2015 Barnes Bracketology: Feb. 27

Just think, the next post after this one will be in March! Not sure where you are reading this from but here in Columbus, it's freezing. So the month of March brings about two things. One, the best sporting event in the world. And two, the hope of warmer weather. But in case the warmer weather doesn't come that soon, the good news is you can just stay inside and watch March Madness inside anyways!

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: Truly expected to add 2-3 teams to this group after Sunday's post but the top 3 teams in the AT-LARGE group all lost so no changes. Maybe by the weekend, we'll be able to get this group up to 30 teams, especially when you consider how close we are to the finish line. The biggest changes here just came in the shuffling as Wisconsin is no longer a top seed, now  replaced by Villanova, who holds a slight edge on Gonzaga for the final number one seed.

This group is in order, so you have an idea of how they rank on my S-Curve.

LOCKS (26): Kentucky, Virginia, Duke, Villanova, Gonzaga, Wisconsin, Arizona, Kansas, Maryland, Utah, Baylor, Iowa State, Oklahoma, Northern Iowa, Wichita State, North Carolina, Arkansas, West Virginia, Louisville, VCU, SMU, Providence, Georgetown, San Diego State, Butler



AUTOS: No changes until after the weekend. Nothing to see here.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (21): America East - Albany, Atlantic Sun - Florida Gulf Coast, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - High Point, Big West - UC Davis, Colonial - Northeastern, Conference-USA - Louisiana Tech, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Iona, MAC - Central Michigan, MEAC - NC Central, Northeast - St. Francis (NY), Ohio Valley - Murray State, Patriot - Bucknell, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - South Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia State, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: Kudos to NC State, doing what very few BUBBLE teams do. Take the control out of the hands of the committee and the bracketlogists and proving they belong in the field by beating quality competition and on the road! Their latest win at North Carolina vaulted them from out of the field to in the field, and without playing in the "First Four". Beyond them, lots of shuffling but no new teams jumping in. Texas is the team that falls out.

These are in order, so the last four teams will be playing in the "First Four" in Dayton.

AT-LARGE (21): Xavier, Dayton, Oklahoma State, Indiana, Temple, Ole Miss, St. John's, Colorado State, Michigan State, Ohio State, Cincinnati, Georgia, Texas A&M, Purdue, Iowa, NC State, LSU, Stanford, Illinois, UCLA, Pittsburgh

 BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: Bubbles just keep bursting. Losses by Rhode Island and Wyoming have them longer under consideration. UMass lost as well and are barely hanging on. I brought Old Dominion back from the dead but as you can see, it's still a longshot. Still about 7 teams on the outside looking in who are very much alive, depending on their results and those in front of them.

These are in order, so to figure out the first teams out, head to the final team from the AT-LARGE category and look for all the teams behind them.

BUBBLE (30): Xavier, Dayton, Oklahoma State, Indiana, Temple, Ole Miss, St. John's, Colorado State, Michigan State, Ohio State, Cincinnati, Georgia, Texas A&M, Purdue, Iowa, NC State, LSU, Stanford, Illinois, UCLA, Pittsburgh, Oregon, Boise State, Texas, Davidson, Miami (FL), Tulsa, BYU, UMass, Old Dominion

SEEDING

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
 Big Ten (8), ACC (7), Big East (6), Big 12 (6), SEC (6), Pac-12 (4), American (3), A-10 (2), Mountain West (2), Missouri Valley (2)

NEW TEAMS IN: NC State

NEW TEAMS OUT: Texas

(Click on bracket to enlarge)
MIDWEST vs. WEST
EAST vs. SOUTH

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

Next update will come after Sunday's games.

MB

2015 Barnes Bracketology - Feb. 23

Three weeks now until Selection Sunday, Just three. Hard to believe. But what a run to the tournament we are about to have. Two weeks of some great games are ahead, including some huge ones for some teams on the bubble. And then, of course, a week of conference tournaments, which means college basketball on TV starting at noon all the way until 2am. It's a fantastic time of the year, only trumped by the next weekend, when the Big Dance begins in earnest.

