We are 8 weeks away from Selection Sunday as we begin 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: Michigan (Big 10) 1: Connecticut (Big East) 1: Duke (ACC)
-Top ranked Arizona continues to do what top ranked teams do, and that’s beat good teams on the road. They went into UCF and picked up another notable road win 84-77. UCF is still solidly inside the bubble and it wouldn’t shock me to see them pick up some more big wins before it’s all over.
-Iowa State, who was ranked 2nd (and I guess still is) lost their second straight game on Saturday, and this one was far more surprising than the first. They went on the road to Cincinnati and lost 79-70 to a Bearcats team that had looked totally anemic all season long. This will be a bad loss by #1 seed standards as Cincinnati still doesn’t look like they’ll end up anywhere near the field.
-UConn had to sweat at Georgetown, but escaped 64-62 and avoided a loss that would have likely been even more surprising than Iowa State’s loss to Cincinnati.
-Purdue also got a scare as they went on the road to USC and the Trojans were right in it until the very end, but the Boilers escaped 69-64 to improve to 17-1 on the year.
-Florida stumbled out of the starting gate back in November, and they didn’t get up to speed right away after stumbling, but they are on an absolute rampage right now. They picked up a huge 98-94 win at Vanderbilt and are playing better than anyone else in the SEC right now. They’ve won eight of their last nine and have beaten Georgia, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Vanderbilt in their last four games.
-Texas Tech got a nice 84-71 home win over BYU and continues to improve as the season goes along. I think they’ll be right in the mix with Houston and Arizona in the Big 12 by the end of the year.
-North Carolina lost their second straight game as they fell at California 84-78. Cal actually had a commanding lead for most of the game. UNC still has just one true road win on the season.
-Virginia’s winning streak continues as they went on the road and knocked off a pretty good SMU team 72-68. The Hoos are now 16-2 overall on the year.
-Georgia bounced back from their surprise loss to Ole Miss earlier in the week and knocked off Arkansas 90-76. Arkansas is now just 1-3 in true road games and will need a few more to really solidify their profile.
-Utah State had a somewhat surprising loss at Grand Canyon 84-74. It was a tough road game, but if Utah State really is a top 25 team they need to be able to win games like this. The Aggies are still very safely inside the bubble, but this was a bit of a setback.
-Kentucky picked up their second straight road win as they went into Tennessee and won 80-78. Like their game against LSU, they did not look good early, and fell behind by double digits in the first half, and trailed by double digits in the second half, and trailed for pretty much the entire game, but made some big plays down the stretch and got the big win. A shoving match broke out right as the game was ending, but nothing serious happened and Kentucky is looking much better than they were a week ago.
-Miami OH is still unbeaten after their win against Buffalo, but BARELY! They were behind for most of the second half and had to hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer (after coming up empty on several possessions prior) to get the game to overtime. They hit another 3-pointer as time was expiring in OT to escape with a 105-102. I think Miami will get into the polls on Monday.
-Saint Mary’s, who had been on a roll, fell on the road at Santa Clara 62-54. This is a bit of setback, but not a huge one. Winning at Santa Clara would have done more to help SMC than the loss will do to hurt them. Santa Clara still has an outside shot of landing inside the bubble, but they pretty much need to win out in order to do it.
-Seton Hall, who was having a great year and nearly upset UConn earlier in the week, fell at home to Butler 77-66 in a game that was a bit of a surprise. This is one where we were expecting The Hall to hold serve.
-New Mexico fell at San Diego State 83-79 in what was a huge game for both teams. For New Mexico it was a chance to pick up a big road win and build up their resume, for San Diego State, it was also a chance to add a notable win to their profile and increase their win streak to seven games.
-NC State fell at home to Georgia Tech 78-74. I’m about ready to declare NC State unfit for postseason play.
-I was really big on Hofstra coming into this week and was surprirsed when they fell at Stony Brook a few days ago. I was equally surpised when they lost at home to Elon today 89-85. Hofstra is capable of playing really well and will win a lot of games, but one of them better be that CAA Championship game.
