Continuing at our look at all of the conferences today has a few more of our Mid Majors. Parts 1 and 2 are viewable from the archive on the right and you can get a full list of teams by conference from the Countdown to 68 in the tabs above.
The Colonial Athletic Association has produced some of the best story lines in college basketball in some of the past few tournaments and has produced some solid bubble candidates along the way as well. But this year they've taken a step back and have no at large candidates. They will be getting one bid this year and no more. Of the eleven teams in the conference, only seven will play in the conference tournament. Towson and UNC Wilmington are ineligible to participate in the postseason due to low Academic Progress Ratings. Georgia State and Old Dominion are barred from the tournament by the conference due to the fact they are leaving the conference after this season. That leaves Northeastern, Delaware, George Mason, James Madison, Drexel, William & Mary, and Hofstra alive to compete for the automatic berth. Northeastern has clinched the top seed in the conference and will be the team to beat, but any of the seven could come out with the bid. The tournament will be taking place March 9-11, with the championship game on March 11 televised on NBCSN.
--more after the jump--
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Conferences to Date - Part 2 - The Bigs
Part two of our conference analysis of this year's season to date we're looking at all of the "Big" conferences. Not all in size, but all in name - the Big 12, Big East, Big Sky, Big South, Big Ten, and Big West. See part 1 in the archive on the right, and a list of all teams in the Countdown to 68 above.
The Big 12 has been shaping up to be quite a battle at the top this year. But on the other end TCU, Texas Tech, Texas, and West Virginia will all need the conferences automatic bid if they want to make the tournament. They will all have the opportunity though, as all ten teams make the Big 12 tournament. The tournament will take place March 13-16 with the automatic bid being handed out on ESPN on March 16.
At Large Contenders:
Kansas went through a little cold spell, but they are still very much in contention for a 1-seed. Their loss to TCU may hold them back though. Winning out and taking the automatic bid in the Big 12 will keep them in the discussion for sure, but losing again may resign them to the 2-line at best.
Kansas State has surprised some people this season, as they are tied with Kansas at the top of the Big 12 standings. At this point they are just playing for the best seed possible. They would love the automatic bid, but they don't need it to make the field.
Oklahoma State has had a very good season to date. An early season loss to Virginia Tech is the only blemish on their profile, and a win over Kansas on the road is especially impressive. Much like Kansas State, this team is just playing for seed now.
Oklahoma has quietly had a very solid season. Losses to Stephen F Austin and Arkansas aren't terrible, and wins over Kansas and Oklahoma State are impressive. They currently have a top 20 RPI and its hard to imagine them missing the field. But with games remaining against three of the four bottom-feeders in the conference, it would be best not to go cold now. As long as they don't drop multiple games in that stretch, the automatic bid for them should merely be a luxury. We should see them in the tournament.
Iowa State was so close to a signature win against Kansas. Close to the point the conference admitted the refs got the play that allowed Kansas to send it into overtime wrong. How often do you see that? But in the end, they couldn't hold on in overtime and the result is the only thing that matters. They do have wins over Kansas State and Oklahoma, but also bad losses to Texas and Texas Tech. They could have used a signature win, and now would be a bad time to start a losing streak. However, if they can pick up another win over Oklahoma or Oklahoma State and avoid losing to West Virginia they should be ok. That automatic bid sure would be a nice way to forget the Kansas game though.
Baylor is running out of time to right the ship. At one point this team would have been solidly in the field without the automatic bid. Now they might need it. Losers in six of their last eight, and early season losses to Northwestern and Charleston are bad. Their marquee win over Kentucky isn't so impressive anymore. They're clinging to life with their win over Oklahoma State. A winning streak would help to end the season, as home games with Kansas State and Kansas are still to come, but they also have to avoid the bad losses that could come with trips to West Virginia and Texas. Taking the automatic bid from this conference would help. Depending how they finish the season, they might need it.
---
More after the jump
The Big 12 has been shaping up to be quite a battle at the top this year. But on the other end TCU, Texas Tech, Texas, and West Virginia will all need the conferences automatic bid if they want to make the tournament. They will all have the opportunity though, as all ten teams make the Big 12 tournament. The tournament will take place March 13-16 with the automatic bid being handed out on ESPN on March 16.
At Large Contenders:
Kansas went through a little cold spell, but they are still very much in contention for a 1-seed. Their loss to TCU may hold them back though. Winning out and taking the automatic bid in the Big 12 will keep them in the discussion for sure, but losing again may resign them to the 2-line at best.
Kansas State has surprised some people this season, as they are tied with Kansas at the top of the Big 12 standings. At this point they are just playing for the best seed possible. They would love the automatic bid, but they don't need it to make the field.
Oklahoma State has had a very good season to date. An early season loss to Virginia Tech is the only blemish on their profile, and a win over Kansas on the road is especially impressive. Much like Kansas State, this team is just playing for seed now.
Oklahoma has quietly had a very solid season. Losses to Stephen F Austin and Arkansas aren't terrible, and wins over Kansas and Oklahoma State are impressive. They currently have a top 20 RPI and its hard to imagine them missing the field. But with games remaining against three of the four bottom-feeders in the conference, it would be best not to go cold now. As long as they don't drop multiple games in that stretch, the automatic bid for them should merely be a luxury. We should see them in the tournament.