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: Two new additions to this group after the weekend. San Diego State has avoided that really bad loss and with their record and RPI, they are surely getting in even if they trip up in the conference tournament. Same goes for Butler, who despite losing to Xavier, has done enough to keep the committee from leaving them out.

This group is in order, so you have an idea of how they rank on my S-Curve.

LOCKS (26): Kentucky, Virginia, Duke, Wisconsin, Villanova, Gonzaga, Kansas, Arizona, Notre Dame, Utah, Iowa State, Maryland, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Baylor, Northern Iowa, Wichita State, VCU, Arkansas, West Virginia, Louisville, Providence, Georgetown, SMU, San Diego State, Butler



AUTOS: Made a few changes here as some teams are losing grips on regular season conference titles and others have RPI numbers that are just difficult to ignore. Constant change is coming to this category very soon.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (21): America East - Albany, Atlantic Sun - Florida Gulf Coast, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - High Point, Big West - UC Davis, Colonial - Northeastern, Conference-USA - Louisiana Tech, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Iona, MAC - Central Michigan, MEAC - NC Central, Northeast - St. Francis (NY), Ohio Valley - Murray State, Patriot - Bucknell, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - South Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia State, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: As you can imagine, this is the group to put together. Have about 14 teams that I think are fairly solid and just have to put them in order. But after that, it gets a little dicey, especially as these teams find ways to lose bad games or even just close games against teams that could really help their resume. Pittsburgh did their part to fight back into the field, taking down Syracuse on the road. But that's the only change.

These are in order, so the last four teams will be playing in the "First Four" in Dayton.

AT-LARGE (21): Xavier, Indiana, Ole Miss, Dayton, Oklahoma State, Temple, Ohio State, Cincinnati, Colorado State, St. John's, Texas A&M, Purdue, Georgia, Texas, Iowa, Illinois, LSU, Stanford, UCLA, Pittsburgh

 BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: Good news for the teams in this group is that no one had their bubble burst from last week, despite a couple of them losing. But the teams on the outside looking in are running out of time to make an impression and move up. Miami (FL) fell out of the AT-LARGE group not because of a bad loss (at Louisville) but because the more you look at the math, it's hard to argue they are more worthy than some others ahead of them. And that's just how Bracketology goes.

These are in order, so to figure out the first teams out, head to the final team from the AT-LARGE category and look for all the teams behind them.

BUBBLE (31): Xavier, Indiana, Ole Miss, Dayton, Oklahoma State, Temple, Ohio State, Cincinnati, Colorado State, St. John's, Texas A&M, Purdue, Georgia, Texas, Iowa, Illinois, LSU, Stanford, UCLA, Pittsburgh, Boise State, NC State, Oregon, Miami (FL), Davidson, Tulsa, BYU, UMass, Rhode Island, Wyoming

SEEDING

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
 Big Ten (8), Big 12 (7), ACC (6), Big East (6), SEC (6), Pac-12 (4), American (3), A-10 (2), Mountain West (2), Missouri Valley (2)

NEW TEAMS IN: Pittsburgh

NEW TEAMS OUT: Miami (FL)

(Click on bracket to enlarge)
MIDWEST vs. WEST
EAST vs. SOUTH

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

Next update will come after Thursday's games.

MB

2015 Barnes Bracketology - Feb. 20

I had two friends on Twitter on Monday saying how this college basketball season just has not been riveting enough. I disagreed and said they just haven't been watching. Well, these past 4 days proved that college basketball is alive and well. Games like Purdue-Indiana, West Virginia-Kansas, Xavier-Cincinnati and of course the Duke-North Carolina OT thriller were must-see TV for any sports fan. And that was just 4 days of games. Just imagine what is it come in the days and weeks to come as the importance of these games is multiplied.

