NCAA Basketball: Busting Brackets Bracketology

5 Seeds:  Baylor, Dayton, Wichita State, Purdue

Wichita State has rebounded from a 5-5 nonconference slate that included losses to Iowa and Alabama to run roughshod over the Missouri Valley.  The Shockers are 10-0 in MVC play and cruising to another automatic bid.  WSU’s Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet are leading the charge, 14.4 and 13.4 ppg, respectively.  Guards are usually important for deep runs, so don’t be shocked if this team wins a couple games.

Purdue has been a bit of a disappointment.  They do have a lot of good wins, going 6-3 against the RPI top-100, but haven’t dominated the way many expected with their size in the front court.  The Boilermakers still have the talent to receive a higher seed, but they probably need to beat Maryland and Michigan State with a win or two in the Big Ten tournament.

Dayton is only a half game behind VCU to win the Atlantic-10.  Their only bad loss is is La Salle, but they have beaten Iowa, Alabama, and Vanderbilt among others.  The Flyers are either the conference’s auto bid or an at-large and have the recent history to suggest a dangerous run.

Baylor has exceeded expectations this season by a small amount.  They are currently one game back of Oklahoma and West Virginia for first place after a terribly-timed loss to Texas in Waco.  Taurean Prince, Johnathan Motley, and Rico Gathers are great rebounders, but the weakness for this team is clearly the guards.  Al Freeman and Lester Medford are good, but have been very inconsistent over the past week or two.

Next: 4 Seeds