-Saint John’s is getting better and better as the season goes on and they picked up a really tough road win at Villanova as they held off the Wildcats 86-79. The Johnnies have now won six of their last seven.
-UCLA lost at Ohio State 86-74, which is a huge setback for a team that could have really used a road win like this. I’m about ready to declare UCLA unfit for postseason play.
-TCU is continuing to sputter. On January 6th they had a 9pt lead at Kansas with 75 seconds to play and lost the game. They have not won since and yesterday they fell to a very average Utah team 82-79. Im about ready to declare TCU unfit for postseason play.
-Iowa got a big road win at Indiana 74-57, which finally puts some meat on their resume. They still have work to do, but this was a really big win for the Hawkeyes and one they really needed.
-Syracuse, who we were sort of keeping our eyes on, went on the road and lost to Boston College 81-73. I’m about to declare that Syracuse be out right DISQUALIFIED from postseason play!!
-After two straight big wins, Texas could not knock off their rivals Texas A&M and fell at home 74-70. This was a big road win for TAMU and will help move them up the seedlist.
-UC Irvine fell on the road at UC Davis 75-72 in a game we were expecting them to win. The team they are chasing Hawaii, also fell on the road. They were absolutely blown out at UC Santa Barbara 77-62 in a game that was even more lopsided than the final score indicated.
-Lipscomb got a big home win against Austin Peay in a hard fought 82-78 game. The two teams are now tied atop the ASun standings.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-Wichita State @ South Florida (American) – USF now looks like the best team in the American, and may be good enough to blow through the league and end up near the bubble
-Oakland @ Green Bay (Horizon League) – these are two of the better teams in the HL, and both need this win if they want to keep pace with Wright State
-Tulsa @ UAB (American) – this is potentially a tough road test for Tulsa and they need it to keep pace with South Florida
-Arizona State @ Houston (Big 12) – Houston should be able to hold serve in this one
HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel will spend the upcoming months covering several Georgetown basketball home games, with (hopefully) a very special reward coming in March. He was in attendance Saturday afternoon for the Hoyas’ game at Capital 1 Arena and prepared this photo essay about their matchup against UConn.
Today’s game is a tale of 2 coaches going in completely opposite directions. On the far sideline stands UConn coach Dan Hurley, who is 10-0 in his career vs. the Hoyas and whose team enters today 17-1 with just a 4-PT home loss to undefeated Arizona (yay!). On the near sideline is Georgetown coach Ed Cooley, whose team got off to a 5-0 start in November but has lost 5 straight conference games and is in serious danger of digging themselves a hole that they cannot possibly get out of in the months ahead:
The pregame meal was…late, for the 1st time ever. Since it did not arrive in the media room by tipoff and I was starving, I missed the 1st few minutes of the game while leaving the arena and running across the street to Dos Toros for a braised ancho chicken bowl: it was delicious! The game was certianly not a sell-out, but the student section was packed and there were even a LOT of fans sitting in the upper deck (a rare sight this decade). By the time I reached my seat during the under-16 timeout, I looked up at the scoreboard to see that UConn C Tarris Reed Jr. had already scored 11 PTS as his team opened up an early double-digit lead:
Most of his teammates did not shoot that well, but FR SG Braylon Mullins looked every bit the McDonald’s All-American with 5 quick PTS on an open 3 and a tough turnaround jumper as his team entered intermission with a 32-28 lead thanks to 10 turnovers by the home team:
The halftime highlight was seeing former Villanova star Ed Pinckney: maybe he just loves Big East basketball as much as the rest of us? He is extra-beloved by yours truly as he played for both my Suns AND my Celtics during his 12-year NBA career…although for the life of me I do not know why Georgetown has not issued him a lifetime ban after he broke their heart in the 1985 NCAA title game with 16 PTS/6 REB/5 AST:
The Hoyas came out scorching to start the 2nd half with a 7-0 run during the 1st 2 minutes to give them a 3-PT lead and give their fans a reason to stand up and shout. In contrast, Huskies F Alex Karaban was ice-cold all day (missing each of his 1st 6 FGA), but finally knocked down a jump shot to break the streak and give his team a 2-PT lead with 10 minutes left. Today is his 129th game in a UConn uniform, which ranks #2 in school history behind only Jake Voskuhl:
Georgetown C Vince Iwuchukwu got his 2nd straight start after coming off the bench for the 1st 2 months of the season, and it looked like a wise decision as he finished with his 1st double-double of the season (12 PTS and a career-high 14 REB):
The Huskies made 14 of their 1st 15 FTs…then missed 6 more in the final few minutes to give the Hoyas some life. Georgeton kept it close for the entire 40 minutes, but Reed finished with a double-double of his own and the Huskies hung on for dear life to win it 64-62 and improve to 18-1.
