We are 7 weeks away from Selection Sunday as we continue to make our NCAA tourney predictions. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel correctly picked 66 of the 68 teams that made the 2025 tourney: 62 of his 66 were within 1 spot of their actual seed and 52 were right on the money. He will spend the upcoming months predicting which 68 teams will hear their names called on March 15th. See below for his list of who would make the cut if they picked the field today and if you agree or disagree then feel free to tweet us. To see how he stacks up with other websites (ranked 7th out of 186 bracket veterans over the past 5 years), check out: www.bracketmatrix.com
SEED: TEAM (CONFERENCE) 1: Arizona (Big 12) 1: Duke (ACC) 1: Connecticut (Big East) 1: Michigan (Big 10)
-There are very few games today due to postponments and rescheduling because of the Winter Storm Rocco. You can get all the updates on schedule changes on ROCCO MILLER”s X FEED
-USC AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten). Both teams are inside the bubble right now and both appear to be starting to play better, but both still have some work to do and this is a chance for each team to give their resume a bit of a boost.
-FLORIDA ATLANTIC AT SOUTH FLORIDA (American) – these are two of the teams in the race for the American. While neither is likely to land inside the bubble, both are potentially dangerous opponents in the Round of 64.
NEWS AND NOTES:
-Connecticut was pushed to the limit (again), but escaped with a win (again). Villanova stayed with UConn the entire time and forced the game into overtime, but UConn pulled away in the extra period for the 75-67 win. UConn has not lost since top ranked Arizona beat them on November 19th, but their last five games have either been overtime wins or wins by 5pts or less.
-Illinois got a massive road win as they went to Purdue and pulled off an 88-82 victory that will boost what was already a very solid profile. To say they are now clearly a protected seed is sort of stating the obvious. There were also a lot of standout performances from freshmen across the country, but Keaton Wagler topped them all with an astounding 46 points (including 9 3-pointers).
-Texas Tech avenged their 4pt loss at Houston earlier this season with a 4pt win over Houston at home yesterday. It was a high scoring first half despite both teams being fantastic defensively, and Texas Tech held on for a 90-86 win. I’d say these teams are pretty much totally even in terms of how good they are. Even in a losing effort, Houston freshman Kingston Flemings had 42 points for the Coogs.
-North Carolina, who had been less than stellar on the road this year, picked up a huge road win yesterday at Virginia 85-80. The Hoos had been looking like a protected seed, so this was a big time win for the Tar Heels, and one that they kind of needed to help secure them in the top half of the bracket.
-Auburn, who needed a big win in the worst way, got what was easily their biggest win of the season as they knocked off Florida in Gainesville 76-67. This was perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the day given how well Florida had been playing and now much Auburn had been struggling. Auburn had not won in the Swamp since 1996.
-Tennessee, who hadn’t won a game on the road all year, got a big one yesterday as they knocked off Alabama in Tuscaloosa 89-83. Much was made of Alabama’s addition of Charles Bediako to the team. It didn’t help the Tide yesterday (and may have inspired the Vols instead).
-Nebraska trailed Minnesota at the half, but was not trailing at the end of the game. They totally dominated down the stretch and the 76-57 win makes it look as if the game was a blowout. The Huskers may well be a #1 seed now and could cement it further should they win at Michigan in a couple of days.
-Gonzaga got a huge battle from San Francisco in the Kennel, but escaped with a 68-66 win. Gonzaga led by as much as 14 in the second half, but San Francisco battled back and had a shot in the final seconds to win the game, but the 3pointer did not go down.
-Texas, who is having a very hot and cold season, was hot yesterday. They blew a pretty good Georgia team off the floor 87-67 and are now making a strong case that they belong inside the bubble.
-BYU won the second leg of the Holy War 91-78 yesterday. Freshman AJ Dybantsa had 43 points in the Cougars’ win; this shattered the school record for points by a freshman that had previously held by Danny Ainge.
