Bracketology 2023: Final projected field of 68 ahead of Selection Sunday

The bracket banner is updated on the side of the J.W. Marriott with the results of the first day of games during the 2021 NCAA Division I basketball tournament in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Saturday, March 20, 2021. Mandatory Credit: Barbara Perenic/IndyStar via USA TODAY Sports /

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Bracketology Houston Cougars guard Marcus Sasser (0) and forward J’Wan Roberts Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports /

West Region (Las Vegas)

(1) Houston vs. (16) Howard
(8) Florida Atlantic vs. (9) Penn State
(5) TCU vs. (12) VCU
(4) Xavier vs. (13) Kent State
(6) San Diego State vs. (11) Rutgers
(3) Kansas State vs. (14) Furman
(7) Maryland vs. (10) Auburn
(2) UCLA vs. (15) Montana State

The Houston Cougars are headed to Las Vegas as the No. seed in the West region. The Cougars are in the AAC finals with a 31-2 record and the No. 1 ranking in the NET and all three predictive metrics. They are 15-1 in the first two quads after dispatching Cincinnati in the semifinals and are one of only two teams in the country to rank in the top 12 in both offensive and defensive efficiencies. The reason Kelvin Sampson’s team was unable to leapfrog Alabama or Kansas is their strength of schedule is 95th and their quad 3 loss to Temple.

The West is the defensive region with four other teams besides the Cougars ranking in the top 20 in defensive efficiency. No. 2 UCLA, No. 6 San Diego State, and a first-round matchup between No. 5 TCU and No. 12 VCU are all defensive specialists and will be tasked with trying to slow down Houston’s elite offense. That task became more difficult for UCLA when they lost PAC-12 Defensive Player of the Year Jaylen Clark to an injury in the PAC-12 tournament.

The team I want to watch in this region is the No. 13 seed and Mid-American champs the Kent State Golden Flashes. They enter the tournament winners of six in a row and ended the nation’s longest winning streak in the title game. Rob Senderoff’s team is the best defensive team in the conference by a large margin and that defense kept them in games against Charleston, Gonzaga, and the region’s top team, Houston.

The Golden Flashes are a top-40 defensive efficiency team and rank in the top 40 in effective field-goal percentage defense, two-point defense, and block, steal, and turnover percentages. The Golden Flashes are known for their defense, but they hung 93 points on Toledo in the title game, if they continue that kind of offensive output, they will be extremely dangerous. Everyone loves a double-digit seed and Kent State isn’t a bad horse to bet on.

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