Here is our latest bracket update. We will post an update tonight/tomorrow morning and then one final bracket just before the NCAA Selection show.
Teams in BOLD italics have qualified as an automatic bid.
Atlanta Region
Greensboro
1-Duke
16-Southern
8-Arkansas
9-Wichita State
Salt Lake City
5-WVU
12-Wisconsin-Milwaukee
4-Iowa
13-Kent State
Salt Lake City
6-Oklahoma
11-UNC Wilmington
3-Gonzaga
14-Pacific
Jacksonville
7-Indiana
10-Cincinnati
2-LSU
15-Northwestern State
Washington Region
Philadelphia
1-Connecticut
16-Delaware State
8-Wisconsin
9-California
San Diego
5-Florida
12-Hofstra
4-Boston College
13-Xavier
Auburn Hills
6-Marquette
11-Missouri State
3-Illinois
14-South Alabama
Dallas
7-Kentucky
10-Arizona
2-Texas
15-Montana
Minneapolis Region
Philadelphia
1-Villanova
16-Monmouth
8-Texas A&M
9-UAB
Jacksonville
5-George Washington
12-San Diego State
4-Tennessee
13-Iona
San Diego
6-Michigan State
11-George Mason
3-UCLA
14-Murray State
Greensboro
7-Syracuse
10-Southern Illinois
2-North Carolina
15-Davidson
Oakland Region
Dallas
1-Memphis
16-Albany
8-Nevada
9-Alabama
Auburn Hills
5-Georgetown
12-Bradley
4-Kansas
13-Penn
Dayton
6-Washington
11-Bucknell
3-Pitt
14-Winthrop
Dayton
7-North Carolina State
10-Northern Iowa
2-Ohio State
15-Oral Roberts
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Friday, March 10, 2006
Bubble Wrap 3/10/06
This is one of the most active days for bubble teams. We will continue to update results for every bubble team from every conference tournament as the day progresses. Be sure to check Bubbleteams.com for updated scores, conference tournament brackets and NCAA Tournament bracket projections.
Texas A&M: The Aggies solidify an at-large berth with a trashing of fellow bubble team and conference member Colorado. Texas A&M wins their first ever Big 12 Tournament game and put their stamp on a certain bid.
Colorado: The Buffaloes had their chance in what amounted to an elimination game for the fourth bid from the Big 12 Conference. Colorado built a small early lead only to be stormed in the late first half and early second half by a Texas A&M squad that showed how much they wanted and deserved an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Kentucky: The Wildcats punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament. Kentucky won a hard fought game against Alabama to make their way to the SEC semifinals. There is no feasible way that Kentucky would miss an at-large bid.
Alabama: There will be rumblings whether Alabama is on the bubble with their second straight loss and their 12th loss of the year. Pay those no heed, because the Tide will be dancing, regardless of this setback. The only thing this loss effects is Alabama's seeding.
Bucknell: The Bison save more than a few bubble teams another sleepless night with their championship win against Holy Cross. While it debatable whether Bucknell would have gotten in as an at-large team, that now becomes a moot point.
UAB: This is another team that we can end the argument about. UAB has done about all it can do to this point. The Blazers have made their way to the title game in what amounts to a two-team league. Good enough for an at-large bid.
Maryland: ..... and THIS IS THE TEAM EVERYONE HAS BEEN CLAMORING TO GET INTO THE NCAA TOURNAMENT ?? Maryland and head coach Gary Williams laid a HUGE EGG against Boston College by coming out flat and getting behind 17-2 in the first five minutes. The Terrapins have NO BUSINESS in the NCAA Tournament and should be pleased to get an NIT berth. This is why teams like Maryland do not deserve an NCAA at-large bid. Hmm, second year in a row for Maryland to miss the NCAA Tournament.... I can already hear the subtle rumblings from here.
California: The Bears may have only beaten Oregon and USC to get to the Pac Ten title game, but it is enough to quell the uncertainty that California is worthy of an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Bears are now 20-9 with a 12-6 record in the Pac Ten and a conference tournament championship appearance. Regardless of their spotty RPI, California can consider themselves dancing tomorrow, win or lose.
