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Bracketology: Welcome to the top line, San Diego State

By Dave OmmenJan 20, 2020, 1:30 PM EST

Here is the latest NCAA tournament bracketology projection.

Welcome to the top line, San Diego State. The Aztecs join Baylor, Gonzaga, and Kansas as No. 1 seeds in our latest bracket update. SDSU remains the only unbeaten team in college hoops, buoyed by wins over tournament teams Iowa, Creighton and BYU.

The West-leaning geographical slate of top seeds means someone has to go East. As SDSU is the fourth overall seed, that adventure belongs to them. Several additional power conference teams are pushing for the top line, too – including Florida State, Michigan State and surging Seton Hall. And let’s not forget about Louisville, a preseason top seed. The Cardinals put together an impressive road win at Duke on Saturday.

The latest look at where our NCAA tournament bracketology projection stands …

UPDATED: January 20, 2020

FIRST FOUR – DAYTON
EAST REGION	Virginia Tech vs. Georgetown
WEST REGION	NC State vs. VCU
SOUTH REGION	PR VIEW-AM vs. NORFOLK ST
WEST REGION	MONMOUTH vs. ST. FRANCIS (PA)

SOUTH – Houston		WEST – Los Angeles
Omaha		Spokane
1) BAYLOR		1) GONZAGA
16) PV-AM / NORFOLK ST		16) MONMOUTH / ST. FRANCIS (PA)
8) Arkansas		8) Illinois
9) Memphis		9) HOUSTON

Tampa		Sacramento
5) Colorado		5) Arizona
12) EAST TENNESSEE ST		12) NC State / VCU
4) Maryland		4) Iowa
13) S.F. AUSTIN		13) NEW MEXICO ST

St. Louis		Greensboro
6) Marquette		6) Michigan
11) NORTHERN IOWA		11) Saint Mary’s
3) LOUISVILLE		3) Duke
14) NORTH TEXAS		14) LITTLE ROCK

Albany		Spokane
7) Wisconsin		7) LSU
10) USC		10) Oklahoma
2) SETON HALL		2) Oregon
15) WILLIAM-MARY		15) UC-IRVINE

EAST – New York		MIDWEST – Indianapolis
Sacramento		Omaha
1) SAN DIEGO STATE		1) Kansas
16) RADFORD		16) MONTANA
8) Rutgers		8) Indiana
9) STANFORD		9) Florida

Albany		Cleveland
5) Kentucky		5) Creighton
12) LIBERTY		12) YALE
4) Villanova		4) DAYTON
13) AKRON		13) VERMONT

Greensboro		St. Louis
6) Penn State		6) Auburn
11) Virginia Tech / Georgetown		11) BYU
3) West Virginia		3) Butler
14) COLGATE		14) WRIGHT STATE

Tampa		Cleveland
7) Ohio State		7) Wichita State
10) DePaul		10) Texas Tech
2) Florida State		2) MICHIGAN STATE
15) AUSTIN PEAY		15) NORTH DAKOTA ST

BUBBLE NOTES
Last 4 Byes	Last 4 IN	First 4 OUT	Next 4 OUT
USC	Virginia Tech	Purdue	Washington
DePaul	NC State	Minnesota	Saint Louis
Saint Mary’s	Georgetown	Arizona State	St. John’s
BYU	VCU	Xavier	Richmond

Top Seed Line
Baylor, Gonzaga, Kansas, San Diego State
Seed List

Breakdown by Conference …
Big Ten (10)
Big East (7)
ACC (5)
SEC (5)
Big 12 (5)
Pac 12 (5)
American (3)
West Coast (3)
Atlantic 10 (2)
Mountain West (1)

College Basketball Top 25 Power Rankings: Baylor and Gonzaga lead the way

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By Rob DausterJan 19, 2020, 12:23 PM EST

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A new college basketball top 25 is now live.

Baylor is not the No. 1 team in my poll, and I suspect that they are going to be the No. 1 team in the country when the AP poll is released on Monday morning. The only reason they weren’t No. 1 last week is because four people (like me) had Duke at No. 1, stealing votes from the Bears. That … did not go well, so here we are.