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: I said in the last update don't be surprised if I add 3-4 teams to this group as there is less time for teams to really mess up their resumes. Well, I didn't add 3-4. I added 5. Maryland is in and probably should have already been. Also, joining this group are Providence, West Virginia, Georgetown and SMU. All won over the past 4 days and have or are very close to 20 wins on the season.

This group is in order, so you have an idea of how they rank on my S-Curve.

LOCKS (24): Kentucky, Virginia, Duke, Wisconsin, Villanova, Gonzaga, Kansas, Arizona, Notre Dame, Utah, Iowa State, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Baylor, Wichita State, Northern Iowa, Maryland, Louisville, Arkansas, VCU, Providence, West Virginia, Georgetown, SMU



AUTOS: No changes here. Will make any necessary changes after this weekend's games.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (22): America East - Albany, Atlantic Sun - Florida Gulf Coast, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - High Point, Big West - UC Davis, Colonial - William & Mary, Conference-USA - Louisiana Tech, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Iona, MAC - Toledo, MEAC - NC Central, Mountain West - San Diego State, Northeast - St. Francis (NY), Ohio Valley - Murray State, Patriot - Bucknell, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - South Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia Southern, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: As usual, this group saw its fair share of changes. Much of it had to do with movement out of the group with those 5 teams graduating to LOCKS. Miami (FL) rejoined the group after two wins in the 4 days. Pittsburgh dropped out despite a fine loss as Virginia. The quality wins of the week went to Xavier, Purdue, and Texas A&M who all beat fellow teams in this category, with the first two teams doing it on the road nonetheless.

These are in order, so the last four teams will be playing in the "First Four" in Dayton.

AT-LARGE (22): Butler, Oklahoma State, Dayton, Ohio State, Indiana, Xavier, Ole Miss, Michigan State, Temple, Texas, Cincinnati, Colorado State, St. John's, Illinois, Texas A&M, Purdue, Iowa, Georgia, LSU, Stanford, Miami (FL), UCLA

 BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: Right now, we just have a group of 10 teams on the outside looking in. Pretty good at this point. That just means teams are starting to separate themselves as contenders or pretenders. And this group could get smaller, depending on their results over the next few games. Or of course, it could grow. Did not make one addition but did say goodbye to George Washington and Seton Hall for now.

These are in order, so to figure out the first teams out, head to the final team from the AT-LARGE category and look for all the teams behind them.

BUBBLE (33): Butler, Oklahoma State, Dayton, Ohio State, Indiana, Xavier, Ole Miss, Michigan State, Temple, Texas, Cincinnati, Colorado State, St. John's, Illinois, Texas A&M, Purdue, Iowa, Georgia, LSU, Stanford, Miami (FL), UCLA, Boise State, BYU, NC State, Pittsburgh, Oregon, Tulsa, Davidson, Rhode Island, UMass, Wyoming

SEEDING

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
 Big Ten (8), Big 12 (7), ACC (6), Big East (6), SEC (6), Pac-12 (4), American (3), A-10 (2), Mountain West (2), Missouri Valley (2)

NEW TEAMS IN: UCLA, Miami (FL)

NEW TEAMS OUT: Pittsburgh

(Click on bracket to enlarge)
MIDWEST vs. WEST
EAST vs. SOUTH

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

Next update will come after Sunday's games.

MB

2015 Barnes Bracketology - Feb. 16

With less than 4 weeks now until Selection Sunday, now it gets fun. Each team has about 5-6 games left and the ones who feel like they are LOCKS to get in are trying for one of those top 2-3 seeds. Those who are on the BUBBLE know just one win vs. a ranked team could be their ticket to the dance. It makes for great TV as teams are playing harder than ever before. Hope you're enjoying it as much as I am.

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: We've added more teams to this group. One is a returner and one is a newcomer. The returner is VCU, who after taking down George Washington on the road, did what they needed to do for me to convince me they can win without Briante Weber. The newcomer is Arkansas, who at 20-5, looks like a team that should make the field. Don't be surprised if by Friday's update, this group grows by 3-4 more teams as teams now have less time to mess up already good resumes.