Texas A&M: The Aggies solidify an at-large berth with a trashing of fellow bubble team and conference member Colorado. Texas A&M wins their first ever Big 12 Tournament game and put their stamp on a certain bid.
Colorado: The Buffaloes had their chance in what amounted to an elimination game for the fourth bid from the Big 12 Conference. Colorado built a small early lead only to be stormed in the late first half and early second half by a Texas A&M squad that showed how much they wanted and deserved an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Kentucky: The Wildcats punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament. Kentucky won a hard fought game against Alabama to make their way to the SEC semifinals. There is no feasible way that Kentucky would miss an at-large bid.
Alabama: There will be rumblings whether Alabama is on the bubble with their second straight loss and their 12th loss of the year. Pay those no heed, because the Tide will be dancing, regardless of this setback. The only thing this loss effects is Alabama's seeding.
Bucknell: The Bison save more than a few bubble teams another sleepless night with their championship win against Holy Cross. While it debatable whether Bucknell would have gotten in as an at-large team, that now becomes a moot point.
UAB: This is another team that we can end the argument about. UAB has done about all it can do to this point. The Blazers have made their way to the title game in what amounts to a two-team league. Good enough for an at-large bid.
Maryland: ..... and THIS IS THE TEAM EVERYONE HAS BEEN CLAMORING TO GET INTO THE NCAA TOURNAMENT ?? Maryland and head coach Gary Williams laid a HUGE EGG against Boston College by coming out flat and getting behind 17-2 in the first five minutes. The Terrapins have NO BUSINESS in the NCAA Tournament and should be pleased to get an NIT berth. This is why teams like Maryland do not deserve an NCAA at-large bid. Hmm, second year in a row for Maryland to miss the NCAA Tournament.... I can already hear the subtle rumblings from here.
California: The Bears may have only beaten Oregon and USC to get to the Pac Ten title game, but it is enough to quell the uncertainty that California is worthy of an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Bears are now 20-9 with a 12-6 record in the Pac Ten and a conference tournament championship appearance. Regardless of their spotty RPI, California can consider themselves dancing tomorrow, win or lose.
Conference Tournament Updates 3/10/06
Updated brackets for every conference tournament (including every major conference tournament) are now available at Bubbleteams.com along with new conference tournament previews and updated scores.
We will continue to offer real-time updates and tournament results. This is the one and ONLY site that updates tournament brackets with scores and results as they happen.
ACC:
Boston College ends the bubble hopes of Maryland and advances to join North Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest in the ACC semifinals.
At Greensboro Coliseum
Greensboro, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Miami 66, No. 9 Clemson 63
Game 2: No. 12 Wake Forest 78, No. 5 Florida State 66
Game 3: No. 7 Virginia 60, No. 10 Virginia Tech 56
Game 4: No. 6 Maryland 82, No. 11 Georgia Tech 64
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Duke 80, No. 8 Miami 76
Game 6: No. 12 Wake Forest 82, No. 4 N.C. State 71
Game 7: No. 2 North Carolina 79, No. 7 Virginia 67
Game 8: No. 3 Boston College 80, No. 6 Maryland 66
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: No. 1 Duke vs. No. 12 Wake Forest, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: No. 2 North Carolina vs. No. 3 Boston College, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Atlantic Ten:
St. Joseph's defeat's their crosstown rival to advance to the championship game of the Atlantic Ten Tournament to face Xavier.
At U.S. Bank Arena
Cincinnati
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Temple 74, No. 8 Rhode Island 45
Game 2: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 67, No. 12 Dayton 55
Game 3: No. 10 Xavier 75, No. 7 Massachusetts 66
Game 4: No. 6 Fordham 45, No. 11 Richmond 37
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 9 Temple 68, No. 1 George Washington 53
Game 6: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 56, No. 4 Saint Louis 37
Game 7: No. 10 Xavier 59, No. 2 Charlotte 55
Game 8: No. 6 Fordham 64, No. 3 La Salle 62
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 73, No. 9 Temple 59
Game 10: No. 10 Xavier 70, No. 6 Fordham 59
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: No. 5 Saint Joseph's vs. No. 10 Xavier, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Big East:
Pitt dominates Villanova to advance to the Big East title game against 9 seed Syracuse.