In the postgame press conference, I wondered if any of the UConn players had discussed the big sports story this week, which was the college basketball point-shaving scandal. Silas Demary Jr.’s polite 3-word answer: “No comment, sir”:
I asked Coach Cooley about a former Hoya who was 1 of the many players indicted the other day (Cooley was hired as Georgetown coach back on 3/20/23, and less than 2 months later Bradley Ezewiro transferred to St. Louis). He would not comment specifically on Ezewiro, but said that men/women must be mindful of the minefield in sports-betting. He cares for the student-athletes who put themselves in the crocodile water and think they will not lose a limb. The schools/coaches are put in an awkard position, and now that athletes can get paid they do not need to be greedy:
That is a wrap for the month, as Georgetown is on the road for 3 of its next 4 and has a late weeknight game on 1/28, so enjoy the NFL playoffs and check back in February!
-THE CITADEL AT VMI (SoCon). They are the two worst teams in the SoCon, and they are arguably two of the worst teams in all of D1, but this is still a great rivalry! It’s one of my favorites!! Therefore, we will ALWAYS spotlight the Silver Shako Trophy!!!
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-VIRGINIA AT SMU (ACC). I think UVA is getting pretty close to protected seed range and a solid road win like this would help get them even closer. SMU has a decent profile and would likely be safely inside the bubble if the tournament started today, but they really could use a win like this as well.
-KENTUCKY AT TENNESSEE (SEC). Both teams need to do better. Tennessee still doesn’t have a solid road win (and can’t do anything about that today) and Kentucky just needs to start picking up solid wins to strengthen their profile. Kentucky did get a big come from behind win at LSU earlier this week. If they can get another one today it will be a huge step forward.
-ALABAMA AT OKLAHOMA (SEC). Oklahoma has lost three straight and really needs a win. Alabama is still within reach of a protected seed, but to get it these are the types of road games they should be expected to win. In short, both teams could really use this win.
-BUFFALO AT MIAMI OH (MAC). Buffalo is having a much better than expected season, but they’ve also dropped their last two games and are really going to be challenged on the road today. Miami OH is still unbeaten and they are winning more and more convincingly against better teams as the season plays out. A win today will likely put them into the top 25 next week.
-VANDERBILT AT FLORIDA (SEC). Vandy is coming off their first loss of the year and they will be facing a perhaps bigger challenge today against a Florida team that’s won seven of eight, and who is really playing well, and who is at home, and who will really be gunning for another win against a ranked team. Had it not been for a missed shot at the buzzer against Missouri, Florida would be one of the hottest teams in the country right now. They’re on a stretch where they are beating good teams and doing so rather comfortably.
-IOWA AT INDIANA (Big Ten). I feel that both teams are outside the bubble, but that both are also good enough to play their way inside the bubble. But in order to get there, these are the kinds of games they need to be able to win.
-MIAMI FL AT CLEMSON (ACC). Miami is a very impressive 15-2 on the season and hasn’t lost since their Thanksgiving Day game against BYU (a game they didn’t lose by much). This is a tough test, though. They’re on the road against a really good Clemson team. If they can win it, it would give their resume a huge boost and in my opinion should move them into the Top 25.