This group is in order, so you have an idea of how they rank on my S-Curve.

LOCKS (19): Kentucky, Virginia, Duke, Wisconsin, Kansas, Villanova, Gonzaga, Arizona, Notre Dame, Utah, Iowa State, Louisville, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Baylor, Wichita State, Arkansas, Northern Iowa, VCU



AUTOS: Made some changes within this group as some teams had better weeks than others. Again, many of these are pure guesses as it's hard to follow these conferences. Plus, the conference tournaments are all that matters for most of these conferences.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (23): America East - Albany, American - SMU, Atlantic Sun - Florida Gulf Coast, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - High Point, Big West - UC Davis, Colonial - William & Mary, Conference-USA - Louisiana Tech, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Iona, MAC - Toledo, MEAC - NC Central, Mountain West - San Diego State, Northeast - St. Francis (NY), Ohio Valley - Murray State, Patriot - Bucknell, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - South Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia Southern, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: Good amount of changes here. Added 3 teams and shuffled the group quite a bit thanks to some results over the weekend. Michigan State, Pittsburgh, and UCLA had the biggest wins and were rewarded for it. Others who did lose were hurt a bit but not enough to fall out of the field. Can't say the same though for Boise State, Seton Hall and idle Miami (FL), who are on the outside looking in now.

These are in order, so the last four teams will be playing in the "First Four" in Dayton.

AT-LARGE (26): Maryland, Butler, Providence, West Virginia, Georgetown, Oklahoma State, Indiana, Dayton, Texas, Ohio State, Temple, Cincinnati, Michigan State, Ole Miss, St. John's, Xavier, Georgia, Colorado State, Illinois, Stanford, Iowa, LSU, UCLA, Texas A&M, Purdue, Pittsburgh

BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: So the group that was 50, then 47, then 44 is now down to 40. That's how it goes on the bubble. You can always get into the mix but it's much easier to just have your bubble burst. Just ask Alabama, Washington, and Tennessee, who all are not mentioned this time. The teams near the end of this list likely need to win out before their conference tournament to get some real consideration. Those near the top just need to avoid the truly bad loss against a cellar dweller type of team.

These are in order, so to figure out the first teams out, head to the final team from the AT-LARGE category and look for all the teams behind them.

BUBBLE (40): Maryland, Butler, Providence, West Virginia, Georgetown, SMU, San Diego State, Oklahoma State, Indiana, Dayton, Texas, Ohio State, Temple, Cincinnati, Michigan State, Ole Miss, St. John's, Xavier, Georgia, Colorado State, Illinois, Stanford, Iowa, LSU, UCLA, Texas A&M, Purdue, Pittsburgh, Boise State, Miami (FL), BYU, NC State, Seton Hall, UMass, Oregon, Tulsa, Wyoming, Rhode Island, Davidson, George Washington

SEEDING

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
 Big Ten (8), Big 12 (7), ACC (6), Big East (6), SEC (6), Pac-12 (4), American (3), A-10 (2), Mountain West (2), Missouri Valley (2)

NEW TEAMS IN: UCLA, Purdue, Pittsburgh

NEW TEAMS OUT: Boise State, Miami (FL), Seton Hall

(Click on bracket to enlarge)
MIDWEST vs. WEST
EAST vs. SOUTH

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

Next update will come after Thursday's games.

MB

2015 Barnes Bracketology - Feb. 13

Getting to be about that time where BUBBLE teams start to feel the pressure, and I love that! When you have just 5-6 games left on your regular season schedule, and probably just 2-3 against teams that can help your resume, games against those quality teams become more important. And that means even if teams aren't exactly ranked, it makes for a great, competitive game, because there is much more on the line than just a conference win. There could be an AT-LARGE spot in March Madness (and Barnes Bracketology) on the line.