At Madison Square Garden
New York City
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Syracuse 74, No. 8 Cincinnati 73
Game 2: No. 5 Georgetown 67, No. 12 Notre Dame 63
Game 3: No. 10 Rutgers 61, No. 7 Seton Hall 48
Game 4: No. 6 Pittsburgh 61, No. 11 Louisville 56
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 9 Syracuse 86, No. 1 Connecticut 84, OT
Game 6: No. 5 Georgetown 62, No. 4 Marquette 59
Game 7: No. 2 Villanova 87, No. 10 Rutgers 55
Game 8: No. 6 Pittsburgh 68, No. 3 West Virginia 57
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 9 Syracuse 58, No. 5 Georgetown 57
Game 10: No. 6 Pittsburgh 68, No. 2 Villanova 54
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: No. 6 Pittsburgh vs. No. 9 Syracuse, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Big Ten:
Michigan State and Iowa face off in one Big Ten semifinal game while Indiana takes on top seed Ohio State in the second game.
At Conseco Fieldhouse
Indianapolis
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Penn State 60, No. 9 Northwestern 42
Game 2: No. 10 Minnesota 59, No. 7 Michigan 55
Game 3: No. 6 Michigan State 70, No. 11 Purdue 58
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 4: No. 1 Ohio State 63, No. 8 Penn State 56
Game 5: No. 5 Indiana 61, No. 4 Wisconsin 56
Game 6: No. 2 Iowa 67, No. 10 Minnesota 57
Game 7: No. 6 Michigan State 61, No. 3 Illinois 56
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 6 Michigan State, 1:40 p.m.
Game 9: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 5 Indiana, 4:05 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 10: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3:30 p.m.
Big 12:
Nebraska upsets Oklahoma to join Kansas, Texas and Texas A&M in the Big 12 semifinals.
At American Airlines Center
Dallas
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Texas Tech 73, No. 9 Kansas State, 65
Game 2: No. 5 Colorado 65, No. 12 Baylor 61
Game 3: No. 7 Oklahoma State 79, No. 10 Iowa State 70
Game 4: No. 6 Nebraska 71, No. 11 Missouri 64
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Texas 77, No. 8 Texas Tech 70
Game 6: No. 4 Texas A&M 86, No. 5 Colorado 53
Game 7: No. 2 Kansas 63, No. 7 Oklahoma State 62
Game 8: No. 6 Nebraska 69, No. 3 Oklahoma 61
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: No. 1 Texas vs. No. 4 Texas A&M, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 10: No. 2 Kansas vs. No. 6 Nebraska, 4:20 p.m. (ESPN2)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
Big West:
Long Beach State hits a three-pointer at the buzzer to advance to the Big West Conference championsip game against 1 seed Pacific.
At Anaheim Convention Center Arena
Anaheim, Calif.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 76, No. 8 UC Riverside 44
Game 2: No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 73, No. 7 Cal State Northridge 63
SECOND ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 3 Long Beach State 94, No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 91
Game 4: No. 4 Cal Poly 57, No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 50
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Pacific 68, No. 4 Cal Poly 57
Game 6: No. 3 Long Beach State 75, No. 2 UC Irvine 73
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: No. 1 Pacific vs. No. 3 Long Beach State, midnight (ESPN)
Conference USA:
UAB joins Memphis in the Conference USA Championship.
At the FedExForum
Memphis, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 10 SMU 61, No. 7 Rice 59
Game 2: No. 11 Southern Miss 66, vs. No. 6 Tulsa 61
Game 3: No. 8 Tulane 64, No. 9 Marshall 58
Game 4: No. 5 Central Florida 65, No. 12 East Carolina 52
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 2 UAB 69, No. 10 SMU 55
Game 6: No. 3 UTEP 66, No. 11 Southern Miss 47
Game 7: No. 1 Memphis 75, Tulane 56
Game 8: No. 4 Houston 71, No. 5 Central Florida 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 1 Memphis 68, No. 4 Houston 54
Game 10: No. 2 UAB 63, No. 3 UTEP 60
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: No. 1 Memphis vs. No. 2 UAB, 11:35 a.m.