I also want to talk through something else: Last week, I wrote extensively about why I think that it’s foolish to allow the result of one possession games to have a significant impact on the way that you view a team. One shot in a 70 possession game that is just one of more than 30 games that will be played this season is insignificant when determining the quality of a team, and I truly believe that.

But I also think it is important to consider how and why teams are winning close games, not just games that are one-possession games.

So let’s use Duke and Baylor for this example once again.

One thing that the Bears have proven over and over this season — at Texas Tech, at Kansas, at Oklahoma State — is the ability to close out a tough game, particularly on the road. That’s because they have a number of players on the roster that are capable of taking and making clutch shots. Against Tech, it was Jared Butler. Against Oklahoma State, it was Devonte Bandoo. The Bears may not look as good in the metrics because they haven’t obliterated the mediocre teams they have played, but they are 15-1 because they come through in the clutch.

Now, some of that may eventually regress. I believe in the clutch gene because I think life — not just sports, but everything every human being does — is confidence. Baylor has confidence in clutch situations, as much as anyone in the country. They do not get rattled by the moment, and they have a number of different options they can go to down the stretch.

Duke, on the other hand, does not. Their three losses this season have all been close games where the Blue Devils have struggled to find an outlet for offense in the final minutes. Maybe that will come with more experience — Duke is loaded with freshmen, Baylor is as old as anyone in the country — but as it stands, that’s the difference between these two teams.

Baylor won their close games.

Duke did not.

And I don’t think that’s a fluke.

The other thing that I want to discuss in this space is where I have San Diego State and Dayton ranked in the college basketball top 25. They are currently sitting and eighth and ninth in my poll, exactly where they have been for a couple of weeks now. And that is where they are going to stay for the foreseeable future.

The reasoning for me is simple: I don’t want to fall into the trap where I’m bumping a team up in the rankings simply because they keep winning in a league that is not as tough as the leagues where the rest of the teams in consideration for the top ten are playing, and losing.

I’m sure there are going to be people in San Diego and Dayton that call me a hater for this, and that’s fine. Maybe I am being a hater.

But the truth is this: I love both of these teams. SDSU is so tough defensively and Malachi Flynn has proven himself to be a flat-out winner at the point, while Dayton runs a pro-style, aesthetically-pleasing offense heavy on three-balls and Obi Toppin.

I just don’t believe they are one of the top six or seven teams in the country, and beating the likes of Nevada and Saint Louis is not going to change my mind.

Anyway, here is the rest of the NBC Sports college basketball top 25.

1. BAYLOR (15-1, Last Week: 2)
2. GONZAGA (20-1, 3)
3. KANSAS (14-3, 6)
4. FLORIDA STATE (16-2, 12)
5. LOUISVILLE (15-3, 13)
6. SETON HALL (14-4, 15)
7. DUKE (15-3, 1)
8. SAN DIEGO STATE (19-0, 8)
9. DAYTON (16-2, 9)
10. MICHIGAN STATE (14-4, 7)
11. BUTLER (15-3, 4)
12. AUBURN (15-2, 5)
13. OREGON (15-4, 10)
14. KENTUCKY (13-4, 11)
15. WEST VIRGINIA (14-3, 14)
16. TEXAS TECH (12-5, 17)
17. VILLANOVA (14-3, 18)
18. IOWA (13-5, 22)
19. ARIZONA (13-5, NR)
20. HOUSTON (14-4, NR)
21. MEMPHIS (14-3, 25)
22. MICHIGAN (11-6, 20)
23. MARYLAND (14-4, 21)
24. ILLINOIS (13-5, 24)
25. CREIGHTON (14-5, 23)

NEW ADDITIONS: No. 19 Arizona, No. 20 Houston
DROPPED OUT: No. 16 Ohio State, No. 19 Wichita State

Wednesday’s Things to Know: No. 5 Michigan loses again, Badgers drop fourth in five

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By Travis HinesDec 12, 2019, 12:01 AM EST

1. Illinois gives No. 5 Michigan second loss in three games

Michigan is learning a lesson so many Midwestern tourists to the Bahamas learn upon returning home in December.

It was a helluva lot nicer down there.

The fifth-ranked Wolverines suffered their second loss in their three games since their expectations-busting Battle 4 Atlantis championship two weeks ago, this one coming to Illinois in a 71-62 setback.