-Rick Pitino picked up his 900th career win, and it came against his son as Saint John’s overcame a 16-point 2nd half deficit to beat Xavier on the road 88-83. Xavier has battled in a lot of their losses, but come up just a few points short. Their last three losses have been by 5pts or less.
-George Mason, whose record was much better than their schedule, suffered a major setback yesterday as they fell on the road to Rhode Island 74-65. The thing about George Mason is that their schedule is just too weak for them to afford really any losses.
-Every year I say I’m not going to get tricked into thinking Dayton is good. Every year there is a point to where I think Dayton actually is good, and every year they prove once again that they are not. And this year it has happened again. I was really starting to like them, but they followed up a loss to La Salle earlier in the week with an 81-74 loss to Saint Joseph’s yesterday and I’m pretty much done with them.
-Missouri hit a 3pt shot at the buzzer against Oklahoma to force overtime, and then hit a 3pt shot at the end of OT for the win. Mizzou escaped 88-87 and avoids a home loss to a team outside the bubble, which would have set them back.
-Murray State, who I thought had a chance at making a run at the bubble, really hurt themselves yesterday as they lost at Northern Iowa 81-76. Northern Iowa is good, and it’s not easy to win there, but like I always say…landing inside the bubble requires teams to win games that are hard to win.
-TCU played themselves closer to the bubble (and maybe in for some bracketologists) after getting a road win at Baylor yesterday. Baylor suddenly finds itself 1-6 in conference play, although they could potentially play spoiler to a number of teams as we approach February.
-Seton Hall = OUCH!!! The 87-80 loss at DePaul is going to leave a mark! This is Seton Hall’s fourth straight loss and they are now in a major tailspin. What looked like a top 25 caliber team at one point is now looking like they may fall all the way outside the bubble. Don’t look now, but DePaul has now won four straight conference games at home and could actually get to .500 in the Big East if they win their next game at Georgetown.
-California got a really big road win at Stanford 78-66, which is both a win over a rival and a win that will really help their case for making the NCAA Tournament. Prior to yesterday I would have said I thought Stanford was the better team. Now, with injuries hitting Stanford and with the result of this game, it looks as though Cal might be the ACC’s team to watch in the Bay Area.
Some Under the Radar notes…
-Queens fell to West Georgia 74-66 for their first loss in ASun play
-Merrimack beat Saint Peter’s 67-59 to draw even in the conference standings
-Troy actually won a game in regulation! They knocked off Georgia Southern on the road 83-78 to improve to 8-1 in Sun Belt play
-Portland State is still perfect in Big Sky play after a tough 69-66 road win at Idaho.
-Cal Baptist, who dropped their first three WAC games, has now won five straight and pulled even with Utah Valley in the WAC standings with their 78-71 win yesterday.
-There have been lots of time changes and postponements due to the winter storms expected to hit various parts of the country today. We have named it Winter Storm Rocco, and our good friend Rocco Miller is tracking all the changes on his X ACCOUNT
-Saint Louis absolutely blew Saint Bonaventure off of their own floor 97-62. This really isn’t a great profile win, but it was a very impressive road win against a team that’s not easy to beat on the road.
-Utah State had to come from behind at UNLV, but escaped 65-61 to avoid what would have been a damaging loss.
-Ohio State stayed with Michigan for about 30 minutes before Michigan got control and won 74-62.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-NORTH CAROLINA AT VIRGINIA (ACC). Both teams are in the rankings, but Virginia looks to be the superior team and is starting to look like they could end up as a protected seed. North Carolina has struggled on the road and is just 1-3 in true road games. This would easily be their most impressive win of the year if they’re somehow able to pull off the upset.
-VILLANOVA AT CONNECTICUT (Big East). Villanova is having a good year and looks like they can land in the top half of the bracket. Having said that, UConn is having another amazing year and looks like they can land on the #1 line. UConn should be favored at home, but it will be interesting to see what Nova can do against a Final Four caliber team in a true road game.
