Bracketology 2024: Gonzaga and BYU surge in the first bracket projection for the field of 68 in March

The Bubble

Last four in

There isn’t a conference in the country that has been more bubble-prone all year long than the Big East. As a result, three of the four teams headed to Dayton are well acquainted. One game has the Villanova Wildcats taking on the Colorado Buffaloes as No. 11 seeds with the winner heading to East region to take on No. 6 Wisconsin. The other game is an all-Big East affair with Saint John’s taking on Providence after the two teams split during the regular season. The winner of this one heads to the West region to take on No. 6 Clemson.

First four out

With just two weeks until Selection Sunday, the bubble is as volatile this late in the year as I can remember. Heading into Sunday’s action the first four teams out of the field are Utah, Iowa, Wake Forest, and Mississippi. Of these four only Iowa is trending in the right direction as they have been steadily leaping over teams on the bubble for a couple of weeks with wins over Wisconsin, Michigan State, and Northwestern.

Next four out

The next four out that could move up quickly by stringing a few wins together are Texas A&M, Drake, Memphis, and Kansas State. Now granted that has been a problem for these teams all year long, that’s why they’re in this position.

The team I am most curious about is Drake. How far can they climb if they face Indiana State for the 3rd time in the Missouri Valley finals but lose? That would make them 27-6 with at least three quad 1 wins and top-60 metrics.