With each passing week, the results every night get magnified and more scrutinized as we creep closer to Selection Sunday. We are just five weeks away from conference tournaments getting underway, and that means opportunities for teams hoping to make the field are shrinking. It seems like every week has a theme of sorts. Last week, the undefeated teams suffered their first losses, and this week could be categorized as upsets and close calls.
It began on Tuesday with Purdue, Vanderbilt, and Clemson losing, while top 25 teams, Georgia, Saint Louis, and Miami (OH) won their games by a combined 12 points. It culminated on Saturday with North Carolina winning at Virginia and Illinois winning at Purdue. These results have the bubble as volatile as it has been all season, and we should expect things to get murkier before they get clearer. Here’s how the field looks after a week of unexpected outcomes.
West Region (San Jose)
San Diego
1.) Arizona vs. 16.) Bethune Cookman/UMES
8.) Wisconsin vs. 9.) Saint Mary's
Portland
5.) North Carolina vs. 12.) Florida Atlantic
4.) Florida vs.13.) Hawaii
Buffalo
6.) Clemson vs. 11.) Miami(OH)
3.) Houston vs. 14.) Wright State
Portland
7.) UCF vs. 10.) USC
2.) Gonzaga vs. 15.) North Dakota State
Despite the week's upsets and close calls, the top seed line came out unscathed. The top overall seed remains in the West Region with the Arizona Wildcats. After defeating West Virginia, the Cats moved to 20-0 with six quad 1 wins and top-3 metrics across the board. One of those quad 1 wins, a true-road win over another No. 1 seed, UConn, really stands out. Also in the west is a fellow undefeated team with Travis Steele’s Miami (OH) Redhawks sitting at 20-0 as the NO. 11 seed. The No. 4 seed bears watching because suddenly the defending champs, Florida, have played themselves back into the protected seed conversation.
East Region (Washington, D.C.)
Greenville
1.) Duke vs. 16.) Long Island/Merrimack
8.) Saint Louis vs. 9.) Georgia
Tampa
5.) Virginia vs. 12.) Murray State
4.) Vanderbilt vs. 13.) Texas-Arlington
St. Louis
6.) Louisville vs. 11.) San Diego State
3.) Illinois vs. 14.) East Tennessee State
Oklahoma City
7.) Kentucky vs. 10.) Ohio State
2.) Texas Tech vs 15.) Portland State
Duke remains the No. 2 team in the NET and the No. 2 team in the field, holding down the top seed in the East Region. The Blue Devils have a top-25 strength of schedule, along with a metrics average of 3.3. The 18-1 Blue Devils also have a staggering eight quad 1 wins, with five of them being of the quad 1A variety. In the East, the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds are coming off huge wins this weekend. Texas Tech climbs to No. 2 after holding serve at home against Houston, and No. 3 Illinois went into Mackey Arena without Kylan Boswell and knocked off Purdue, jumping them to a 3-seed.
South Region (Houston)
Philadelphia
1.) UConn vs. 16.) Navy
8.) Iowa vs. 9.) Texas A&M
Greenville
5.) Alabama vs. 12.) Yale
4.) BYU vs. 13.) Stephen F. Austin
Tampa
6.) Tennessee vs. 11.) UCLA/Seton Hall
3.) Purdue vs. 14.) Troy
Oklahoma City
7.) SMU vs. 10.) Texas
2.) Nebraska vs. 15.) Tennessee-Martin
The No. 1 seed in the South Region is where the UConn Huskies hold the top spot. After their win over Villanova, the Huskies are now 19-1. They have a 5-1 quad 1 record, with two road wins at Kansas and Seton Hall, the only blemish being the home loss to Arizona. Not as dominant as in years past, the Huskies just keep stacking up wins to remain on the top seed line. The other undefeated team, Nebraska, is the No. 2 seed here ahead of their huge matchup with Michigan on Tuesday. Two teams that also enjoy defensive rock fights are here with those Nebraska Cornhuskers, who have allowed over 70 points just five times, and No. 6 Tennessee. As are two teams that can really score the basketball, No. 4 BYU and No. 5 Alabama.
Midwest Region (Chicago)
Buffalo
1.) Michigan vs. 16.) UMBC
8.) Auburn vs. 9.) Utah State
San Diego
5.) Kansas vs. 12.) Liberty
4.) Arkansas vs. 13.) UNC-Wilmington
Philadelphia
6.) St. John's vs. 11.) New Mexico/Missouri
3.) Michigan State vs. 14.) Winthrop
St. Louis
7.) Villanova vs. 10.) Miami
2.) Iowa State vs. 15.) Queens
The Michigan Wolverines still hold down the Midwest Region after they defeated Ohio State on Friday. Michigan is also 18-1 with five road wins, better metrics than Duke, and a comparable schedule. But the reason the Blue Devils are the No. 2 overall seed and UConn is that, compared to the Blue Devils and Huskies, most of Michigan’s work has come in quad 2, with nine wins. Michigan may be the No. 1 seed, but Dusty May will have his hands full on the sideline, as Tom Izzo (Michigan State), Rick Pitino (St. John’s), John Calipari (Arkansas), and Bill Self (Kansas) all end up in the Midwest Region.
The Bubble
Last four in
The last four teams in the field all had an eventful weekend. First, New Mexico escaped a scare from Nevada, while UCLA backed up its win over Purdue by beating Northwestern. Missouri needed two buzzer beaters to beat Oklahoma in overtime. Those three teams pulled out victories, but Seton Hall continued its freefall, losing to DePaul, dropping them out of the field after a strong beginning of the year.
Missed the cut
The first four teams out of the field include two teams that faced off on Saturday. California got a big bubble win over rival Stanford, pushing them up the seed list and knocking the Cardinal down. Virginia Tech drops out of the field after losing to Louisville, and TCU’s win over Baylor gets them closer to the cutline. Teams that have left themselves more work to do are the Baylor team that TCU beat and fellow Big 12 foe Oklahoma State. LSU continues to trend in the wrong direction, falling to 1-6 in league play after back-to-back losses. It’s not all bad news as the Santa Clara Broncos continue to climb, winners of four straight.