-GEORGIA AT TEXAS (SEC). Georgia is coming off a big road win at Missouri, is solidly in the rankings, and is showing that they belong there. They’ll face another tough road test today against a Texas team that appears to be getting better, but who still has a lot of work to do and who could really use this win today.
-HOUSTON AT TEXAS TECH (Big 12). It’s seemingly always wild when these two play each other. Houston held on to win the first meeting and will face what should be their toughest test of the year so far. Texas Tech is getting better as the season progresses. They’ve won 8 of their last 9 and have a win against Duke in that stretch, and the only loss was that close road loss at Hosuton, so these are two top level teams squaring off in what should be a great game.
-MIAMI FL AT SYRACUSE (ACC). Miami is squarely on our bubble, but we have them on the right side of it. Syracuse is outside our bubble, but we have them within reach of it. Both teams could really use this one.
-VIRGINIA TECH AT LOUISVLLE (ACC). Virginia Tech is a bubble team that we at Hoops HD have argued over. Well, if they can figure out a way to win this one, we will no longer be arguing. They’ll be safely inside the bubble. Louisville hasn’t been quite as good as we expected this year, but they still appear to be solidly in the top half of the bracket and are not easy to beat at home.
-SAINT JOHN’S AT XAVIER (Big East). It’s the Pitino Shootout!!! The Johnnies are getting better as the season goes along (although they were a little sluggish in their last game). Xavier also seems to be getting better, but they’ve gone from looking like a team that would land outside the top 200 to perhaps being an NIT team, whereas the Johnnies are building up their resume to get a solid seed in the NCAA Tournament. It should be a fun one today!
-ILLINOIS AT PURDUE (Big Ten). Both teams are high in the rankings and both are competing for protected seeds. This is the kind of win that can help solidify a team as a protected seed, so it’s a good opportunity at a showcase win for both of them. Illinois is a perfect 4-0 on the road, but none of those came against a team that’s on the level that Purdue is on, so it would be their best win of the year if they can somehow pull it off.
-IOWA STATE AT OKLAHOMA STATE (Big 12). Oklahoma State is slipping further and further away from the bubble. Today’s game seems pivotal. A win could really turn things around for them whereas a loss knocks them down to just 2-5 in Big 12 play. Iowa State just snapped a two game losing streak with a blowout win against UCF, so they are coming into this one with a lot of momentum.
-AUBURN AT FLORIDA (SEC). Florida is playing as well as anyone in the country and will likely end up with a solid protected seed by the end of the year. Auburn needs some big wins just to get themselves safely inside the bubble. Today is a big opportunity, but it’s far easier said than done.
-TCU AT BAYLOR (Big 12). Both of these teams are going in the complete wrong direction and are running the risk of falling outside the bubble entirely. TCU is just 2-4 in conference play and just snapped a four game losing streak. Baylor is just 1-5 in league play and needs to start stringing together wins.
-CALIFORNIA AT STANFORD (ACC). This is just a classic ACC rivalry game!!! Uhh…well…I guess it is now. Both teams are on the bubble, both have work to do, and both could really use this win. This game is pivotal on paper and important for bragging rights off paper.
-TENNESSEE AT ALABAMA (SEC). Tennessee has been really sluggish on the road and is still looking for their first true road win. They’re going to need a few if they want to make the NCAA Tournament. This one will not be easy to get seeing as how Alabama is good enough to end up with a protected seed.
-LSU @ ARKANSAS (SEC). LSU is outside the bubble, but a win like this could really slingshot them forward. Arkansas is safe, but still has room to build up their profile.
OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:
-Ole Miss @ Kentucky (SEC) – Ole Miss has been playing better, but still has a lot of work to do. Kentucky has been playing a lot better and should be able to hold serve in this one
-Wake Forest @ Duke (ACC) – Duke is in the hunt for a #1 seed so they basically need to win every game in order to get it
-Nebraska @ Minnesota (Big Ten) – It’s never easy to win on the road, but Nebraska has been doing it all season long and should be able to do it again today
-Maryland @ Michigan State (Big Ten) – Michigan State shouldn’t have too much trouble with the Terps at home. Maryland has really struggled this season
-Vanderbilt @ Mississippi State (SEC) – After a 16-0 start Vandy has lost three straight. They should be able to get this one on the road today, but like I always say, winning anywhere on the road is tough
-Clemson @ Georgia Tech (ACC) – Clemson is coming off a loss to NC State and is looking to bounce back. They should be able to get this one even though it’s a road game
-NC State @ Pittsburgh (ACC) – If NC State is going to land inside the bubble they need to string together wins and can’t afford a loss to a team as weak as Pitt even if it is on the road
-Illinois State @ Belmont (Missouri Valley) – these are two of the better teams in the MVC and I still think the committee should take a serious look at Belmont if they keep winning at the clip they have been
-Vermont @ Bryant (America East) – Vermont is still battling for a first place finish in the AEast
-South Carolina @ Texas A&M (SEC) – TAMU has been playing really well and should be able to hold serve in this one at home. This would make them 9-1 in their last ten games
-Delaware @ Liberty (Conference USA) – Liberty should be able to remain unbeaten in conference play and stands a very good chance of landing inside the bubble if they can run the table
-Army @ Navy (Patriot League) – Navy is at home against a big rival and looking to stay on top of the PL standings
-West Virignia @ Arizona (Big 12) – Arizona is the top ranked team and shouldn’t have too much trouble in this one, but after a sluggish start West Virginia has won four of their last five and could really make some noise with an upset today
-George Mason @ Rhode Island (Atlantic 10) – George Mason has a great overall record that was amassed against a very weak schedule, so their margin for error is very thin and they can’t afford to lose this one
-Winthrop @ Presbyterian (Big South) – Winthrop is in a race with High Point for the top of the Big South
-Saint Thomas @ South Dakota (Summit League) – Saint Thomas is trying to keep pace with North Dakota State in the Summit standings and has a test on the road today
-Yale @ Penn (Ivy League) – Yale has an outside shot at landing inside the bubble if they can win out
-Oklahoma @ Missouri (SEC) – Mizzou is playing better and better and can continue to climb the seedlist. They need to hold serve in this one
-UNC Wilmington @ Hampton (CAA) – UNCW is looking to rebound from their first conference loss
-Queens @ West Georgia (Atlantic Sun) – Queens looking to remain unbeaten in ASun play
-UCF @ Colorado (Big 12) – UCF will make the field if they hold serve, and this is the kind of road game that they should be able to win
-Saint Peter’s @ Merrimack (Metro Atlantic) – Saint Peter’s is suddenly atop the MAAC standings, but they’re on the road against one of the best teams in the conference today. Merrimack can pull even with them in the standings with a win
-Troy @ Georgia Southern (Sun Belt) – Troy is coming off yet another overtime win and is looking to remain atop the SBC standings
-Murray State @ Northern Iowa (Missouri Valley) – Murray State is locked in a race with Belmont and will likely get a serious look from the committee if they can win out. Today’s game will be tough, though
-Jackson State @ Bethune Cookman (SWAC) – these are two of the better teams in the SWAC with each having just one conference loss
-San Diego State @ UNLV (Mountain West) – San Diego State is on a roll and should win this one, but UNLV has also come on strong recently with wins in six of their last eight games, so SDSU better not overlook them
-Florida State @ SMU (ACC) – SMU should hold serve at home
-Tulsa @ Rice (American) – Tulsa was in a bit of a tailspin, but has turned things around with decisive wins in their last three games and should be able to pick this one up today
-Seton Hall @ DePaul (Big East) – this game suddenly has a bit of appeal to it given that DePaul is playing a little better and Seton Hall is fighting to stay inside the bubble and can always use a conference road win
