Predicting The 2012 NCAA Tournament Field: Bracketology 1st Edition
By Jamal Murphy
Well, it’s that time of the year, folks. Time to start seriously thinking about and over analyzing who is worthy of a 2012 NCAA Tournament bid and where these teams will be seeded.
As we approach February and the meat of the college basketball schedule, every game will impact how the eventual bracket will look.
With that said, let’s take a look at my first prediction of the 2012 NCAA Tournament field and seeding, if the season were to end today (WARNING: The predicted field/seeding is highly likely to change from week to week).
*Automatic bids in italics.
1 SEEDS: Kentucky; Syracuse; Ohio State: Missouri.
2 SEEDS: Baylor; Duke; Kansas; UNLV.
3 SEEDS: North Carolina; Michigan State; Creighton; Georgetown.
4 SEEDS: Murray State; Marquette; San Diego State; Wisconsin.
5 SEEDS: Indiana; Michigan; Florida; Mississippi State.
6 SEEDS: Vanderbilt; St. Mary’s; Florida State; West Virginia.
7 SEEDS: Wichita State; Illinois; Kansas State; Alabama.
8 SEEDS: Purdue; Gonzaga; Temple; Louisville.
9 SEEDS: Connecticut; Virginia; Southern Miss; Minnesota.
10 SEEDS: Memphis; Harvard; Seton Hall; California.
11 SEEDS: Notre Dame; New Mexico; Saint Louis; Xavier.
12 SEEDS: Dayton; Colorado State vs. Mississippi; Iowa State vs. BYU; Long Beach State
13 SEEDS: Middle Tennessee State; Oral Roberts; Cleveland State; Massachusetts.
14 SEEDS: Akron; Iona; Davidson; Belmont.
15 SEEDS: Nevada; Bucknell; George Mason; Weber State.
16 SEEDS: Norfolk State; Long Island; UT Arlington vs. Stony Brook; UNC Asheville vs. Mississippi Valley State.
LAST FOUR IN: Colorado State; Iowa State; BYU; Mississippi.
LAST FOUR OUT: Arkansas; Cincinnati; Northwestern; St. Joseph’s.
NEXT FOUR OUT: NC State; Texas; Central Florida; Marshall.
CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN:
BIG EAST – 8
BIG TEN – 8
SEC – 6
BIG 12 – 5
ATLANTIC 10 – 5
ACC – 4
MOUNTAIN WEST – 4
WCC – 3
C-USA – 2
MVC – 2
PAC-12 – 1
CAA – 1
What are your thoughts on the field? Any teams that are too high or too low?