara (OUT)
53 Xavier (OUT)
54 Nebraska (IN)
55 Pitt (OUT)
Final Power 5 Head-to-Head Standings (+Gonzaga/Saint Mary’s/San Diego State)
With Duke’s thumping of Illinois, the final regular season Power 5 head-to-head matchup is in the books. Here are the final standings:
1 SEC (60-19, 75.9%)
2 Gonzaga/Saint Mary’s/San Diego State (10-7, 58.8%)
3 Big Ten 33-27, 55%)
4 Big East (19-24, 44.2%)
5 Big XII (25-34, 42.4%
6 ACC (17-53, 24.3%)
6-Pack That Had a Good Week. …
BYU: Cougars approaching “lock” status after routing Kansas, win thriller @ Arizona
James Madison: Dukes late-season push has them leading the Sun Belt
Michigan State: Spartans take B1G lead with wins over Purdue, @ Michigan
Oregon: Ducks have won 4 straight after win in Madison
Saint Mary’s: Gaels complete season sweep of scuffling Zags
VCU: Rams take down George Mason to take A-10 lead
6-Pack That Had a Bad Week. …
Baylor: Bears fall twice, including Big XII bottom-feeder Colorado. Nearing bubble.
Illinois: free-falling Illini lose to Wisconsin & Duke by combined 64 points
Purdue: Boilers have lost 4 straight, the latest to the rival Hoosiers
St. Thomas: Tommies title hopes all but dashed after 1st back-to-back losses since mid-November
Texas A&M: Aggies fall @ Mississippi State, in College Station to Tennessee
Wake Forest: Deacons still in my field, but losing @ stinky NC State begs “leave me out”
B1G Weakling Wednesday Dropouts – B1G Tournament no-shows?
** The 3 Big Ten teams tracking toward an early end to their 2024-25 season with no invitation to Indianapolis:
#16 Northwestern (5-11)
#17 Penn State (5-12)
#18 Washington (4-12)
The Local NETters
#92 Minnesota (14-13, 6-10 Big Ten)
#121 St. Thomas (20-9, 10-4 Summit League)
Big Ten +/- Power Rankings (Road Wins – Home Losses)
1 Michigan State (+5)
2 Michigan (+5)
3 Purdue (+3)
4 Maryland (+3)
5 Wisconsin (+3)
6 UCLA (+2)
7 Illinois (+1)
8 Oregon (+1)
9 Nebraska (even)
10 Indiana (-1)
11 Ohio State (-2)
12 Minnesota (-2)
13 USC (-2)
14 Rutgers (-2)
15 Northwestern (-3)
16 Iowa (-3)
17 Washington (-4)
18 Penn State (-4)
Summit League Tournament (if held today)
The Summit League Tournament gets started March 5. Here’s how the first round and quarterfinal matchups look heading into the final week of the regular season.
March 5 (1st Round)
#8 Oral Roberts (3-11) vs. #9 Kansas City (3-11), 7 p.m.
March 6 (Quarterfinals)
#1 Omaha (12-3) vs. Oral Roberts/Kansas City winner, 6 p.m.
#2 St. Thomas (10-4) vs. #7 Denver (4-10), 8:30 p.m.
March 7 (Quarterfinals)
#3 South Dakota State (10-4) vs. #6 North Dakota (5-9), 6 p.m.
#4 North Dakota State (9-6) vs. #5 South Dakota (8-6), 8:30 p.m.