-New Orleans @ McNeese (Southland) – McNeese is suddenly in a position to where they are chasing Stephen F Austin and will likely need to win out to keep pace with them
Portland State @ Idaho (Big Sky) – Portland State looking to remain perfect in conference play
-Utah @ BYU (Mountain West) – this is a bitter rivalry and you never want to disregard the role that can play, but BYU won the first meeting on the road, is clearly the superior team, and should hold serve at home
-Dayton @ Saint Joseph’s (Atlantic 10) – Dayton is coming off a loss to La Salle and if they want to keep pace with Saint Louis and George Mason they basically can’t afford any more losses
-Northwestern @ UCLA (Big Ten) – UCLA just picked up a massive win against Purdue earlier in the week which may have turned their season around. They need to hold serve in this one today
-Grand Canyon @ Fresno State (Mountain West) – after a bit of a slow start to the season, GCU has picked things up and are suddenly a contender in the MWC. They should be able to get this one on the road tonight
-San Francisco @ Gonzaga (West Coast) – The Zags shouldn’t have too much trouble in this one. They will remain solidly within range of a protected seed
-Kansas @ Kansas State (Big 12) – it’s a rivalry game and Kansas hasn’t always been the best road team this year, but this is one that they should be able to win
-Nevada @ New Mexico (Mountain West) – I think New Mexico should be good enough to make the NCAA Tournament, but in order to do it they can’t afford to stub their toes in games like this
-Saint Mary’s @ Portland (West Coast) – SMC is safely inside the bubble and will remain safe so long as they hold serve
-Santa Clara @ San Diego (West Coast) – I think Santa Clara can land inside the bubble, but they pretty much need to rampage through the rest of their schedule in order to do it
-UC Irvine @ UC San Diego (Big West) – these are two of the better teams in the Big West and this should be a fun one
-Cal State Northridge @ Hawaii (Big West) – Hawaii is one of the three teams that’s in the Big West race and they need to hold serve in this one
Posted inNews and Notes|Comments Off on Hoops HD Daily Rundown – Saturday, Jan 24th
As most of the country gets ready for Winter Storm Rocco (click here for updates to time changes for affected games), it is our colleague John Stalica’s turn to prepare the staff bracket for Hoops HD this week. This is NOT like Jon Teitel or Rocco Miller’s bracket where they attempt to guess the Selection Committee; rather this is what Stalica feels the bracket should look like through games played last night.
– There is no question on the first four teams at the top of the bracket. I would give a slight edge to Duke over Michigan when you look at the quality of the Blue Devils’ wins. Nebraska is on the cusp of making the #1 line and probably vaults UConn if they are able to win their upcoming game at Michigan.
– The way the protected seeds played out, I did not have to do any reshuffling on account of BYU this week. Hence the regions being more balanced than what I would have expected.
– I thought I might have to justify Florida being a protected seed, but upon further review I would have the Gators as my top team in the SEC over Vandy. In this instance, Florida really asserted themselves with a road win at Vandy last week.
– Alabama is going to bear watching because of the return of Charles Bediako to the lineup. Despite being selected in the 2023 NBA Draft by the San Antonio Spurs, he has somehow managed to get a temporary restraining order to be allowed to play again for the Crimson Tide. (We’ll just conveniently overlook the fact that the judge in question has Alabama program ties) Personally, I would think that Alabama is at risk of having any contest he plays in ultimately being ruled a forfeit. And who’s to say that another judge with opposing school ties (i.e. Auburn or Tennessee) wouldn’t overrule the TRO? What a mess for the NCAA to deal with.
– The Miami Redhawks have clearly not been negatively impacted by the loss of Evan Ipsaro back in December. I say this because the Stanford Cardinal (currently on the 10-line as of today) are now going to have to deal with a season-ending injury to their leading scorer Chisom Okpara. They are now going to have to prove that they can still play at an NCAA Tournament level without Okpara. I’ll give the benefit of the doubt for now, but I doubt my colleagues will feel the same way initially.