-MISSOURI AT LSU (SEC). This feels like yet another game where both teams are outside the bubble, but both are good enough to play their way inside of it, but they need to start stringing together wins and they could really use this win today.
-ARIZONA AT UCF (Big 12). This will be a tough road test, but Arizona has won tough road games before. They are the top ranked team and are certainly capable of winning at UCF. As for UCF, if they were to pull the upset it would give their resume another nice boost and move them further up the seedlist.
-ARKANSAS AT GEORGIA (SEC). Both teams are in the rankings, but both could stand to put some more meat on their resumes and a win today would certainly help. Georgia lost earlier in the week to Ole Miss and will be looking to bounce back. Arkansas is having a solid year, but has just one true road win so far and could really use a road win of this caliber.
-PURDUE AT USC (Big Ten). Purdue is in the hunt for a #1 seed, so every game is a big game in terms of landing on the 1 line. USC is on the bubble and could use a win like this to strengthen their profile.
-DUKE AT STANFORD (ACC). This is potentially a great game. I love how Stanford has been playing and the crowd should be jacked way up for this one. Stanford has shown that they are good enough to be in the NCAA Tournament and a win today over Duke would DEFINITELY show that. But, even though they’re at home, this will still be a very tough game to win. Duke is good. They appear to be 1-seed caliber good. And the are certainly good enough to win tough games on the road.
-TEXAS A&M AT TEXAS (SEC). It’s a rivalry game between two teams that are suddenly playing really well. After looking very NIT-ish for most of the season, Texas flipped a switch last week and has knocked off both Alabama and Vanderbilt. They’re at home with a ton of momentum built up to face their rivals who have a very solid record, but who also need some more big wins on their profile.
-SAINT MARY’S AT SANTA CLARA (West Coast) – Saint Mary’s is solidly inside the bubble and should be able to move up the seedlist with a win today. Santa Clara is good and won’t be easy to beat at home, but they’re still outside the bubble and will need some wins against Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga in order to put themselves position to make the field.
-BYU AT TEXAS TECH (Big 12). I think both teams are solid protected seeds, neither is easy to beat, and both seem to be getting better as the year goes on. This is as much of a litmus test for both teams as it is for a chance to really build up their resumes.
-NEW MEXICO AT SAN DIEGO STATE (Mountain West). Both these teams are playing really well. New Mexico State is 13-3 overall and having a solid season, whereas San Diego State got off to a sluggish start but has really picked it up lately. This one should be a battle, and it’s a game that both teams need to help build up their profiles. The fact that they have limited chances to get quality wins between now and the end adds even more importance to this one.
-SAINT JOHN’S AT VILLANOVA (Big East). The Johnnies are starting to play better and will really be tested on the road against a Villanova team that’s had a good season and who should be way up for this one. It’s an opportunity for each team to get a quality win.
OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:
-Connecticut @ Georgetown (Big East) – UConn is in contention for a #1 seed and should be able to hold serve on the road in this one
-Minnesota @ Illinois (Big Ten) – Minney is starting to play better, but Illinois should be able to handle them at home
-Butler @ Seton Hall (Big East) – Seton Hall is having a really solid year and has played their way into the rankings. They should be able to hold serve at home in this one
-Notre Dame @ Virginia Tech (ACC) – VA Tech is right on the bubble and can’t afford to lose a home game to a team that’s nowhere near it
-Georgia Tech @ NC State (ACC) – NC State is outside our bubble and can’t afford to lose a home game to a team that’s nowhere near it
-Elon @ Hofstra (CAA) – Hofstra needs to bounce back from their road loss at Stony Brook
-UCLA @ Ohio State (Big Ten) – both teams have a lot of work to do just to get inside the bubble, but both are within reach of it. Having said that, both could really use this one today
-Iowa State @ Cincinnati (Big 12) – it’s never easy to win on the road, but this is one Iowa State should be able to win. They’re looking to bounce back from their loss to Kansas, which was their first of the year
