Barnes Bracketology - March 12th

Well, Wednesday wasn't the most eventful day ever. But this is just the calm before the storm. Starting Thursday, my bracket will be jumping with new projections and seeds so enjoy this final day of minimal changes because soon enough, it will tough to keep up!

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 65
(new teams in italics)

LOCKS: For the third straight day, nothing new in this category.

LOCKS (32): Duke, UNC, Clemson, Florida St, Wake, Pitt, UConn, L'Ville, Villanova, West Virginia, Syracuse, Marquette, Michigan St, Illinois, Purdue, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Washington, UCLA, Arizona St, LSU, Utah, Memphis, Xavier, Butler, Gonzaga, Texas, Tennessee, California, Texas A+M and Ohio State.

AUTO: Another day and a couple more teams clinch their spot in the field of 65. First off, in the Northeast Conference, Robert Morris won on a last-second shot. And in the Big Sky, Portland State took the title, sending them to the Big Dance for the second year in a row.

AUTO (21): Binghamton (Am. East), East Tennessee St (A-Sun), Portland State (Big Sky), Radford (Big South), Long Beach St (Big West), VCU (Colonial), Cleveland State (Horizon), Cornell (Ivy), Siena (MAAC), Buffalo (MAC), Morgan St (MEAC), Northern Iowa (MVC), Robert Morris (Northeast), Morehead St (Ohio Valley), American (Patriot), Chattanooga (SoCon), Stephen F. Austin (Southland), Alabama St (SWAC), ND State (Summit), Western Kentucky (Sun Belt), and Utah St (WAC).

AT-LARGE: The only team to play in this category was Providence. They beat DePaul but since the Blue Demons are so awful, the Friars aren't in any better or worse standing. But tomorrow, the fun begins as almost all of these hit the court in their conference tournaments and if any upsets happen, this category is going to change a ton. So stay tuned.

AT-LARGE (12): BYU, OKST, Michigan, Dayton, Wisconsin, Minnesota, BC, UNLV, Penn State, Arizona, Providence, and St. Mary's

BUBBLE WATCH

No changes here as well. But starting today, I will be ranking the BUBBLE teams IN ORDER. That's right, in order from in the tourney to the outside looking in. I think this will give you a better understanding of who I think is in better shape as we progress toward Selection Sunday. So needless to say, the 25th team on this list needs a miracle to happen. Be aware though that the order of this does not mean they will be seeded this way in my bracket. That's not how the process works.

BUBBLE (25): BYU, OKST, Michigan, Dayton, Wisconsin, Minnesota, BC, UNLV, Penn State, Arizona, Utah State, Providence, St. Mary's, South Carolina, San Diego State, Kansas State, New Mexico, Florida, Creighton, Davidson, Northwestern, Rhode Island, VT, Vanderbilt, and Temple.

SEEDING

The challenge that is seeding wasn't very challenging today. In fact, if you looked at this bracket yesterday, then there is no need to look at the one today. I know, not what you wanna read but I'm an honest guy and I appreciate your readership. So I don't want to waste your time. Trust me, there will be changes tomorrow.

SOUTH-WEST vs. MIDWEST-EAST (Click on bracket for enlarged version)

SOUTH REGION (Memphis)
1 North Carolina vs. 16 Morgan State (Greensboro)
2 Michigan State vs. 15 Chattanooga (Minneapolis)
3 Wake Forest vs. 14 Western Kentucky (Miami)
4 Syracuse vs. 13 Buffalo (Boise)
5 Arizona State vs. 12 St. Mary's (Boise)
6 Butler vs. 11 Arizona (Miami)
7 West Virginia vs. 10 Dayton (Minneapolis)
8 Texas A+M vs. 9 Ohio State (Greensboro)