Mid-American:
Toledo rallies in the last five minutes to beat Akron and advance to the MAC Championship game against top seed Kent State .
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Monday, March 6
Game 1: No. 7 Toledo 77, No. 10 Bowling Green 52
Game 2: No. 6 Western Michigan 60, No. 11 Eastern Michigan 55
Game 3: No. 8 Buffalo 80, No. 9 Ball State 72
Game 4: No. 5 Ohio 82, No. 12 Central Michigan 53
QUARTERFINALS
At Quicken Loans Arena
Cleveland
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 7 Toledo 78, No. 2 Northern Illinois 77
Game 6: No. 3 Akron 72, No. 6 Western Michigan 57
Game 7: No. 1 Kent State 76, No. 8 Buffalo 67
Game 8: No. 5 Ohio 73, No. 4 Miami 58
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 1 Kent State 72, No. 5 Ohio 59
Game 10: No. 7 Toledo 77, No. 3 Akron 69
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: No. 1 Kent State vs. No. 7 Toledo, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
MEAC:
Hampton advances to the MEAC title game to face top seed Delaware State.
At the RBC Center
Raleigh, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 7 Norfolk State 73, No. 10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 71
Game 2: No. 9 Howard 62, No. 8 North Carolina A&T 52
Wednesday, March 8
Game 3: No. 6 Hampton 63, No. 11 Morgan State 51
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, March 8
Game 4: No. 1 Delaware State 59, No. 9 Howard 47
Game 5: No. 7 Norfolk State 79, No. 2 Coppin State 67
Thursday, March 9
Game 6: No. 6 Hampton 57, No. 3 Bethune-Cookman 55
Game 7: No. 4 South Carolina State 60, No. 5 Florida A&M 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 8: No. 1 Delaware State 63, No. 4 South Carolina State 51
Game 9: No. 6 Hampton 73, No. 7 Norfolk State 56
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 10: No. 1 Delaware State vs. No. 6 Hampton, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Mountain West:
San Diego State survives UNLV to advance to the Mountain West championship game against 7 seed Wyoming.
At The Pepsi Center
Denver
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 8 Colorado State 64, No. 9 TCU 60
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 2: No. 1 San Diego State 64, No. 8 Colorado State 52
Game 3: No. 4 UNLV 65, No. 5 New Mexico 64
Game 4: No. 7 Wyoming 57, No. 2 Air Force 55
Game 5: No. 6 Utah 74, No. 3 BYU 70
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 6: No. 1 San Diego State 63, No. 4 UNLV 60
Game 7: No. 7 Wyoming 60, No. 6 Utah 47
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: No. 1 San Diego State vs. No. 7 Wyoming, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Pac Ten:
California outlasts Oregon in 2 overtimes for the right to face UCLA in the Pac Ten Championship game.
At Staples Center
Los Angeles
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Oregon State 71, No. 8 Arizona State 68
Game 2: No. 7 Oregon 66, No. 10 Washington State 55
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 4 Arizona 73, No. 5 Stanford 68
Game 4: No. 1 UCLA 79, No. 9 Oregon State 47
Game 5: No. 3 California 82, No. 6 USC 67
Game 6: No. 7 Oregon 84, No. 2 Washington 73
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 7: No. 1 UCLA 71, No. 4 Arizona 59
Game 8: No. 3 California 91, No. 7 Oregon 87, 2OT
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 3 California , 6:15 p.m.
Patriot:
Bucknell wins their second straight Patriot League Championship.
Friday, March 3
At Sojka Pavilion
Lewisburg, Pa.
Game 1: No. 4 American 75, No. 5 Lafayette 62
Game 2: No. 1 Bucknell 59, No. 8 Army 47
At Hart Center
Worcester, Mass.
Game 3: No. 3 Lehigh 48, No. 6 Colgate 44
Game 4: No. 2 Holy Cross 78, No. 7 Navy 50
SEMIFINALS
Sunday, March 5
At Sojka Pavilion
Lewisburg, Pa.
Game 5: No. 1 Bucknell 64, No. 4 American 50
At Hart Center
Worcester, Mass.
Game 6: No. 2 Holy Cross 73, No. 3 Lehigh 66
CHAMPIONSHIP
At higher seed
Friday, March 10
Game 7: No. 1 Bucknell 74, No. 2 Holy Cross 59
SEC:
Florida escapes against Arkansas and joins LSU, Kentucky and South Carolina in the SEC semifinals.
At The Gaylord Entertainment Center
Nashville, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: E5 South Carolina 59 W4 Mississippi State 44
Game 2: E3 Kentucky 71, W6 Ole Miss 57
Game 3: E4 Vanderbilt 76, W5 Auburn 71
Game 4: W3 Arkansas 80, E6 Georgia 67
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: E5 South Carolina 79, E1 Tennessee 71
Game 6: E3 Kentucky 68, W2 Alabama 61
Game 7: W1 LSU 92, E4 Vanderbilt 73
Game 8: E2 Florida 74, W3 Arkansas 71
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: E3 Kentucky vs. E5 South Carolina, 1 p.m.
Game 10: W1 LSU vs. E2 Florida, 3:15 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m.
SWAC:
Arkansas-Pine Bluff pulls off another upset to advance to the championship game of the SWAC where they will face top seed Southern.
At Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Center Arena
Birmingham, Ala.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 5 Jackson State 83, No. 4 Alabama State 65
Game 2: No. 3 Grambling 50, No. 6 Mississippi Valley State 49
Game 3: No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 64, No. 2 Alabama A&M 54
Game 4: No. 1 Southern 73 No. 8 Alcorn State 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 61, No. 3 Grambling 49
Game 6: No. 1 Southern 66, No. 5 Jackson State 59
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: No. 1 Southern vs. No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff , 8:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
WAC:
Utah State advances to their conference championship to face host team Nevada.
At Lawlor Events Center
Reno, Nev.
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 3 Louisiana Tech 75 No. 6 Boise State 64
Game 2: No. 2 Utah State 76, No. 7 San Jose State 67
Game 3: No. 1 Nevada 68, No. 8 Idaho 55
Game 4: No. 5 New Mexico State 58, No. 4 Hawaii 57
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 2 Utah State 68, No. 3 Louisiana Tech 64
Game 6: No. 1 Nevada 70, No. 5 New Mexico St. 59
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 12
Game 7: No. 1 Nevada vs. No. 2 Utah State , 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
We will continue to offer real-time updates and tournament results. This is the one and ONLY site that updates tournament brackets with scores and results as they happen.
ACC:
Boston College ends the bubble hopes of Maryland and advances to join North Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest in the ACC semifinals.
At Greensboro Coliseum
Greensboro, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Miami 66, No. 9 Clemson 63
Game 2: No. 12 Wake Forest 78, No. 5 Florida State 66
Game 3: No. 7 Virginia 60, No. 10 Virginia Tech 56
Game 4: No. 6 Maryland 82, No. 11 Georgia Tech 64
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Duke 80, No. 8 Miami 76
Game 6: No. 12 Wake Forest 82, No. 4 N.C. State 71
Game 7: No. 2 North Carolina 79, No. 7 Virginia 67
Game 8: No. 3 Boston College 80, No. 6 Maryland 66
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: No. 1 Duke vs. No. 12 Wake Forest, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: No. 2 North Carolina vs. No. 3 Boston College, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Atlantic Ten:
St. Joseph's defeat's their crosstown rival to advance to the championship game of the Atlantic Ten Tournament to face Xavier.
At U.S. Bank Arena
Cincinnati
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Temple 74, No. 8 Rhode Island 45
Game 2: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 67, No. 12 Dayton 55
Game 3: No. 10 Xavier 75, No. 7 Massachusetts 66
Game 4: No. 6 Fordham 45, No. 11 Richmond 37
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 9 Temple 68, No. 1 George Washington 53
Game 6: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 56, No. 4 Saint Louis 37
Game 7: No. 10 Xavier 59, No. 2 Charlotte 55
Game 8: No. 6 Fordham 64, No. 3 La Salle 62
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 73, No. 9 Temple 59
Game 10: No. 10 Xavier 70, No. 6 Fordham 59
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: No. 5 Saint Joseph's vs. No. 10 Xavier, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Big East:
Pitt dominates Villanova to advance to the Big East title game against 9 seed Syracuse.