– I nearly put the Akron Zips in my field. I gave George Mason the edge for now because of more Tier 2/Tier 3 wins, but teams like Akron and Belmont have shots at at-large bids for now since teams like Baylor, Indiana and LSU have too many fatal flaws at the moment to be included in this bracket.
STAFF COMMENTS:
COMMENTS FROM DAVID GRIGGS: Out of the 68 selections and seedings I think I can agree (or at least live with) about 64 of them, which means I like this bracket a lot more than I’ll like the committee’s actual bracket. I’m not big at all on Virginia Tech. I think they are certainly within reach of the bubble, but a team I like more than them is a team that Stalica has two lines out and that’s Belmont.
-I’m also not a fan of NC State’s profile. I know they had a nice win this week against Clemson, so but they still just don’t look that good overall and have missed chance after chance after chance.
-I think Duke on the #1 line makes sense. They’ve been on my #1 line for a while now.
-I think Akron may win the auto-bid out of the MAC. They are good. Miami is unbeaten and in the rankings and therefore in the spotlight, but they didn’t beat Akron by much. It was a close win at home and it’s Akron’s only MAC loss. Akron also blew out Buffalo at Buffalo, whereas Miami OH faced them at home and needed a miracle at the end of regulation just to get the game to overtime. The profile, and the ranking, and the unbeaten part of it makes sense. You have to select Miami ahead of Akron…but Akron is good! I think they’re better on the court than Stalica’s entire First Four (minus maybe UCLA who seems to be kicking it into gear). I think Belmont is as well!!
PUPPET’S AWARDED GRADE: B+. Not bad!!
COMMENTS FROM CHAD:
I cannot justify leaving an undefeated power conference team off the top line — the Huskers would be a 1 seed for me and Michigan would be on the 2 line. The Wolverines have the worst loss of any team in contention for a 1 seed and, while they have crushed a ton of very good teams, do not have the volume of Tier 1A wins that the rest of the contenders have.
I do not understand Georgia as a 5 seed. I would have this team about 3 seed lines lower after their recent bad loss at home to Ole Miss. And there is a lot of “eye test” in there for me too, I just don’t think this team is as good as their record may indicate.
John also has Seton Hall overseeded. I would have them in the First Four or very close to it. They had some amazing comeback wins — but those came against non-tournament teams. Their only win against anyone even seriously on my board was NC State in Maui. And three straight losses shows me a team that is on its way to the CBC, not the NCAA.
I would have Iowa several seed lines higher. I admit that the resume is lacking in big time wins, but I cannot ignore top 20 Torvik and KenPom Ratings. This is the type of team that, once it gets into the field, the Committee tends to bump up several lines higher than their wins and losses may otherwise merit.
No consideration at all for Missouri or New Mexico? Both teams are right on the cut line in my opinion.
Finally, I have to call out John for his decision to put Merrimack in the field as the MAAC Champions. St. Peter’s is a game ahead of the Warriors in the standings and beat them in their only head-to-head contest so far. The two teams do play for the second time (at Merrimack) on Saturday.
-Wisconsin continues to roll as they picked up another decisive road win at Penn State 98-71. The Badgers didn’t get up to speed right at the start of November, but they are up to speed now. I realize Penn State is not the strongest of teams, but to blow them out on the road like they did is still an impressive statement.
-UNC Wilmington fell on the road 77-70 to William & Mary for their first loss in the CAA. They are still an impressive 17-3 on the year, but with such a weak schedule any loss will be looked at as a setback.
-Portland State is still perfect in Big Sky play after a 65-61 win at Eastern Washington
-OHIO STATE AT MICHIGAN (Big Ten). Michigan is in the hunt for a #1 seed, and perhaps the top overall seed, and Ohio State is trying to fight their way inside the bubble. If they could somehow pull off this upset it’s the kind of win that can slingshot them inside the bubble.