MIDWEST REGION (Indianapolis)
1 Pittsburgh vs. 16 Long Beach St/Alabama St (Dayton)
2 Duke vs. 15 Morehead State (Greensboro)
3 Kansas vs. 14 East Tennessee St (Boise)
4 LSU vs. 13 Cleveland State (Miami)
5 Purdue vs. 12 Northern Iowa (Miami)
6 Marquette vs. 11 UNLV (Boise)
7 California vs. 10 Wisconsin (Greensboro)
8 BYU vs. 9 Oklahoma St (Dayton)

EAST REGION (Boston)
1 UConn vs. 16 Robert Morris (Philadelphia)
2 Oklahoma vs. 15 Stephen F. Austin (Kansas City)
3 Villanova vs 14 Cornell (Philadelphia)
4 UCLA vs. 13 Portland State (Portland)
5 Illinois vs. 12 VCU (Portland)
6 Florida State vs. 11 Minnesota (Philadelphia)
7 Gonzaga vs. 10 Siena (Kansas City)
8 Tennessee vs. 9 Boston College (Philadelphia)

WEST REGION (Phoenix)
1 Memphis vs. 16 Radford (Kansas City)
2 Louisville vs. 15 American (Dayton)
3 Missouri vs. 14 Binghamton (Minneapolis)
4 Washington vs. 13 ND State (Portland)
5 Clemson vs. 12 Providence (Portland)
6 Xavier vs. 11 Penn State (Minneapolis)
7 Utah vs. 10 Michigan (Dayton)
8 Texas vs. 9 Utah State (Kansas City)

THURSDAY'S GAMES TO WATCH
Providence vs. Louisville - Hate to put the pressure on the Friars but a loss to Louisville may be just enough to keep them from being the 8th Big East team to make the field.
Northwestern @ Minnesota - Both teams need this win. Northwestern needs it much more but a loss by either may burst their bubble.
Miami (FL) vs. Virginia Tech - A win by Miami (FL) puts them back on the watch list. A win by VT helps them inch closer to a spot in the Big Dance.
Iowa vs. Michigan - The Wolverines are in great shape right now but losing to Iowa wouldn't be good for them. Iowa just beat Penn State so they can pull off the upset.
St. Joseph's vs. Temple - The Owls are barely in the Bubble Watch but with each win, they will get more and more consideration.
Arizona vs. Arizona State - This may be a must-win for Arizona. Of course, it must come against their rival. A loss by the Wildcats would make it 5 losses in 6 games.
Air Force vs. BYU - BYU is all but in the tournament. But a loss to lowly Air Force may be enough to throw some doubt into the committee's minds.
Texas vs. Kansas State - This is a must-win for Kansas State. A win over Texas gives them one more RPI top-50 win, giving them four, which merits consideration by the committee.
Indiana vs. Penn State - This is plain and simple. A Penn State loss sends them to the NIT. A win will keep people talking about them.
UNLV vs. San Diego State - Maybe the biggest bubble game of the night. SDSU has beaten UNLV twice already. A win by SDSU surely has to push SDSU up the food chain and possibly knock out UNLV.
Oklahoma State vs. Oklahoma - OKST can punch their dance card with an upset over the Sooners. With a loss, they'll have to wait it out on Sunday. Sooners are hoping to get back in the #1 seed talk.
Vanderbilt vs. Alabama - The long run that Vandy needs to have a case to make the field of 65 starts here against Bama.
Virginia vs. Boston College - BC is pretty much in the tourney but like BYU, a loss would bring about doubts at the wrong time of the year.
Richmond vs. Dayton - Richmond beat Xavier a week ago so they are capable of beating Dayton. The Flyers are oh so close to locking up a berth too.
Arkansas vs. Florida - The Gators are fighting for their lives right now and need a deep SEC Tourney run. Thankfully, they get to start with Arkansas.
Wyoming vs. New Mexico - The Mountain West tournament is going to be quite contentious. The Lobos have to win this game to keep hope alive.


So there you go. Another day of Barnes Bracketology in the books. Comments section is below in case you want to let me know what you think. Time is running out to get your opinions in. Until tomorrow, enjoy all the games!