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: Couple changes here. The first is something I hate to do but that is to take a team out of this category. Only the second time I've ever done that but in this case, it's due to an injury that is clearly hurting the team. Talking about VCU and the loss of Briante Weber, their best defender. Since losing him, they have lost 3 of 4 and while they are likely still going to get into the tournament, let's not call them a LOCK anymore. It is time to call Oklahoma, Wichita State and Northern Iowa that though, who are new additions after wins this week.

This group is in order, so you have an idea of how they rank on my S-Curve.

LOCKS (17): Kentucky, Virginia, Duke, Wisconsin, Kansas, Villanova, Gonzaga, Arizona, Louisville, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Iowa State, Baylor, Wichita State, Northern Iowa



AUTOS: Every Sunday night, I'll check back on this group to see if I need to make any tweaks. I made a couple but nothing too drastic.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (24): America East - Albany, American - Cincinnati, Atlantic Sun - Florida Gulf Coast, Atlantic 10 - VCU, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - High Point, Big West - Long Beach State, Colonial - William & Mary, Conference-USA - Louisiana Tech, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Iona, MAC - Toledo, MEAC - NC Central, Mountain West - San Diego State, Northeast - St. Francis (NY), Ohio Valley - Murray State, Patriot - Bucknell, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - North Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia Southern, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: For the first time, not one team dropped down form this list. 3 were elevated but no one dropped out. The losses suffered by LSU and Texas A&M were good losses, though both were at home. Plenty of shuffling but nothing too drastic.

These are in order, so the last four teams will be playing in the "First Four" in Dayton.

AT-LARGE (27): West Virginia, Butler, Georgetown, Arkansas, Providence, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Ohio State, SMU, Xavier, Texas, Indiana, Georgia, Temple, Dayton, Ole Miss, Iowa, Stanford, Colorado State, St. John's, Illinois, Michigan State, Boise State, LSU, Seton Hall, Miami (FL), Texas A&M

BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: This group has shrunk from 50 to 47 to 44. Yes, it is getting smaller and that's for two reasons. Some of those teams are moving into LOCKS. Others though are just not getting the job done to stay in consideration. This week, that includes the likes of Old Dominion and Saint Mary's, who couldn't really afford a loss right now. I added UMass to the fray though, as maybe I have overlooked just how good their resume is.

These are in order, so to figure out the first teams out, head to the final team from the AT-LARGE category and look for all the teams behind them.

BUBBLE (44): West Virginia, VCU, Butler, Georgetown, Arkansas, Providence, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Cincinnati, Ohio State, SMU, Xavier, Texas, Indiana, Georgia, San Diego State, Temple, Dayton, Ole Miss, Iowa, Stanford, Colorado State, St. John's, Illinois, Michigan State, Boise State, LSU, Seton Hall, Miami (FL), Texas A&M, Purdue, Oregon, BYU, UCLA, Tennessee, George Washington, Pittsburgh, UMass, Alabama, NC State, Tulsa, Washington, Wyoming, Rhode Island

SEEDING

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
 Big East (7), Big Ten (7), Big 12 (7), ACC (6), SEC (6), American (3), Mountain West (3), Pac-12 (3), A-10 (2), Missouri Valley (2)

NEW TEAMS IN: None

NEW TEAMS OUT: None

(Click on bracket to enlarge)
MIDWEST vs. WEST
EAST vs. SOUTH

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

Next update will come after Sunday's games.

MB

2015 Barnes Bracketology - Feb. 9

So here we stand, 5 weeks until Selection Sunday and from all accounts, this tournament is Kentucky's to lose. The lone undefeated team and clearly, the most talented on paper. But what may keep Kentucky from winning it all will be the matchups they must face en route to the championship game. Teams like a veteran squad in Wisconsin or defensive-minded Virginia team could be exactly what could trip up the Cats. How long will UK have until they face a team they may have real trouble with on a neutral floor? That's why putting the bracket together is so important.