Gophers Week Ahead
Tuesday: #57 Northwestern
Saturday: @ #54 Nebraska
Tommies Week Ahead
Thursday: #277 North Dakota
Saturday: #247 Kansas City
Gophers Stat Leaders
Dawson Garcia (19.4 points per game), Garcia (7.5 rebounds per game), Femi Odukale (3.5 assists per game), Odukale (1.5 steals per game), Isaac Asuma (37.7% 3PFG), Parker Fox (1.1 blocks per game)
Tommies Stat Leaders
Miles Barnstable (14.6 points per game), Kendall Blue (4.2 rebounds per game), Drake Dobbs (3.7 assists per game), Barnstable (1.1 steals per game), Ben Oosterbaan (48.9% 3PFG), Nolan Minessale (1.1 blocks per game)
NET Kings
#1 Auburn (25-2)
Kinda’ Bubble Cutline
#50 Villanova (16-12)
Stuck in the Middle with You
#182 Wyoming (11-16)
Bottom of the Barrel
#364 Mississippi Valley State (1-24)
Deep (College Hoops) Thoughts, by Buzz Studley
The first weekend of the NCAA Tournament (the March Madness 96-Hour Marathon) always will be my favorite moment(s) on the sporting calendar. But a close second is “Championship Week”, the glorious two weeks of conference championship basketball leading into Selection Sunday.
On Sunday “the ball is tipped” when the ASUN gets things bouncing with a pair of first-round games (#9 vs. #10 and #7 vs. #8) on campus sites. Enjoy the ride and as Jimmy V taught us a long time ago, tournament basketball is all about three words: Survive and Advance!
Next Field of 68: TBD
ROAD TO SELECTION SUNDAY – As always, we start with a weekly “Field of 68” projection. In multiple-bid conferences, projected automatic qualifiers (current #1 seed for conference tournament) are noted with a *.
FIELD OF 68 PROJECTION (through games played 2/23/25)
America East (1): Bryant (162)
American (1): Memphis (47)
ACC (5): *Duke (2), Clemson (22), Louisville (24), North Carolina (45), Wake Forest (63)
ASUN (1): North Alabama (124)
Atlantic 10 (1): VCU (31)
Big East (4): *Saint John’s (18), Marquette (27), Creighton (35), UConn (37)
Big Sky (1): Montana (153)
Big South (1): High Point (86)
Big Ten (10): Maryland (11), Wisconsin (13), *Michigan State (14), Purdue (19), Michigan (21), Illinois (23), UCLA (25), Oregon (32) Ohio State (34), Nebraska (54)
Big XII (8): *Houston (3), Texas Tech (7), Iowa State (8), Arizona (9), Kansas (20), BYU (29), Baylor (30), West Virginia (48)
Big West (1): UC-San Diego (36)
Coastal (1): Towson (145)
Conference USA (1): Jacksonville State (113)
Horizon (1): Robert Morris (155)
Ivy (1): Yale (68)
MAAC (1): Marist (210)
MAC (1): Akron (97)
MEAC (1): Norfolk State (175)
Missouri Valley (1): Drake (58)
Mountain West (4): Utah State (33), *New Mexico (42), Boise State (46), San Diego State (49)
NEC (1): Central Connecticut (154)
OVC (1): Southeast Missouri State (184)
Patriot (1): American (236)
SEC (11): *Auburn (1), Florida (4), Tennessee (5), Alabama (6), Kentucky (12), Missouri (15), Texas A&M (17), Ole Miss (26), Mississippi State (28), Vanderbilt (43), Oklahoma (51)
SoCon (1): Chattanooga (128)
Southland (1): McNeese (66)
SWAC (1): Southern (214)
Summit (1): Omaha (194)
Sun Belt (1): James Madison (143)
WCC (2): Gonzaga (10), *Saint Mary’s (16)
WAC (1): Utah Valley (119)
--------------------------------------
Last 4 In: Oklahoma (51), North Carolina (45), Boise State (46), (last team in) Ohio State (34)
First 4 Out: (first team out) Texas (38), Indiana (56), George Mason (65), Arkansas (40)
Next 4 Out: Xavier (53), TCU (74), UC-Irvine (67), Santa Clara (52)
