Big 12 Basketball: Midseason recap, awards, and observations

Oklahoma State – Out (still a good shot to sneak in)

The Cowboys have a much better chance to get an at-large bid than the previous two teams, thanks to a solid non-conference win over Florida State. That loss to Texas A&M does look shaky with each passing day. Beating Oklahoma was a big deal, but the blowouts aren’t going to help now that advanced analytics are in play.

Kansas State -11 (must avoid a bad loss)

The Wildcat’s back-to-back wins over ranked teams helped bring them back into the Big Dance but the overall resume is shaky at best. There’s nothing good about the non-conference and a loss to Tulsa doesn’t help things. The schedule gets really tough soon, so grabbing another big win will really help.

Texas – 9 (depends on the opponents)

The Longhorns had a tough preseason schedule and will have great strength of schedule (SOS) numbers. They technically don’t have a bad loss, nor a great win. What Butler, Alabama, and even VCU does could have an even bigger impact than what Texas does in the Big 12. This could be a resume that no one else on the bubble can match.

TCU – 8 (Just don’t lose to Iowa State and Baylor)

Although the Nevada (maybe SMU) win was the only thing that mattered in the non-conference, going unbeaten all but assured the lack of bad losses. That’s why the Horned Frogs can be under .500 and still be nowhere near the bubble. But they need to be careful and avoid thinking they’re already in. There is a number of conference losses that the committee will just say “that’s too much.” *Update: That loss to Vanderbilt was the worst possible thing to happen.