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: Made our first addition to this group since I've begun posting. Baylor is now a LOCK to get in, after a resounding win on the road at West Virginia, which adds to an already solid resume.

This group is in order, so you have an idea of how they rank on my S-Curve.

LOCKS (15): Kentucky, Virginia, Duke, Wisconsin, Kansas, Villanova, Gonzaga, Arizona, Iowa State, Louisville, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Utah, Baylor, VCU



AUTOS: Every Sunday night, I'll check back on this group to see if I need to make any tweaks. I made a couple but nothing too drastic.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (24): America East - Albany, American - Cincinnati, Atlantic Sun - Florida Gulf Coast, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - High Point, Big West - Long Beach State, Colonial - William & Mary, Conference-USA - Louisiana Tech, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Iona, MAC - Toledo, MEAC - NC Central, Missouri Valley - Wichita State, Mountain West - San Diego State, Northeast - St. Francis (NY), Ohio Valley - Murray State, Patriot - Bucknell, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - North Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia Southern, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: It was a fun weekend for many of these teams. Lot of matchups between 2 teams in this category, so a win means a quality win while a loss just meant a missed opportunity. Kudos to Illinois, Boise State and LSU who with wins this weekend, now find themselves among the field of 68 but barely.

These are in order, so the last four teams will be playing in the "First Four" in Dayton.

AT-LARGE (29): Northern Iowa, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Providence, Butler, Arkansas, Georgetown, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Ohio State, SMU, Xavier, Texas, Indiana, Dayton, Georgia, Ole Miss, Temple, Iowa, Miami (FL), Stanford, St. John's, Seton Hall, Colorado State, Illinois, Michigan State, Texas A&M, LSU, Boise State

BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: Still a fairly large bubble right now, which is good news. That bubble will shrink and ultimately burst on a lot of teams as the weeks go on. And there is a lot of movement too as some teams like a George Washington creep up with a good win vs. a team projected in the field while others like Alabama and Washington are in a bit of a freefall.

These are in order, so to figure out the first teams out, head to the final team from the AT-LARGE category and look for all the teams behind them.

BUBBLE (47): Wichita State, Northern Iowa, Cincinnati, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Providence, Butler, Arkansas, Georgetown, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Ohio State, SMU, Xavier, Texas, Indiana, Dayton, San Diego State, Georgia, Ole Miss, Temple, Iowa, Miami (FL), Stanford, St. John's, Seton Hall, Colorado State, Illinois, Michigan State, Texas A&M, LSU, Boise State, Tennessee, George Washington, Purdue, NC State, BYU, Pittsburgh, Oregon, UCLA, Wyoming, Tulsa, Rhode Island, Alabama, Washington, Saint Mary's, Old Dominion

SEEDING

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
 Big East (7), Big Ten (7), Big 12 (7), ACC (6), SEC (6), American (3), Mountain West (3), Pac-12 (3), A-10 (2), Missouri Valley (2)

NEW TEAMS IN: Illinois, Boise State, LSU

NEW TEAMS OUT: Tennessee, Purdue, Tulsa

(Click on bracket to enlarge)
MIDWEST vs. WEST
EAST vs. SOUTH

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

Next update will come after Thursday's games.

MB

2015 Barnes Bracketology - Feb. 6

Still more than a month before Selection Sunday and already, I can tell how tough this year may be finding teams that are worthy of the tournament. Seems like every year, there are about 60-64 teams that deserve to get into the tournament. But that final group of 4 is always hard to narrow down, especially when they all continually lose. That was the case this week.

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: No one added or deleted from this group. Again, the goal is to never delete anyone from this group. I did change the order of teams slightly.

This group is in order, so you have an idea of how they rank on my S-Curve.

