CIT and Team of the People’s Preview – Monday, March 12th

Posted on March 12, 2018 by John Stalica

While everyone in the nation prepares in earnest for the NCAA Tournament, there are still going to be other games being played today – 4 of which will be in the CIT First Round and 4 regional finals in the NCAA Division II Tournament (including our Team of the People Cal Baptist!). This year, the CIT will be a 16-team field that includes 4 “Classic” televised games on CBS Sports Network.

-CENTRAL MICHIGAN AT FORT WAYNE (Hugh Durham Classic, 12 PM CBSSN). The postseason tips off with the Chippewas and Mastodons. Central Michigan lost in the quarterfinals of the MAC to Buffalo, and Fort Wayne came off of a tough loss to North Dakota State in the Summit tournament.

-ABILENE CHRISTIAN AT DRAKE (Lou Henson Classic, 2 PM CBSSN). We have a rare oddity in that a team that didn’t even qualify for the Southland Tournament (Abilene Christian) was still invited to a postseason tournament. Their opponent will be a Drake team that started hot in the Missouri Valley this year before fading off in the second half of conference play.

-NORTH CAROLINA A&T AT LIBERTY (Jim Phelan Classic, 6 PM CBSSN). This will be Liberty’s first game since a heartbreaking loss to Radford at the buzzer in the Big South championship. NC A&T was one of five teams that tied for the MEAC regular season title, but are coming off of an early exit in the MEAC Tournament themselves.

-HARTFORD AT SAN DIEGO (Riley Wallace Classic, 10 PM CBSSN). Hartford had a pretty good season in the America East – they ended up finishing in 3rd place and lost to eventual champion UMBC in the America East semifinals. San Diego is in a more tumultous situation where they are currently looking for a permanent head coach, but nonetheless will play at least one postseason game in which they were otherwise improved compared to recent years.

-CAL BAPTIST AT WESTERN OREGON (NCAA Division II Tournament, 10 PM). This game will be for a spot in the Elite 8 for the Division II Tournament; follow the Team of the People and CLICK HERE to watch the live stream courtesy of Western Oregon. The Wolves come into this game ranked #3 in the D-II polls and earned the right to host the West regional by virtue of their #1 ranking in the West region.

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Florida State SR SF Phil Cofer

Posted on March 11, 2018 by Jon Teitel

Florida State lost to Louisville in the ACC tourney last Wednesday but still had a resume that was strong enough to earn an at-large bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Seminoles beat FGCU in the 1st round of last year’s NCAA tourney before losing to Xavier in the 2nd round, and they made it back this year to claim the school’s 6th NCAA tourney bid in the past 9 years (where they could potentially face the Musketeers again in a 1-vs.-9 2nd round match-up next weekend!). Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Phil Cofer about being undefeated in OT this year and facing #8 seed Missouri in Nashville this Friday night.

You originally signed with Tennessee but were released from your letter of intent after a coaching change in Knoxville: what made you choose the Seminoles? After the Vols’ head coach left I just opened up my recruitment. Coach Hamilton was the 1st person to call me, I took a visit to Tallahassee, and liked it. Coach is like a father-figure to me.

What makes Coach Hamilton such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have ever learned from him? Coach Ham talks about basketball but also a lot about life after you put down the basketball. He has helped me as a person to build my character.

In the 2017 NCAA tourney you had 2 REB in a loss to Xavier: what did you learn from that game that you think will help you this March? We came out with good energy but have to be locked in on defense. Xavier was also very physical.

After starting only 2 games as a junior you started all 31 games as a senior: what is the biggest difference between coming off the bench vs. being a starter? I am playing more minutes now so I try to bring the energy no matter how many minutes I play. Fatigue definitely comes into it but you just have to push through.

In your ACC opener in December you scored a career-high 28 PTS/11-16 FG in a 7-PT loss at Duke: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”, and how close did you come to beating the Blue Devils? My teammates had confidence in me after I got hot and just kept getting me the ball. We came pretty close to winning: it was a hard-fought game and we need to be playing like that in March.

You played 3 OT games in ACC play this year and won all 3 of them (over fellow NCAA tourney teams Syracuse/Miami/Clemson): what is the secret to beating good teams in OT? You have to play to the last minute no matter what. You have to keep fighting on every possession: that is what makes teams great.

The ACC led the nation with 9 teams who made the NCAA tourney: how hard was it to go 9-9 in a league full of so many talented teams? It is very difficult because they all come to fight and always bring their “A” game.

Your father Michael made the 1998 Pro Bowl with the Detroit Lions, your mother Reba played basketball at Tennessee, your brother Michael Jr. played college basketball, and your uncle Joe played football at Tennessee: who is the best athlete in the family? I would say my dad because he played the most physical game (football)…but I might have him beat now!

What do you think about getting a #9 seed, and will you have a lot of family/friends at the game in Nashville? I plan to have a lot of people there since my dad is from Tennessee, but I will be locked into the game more than I am focused on the fans.

What do you know about Missouri, and how do you prepare to face a team with a player of Michael Porter Jr.’s caliber who has only played 25 minutes all year long due to injury? Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin was actually the head coach at Tenneesee who originally recruited me so I know him a little bit. We will take the entire team seriously and treat all of the players as if they were LeBron James.

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2018 Bracket Revealed

Posted on March 11, 2018 by Chad

HERE IT IS!!! The 2018 NCAA Tournament Bracket!!!!

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Bracketology 2018: March Madness Predictions (Final Version)

Posted on March 11, 2018 by Jon Teitel

Selection Sunday is finally here! We are ready to find out the fantastic field as we make our final NCAA tourney predictions. Last March HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel correctly picked every single 1 of the 68 teams that made the tourney, 63 of which were within 1 spot of their actual seed, including 43 right on the money. See below for his final list of who will make the cut when they announce the field today and if you agree or disagree then feel free to tweet us. To see how we stack up with other websites (ranked 4th out of 113 entries over the past 5 years), check out: www.bracketmatrix.com

SEED: TEAM (CONFERENCE)
1: Virginia (ACC): AUTO-BID
1: Villanova (Big East): AUTO-BID
1: Kansas (Big 12): AUTO-BID
1: Xavier (Big East)

2: Duke (ACC)
2: Cincinnati (AAC): AUTO-BID
2: North Carolina (ACC)
2: Purdue (Big 10)

3: Michigan State (Big 10)
3: Tennessee (SEC)
3: Michigan (Big 10): AUTO-BID
3: Auburn (SEC)

4: Arizona (Pac-12): AUTO-BID
4: West Virginia (Big 12)
4: Texas Tech (Big 12)
4: Kentucky (SEC): AUTO-BID

5: Wichita State (AAC)
5: Gonzaga (WCC): AUTO-BID
5: Clemson (ACC)
5: Ohio State (Big 10)

6: Houston (AAC)
6: Florida (SEC)
6: Arkansas (SEC)
6: Miami FL (ACC)

7: TCU (Big 12)
7: Texas A&M (SEC)
7: Seton Hall (Big East)
7: Rhode Island (A-10)

8: Nevada (MWC)
8: Providence (Big East)
8: Missouri (SEC)
8: Virginia Tech (ACC)

9: Kansas State (Big 12)
9: Butler (Big East)
9: Creighton (Big East)
9: Alabama (SEC)

10: NC State (ACC)
10: Florida State (ACC)
10: St. Bonaventure (A-10)
10: USC (Pac-12)

11: UCLA (Pac-12)
11: Oklahoma (Big 12)
11: Texas (Big 12)
11: St. Mary’s (WCC)
11: Loyola-Chicago (MVC): AUTO-BID
11: New Mexico State (WAC): AUTO-BID

12: San Diego State (MWC): AUTO-BID
12: South Dakota State (Summit): AUTO-BID
12: Buffalo (MAC): AUTO-BID
12: Murray State (OVC): AUTO-BID

13: UNC Greensboro (SoCon): AUTO-BID
13: Davidson (A-10): AUTO-BID
13: Charleston (CAA): AUTO-BID
13: Marshall (CUSA): AUTO-BID

14: Montana (Big Sky): AUTO-BID
14: Bucknell (Patriot): AUTO-BID
14: Wright State (Horizon): AUTO-BID
14: Stephen F. Austin (Southland): AUTO-BID

15: Georgia State (Sun Belt): AUTO-BID
15: Lipscomb (Atlantic Sun): AUTO-BID
15: Penn (Ivy): AUTO-BID
15: Iona (MAAC): AUTO-BID

16: UMBC (America East): AUTO-BID
16: Fullerton (Big West): AUTO-BID
16: Radford (Big South): AUTO-BID
16: LIU-Brooklyn (NEC): AUTO-BID
16: NC Central (MEAC): AUTO-BID
16: Texas Southern (SWAC): AUTO-BID

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Hoops HD Mock Selection Committee’s Final Bracket

Posted on March 11, 2018 by David Griggs

UPDATE: 3:40pm.  We do not feel the Houston v Cincinnati game will change either team.  Cincinnati is the outright first place finisher and shouldn’t be punished for losing, nor should they be rewarded for beating a team behind them.  Houston has already beaten Cincinnati and shouldn’t be rewarded for repeating something that they’ve already done.

