Wichita State Basketball: What knocking off Cincinnati means for the Shockers

3. Shockers are back on the rise for the Big Dance

Now with four consecutive wins, it is clear that Wichita State is poised to receive a quality seed in the NCAA Tournament once again. Teams around them have floundered as of late and the Shockers belong in the discussion of being a top-four seed in the Big Dance. The team is balanced, confident, and has the go-to stars that can make a deep run come March.

The Shockers were once an NCAA Tournament Cinderella story. Now, though, they are rivaling the Butler Bulldogs as a team that has grown from the mid-major level to being one of the nation’s most consistent programs. In terms of what helps their seeding this season, the Shockers just picked up their best win of the year.

They are still rather unimpressive in Quadrant 1 games with a 3-2 record but their 9-2 record in Quadrant 2 contests is certainly worth something. There are not many teams that can rival a 12-4 record in the first two sections on their team sheet. In addition, the Shockers have quality rankings on paper.

Their RPI (16), KenPom (18), BPI (10) and Sagarin (12) positions are all very solid and warrant a high seed. According to the BracketMatrix (which includes our own Bracketology), Wichita State entered Feb. 18 with an average seed of 5.28. You can expect to see them even higher after taking care of the Bearcats.

Next: 10 teams to stay away from in March

Obviously, there is still plenty of season left to be played. Yet, after Wichita State’s win over Cincinnati, they have put themselves in a great position to make a run. Now with four straight wins, are we about to see the Shockers stay red-hot into the Big Dance?