On the Radar O’Reilly (5): SMU (39), San Francisco (61), Villanova (50), Cincinnati (44), Georgia (41)
Last 4 Automatic Qualifiers: Omaha (194), Marist (210), Southern (214), American (236)
Non-Power 5 At-Large Bids (5): Gonzaga (10), Utah State (33), Boise State (46), San Diego State (49)
-----------------------------------------
Record vs. the Field (all 68 teams)
Drake (1-0)
Auburn (14-2, .875)
New Mexico (6-2, .750)
Saint John’s (6-2, .750)
Saint Mary’s (6-2, .750)
Michigan State (8-3, .727)
Memphis (5-2, .714)
Florida (7-3, .700)
Alabama (11-5, .688)
Tennessee (11-5, .688)
Chattanooga (2-1, .667)
Duke (6-3, .667)
Texas A&M (10-5, .667)
UC-San Diego (2-1, .667)
Houston (7-4, .636)
Texas Tech (5-3, .625)
Utah State (5-3, .625)
Missouri (8-5, .615)
Kentucky (9-6, .600)
Maryland (6-4, .600)
Clemson (4-3, .571)
Michigan (5-4, .556)
BYU (4-4, .500)
High Point (1-1. 500)
Iowa State (5-5, .500)
Marquette (4-4, .500)
Nebraska (6-6, .500)
Norfolk State (2-2, .500)
Oregon (7-7, .500)
Purdue (7-7, .500)
Robert Morris (1-1, .500)
San Diego State (5-5, .500)
Towson (2-2, .500)
UCLA (6-6, .500)
UConn (4-4, .500)
Yale (1-1, .500)
Mississippi State (6-7, .462)
Wisconsin (5-6, .455)
Louisville (4-5, .444)
Arizona (6-8, .429)
Boise State (3-4, .429) – LAST 4 IN
Oklahoma (5-7, .417) – LAST 4 IN
West Virginia (5-7, .417)
Illinois (5-8, .385)
Ole Miss (5-8, .385)
Wake Forest (3-5, .375)
Creighton (4-7, .364)
Kansas (4-7, .364)
Akron (1-2, .333)
Jacksonville State (1-2, .333)
James Madison (2-4, .333)
Baylor (4-9, .308)
Vanderbilt (4-9, .308)
Gonzaga (2-6, .250)
Ohio State (3-10, .231) – LAST TEAM IN
North Carolina (2-9, 182) – LAST 4 IN
Central Connecticut (0-0)
Marist (0-0)
North Alabama (0-1)
VCU (0-1)
American (0-2)
McNeese (0-2)
Omaha (0-2)
Southeast Missouri State (0-2)
Utah Valley (0-2)
Bryant (0-3)
Montana (0-3)
Southern (0-3)
Received Consideration
UC-Irvine (2-1, .667)
Santa Clara (2-2, .500)
San Francisco (3-4, .429)
TCU (4-7, .364)
Villanova (3-6, .333)
Xavier (3-6, .333)
Indiana (4-9, .308) – FIRST 4 OUT
Texas (4-9, .308) – FIRST TEAM OUT
George Mason (1-3, .250) – FIRST 4 OUT
Arkansas (3-10, .231) – FIRST 4 OUT
Georgia (3-10, .231)
Cincinnati (1-8, .111)
SMU (0-6)
Heart of Bubblicious (NET #45-55)
45 North Carolina (IN)
46 Boise State (IN)
47 Memphis (IN)
48 West Virginia (IN)
49 San Diego State (IN)
50 Villanova (OUT)
51 Oklahoma (IN)
52 Santa Clara (OUT)
53 Xavier (OUT)
54 Nebraska (IN)
55 Pitt (OUT)
Final Power 5 Head-to-Head Standings (+Gonzaga/Saint Mary’s/San Diego State)
With Duke’s thumping of Illinois, the final regular season Power 5 head-to-head matchup is in the books. Here are the final standings:
1 SEC (60-19, 75.9%)
2 Gonzaga/Saint Mary’s/San Diego State (10-7, 58.8%)
3 Big Ten 33-27, 55%)
4 Big East (19-24, 44.2%)
5 Big XII (25-34, 42.4%
6 ACC (17-53, 24.3%)
6-Pack That Had a Good Week. …
BYU: Cougars approaching “lock” status after routing Kansas, win thriller @ Arizona
James Madison: Dukes late-season push has them leading the Sun Belt
Michigan State: Spartans take B1G lead with wins over Purdue, @ Michigan
Oregon: Ducks have won 4 straight after win in Madison
Saint Mary’s: Gaels complete season sweep of scuffling Zags
VCU: Rams take down George Mason to take A-10 lead
6-Pack That Had a Bad Week. …
Baylor: Bears fall twice, including Big XII bottom-feeder Colorado. Nearing bubble.