-TCU @ Utah (Big 12) – TCU is in a bit of a tailspin and better not lose this one
-Rutgers @ Wisconsin (Big Ten) – Wisky has come to life in recent weeks and should be able to keep that streak going with a winnable conference home game today
-Winthrop @ UNC Asheville (Big South) – Winthrop is trying to stay ahead of High Point in the Big South standings
-Syracuse @ Boston College (ACC) – Syracuse has just one true road win so far and if they don’t get this one then chances are they won’t get another one
-Cornell @ Yale (Ivy League) – Yale must hold serve at home
-Utah State @ Grand Canyon (Mountain West) – this will be a tough road test for Utah State, but if they really are one of the 25 best teams they should be good enough to win tough road tests
-UTEP @ Liberty (Conference USA) – Liberty should be able to hold serve at home and remain unbeaten in conference play
-North Carolina @ California (ACC) – UNC is coming off a hard fought loss to Stanford and is looking to bounce back. This will be a test, but it’s definitely a game they should be able to win. Since the Tarheels have just one true road win so far it would help make their resume look a little better
-Indiana State @ Murray State (Missouri Valley) – Murray State is red hot and could potentially end up on the bubble if they can win out
-Richmond @ Saint Louis (Atlantic 10) – Richmond can be a tough team to beat, but it’s still one that SLU should be able to win at home
-Arkansas State @ Troy (Sun Belt) – these are two of the better teams in the Sun Belt, and every SBC game has that added pressure with the conference tournament format. Both are potentially dangerous opponents in the Round of 64
-Lindenwood @ UT Martin (Ohio Valley) – a win for UT Martin keeps them in 1st place in the OVC and improves them to a very respectable 15-4 on the season
-UC Irvine @ UC Davis (Big West) – it’s a tough road test for the Eaters, and one they need to win if they want to keep pace with Hawaii
-McNeese @ UTRGV (Southland) – if McNeese can blow through the Southland they should end up on the bubble
-Michigan State @ Washington (Big Ten) – this will be a bit of a road test for the Spartans, but it’s one they should be able to pass
-Belmont @ Southern Illinois (Missouri Valley) – I know Belmont has two conference losses, but each were by just a single point and I still think if they win out they can land inside the bubble. A win today gets them to 17-3 overall
-USC Upstate @ High Point (Big South) – High Point should be able to boucne back from their blowout loss to Winthrop and hold serve in this one and improve to 17-4 on the year
-Austin Peay @ Lipscomb (Atlantic Sun) – these are the two best teams in the ASun and this game has major 1st place implications
-Louisville @ Pittsburgh (ACC) – Louisville has lost three of their last four and has struggled on the road. Having said that, this should be a winnable conference road game
-Hawaii @ UC Santa Barbara (Big West) – This will be another road test for Hawaii, but they looked pretty strong in the last one
-Gonzaga @ Seattle U (West Coast) – Seattle gave Gonzaga a battle when the two faced earlier in the season, but came up short in overtime. The fans should be really jacked up for this one, but the Zags will have their share of fans there as well
-Kansas State @ Oklahoma State (Big 12) – The Pokes should be able to hold serve at home in this one
-Liberty had to sweat out New Mexico State at home, which was kind of a surprise because I was expecting them to kind of cruise, but they held on to win 73-71.
-Hofstra, who had been on an absolute rampage, lost a real head-scratcher last night at Stony Brook 76-71. I know this is a bit of a rivalry, but it still seemed like it’s a game that Hofstra should have cruised through. This is a setback for a team that seemed to be playing so well that
-Portland State remained perfect in Big Sky play after a 76-73 win over a Northern Colorado team that looked really strong OOC, but has struggled in league play.
-Wright State improves to 7-1 in Horizon League play after their win over Youngstown State, and Green Bay is keeping pace with them improving to 7-1 in their last eight games after their win at Cleveland State.
-Vermont continues to piddle around against very weak teams, but they are at least winning. They beat Maine 67-62 last night. At home. Not the best showing.
-Austin Peay remained unbeaten in ASun play after what appeared to be a game winning half court heave for Eastern Kentucky was waived off. The Govs survived 74-72.