-FGCU @ Lipscomb (Atlantic Sun) – Lipscomb looks to hold serve and stay on top of the ASun standings
-Saint Louis @ Saint Bonaventure (Atlantic 10) – this will be a tough road test for SLU, but it’s one they should be able to win if they really are a top 25 caliber team. The Bonnies just snapped a six game losing streak, but they are still 7-2 at home
-Indiana @ Rutgers (Big Ten) – Indiana needs this road win to keep within arms reach of the bubble
-The Citadel @ East Tennessee State (SoCon) – East Tennessee State should hold serve at home and stay atop the SoCon standings
-Akron @ Ohio U (MAC) – Akron is one of the best teams in the MAC and is just a game behind Miami OH in the conference standings. This is a tough road test, but it’s one they can win
-Utah State @ Colorado State (Mountain West) – Utah State is looking to snap a two game losing streak. While this is a tough road game to win, it’s one they can win and one they sort of need
-Nebraska is still unbeaten after holding off Washngton 76-66. So is Arizona after pulling away from Cincinnati in the second half and winning 77-51.
-Dayton suffered their first conference loss and it came on the road to La Salle 67-64. That is what we in the business call a ‘Bad Loss.’
-Creighton’s heart is still beating after hitting a game-winning shot against Xavier with 0.6 seconds remaining in regulation following a missed free throw. The Bluejays still have a lot of work to do to get back on the right side of the cutline, but this would have been a near fatal loss for them.
-Winthrop hit a 3-pointer as time was expiring to beat Radford 76-75 and stay on top of the Big South standings.
-Murray State suffered their first conference loss as they fell 101-90 at Drake, and this one was a bit of a surprise. It’s never easy to win on the road, but all indications were that Murray would pull this one out.
-IU Indy went on the road and absolutely blew Oakland out 103-85. Oakland was over 200 spots ahead of them in the metrics, so by the standpoint of the metrics this was probably the biggest upset of the whole college basketball season so far. Even more surprising was this was on the heels of a 25-point win at Green Bay – this was a 43-point swing. Also one of the bigger differences this year.
-Kentucky picked up another big win as the held off Texas 85-80. The Wildcats appear to have things turned around and are on a pace that will land them safely inside the bubble.
-Liberty stayed unbeaten in Conference USA after their tough 76-69 road win at Western Kentucky. The Flames are really playing well.
-Tulsa pulled away from Memphis late and dominated down the stretch to win 83-66.
-Virginia Tech picked up a much needed road win at Syracuse as they escaped 76-74.
-USC, who had been playing pretty well, lost 74-68 at home to a Northwestern team that is nowhere near the bubble. This doesn’t knock out the Trojans, but it absolutely knocks them down.
-Grand Canyon held on to win a thriller against a San Diego State team that was really surging and who really could have used this win on the road. The Lopes survived 70-69 to pick up their second really big win in a row and are suddenly in the race to finish first in the MWC.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-Stetson @ Lipscomb (Atlantic Sun) – Lipscomb is trying to keep pace with Queens in the ASun standings
-FGCU @ Austin Peay (Atlantic Sun) – Austin Peay is also solidly in the conference race and tryin to keep pace with Lipscomb and Queens
-Vermont @ UMass Lowell (America East) – two of the better teams in the conference that are tied atop the standings
-South Florida @ UAB (American) – South Florida looks to be one of the best teams in the American, or at least the most talented
-UNC Wilmington @ William & Mary (CAA) – UNCW has a two game lead in the conference standings, but will be challenged on the road tonight
-Hofstra @ NC A&T (CAA) – Hofstra needs to snap their two game losing streak if they want any hope at all of keeping pace with UNC Wilmington
-Portland State @ Eastern Washington (Big Sky) – Portland State looks to remain unbeaten in Big Sky play
-UC Irvine @ UC Riverside (Big West) – The River Vine Cup!!!! UC Irvine is a good team who cannot afford any more slipups
Hoops HD Staff Bracket – Friday, January 23rd
As most of the country gets ready for Winter Storm Rocco (click here for updates to time changes for affected games), it is our colleague John Stalica’s turn to prepare the staff bracket for Hoops HD this week. This is NOT like Jon Teitel or Rocco Miller’s bracket where they attempt to guess the Selection Committee; rather this is what Stalica feels the bracket should look like through games played last night.