Illinois: free-falling Illini lose to Wisconsin & Duke by combined 64 points
Purdue: Boilers have lost 4 straight, the latest to the rival Hoosiers
St. Thomas: Tommies title hopes all but dashed after 1st back-to-back losses since mid-November
Texas A&M: Aggies fall @ Mississippi State, in College Station to Tennessee
Wake Forest: Deacons still in my field, but losing @ stinky NC State begs “leave me out”
B1G Weakling Wednesday Dropouts – B1G Tournament no-shows?
** The 3 Big Ten teams tracking toward an early end to their 2024-25 season with no invitation to Indianapolis:
#16 Northwestern (5-11)
#17 Penn State (5-12)
#18 Washington (4-12)
The Local NETters
#92 Minnesota (14-13, 6-10 Big Ten)
#121 St. Thomas (20-9, 10-4 Summit League)
Big Ten +/- Power Rankings (Road Wins – Home Losses)
1 Michigan State (+5)
2 Michigan (+5)
3 Purdue (+3)
4 Maryland (+3)
5 Wisconsin (+3)
6 UCLA (+2)
7 Illinois (+1)
8 Oregon (+1)
9 Nebraska (even)
10 Indiana (-1)
11 Ohio State (-2)
12 Minnesota (-2)
13 USC (-2)
14 Rutgers (-2)
15 Northwestern (-3)
16 Iowa (-3)
17 Washington (-4)
18 Penn State (-4)
Summit League Tournament (if held today)
The Summit League Tournament gets started March 5. Here’s how the first round and quarterfinal matchups look heading into the final week of the regular season.
March 5 (1st Round)
#8 Oral Roberts (3-11) vs. #9 Kansas City (3-11), 7 p.m.
March 6 (Quarterfinals)
#1 Omaha (12-3) vs. Oral Roberts/Kansas City winner, 6 p.m.
#2 St. Thomas (10-4) vs. #7 Denver (4-10), 8:30 p.m.
March 7 (Quarterfinals)
#3 South Dakota State (10-4) vs. #6 North Dakota (5-9), 6 p.m.
#4 North Dakota State (9-6) vs. #5 South Dakota (8-6), 8:30 p.m.
Gophers Week Ahead
Tuesday: #57 Northwestern
Saturday: @ #54 Nebraska
Tommies Week Ahead
Thursday: #277 North Dakota
Saturday: #247 Kansas City
Gophers Stat Leaders
Dawson Garcia (19.4 points per game), Garcia (7.5 rebounds per game), Femi Odukale (3.5 assists per game), Odukale (1.5 steals per game), Isaac Asuma (37.7% 3PFG), Parker Fox (1.1 blocks per game)
Tommies Stat Leaders
Miles Barnstable (14.6 points per game), Kendall Blue (4.2 rebounds per game), Drake Dobbs (3.7 assists per game), Barnstable (1.1 steals per game), Ben Oosterbaan (48.9% 3PFG), Nolan Minessale (1.1 blocks per game)
NET Kings
#1 Auburn (25-2)
Kinda’ Bubble Cutline
#50 Villanova (16-12)
Stuck in the Middle with You
#182 Wyoming (11-16)
Bottom of the Barrel
#364 Mississippi Valley State (1-24)
Deep (College Hoops) Thoughts, by Buzz Studley
The first weekend of the NCAA Tournament (the March Madness 96-Hour Marathon) always will be my favorite moment(s) on the sporting calendar. But a close second is “Championship Week”, the glorious two weeks of conference championship basketball leading into Selection Sunday.
On Sunday “the ball is tipped” when the ASUN gets things bouncing with a pair of first-round games (#9 vs. #10 and #7 vs. #8) on campus sites. Enjoy the ride and as Jimmy V taught us a long time ago, tournament basketball is all about three words: Survive and Advance!
Next Field of 68: TBD