Certainly, there’s no reason to completely abandon Juwan Howard’s team given both those losses were true road games, and one came against the top-ranked team in the country. Teams are going to lose road games, and maybe no one is going to win at the KFC Yum! Center other than Louisville this season. This Wolverines team was dismantling North Carolina and Gonzaga not so long ago, after all.

Their loss to the Illini seems to be more about an off-shooting night than any sort of structural problem. The Wolverines entered the night as a top-25 3-point shooting team, but connected on just 3 of 18 (16.7 percent), including 1 of 6 in the second half, in Champaign.

Sometimes, it’s not just your night.

As ‘meh’ as I am for the loss for the Wolverines, it’s a major victory for Brad Underwood’s Illinois. Prior to tonight, the Illini’s best win was KenPom No. 173 Hawaii at home. All three top-100 teams they faced – No. 14 Arizona, No. 83 Miami and No. 9 Maryland – all beat them, with the Hurricanes and Terps games both last week.

Stopping a two-game losing streak and getting your first marquee win of the season against the team that had become something of a national darling is a really nice way to spend a Wednesday night.

It was an encouraging performance for the Illini, which had a balanced attack and a breakout performance from center Kofi Cockburn. The 7-foot center had 19 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks. It was a fantastic night for him, but, unfortunately, it’ll likely be remembered most by his celebration late in the game that left an official injured after a celebratory fist pump accidentally smacked referee Lewis Garrison in the head.

2. Wisconsin drops fourth in five at Rutgers

Things aren’t looking so hot in Madison right now.

The Badgers lost for the fourth time in five games, this one a 72-65 defeat at Rutgers.

Now, it’s early, but Wisconsin looks well off from being an NCAA tournament team now with a 5-5 record, albeit with quality wins against Marquette and Indiana on the resume. If the Badgers can’t find the consistency and success necessary to get a berth, it’ll be the second time in three years they’ll have missed the dance after going every single year from 1999-2017. I imagine that would get some people a little concerned about the trajectory Greg Gard’s program is on after he inherited the powerhouse program after Bo Ryan’s abrupt mid-2015-16 retirement.

The result Wednesday has to be especially disappointing given it comes on the heels of a 20-point win over the Hoosiers in Madison. That may be the silver lining for the Badgers as all five of their losses have come away from the Kohl Center.

Rutgers won despite making fewer 3s and free throws thanks to the 14 offensive rebounds it collected and by winning the turnover margin (14 to 11). Geo Baker scored 22 to lead the way.

3. Low-major, big stats

Let’s give it up to some of the little guys that had huge nights.

Lavar Batts, a 6-foot-3 sophomore for UNC Asheville – made 14 of 17 shots from the floor, 3 of 5 from distance and 9 of 9 from the free-throw line to score 40, albeit in a losing effort to South Carolina State, 90-85. Batts is the 11th player this year to hit 40 points in a game against Division I competition.

Illinois’ Kofi Cockburn accidentally hits official

Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images

By Travis HinesDec 11, 2019, 11:03 PM EST

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Kofi Cockburn got a big bucket and a foul to put Illinois up 66-54 against No. 5 Michigan, and, understandably, was fired. Up, so fired up, in fact, the 7-foot, 290-pound freshman swung his arm in celebration, something you’ve seen a million times on the basketball court.

This time, though, referee Lewis Garrison was, unbeknownst to Cockburn, immediately behind him. Cockburn’s fist accidentally struck Garrison in the head.

Kofi Coburn throwin haymakers pic.twitter.com/2vMsU9CV4L

— Three Man Weave (@3MW_CBB) December 12, 2019

Garrison was on the floor for a few moments before being helped back to the locker room.

Clearly, an fluke accident, but a scary one.

Monday Overreactions Podcast: Ohio State’s the best, Travis Steele’s the GOAT, is Anthony Cowan good?

AP Photo/Julio Cortez

By Rob DausterDec 9, 2019, 9:23 AM EST

Anthony Cowan’s clutch three, steal keep No. 3 Maryland undefeated (VIDEO)

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Associated PressDec 7, 2019, 7:55 PM EST