And this is the bracket below:
First Four Out: Akron, Baylor, Indiana, LSU
Others Considered: Ohio State, Belmont, Oklahoma State, TCU
COMMENTS FROM JOHN:
– There is no question on the first four teams at the top of the bracket. I would give a slight edge to Duke over Michigan when you look at the quality of the Blue Devils’ wins. Nebraska is on the cusp of making the #1 line and probably vaults UConn if they are able to win their upcoming game at Michigan.
– The way the protected seeds played out, I did not have to do any reshuffling on account of BYU this week. Hence the regions being more balanced than what I would have expected.
– I thought I might have to justify Florida being a protected seed, but upon further review I would have the Gators as my top team in the SEC over Vandy. In this instance, Florida really asserted themselves with a road win at Vandy last week.
– Alabama is going to bear watching because of the return of Charles Bediako to the lineup. Despite being selected in the 2023 NBA Draft by the San Antonio Spurs, he has somehow managed to get a temporary restraining order to be allowed to play again for the Crimson Tide. (We’ll just conveniently overlook the fact that the judge in question has Alabama program ties) Personally, I would think that Alabama is at risk of having any contest he plays in ultimately being ruled a forfeit. And who’s to say that another judge with opposing school ties (i.e. Auburn or Tennessee) wouldn’t overrule the TRO? What a mess for the NCAA to deal with.
– The Miami Redhawks have clearly not been negatively impacted by the loss of Evan Ipsaro back in December. I say this because the Stanford Cardinal (currently on the 10-line as of today) are now going to have to deal with a season-ending injury to their leading scorer Chisom Okpara. They are now going to have to prove that they can still play at an NCAA Tournament level without Okpara. I’ll give the benefit of the doubt for now, but I doubt my colleagues will feel the same way initially.
– I nearly put the Akron Zips in my field. I gave George Mason the edge for now because of more Tier 2/Tier 3 wins, but teams like Akron and Belmont have shots at at-large bids for now since teams like Baylor, Indiana and LSU have too many fatal flaws at the moment to be included in this bracket.
STAFF COMMENTS:
COMMENTS FROM DAVID GRIGGS: Out of the 68 selections and seedings I think I can agree (or at least live with) about 64 of them, which means I like this bracket a lot more than I’ll like the committee’s actual bracket. I’m not big at all on Virginia Tech. I think they are certainly within reach of the bubble, but a team I like more than them is a team that Stalica has two lines out and that’s Belmont.
-I’m also not a fan of NC State’s profile. I know they had a nice win this week against Clemson, so but they still just don’t look that good overall and have missed chance after chance after chance.
-I think Duke on the #1 line makes sense. They’ve been on my #1 line for a while now.
-I think Akron may win the auto-bid out of the MAC. They are good. Miami is unbeaten and in the rankings and therefore in the spotlight, but they didn’t beat Akron by much. It was a close win at home and it’s Akron’s only MAC loss. Akron also blew out Buffalo at Buffalo, whereas Miami OH faced them at home and needed a miracle at the end of regulation just to get the game to overtime. The profile, and the ranking, and the unbeaten part of it makes sense. You have to select Miami ahead of Akron…but Akron is good! I think they’re better on the court than Stalica’s entire First Four (minus maybe UCLA who seems to be kicking it into gear). I think Belmont is as well!!
PUPPET’S AWARDED GRADE: B+. Not bad!!
COMMENTS FROM CHAD: