We are only 3 days away from Selection Sunday as we continue to make our NCAA tourney predictions. Last March HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel correctly picked 65 of the 68 teams that made the tourney, each of which was within 1 spot of their actual seed, including 37 right on the money. He will spend the upcoming days predicting which 68 teams will hear their names called on Selection Sunday. See below for his list of who would make the cut if they picked the field today and let us know if you agree or disagree in the comments section. To see how we stack up with other websites (ranked 3rd out of 88 entries over the past 3 years), check out: www.bracketmatrix.com
SEED: TEAM (CONFERENCE)
1: Villanova (Big East)
1: Kansas (Big 12)
1: North Carolina (ACC)
1: Gonzaga (WCC): AUTO-BID
16: South Dakota State (Summit): AUTO-BID
16: North Dakota (Big Sky)
16: Jacksonville State (OVC): AUTO-BID
16: NC Central (MEAC)
16: New Orleans (Southland)
16: Mount St. Mary’s (NEC): AUTO-BID
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It is the eve of the busiest day of Championship Week with all of the power conferences and multi-bid leagues getting underway. We run through all the action and look back at what was a very busy Wednesday as well with another automatic bid being punched as Bucknell won the Patriot League. The Hoops HD Selection Committee has started its deliberations, and we show you the results of our initial voting. And as always, we begin with our mailbag and end with an update of our Survival Board.
THURSDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK ACTION
ACC Format: Ladder (top four seeds bye into quarterfinals) Location: Brooklyn, NY
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
12:00 PM – (1) North Carolina vs (9) Miami, ESPN
2:30 PM – (4) Louisville vs (5) Duke, ESPN
7:00 PM – (2) Florida State vs (7) Virginia Tech, ESPN
9:30 PM – (3) Notre Dame vs (6) Virginia, ESPN
BIG 12 Format: Standard Location: Kansas City, MO
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
12:30 PM – (4) Iowa State vs (5) Oklahoma State, ESPN2
3:00 PM – (1) Kansas vs (8) TCU, ESPN2
7:00 PM – (2) West Virginia vs (10) Texas, ESPNU
9:30 PM – (3) Baylor vs (6) Kansas State, ESPNU
PAC-12 Format: Standard Location: Las Vegas, NV
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
3:00 PM – (1) Oregon vs (8) Arizona State, Pac-12 Network
5:30 PM – (4) Utah vs (5) California, Pac-12 Network
9:00 PM – (2) Arizona vs (7) Colorado, Pac-12 Network
11:30 PM – (3) UCLA vs (6) USC, ESPN
BIG EAST Format: Standard Location: New York City
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
12:00 PM – (1) Villanova vs (8) St. John’s, FS1
2:30 PM – (4) Marquette vs (5) Seton Hall, FS1
7:00 PM – (2) Butler vs (7) Xavier, FS1
9:30 PM – (3) Providence vs (6) Creighton, FS1
MOUNTAIN WEST Format: Standard Location: Las Vegas, NV
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
3:00 PM – (1) Nevada vs (9) Utah State, CBS Sports Network
5:30 PM – (4) Fresno State vs (5) New Mexico, CBS Sports Network
9:00 PM – (2) Colorado State vs (10) Air Force, CBS Sports Network
11:30 PM – (3) Boise State vs (6) San Diego State, CBS Sports Network
CONFERENCE USA Format: Standard Location: Birmingham, AL
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
12:30 PM – (1) Middle Tennessee vs (9) Texas-San Antonio, ASN
3:00 PM – (4) UTEP vs (5) Rice, ASN
6:30 PM – (2) Louisiana Tech vs (7) UAB, ASN
9:00 PM – (3) Old Dominion vs 6/11, ASN
MID-AMERICAN Format: Standard Location: Campus sites (first round); Cleveland, OH (second round through championship)
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
12:00 PM – (1) Akron vs (8) Eastern Michigan, Local TV/espn3
2:30 PM – (4) Ball State vs (5) Western Michigan, Local TV/espn3
6:30 PM – (2) Ohio University vs (7) Toledo, Local TV/espn3
9:00 PM – (3) Buffalo vs (6) Kent State, Local TV/espn3
WAC Format: Standard Location: Las Vegas, NV Note: Grand Canyon is ineligible for the WAC tournament as a transitional team.
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
5:00 PM – (4) Utah Valley vs (5) Seattle, wacsports.com
7:30 PM – (2) New Mexico State vs (7) Chicago State, wacsports.com
10:00 PM – (3) UMKC vs (6) Texas-Rio Grande Valley, Local TV/wacsports.com
BIG SKY Format: Standard Location: Reno, NV
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
3:00 PM – (1) North Dakota vs (8) Portland State, watchbigsky.com
5:30 PM – (4) Idaho vs (5) Montana, watchbigsky.com
8:30 PM – (2) Eastern Washington vs (7) Sacramento State, watchbigsky.com
11:00 PM – (3) Weber State vs (11) Southern Utah, watchbigsky.com
BIG WEST Format: Standard with Re-seed for Semifinals Location: Anaheim, CA Note: Only the top 8 of the Big West’s 9 teams qualify for the Big West tournament.
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
3:00 PM – (2) UC-Davis vs (7) Cal Poly, Local TV/Fox College Sports-Pacific
5:30 PM – (3) Cal State-Fullerton vs (6) Cal State-Northridge, Local TV/Fox College Sports-Pacific
9:00 PM – (1) UC-Irvine vs (8) UC-Riverside, Fox College Sports-Pacific
11:30 PM – (4) Long Beach State vs (5) Hawai’i, Local TV/Fox College Sports-Pacific
SOUTHLAND Format: Ladder (top two seeds bye into semifinals) Location: Katy, TX
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
6:00 PM – (4) Houston Baptist vs (5) Sam Houston State, espn3
8:30 PM – (3) Stephen F. Austin vs (6) Lamar, espn3
MEAC Format: Standard Location: Norfolk, VA
Thursday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
6:00 PM – (3) Morgan State vs (11) Howard, espn3
8:30 PM – (4) Hampton vs (5) Maryland-Eastern Shore, espn3
BIG TEN Format: Ladder (top four seeds bye into quarterfinals) Location: Washington, DC
Thursday, March 9 – Second Round
12:00 PM – (8) Michigan vs (9) Illinois, BTN
2:30 PM – (5) Michigan State vs (13) Penn State, BTN
6:30 PM – (7) Iowa vs (10) Indiana, ESPN2
9:00 PM – (6) Northwestern vs (14) Rutgers, ESPN2
SEC Format: Ladder (top four seeds bye into quarterfinals) Location: Nashville, TN
Thursday, March 9 – Second Round
1:00 PM – (8) Georgia vs (9) Tennessee, SEC Network
3:30 PM – (5) Alabama vs (12) Mississippi State, SEC Network
7:00 PM – (7) Vanderbilt vs (10) Texas A&M, SEC Network
9:30 PM – (6) Ole Miss vs (14) Missouri, SEC Network
ATLANTIC TEN Format: Ladder (top four seeds bye into quarterfinals) Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Thursday, March 9 – Second Round
12:00 PM – (8) La Salle vs (9) Davidson, NBC Sports Network
2:30 PM – (5) St. Bonaventure vs (12) Massachusetts, NBC Sports Network
6:30 PM – (7) George Mason vs (10) Fordham, NBC Sports Network
9:00 PM – (6) George Washington vs (11) Saint Louis, NBC Sports Network
AMERICAN Format: Standard Location: Hartford, CT
Thursday, March 9 – First Round
3:30 PM – (8) Temple vs (9) East Carolina, ESPNU
6:00 PM – (7) Tulsa vs (10) Tulane, ESPNEWS
8:30 PM – (6) Connecticut vs (11) South Florida, ESPNEWS
And for all you radio lovers, below is an mp3 version of the show…
With Selection Sunday only 4 days away, every member of the HoopsHD staff submitted 2 lists to our chairman Chad Sherwood: one list consists of up to 36 teams that should be voted into the NCAA Tournament no matter what the circumstances are (this is what we’ve referred to as “first-ballot” teams). Teams need at least 8 votes to be added to the first-ballot pool. The second list is for teams to be placed Under Consideration for NCAA Tournament selection. Teams need at least 3 votes to be added to the Under Consideration pool. Without further ado, here are the results:
As of Wednesday night, there have been 12 automatic bids handed out from conference tournaments that have been completed. Our committee named 30 out of a possible 36 teams into the NCAA Tournament field. For the time being, this leaves 48 teams on the Under Consideration board playing for 6 at-large spots. There will be spots that open up as teams on both the at-large boards and Under Consideration boards earn automatic bids into the NCAA Tournament. Teams like Syracuse that are highlighted in orange have completed their regular season and have to wait and see what other teams around them do.
Tomorrow night, our Committee will begin to fill the remaining at-large spots and also name its annual Centenary Award (click HERE for the history of the award). Either Alabama A&M or North Carolina A&T will be added to the Under Consideration board upon winning the Centenary Award.
Now that teams have started to claim auto-bids we kick off our “Tourney Talk” series of interviews with players who you will see on TV next week. On Sunday FGCU beat North Florida 77-61 in the Atlantic Sun title game to earn an automatic bid to next week’s NCAA tournament. The Eagles made it the NCAA tourney last March before losing to North Carolina but are back this year for the 3rd time in 5 years. 1 of the keys to their success this year has been JR PG Brandon Goodwin, who was named conference tourney MVP. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Brandon about transferring to FGCU and what it feels like to use mean tweets as motivation.
You began your career at UCF where you led the team with 1.2 SPG as a sophomore: what is your secret for playing defense? Just reading the passer’s eyes whether I am on the ball or off the ball. You can tell when a big guy is going to try and put the ball down on the floor: you just have to make a quick read.
On January 6, 2015 you scored a career-high 30 PTS in a 79-78 OT win at Houston, including the final 13 PTS of the game that saw you make a 30-footer with 2 seconds left in regulation and the game-winning step-back 3-PT shot with 1.1 seconds left in OT: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? Yes: I had a really good warmup session and was feeling very good before the game. I remember telling my teammates that I liked the rims/lighting in that arena. I was feeling really confident throughout the game and my teammates basically put the game in my hands to win and told me to try and score.
That summer you decided to transfer: why did you choose to leave, and what made you pick FGCU? My coach called me in and said that it was best if we parted ways, but never gave me a specific reason. I was fine with it and chose FGCU because they had recruited me out of high school. When my recruitment opened back up the 1st person to hit me up was assistant coach Michael Fly, and I knew that this was the place where I wanted to be.
You play for Coach Joe Dooley: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have ever learned from him? He is a tough coach but knows what he is talking about. He is a hard worker and wants the best for his players. We are similar in that we do not take no for an answer so we are very compatible. He has a lot of experience so I definitely listen to everything he says.
You had a brutal schedule to start the year with 4 games against possible tourney teams (Florida/Texas-Arlington/Baylor/Michigan State): which of these teams impressed you the most? I would say Baylor: they were just an all-around good team with good size and a really good PG in Manu Lecomte. Johnathan Motley is a long wingman who just makes a lot of plays and will be a pro.
After sitting out last year you led the team this year with 18.2 PPG (which set the school’s single-season record)/4 APG this year: how are you able to balance your scoring with your passing? You just have to let the game come to you. If I can get in the lane and have a wide-open teammate I will kick it to them, but if the defense does not collapse then I will shoot it.
Your team leads the nation in points in the paint, which you helped add to by shooting 52.1 FG%: what kind of defense does your team play it best against, and how will you keep scoring inside next week if you face a team that has a 7’ shot-blocker? I think we play our best against a man-to-man defense because our guards can penetrate and get into the lane: we do not shoot a ton of threes. If we have to face a 7-footer that will be to our advantage because we can get him in high ball screens.
In the Atlantic Sun title game on Sunday you scored a team-high 19 PTS to help beat North Florida 77-61 and clinch an automatic bid: what did it mean to you to be named conference tourney MVP, and how were you able to play your best when it mattered the most? It means a lot to me…but the most important thing was winning the championship. I actually thought that I played poorly in the 1st half due to missing a lot of shots, but my teammates got me pumped up in the 2nd half and I played really well, just like I knew that I could.
You mentioned on Twitter last weekend that your had a tweet as your wallpaper which said, “Brandon Goodwin and Daiquan Walker might be the WORST guards to EVER play for @UCF_MBB!! Can’t wait until they are out of the rotation!”: how were you able to use such a mean-spirited attack as motivation without letting it get you down? I grew up with people saying crazy things to me, even in joking ways during AAU ball where guys would just try to make me mad, but I never let it get to me. When I saw that specific tweet I just decided to show the guy that I was not the worst guard on the team. I did not talk about it a lot with people but did tell my mom that I would try to use it to my advantage. I know there are trolls out there on the Internet but it is up to you about how you make use of it.
What kind of seed do you think that you deserve, and what kind of seed do you think that you are going to get? I think we deserve a 12 or 13 seed. We did not play to our full capability during the year but have finally started to turn things up and I think that we can match up with anyone in the country.
We are only 4 days away from Selection Sunday as we continue to make our NCAA tourney predictions. Last March HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel correctly picked 65 of the 68 teams that made the tourney, each of which was within 1 spot of their actual seed, including 37 right on the money. He will spend the upcoming days predicting which 68 teams will hear their names called on Selection Sunday. See below for his list of who would make the cut if they picked the field today and let us know if you agree or disagree in the comments section. To see how we stack up with other websites (ranked 3rd out of 88 entries over the past 3 years), check out: www.bracketmatrix.com
SEED: TEAM (CONFERENCE)
1: Villanova (Big East)
1: Kansas (Big 12)
1: North Carolina (ACC)
1: Gonzaga (WCC): AUTO-BID
16: South Dakota State (Summit): AUTO-BID
16: North Dakota (Big Sky)
16: Jacksonville State (OVC): AUTO-BID
16: NC Central (MEAC)
16: New Orleans (Southland)
16: Mount St. Mary’s (NEC): AUTO-BID
Four more conference champions have been crowned, including Northern Kentucky who won the Horizon League in their first year of being eligible to earn a bid to the NCAAS. Gonzaga blasted Saint Mary’s for the third time this season to win the West Coast Championship, Mount Saint Mary’s won the NEC, and South Dakota State repeated as champions after winning a thriller against Omaha. There was also action today in the MEAC, SWAC, Big Sky, and ACC. We review all of those, and preview a very busy day tomorrow as many of the power conferences get underway. And as always, we begin with our mailbag and end with an update of our Survival Board.
WEDNESDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK ACTION
PATRIOT LEAGUE Format: Standard Location: Campus Sites
Wednesday, March 8 – Championship
7:30 PM – (3) Lehigh at (1) Bucknell, CBS Sports Network
MEAC Format: Standard Location: Norfolk, VA
Wednesday, March 8 – Quarterfinals
6:00 PM – (1) North Carolina Central vs (9) Bethune-Cookman, espn3
8:30 PM – (2) Norfolk State vs (7) South Carolina State, espn3
ACC Format: Ladder (top four seeds bye into quarterfinals) Location: Brooklyn, NY
12:00 PM – (8) Syracuse vs (9) Miami, ESPN
2:30 PM – (5) Duke vs (12) Clemson, ESPN
7:00 PM – (7) Virginia Tech vs (10) Wake Forest, ESPN2
9:30 PM – (6) Virginia vs (14) Pittsburgh, ESPN2
BIG EAST Format: Standard Location: New York City
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
7:00 PM – (8) St. John’s vs (9) Georgetown, FS1
9:30 PM – (7) Xavier vs (10) DePaul, FS1
BIG 12 Format: Standard Location: Kansas City, MO
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
7:00 PM – (8) TCU vs (9) Oklahoma, ESPNU
9:30 PM – (7) Texas Tech vs (10) Texas, ESPNU
PAC-12 Format: Standard Location: Las Vegas, NV
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
3:00 PM – (8) Arizona State vs (9) Stanford, Pac-12 Network
5:30 PM – (5) California vs (12) Oregon State, Pac-12 Network
9:00 PM – (7) Colorado vs (10) Washington State, Pac-12 Network
11:30 PM – (6) USC vs (11) Washington, Pac-12 Network
MOUNTAIN WEST Format: Standard Location: Las Vegas, NV
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
2:00 PM – (8) Utah State vs (9) San Jose State, themw.com
4:30 PM – (7) Wyoming vs (10) Air Force, themw.com
7:00 PM – (6) San Diego State vs (11) UNLV, themw.com
CONFERENCE USA Format: Standard Location: Birmingham, AL Note: Only the top 12 of Conference USA’s 14 teams qualify for the conference tournament.