LOCKS (14): Kentucky, Virginia, Kansas, Duke, Wisconsin, Arizona, Villanova, Gonzaga, Notre Dame, Louisville, Iowa State, North Carolina, VCU, Utah



AUTOS: This is the group of teams that will only make the tournament by winning their conference tournament. Obviously, I do not follow all of these conferences so I tend to just write in the team that leads the standings. I will update these as the weeks go on to make sure I predict the team playing the best at the time.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (24): America East - Albany, American - Tulsa, Atlantic Sun - Florida Gulf Coast, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - High Point, Big West - Long Beach State, Colonial - William & Mary, Conference-USA - Louisiana Tech, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Iona, MAC - Toledo, MEAC - NC Central, Missouri Valley - Wichita State, Mountain West - San Diego State, Northeast - St. Francis (NY), Ohio Valley - Murray State, Patriot - Bucknell, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - South Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia Southern, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: In typical fashion, more than half of these teams lost, making for some interesting decisions on my part in moving them up, down or not at all. There were some quality wins (Oklahoma State, Cincinnati, Oklahoma, Providence) but also some pretty terrible losses (Xavier, Seton Hall, Tennessee, LSU, NC State) that caused me to shuffle this group more than usual in the first week of posting.

These are in order, so the last four teams will be playing in the "First Four" in Dayton.

AT-LARGE (30): Baylor, West Virginia, Northern Iowa, Providence, Georgetown, Cincinnati, Maryland, Butler, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Indiana, Dayton, SMU, Oklahoma State, Texas, Xavier, Georgia, Seton Hall, Ole Miss, Michigan State, Temple, Miami (FL), St. John's. Stanford, Iowa, Tennessee, Colorado State, Texas A&M, Purdue

BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: It's only the first week in February and I'm already frustrated with this group of teams. They are all pretty mediocre and in the past 4 days, did nothing to change my opinion. Besides Purdue and Wyoming, none had an impressive win. Others like Richmond and Kansas State tallied embarrassing losses that really dropped them. In other words, plenty of moving and shaking happened and I'm sure plenty more will occur in the weeks ahead.

These are in order, so to figure out the first teams out, head to the final team from the AT-LARGE category and look for all the teams behind them.

BUBBLE (50): Baylor, Wichita State, West Virginia, Northern Iowa, Providence, Georgetown, Cincinnati, Maryland, Butler, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Arkansas, San Diego State, Indiana, Dayton, SMU, Oklahoma State, Texas, Xavier, Georgia, Seton Hall, Ole Miss, Michigan State, Temple, Miami (FL), St. John's. Stanford, Iowa, Tennessee, Colorado State, Texas A&M, Purdue, LSU, Boise State, Illinois, Washington, NC State, George Washington, Wyoming, UCLA, BYU, Alabama, Clemson, Tulsa, Kansas State, Pittsburgh, Oregon, Memphis, Richmond, Old Dominion

SEEDING

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
 Big East (7), Big Ten (7), Big 12 (7), ACC (6), SEC (6), American (4), Pac-12 (3), A-10 (2), Missouri Valley (2), Mountain West (2)

NEW TEAMS IN: Iowa, Texas A&M, Purdue

NEW TEAMS OUT: Washington, LSU, NC State

(Click on bracket to enlarge)
MIDWEST vs. WEST
EAST vs. SOUTH

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

Next update will come after Sunday's games.

MB

2015 Barnes Bracketology - Feb. 2

For the sixth year in a row, Barnes Bracketology is here! Been a very successful 5 years as I have correctly predicted 67 out of 68 teams each year. (Feel free to check out my self-congratulatory recap post from last year here). This year, I hope to be perfect -- though as I will point out numerous times, just because I miss a team does not mean I am wrong, just means I do not agree with the tournament committee. There is no RIGHT way to make these brackets. It is sort of like a puzzle that can be put together in different ways. Barnes Bracketology is simply just another one of those ways.

These early posts are always a bit rough and the projections will fluctuate a good amount as I really start to get a feel for the teams. When you're a football fanatic like myself, it's hard to throw yourself into this immediately so it takes a week or two. But just like the previous years, I continue to find ways to make this process easier, faster and hopefully more enjoyable for the reader and I think I will do that again this year.