-UT Martin continues to be the frontrunner in the OVC as they held off SIUE 65-59.
-Hawaii got a real nice road win at Col Poly 86-66. It isn’t the win in and of itself, but rather how dominant they were in that game despite being the road team. They appear to be the best in the Big West right now.
-Last, but DEFINITELY not least, IDAHO STATE IS TAKING HOME THE KING SPUD TROPHY!!! They knocked off Idaho 76-68.
-BAYLOR AT KANSAS (Big 12). Baylor is hovering around the bubble and can really build up their resume with a road win like this. Kansas is coming off what is perhaps their most impressive game of the year after blowing out Iowa State and is looking to keep that going.
-Creighton @ Providence (Big East) – Creighton is outside the bubble and has work to do, but has been getting better. They should be able to pick up a conference road game tonight
-Loyola Chicago @ Dayton (Atlantic 10) – Dayton has won six out of seven and should extend that run tonight
Before you look at the bracket below, I want to make sure you know what you’re looking at. This IS NOT an attempt to guess what the real selection committee will do on Selection Sunday. We have people at Hoops HD who do that and they are much better at guessing the real committee than I am. This is merely myself being a committee of one selecting and seeding the field the way I think it SHOULD look TODAY. Again, this is NOT what I think it will look like in March.
OTHERS CONSIDERED: NC State, Iowa, George Mason, UCLA, San Diego State, Creighton, Ohio State, LSU, Indiana, Oklahoma, California, Santa Clara, Oklahoma State
COMMENTS FROM DAVID GRIGGS:
-A strong case could be made to put Nebraska on the #1 line. Perhaps they will ultimately end up there. They have some outstanding wins and no one has beaten them. I just think that everyone I have ahead of them tops out a little bit higher right now.
-I’m sticking with my preseason pick of Texas Tech to win it all even though right now I’d only have them on the #3 line.
-While I think Iowa is much better than their profile, and much better than I was probably giving them credit for, I’m still someone that selects and seeds pretty much on merit and not on predictive metrics. Their profile is lousy, which is why they aren’t in. That’s also why Kentucky is barely inside the bubble. Had they not won at LSU I likely would not have selected them at all.
-If you’re looking at the #12 line, Baylor and Auburn were my last two teams in and Hofstra and South Florida were seeded behind them, which means they were outside the bubble.
STAFF COMMENTS
Comments from Stalica:
– I’m guessing that Griggs has Duke higher up in his order of one seeds, assuming that Arizona is his top overall seed. While the South region may technically be Duke’s natural region, wouldn’t they prefer to actually go to the East region and Washington DC which is a little closer to their fanbase?
– We do seem to have a bit of a discrepancy when it comes to the Clemson and SMU resumes. Clemson has two wins against teams in Griggs’ field, yet he has the Tigers on the precipice of a protected seed. SMU actually has three such wins when you consider that Virginia Tech barely made his field (and I do not object to that), yet they’re three seed lines lower? Are the Ponies being dinged for winning their last game on a half-court buzzer beater as opposed to an easy 10-point win instead?
– While I do agree that Louisville is starting to fade given their recent slide, I have to say Tennessee is being a little unfairly punished right now. While the Vols do have a pair of neutral-court wins and still lack a true road win, they still have four very solid wins with Houston (in Las Vegas), Louisville, Texas A&M and now a Texas team that Griggs has suddenly added to his field.
– And yes, I grudgingly admit that teams like the Longhorns and Wisconsin are starting to check critical boxes in their resumes while teams like Iowa and LSU are stalling on that front. They can’t rest on their laurels for too long, though. Kentucky has done enough for now to at least justify their place in the field. They’d be better served as an 8 or 9 seed while Texas should be closer to 9 or 10.
– While I do applaud Belmont’s inclusion into the field for now, they are advised to remember that they’ve used up their strikes in conference play already given a pair of close losses. They can’t take on any more water while other teams continue to lurk beneath them. Especially if Mother Miami potentially loses a regular season game or two and to Akron in the MAC title game again….
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