2015 Barnes Bracketology: FINAL

Happy Selection Sunday! For some, this is sort of a national holiday. The day when the brackets are announced and whatever you had planned to do the rest of your Sunday is forgotten because it's time to break down the brackets. For me though, it's the end of the road for this but the start of something even more fun.

KEEP IN MIND: I have two brackets. One for if UConn wins the American and steals a bid. Another for if SMU wins. Also, Georgia State simply represents the Sun Belt champion. If Georgia Southern happens to win that, simply replace them with Georgia State.

PSA: I am among a select few "celebrities" (using that term loosely for me) taking part in a bracket challenge presented by FLIP. It is am organization dedicated to cancer prevention. It is a cause near and dear to many, including myself. You can take part in the bracket challenge for just $10, which goes towards FLIP. And in return, you can compete for some great prizes (CBJ tix, tailgate package, OSU gear) plus try to out pick myself, Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman, former OSU athletes (Z. Boren, Stoneburner, Linsley, Sullinger) and NBC4's own Monica Day. Check it out right here!

MY PROJECTED FIELD OF 68
(changes in italics)

LOCKS: Added 3 more teams who I think will be in the field, even if that means they somehow drop into the "First Four".

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

LOCKS (42): Kentucky, Virginia, Villanova, Wisconsin, Duke, Arizona, Gonzaga, Kansas, Notre Dame, Iowa State, Maryland, Baylor, North Carolina, Oklahoma, SMU, Northern Iowa, Utah, Louisville, West Virginia, Arkansas, Georgetown, Wichita State, Providence, Michigan State, San Diego State, Xavier, Butler, VCU, Cincinnati, NC State, Dayton, Oregon, St. John's, Iowa, Ohio State, Davidson, Purdue, Georgia, Temple, Colorado State, Oklahoma State, Texas


AUTOS: Everything here is set besides the Sun Belt, who decides their champion today. Also technically, if UConn, they will be placed here as Wyoming was as they only way they would have made the field was by the automatic bid.

Teams that have clinched their berth will appear in bold

AUTOS (22): America East - Albany, Atlantic Sun - North Florida, Big Sky - Eastern Washington, Big South - Coastal Carolina, Big West - UC Irvine, Colonial - Northeastern, Conference USA - UAB, Horizon - Valparaiso, Ivy - Harvard, MAAC - Manhattan, MAC - Buffalo, MEAC - Hampton, Mountain West - Wyoming, Northeast - Robert Morris, Ohio Valley - Belmont, Patriot - Lafayette, Southern - Wofford, Southland - Stephen F. Austin, SWAC - Texas Southern, Summit - North Dakota State, Sun Belt - Georgia State, WAC - New Mexico State

AT-LARGE: Have to keep at least 4 teams here, just because it will represent the last 4 in, thus them playing in Dayton for the "First Four". But I would think LSU and Indiana are safely in the field.

AT-LARGE (4): LSU, Indiana, BYU, Boise State

 BUBBLE WATCH

BUBBLE: Been a very fluid process with the bubble this past week and instead of teams paying their way into the field, many have come up just short. That was the case for Rhode Island and Tulsa, who I think came up a win or two short. And poor Ole Miss, bumped out of the field thanks to Wyoming's win in the Mountain West tournament. Same could happen to Boise State if UConn upsets SMU in the American 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 (10): LSU, Indiana, BYU, Boise State, Ole Miss, Tulsa, UCLA, Richmond, Texas A&M, Miami (FL)

SEEDING

As far as the bracket goes, I don't envision the committee waiting until 5:30-5:45 to change things around regarding Wisconsin being a 1 seed so win or lose today, I think the Badgers stay on the top line. They would have to change it if UConn wins, adding them, moving one team into the "First Fur" and taking a team from the "First Four" completely out of the field. That's an easy switch, as I did below. And I'm sure the same is said for the Sun Belt champion. Just change Georgia State and Georgia Southern. Again, I have Georgia State as the projected champ but if GSU wins, mentally put them there.

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

NEW TEAMS IN: Buffalo, Hampton, Wyoming

NEW TEAMS OUT: Central Michigan, Delaware State, Ole Miss

IF SMU WINS:

IF UCONN WINS

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

**Kentucky is the overall top seed

GAMES TO WATCH

Conference Championship Games Today: SEC, Sun Belt, A-10, American, Big Ten

Brackets are announced at 6pm. I'll write a recap post on Monday and have my picks on Tuesday.

Thanks for reading and going on this journey with me. Enjoy the tournament!

MB