Iowa State was so close to a signature win against Kansas. Close to the point the conference admitted the refs got the play that allowed Kansas to send it into overtime wrong. How often do you see that? But in the end, they couldn't hold on in overtime and the result is the only thing that matters. They do have wins over Kansas State and Oklahoma, but also bad losses to Texas and Texas Tech. They could have used a signature win, and now would be a bad time to start a losing streak. However, if they can pick up another win over Oklahoma or Oklahoma State and avoid losing to West Virginia they should be ok. That automatic bid sure would be a nice way to forget the Kansas game though.
Baylor is running out of time to right the ship. At one point this team would have been solidly in the field without the automatic bid. Now they might need it. Losers in six of their last eight, and early season losses to Northwestern and Charleston are bad. Their marquee win over Kentucky isn't so impressive anymore. They're clinging to life with their win over Oklahoma State. A winning streak would help to end the season, as home games with Kansas State and Kansas are still to come, but they also have to avoid the bad losses that could come with trips to West Virginia and Texas. Taking the automatic bid from this conference would help. Depending how they finish the season, they might need it.
---
More after the jump
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Conferences to Date - Part 1 - America East, A10, ACC, ASun
There has been a lot of season so far. Almost an entire season so far. On one hand, it gives us quite a bit of insight to each team. On the other hand, there is a lot of information to go through. Take a look at the Countdown to 68 above for a full list of teams by conference. And without further ado, lets start taking a look at our contenders this year.
From the America East conference, our contenders in order of current RPI are: Stony Brook, Vermont, Albany, Hartford, Maine, New Hampshire, Maryland-Baltimore County, and Binghamton. What you may not know - currently at 11-4 and second in the conference, Boston University is ineligible for the postseason. They will be joining the Patriot League next year, and a little known rule in the America East allows the conference to bar a departing member from postseason play. There isn't much else to say about these guys, this is a one bid league. No matter what happens the rest of the season, the conference tournament winner is the only one dancing. The remaining eight teams will compete for the automatic bid beginning Saturday, March 9, and you can watch the Championship on Saturday March 16 on ESPN2. Stony Brook will be the favorite, but until they lose all eight teams are in the hunt.
--More after the jump--
From the America East conference, our contenders in order of current RPI are: Stony Brook, Vermont, Albany, Hartford, Maine, New Hampshire, Maryland-Baltimore County, and Binghamton. What you may not know - currently at 11-4 and second in the conference, Boston University is ineligible for the postseason. They will be joining the Patriot League next year, and a little known rule in the America East allows the conference to bar a departing member from postseason play. There isn't much else to say about these guys, this is a one bid league. No matter what happens the rest of the season, the conference tournament winner is the only one dancing. The remaining eight teams will compete for the automatic bid beginning Saturday, March 9, and you can watch the Championship on Saturday March 16 on ESPN2. Stony Brook will be the favorite, but until they lose all eight teams are in the hunt.
--More after the jump--
Obligatory First Intro Post
I am a college basketball fan as a major understatement. I suppose the most accurate description would be to say I am a college basketball obsessant. I don't believe it is a real word but it is how I would describe "One who obsesses about college basketball." Year after year I start preparing for March Madness in October, and it only builds from there. I've got my bracket projections, bubble analysis, and schedule of notable games every year that I keep to myself as a hobby. Recently, I decided I wanted to publish them in a public place. Whether this is a place people will find or not remains to be seen, but I want them out there.
This year, with such a late start to getting this blog up and running, the ultimate focus is on Championship Week. Fortunately, Championship Week is the greatest longer-than-a-regular-week week outside of the tournament itself. Bubbles are still very much in play, seeding is still very much up for grabs, and the tournament field officially starts to set. I've posted this all over the blog, but the ultimate message to be received is this: No one is eliminated from the tournament until they are eliminated from Championship Week. Thanks to the auto-bid and the fact that there is only one Ivy League, this makes for some great basketball. Every game means something. Most are just to eliminate the little guys, but thats fine, every game means something.
So if you stumbled across my blog early, welcome! If you read this far hopefully you'll find my analysis interesting as we build the final field of 68. You can expect to see frequent updates about upcoming meaningful games as well as analysis of what the recently played games mean to the teams involved in regards to their seeding, bubble hopes, or conference tournament position. I hope to have all of my data live in the next few days, so please, check back in regularly, start some discussion, and get ready for Championship Week!
This year, with such a late start to getting this blog up and running, the ultimate focus is on Championship Week. Fortunately, Championship Week is the greatest longer-than-a-regular-week week outside of the tournament itself. Bubbles are still very much in play, seeding is still very much up for grabs, and the tournament field officially starts to set. I've posted this all over the blog, but the ultimate message to be received is this: No one is eliminated from the tournament until they are eliminated from Championship Week. Thanks to the auto-bid and the fact that there is only one Ivy League, this makes for some great basketball. Every game means something. Most are just to eliminate the little guys, but thats fine, every game means something.
So if you stumbled across my blog early, welcome! If you read this far hopefully you'll find my analysis interesting as we build the final field of 68. You can expect to see frequent updates about upcoming meaningful games as well as analysis of what the recently played games mean to the teams involved in regards to their seeding, bubble hopes, or conference tournament position. I hope to have all of my data live in the next few days, so please, check back in regularly, start some discussion, and get ready for Championship Week!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)