-We are not attempting to guess the committee.  This is simply what we think the tournament SHOULD look like, not what we think it WILL look like.  Jon Teitel is our resident selection committee guessing expert.  He does guess the committee, and he does it better than almost anyone on the planet.  CLICK HERE to see his most recent bracket.  He will do a final seed list some time this afternoon.

UPDATE (5:58 PM EDT) – Staff Bracket Seed List Projections:

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Bracketology 2018: March Madness Predictions (Version 10.7)

Posted on March 11, 2018 by Jon Teitel

UPDATE: 3:40pm.  CLICK HERE to view the final Mock Selection Committee Bracket!!

We are building it right now!  We do not feel the Houston v Cincinnati game will change either team.  Cincinnati is the outright first place finisher and shouldn’t be punished for losing, nor should they be rewarded for beating a team behind them.  Houston has already beaten Cincinnati and shouldn’t be rewarded for repeating something that they’ve already done.

CLICK HERE for our latest Championship Week Video Notebook

 

JOHN TEITEL’S PICKS

Selection Sunday is finally here! We are now only hours away from finding out the fantastic field as we continue to make our own NCAA tourney predictions. Last March HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel correctly picked every single 1 of the 68 teams that made the tourney, 63 of which were within 1 spot of their actual seed, including 43 right on the money. See below for his list of who will make the cut when they announce the field today (with a final update coming before 6PM ET) and if you agree or disagree then feel free to tweet us. To see how we stack up with other websites (ranked 4th out of 113 entries over the past 5 years), check out: www.bracketmatrix.com

SEED: TEAM (CONFERENCE)
1: Virginia (ACC): AUTO-BID
1: Villanova (Big East): AUTO-BID
1: Kansas (Big 12): AUTO-BID
1: Xavier (Big East)

2: North Carolina (ACC)
2: Duke (ACC)
2: Cincinnati (AAC)
2: Purdue (Big 10)

3: Tennessee (SEC)
3: Michigan State (Big 10)
3: Michigan (Big 10): AUTO-BID
3: Auburn (SEC)

4: West Virginia (Big 12)
4: Wichita State (AAC)
4: Texas Tech (Big 12)
4: Arizona (Pac-12): AUTO-BID

5: Gonzaga (WCC): AUTO-BID
5: Clemson (ACC)
5: Kentucky (SEC)
5: Ohio State (Big 10)

6: Florida (SEC)
6: Houston (AAC)
6: Arkansas (SEC)
6: Miami FL (ACC)

7: TCU (Big 12)
7: Texas A&M (SEC)
7: Seton Hall (Big East)
7: Rhode Island (A-10)

8: Nevada (MWC)
8: Virginia Tech (ACC)
8: Missouri (SEC)
8: Providence (Big East)

9: Creighton (Big East)
9: Butler (Big East)
9: Kansas State (Big 12)
9: Alabama (SEC)

10: St. Bonaventure (A-10)
10: NC State (ACC)
10: Florida State (ACC)
10: USC (Pac-12)

11: Oklahoma (Big 12)
11: UCLA (Pac-12)
11: Texas (Big 12)
11: St. Mary’s (WCC)
11: Louisville (ACC)
11: Loyola-Chicago (MVC): AUTO-BID

12: New Mexico State (WAC): AUTO-BID
12: San Diego State (MWC): AUTO-BID
12: South Dakota State (Summit): AUTO-BID
12: Buffalo (MAC): AUTO-BID

13: Murray State (OVC): AUTO-BID
13: Marshall (CUSA): AUTO-BID
13: UNC Greensboro (SoCon): AUTO-BID
13: Charleston (CAA): AUTO-BID

14: Montana (Big Sky): AUTO-BID
14: Bucknell (Patriot): AUTO-BID
14: Wright State (Horizon): AUTO-BID
14: Stephen F. Austin (Southland): AUTO-BID

15: Texas-Arlington (Sun Belt)
15: Penn (Ivy)
15: Lipscomb (Atlantic Sun): AUTO-BID
15: UMBC (America East): AUTO-BID

16: Iona (MAAC): AUTO-BID
16: Fullerton (Big West): AUTO-BID
16: Radford (Big South): AUTO-BID
16: LIU-Brooklyn (NEC): AUTO-BID
16: Texas Southern (SWAC): AUTO-BID
16: NC Central (MEAC): AUTO-BID

Posted in Bracketology | Comments Off on Bracketology 2018: March Madness Predictions (Version 10.7)