Bracketology: Where does Butler stand in our latest projected field after sweep of Villanova?

After a week filled with upsets, here comes another Bracketology update to see how the seeding for the Big Dance has been shaken up.

On Wednesday night, the Butler Bulldogs knocked off Villanova at The Pavilion for just another outstanding win for their resume. Despite losses to both Indiana State and St. John’s, Butler is 9-2 against the RPI top-50, including a season sweep of Villanova to go with their wins over Arizona, Cincinnati, and more.

Now on a three-game winning streak, Butler has risen up a seed line to become a three seed in the bracket below. With a remaining regular season schedule that consists of a struggling Xavier on the road and then Seton Hall at home, it would not be a huge surprise if the Bulldogs did finish on the three line.

But, there are several other teams knocking on the door for one of those top seeds, and several of those teams will be looking to make moves over this weekend. Before getting to the projected bracket, here is a look at what to watch for over the next few days:

For Saturday:

Florida State can look to get back in line for a three seed with a win over Clemson as the Tigers look to rejoin the projected field.
Virginia needs to get back on track after four straight losses. They travel to NC State.
To get back on the bubble, Tennessee needs to upset South Carolina on the road.
Florida at Kentucky is one of the best games all weekend. It is tune-in TV.
TCU has lost four straight games and is falling down the seed lines. They get West Virginia at home.
If Villanova can beat Creighton at home, they will clinch the outright Big East Conference championship.
Michigan remains firmly on the bubble, and they have a massive opportunity at home against Purdue.
Miami looks to give Duke their second straight loss while the Blue Devils want to stay on the three line.
Another tough challenge approaches for Baylor, as they have to go on the road to face Iowa State.
Marquette at Providence. That’s the bubble game of the day in the Big East.
UCLA at Arizona is a monster game in the Pac-12 as teams fight for top seeds.

For Sunday:

Butler has joined the three line after sweeping Villanova, while Xavier is looking to get back on track.
Michigan State could use a big win against Wisconsin on Sunday to bolster its resume.
Coming off their buzzer-beating win against Duke, can Syracuse do it again against Louisville?
Georgia Tech is currently out of the field, but they can get back in by defeating Notre Dame.

This weekend brings about a lot of great action, so let’s see where things stand before reaching it.

Projected Bracket (Updated through Thursday, February 23rd)

1 Kansas
16 UC Irvine/Mount St. Mary’s

8 Xavier
9 Virginia Tech

4 Purdue
13 Monmouth

5 Cincinnati
12 Texas-Arlington

6 SMU
11 Marquette

3 Kentucky
14 Bucknell

7 Maryland
10 Seton Hall

2 Louisville
15 Florida Gulf Coast

Gonzaga 1
Texas Southern/New Orleans 16

USC 8
Iowa State 9

Florida State 4
Valparaiso 13

Creighton 5
TCU/Kansas State 12

Minnesota 6
Middle Tennessee 11

Florida 3
NC-Asheville 14

VCU 7
Michigan State 10

Arizona 2
CSU Bakersfield 15

1 North Carolina
16 North Dakota

8 Dayton
9 Miami

4 UCLA
13 Akron

5 Notre Dame
12 NC-Wilmington

6 St. Mary’s
11 Illinois State

3 Butler
14 Princeton

7 South Carolina
10 Michigan

2 Baylor
15 North Dakota State

Villanova 1
North Carolina Central 16

Northwestern 8
Wichita State 9

West Virginia 4
Vermont 13

Virginia 5
Nevada 12

Wisconsin 6
Providence/Syracuse 11

Duke 3
Belmont 14

Oklahoma State 7
Arkansas 10

Oregon 2
Furman 15

Bubble Preview

Next Four In

Seton Hall

Michigan State

Marquette

Illinois State

Last Four In

Providence

Syracuse

TCU

Kansas State

First Four Out

Vanderbilt

California

Georgia Tech

Clemson

Next Four Out

Wake Forest

Houston

Rhode Island

Illinois

Bids by Conference Breakdown

ACC: 9 Big 12: 7 Big Ten: 7 Big East: 7 Pac-12: 4

SEC: 4 WCC: 2 AAC: 2 A-10: 2 MVC: 2

Next: Final February Bubble Watch

There are only a few games left for each team before Selection Sunday arrives, so every game matters just a little bit more in terms of seeding and Bracketology. If you have any questions or comments, tweet at @hardwiredsports (that’s me!) and look for another update coming on Monday.

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