It's been quite some time since we got this blog rolling. So let's dust off the old Corral and check out some brackets with less than a month to go before Selection Sunday.
Last Four Byes: Oregon, Xavier, Seton Hall, Maryland
Last Four In: Drake, Saint Bonaventure, North Carolina, Connecticut
First Four Out: Colorado State, Minnesota, Ole Miss, Richmond
Next Four Out: Utah State, Saint Louis, Syracuse, St. John's
Conference Breakdown
Big Ten - 9
Big 12 - 7
ACC - 6
SEC - 6
Big East - 5
Pac-12 - 5
American Athletic - 2
Missouri Valley - 2
Mountain West - 2-
West Coast - 2
One-bid leagues - 20
It obviously goes without saying that this has been one unique season in college basketball. Schedules have been altered due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. And if you've been following the season and the consensus bracket projections, you know that we're looking at a tournament that will not feature the likes of Duke, Michigan State or Kentucky.
John Calipari's squad is currently sitting at 7-13 and, unless they make a stunning run in the SEC tournament, will miss the dance for the first time since 2013 (the year they lost to Robert Morris in the NIT).
For Tom Izzo and the Spartans, once upon a time, Sparty started 6-0, including a win at Duke in the Champions Classic. They have lost nine of their last 13 since their 6-0 start and sit outside the top 90 of the NET and sit 11th in the Big Ten standings at 4-9. This would be the first time since 1997 Michigan State doesn't hear its name called on Selection Sunday.
Then there's Duke. Just sniffing the top 60 of the NET, the Blue Devils are 9-8 overall with just one of those wins coming against Quadrant 1 and that was against NET No. 65 Notre Dame. They do have a home victory against Clemson to their credit. But their overall record and lack of top wins aren't making up for their pair of Quadrant 3 losses (one of which is actually Michigan State). Of the three teams we're discussing, Duke has the longest streak of consecutive tournament appearances. They haven't been left out of the dance since 1995.
In addition to these blue bloods being out, we also have North Carolina squarely on the bubble. But on the flip side, this has opened the door for more smaller schools to get more of an opportunity. This is why we have teams like Drake and Saint Bonaventure with at-large bids. The Missouri Valley Conference has not seen an at-large bid since Wichita State in 2016. But with Loyola-Chicago and Drake, a two-bid Missouri Valley is a viable possibility.
Drake earning a home split last weekend with the Ramblers kept them on the right side of the at-large conversation. The Missouri Valley tournament is going to be an exciting one. Here's hoping for a final between Drake and Loyola, a situation that could all but ensure both teams head to Indiana for the Big Dance.
That, of course, is another big change to the 2021 tournament, for those of you just catching up. The entire NCAA Tournament will take in the state of Indiana, with majority of the games being in Indianapolis, while Indiana and Purdue will also host some games. Also, this year's tournament will have 37 at-large bids, instead of 36, as the Ivy League decided not to play basketball. In fact, the league just announced they are not sponsoring spring sports, meaning the league will officially lose an entire academic year worth of sports, including two straight spring seasons, after the pandemic also wiped out the 2020 spring sports season.
This is going to be a fascinating final run to the bracket and to see how the committee values these teams with so many unbalanced schedules and odd number of games due to many games being postponed and even canceled. We'll dive more as we get closer to Selection Sunday. But it's good to be back.
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