If you are new to this column, here is a quick intro. I will update this every Monday and Friday. That is because teams tend to play one game from Mon-Thurs and then another between Fri-Sun. I will explain where each team stands. I will NOT look at one Bracketology projection on any other site (ESPN, CBS Sports, etc..) during this process as to not be influenced by so-called "experts" (who just simply get paid to do what I am doing as a hobby). I love your feedback too so if you have any questions or comments, go for it.

So for the sixth (!) year, here we go.

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: This group is for the teams that will pretty much locked up their spot in the tournament. My goal is to never take a team out of this group, so I may be hesitant to put teams in here early on until I know for sure a team has done enough to make the tournament. I will put these teams in order so you know how I rank these teams on my S-Curve.

LOCKS (14): Kentucky, Virginia, Kansas, Duke, Wisconsin, Arizona, Villanova, Gonzaga, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Louisville, Iowa State, VCU, Utah



AUTOS: This is the group of teams that will only make the tournament by winning their conference tournament. Obviously, I do not follow all of these conferences so I tend to just write in the team that leads the standings. I will update these as the weeks go on to make sure I predict the team playing the best at the time.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (24): America East - Albany, American - Tulsa, Atlantic Sun - Florida Gulf Coast, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - High Point, Big West - Long Beach State, Colonial - William & Mary, Conference-USA - Louisiana Tech, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Iona, MAC - Toledo, MEAC - NC Central, Missouri Valley - Wichita State, Mountain West - San Diego State, Northeast - St. Francis (NY), Ohio Valley - Murray State, Patriot - Bucknell, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - South Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia Southern, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: This group is for the teams that are not LOCKS to get into the tournament as of yet but still are worthy of being included in the field. This is the group that will slowly get smaller and smaller as the weeks go on. Some of these tams will graduate to LOCKS. Others will fall out and simply be on the BUBBLE on the outside looking in.

These are in order, so the last four teams will be playing in the "First Four" in Dayton.

AT-LARGE (30): Baylor, West Virginia, Georgetown, Northern Iowa, Providence, Ohio State, Cincinnati, Maryland, Butler, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Indiana, SMU, Xavier, Dayton, Texas, Seton Hall, Oklahoma State, Georgia, Miami (FL), Michigan State, Ole Miss, Temple, St. John's, Washington, Tennessee, Stanford, LSU, Colorado State, NC State

BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: You know what this group is about. The teams that are not LOCKS and are hoping to be an AT-LARGE selection. You'll notice, all of the AT-LARGE teams are in this group because if you aren't a LOCK, you're still technically on the BUBBLE. Some teams are just safer than others. You'll also see teams from the AUTO category in here. That's because they would be in the AT-LARGE discussion if they were to lose in the conference tournament.

These are in order, so to figure out the first teams out, head to the final team from the AT-LARGE category and look for all the teams behind them.

BUBBLE (47): Baylor, Wichita State, West Virginia, Georgetown, Northern Iowa, Providence, Ohio State, Cincinnati, Maryland, Butler, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Indiana, San Diego State, SMU, Xavier, Dayton, Texas, Seton Hall, Oklahoma State, Georgia, Miami (FL), Michigan State, Ole Miss, Temple, St. John's, Washington, Tennessee, Stanford, LSU, Colorado State, NC State, Texas A&M, Kansas State, Iowa, Illinois, Florida, George Washington, Boise State, Purdue, Richmond, Alabama, Pittsburgh, Clemson, Wyoming, Tulsa, Old Dominion

SEEDING

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN
ACC (7), Big East (7), Big 12 (7), SEC (6), Big Ten (5), American (4), Pac-12 (4), A-10 (2), Missouri Valley (2), Mountain West (2)

(Click on bracket to enlarge)
MIDWEST vs. WEST
EAST vs. SOUTH

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

Next update will come after Thursday's games.

MB