Wednesday, March 9 – First Round
12:30 PM – (8) Western Kentucky vs (9) Texas-San Antonio, campusinsiders.com
3:00 PM – (5) Rice vs (12) Southern Mississippi, campusinsiders.com
6:30 PM – (7) UAB vs (10) Charlotte, campusinsiders.com
9:00 PM – (6) Marshall vs (11) Florida Atlantic, campusinsiders.com
SUN BELT Format: Standard Location: New Orleans, LA
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
12:30 PM – (8) Coastal Carolina vs (9) South Alabama, espn3
3:00 PM – (5) Arkansas State vs (12) Louisiana-Monroe, espn3
6:00 PM – (7) Louisiana-Lafayette vs (10) Arkansas-Little Rock, espn3
8:30 PM – (6) Troy vs (11) Appalachian State, espn3
SOUTHLAND Format: Ladder (top two seeds bye into semifinals) Location: Katy, TX Note: Abilene Christian and Incarnate Word are ineligible as transitional teams. The top 8 of the 11 eligible Southland Conference teams qualify for the conference tournament.
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
6:00 PM – (5) Sam Houston State vs (8) Central Arkansas, espn3
8:30 PM – (6) Lamar vs (7) Southeastern Louisiana, espn3
BIG TEN Format: Ladder (top four seeds bye into quarterfinals) Location: Washington, DC
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
4:30 PM – (12) Nebraska vs (13) Penn State, ESPN2
7:00 PM – (11) Ohio State vs (14) Rutgers, BTN
SEC Format: Ladder (top four seeds bye into quarterfinals) Location: Nashville, TN
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
7:00 PM – (12) Mississippi State vs (13) LSU, SEC Network
9:30 PM – (11) Auburn vs (14) Missouri, SEC Network
ATLANTIC TEN Format: Ladder (top four seeds bye into quarterfinals) Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Wednesday, March 8 – First Round
6:00 PM – (12) Massachusetts vs (13) St. Joseph’s, ASN
8:30 PM – (11) Saint Louis vs (14) Duquesne, ASN
And for all you radio lovers, below is an mp3 version of the show…
The HoopsHD Committee Report: Wednesday, March 8
Click HERE for Jon Teitel’s interview with Florida Gulf Coast player Brandon Goodwin
Click HERE for Jon Teitel’s most recent Bracket Projection
SITES YOU NEED TO CHECK OUT FROM SOME OF THIS YEAR’S COMMITTEE MEMBERS!!
Warren Nolan’s RPI and Statistical Site for College Sports – CLICK HERE
Podcaster and Bracketologist Extraordinaire Andy Bottoms at Assembly Call – CLICK HERE
Galen Clavio at Crimson Cast – CLICK HERE
Galen Clavio again at Sports Politik – CLICK HERE
Scott Swartz at The Buffet – CLICK HERE
With Selection Sunday only 4 days away, every member of the HoopsHD staff submitted 2 lists to our chairman Chad Sherwood: one list consists of up to 36 teams that should be voted into the NCAA Tournament no matter what the circumstances are (this is what we’ve referred to as “first-ballot” teams). Teams need at least 8 votes to be added to the first-ballot pool. The second list is for teams to be placed Under Consideration for NCAA Tournament selection. Teams need at least 3 votes to be added to the Under Consideration pool. Without further ado, here are the results:
As of Wednesday night, there have been 12 automatic bids handed out from conference tournaments that have been completed. Our committee named 30 out of a possible 36 teams into the NCAA Tournament field. For the time being, this leaves 48 teams on the Under Consideration board playing for 6 at-large spots. There will be spots that open up as teams on both the at-large boards and Under Consideration boards earn automatic bids into the NCAA Tournament. Teams like Syracuse that are highlighted in orange have completed their regular season and have to wait and see what other teams around them do.
Tomorrow night, our Committee will begin to fill the remaining at-large spots and also name its annual Centenary Award (click HERE for the history of the award). Either Alabama A&M or North Carolina A&T will be added to the Under Consideration board upon winning the Centenary Award.