At Madison Square Garden
New York City
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Syracuse 74, No. 8 Cincinnati 73
Game 2: No. 5 Georgetown 67, No. 12 Notre Dame 63
Game 3: No. 10 Rutgers 61, No. 7 Seton Hall 48
Game 4: No. 6 Pittsburgh 61, No. 11 Louisville 56
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 9 Syracuse 86, No. 1 Connecticut 84, OT
Game 6: No. 5 Georgetown 62, No. 4 Marquette 59
Game 7: No. 2 Villanova 87, No. 10 Rutgers 55
Game 8: No. 6 Pittsburgh 68, No. 3 West Virginia 57
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 9 Syracuse 58, No. 5 Georgetown 57
Game 10: No. 6 Pittsburgh 68, No. 2 Villanova 54
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: No. 6 Pittsburgh vs. No. 9 Syracuse, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Big Ten:
Michigan State and Iowa face off in one Big Ten semifinal game while Indiana takes on top seed Ohio State in the second game.
At Conseco Fieldhouse
Indianapolis
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Penn State 60, No. 9 Northwestern 42
Game 2: No. 10 Minnesota 59, No. 7 Michigan 55
Game 3: No. 6 Michigan State 70, No. 11 Purdue 58
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 4: No. 1 Ohio State 63, No. 8 Penn State 56
Game 5: No. 5 Indiana 61, No. 4 Wisconsin 56
Game 6: No. 2 Iowa 67, No. 10 Minnesota 57
Game 7: No. 6 Michigan State 61, No. 3 Illinois 56
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 6 Michigan State, 1:40 p.m.
Game 9: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 5 Indiana, 4:05 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 10: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3:30 p.m.
Big 12:
Nebraska upsets Oklahoma to join Kansas, Texas and Texas A&M in the Big 12 semifinals.
At American Airlines Center
Dallas
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Texas Tech 73, No. 9 Kansas State, 65
Game 2: No. 5 Colorado 65, No. 12 Baylor 61
Game 3: No. 7 Oklahoma State 79, No. 10 Iowa State 70
Game 4: No. 6 Nebraska 71, No. 11 Missouri 64
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Texas 77, No. 8 Texas Tech 70
Game 6: No. 4 Texas A&M 86, No. 5 Colorado 53
Game 7: No. 2 Kansas 63, No. 7 Oklahoma State 62
Game 8: No. 6 Nebraska 69, No. 3 Oklahoma 61
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: No. 1 Texas vs. No. 4 Texas A&M, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 10: No. 2 Kansas vs. No. 6 Nebraska, 4:20 p.m. (ESPN2)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
Big West:
Long Beach State hits a three-pointer at the buzzer to advance to the Big West Conference championsip game against 1 seed Pacific.
At Anaheim Convention Center Arena
Anaheim, Calif.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 76, No. 8 UC Riverside 44
Game 2: No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 73, No. 7 Cal State Northridge 63
SECOND ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 3 Long Beach State 94, No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 91
Game 4: No. 4 Cal Poly 57, No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 50
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Pacific 68, No. 4 Cal Poly 57
Game 6: No. 3 Long Beach State 75, No. 2 UC Irvine 73
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: No. 1 Pacific vs. No. 3 Long Beach State, midnight (ESPN)
Conference USA:
UAB joins Memphis in the Conference USA Championship.
At the FedExForum
Memphis, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 10 SMU 61, No. 7 Rice 59
Game 2: No. 11 Southern Miss 66, vs. No. 6 Tulsa 61
Game 3: No. 8 Tulane 64, No. 9 Marshall 58
Game 4: No. 5 Central Florida 65, No. 12 East Carolina 52
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 2 UAB 69, No. 10 SMU 55
Game 6: No. 3 UTEP 66, No. 11 Southern Miss 47
Game 7: No. 1 Memphis 75, Tulane 56
Game 8: No. 4 Houston 71, No. 5 Central Florida 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 1 Memphis 68, No. 4 Houston 54
Game 10: No. 2 UAB 63, No. 3 UTEP 60
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: No. 1 Memphis vs. No. 2 UAB, 11:35 a.m.
Mid-American:
Toledo rallies in the last five minutes to beat Akron and advance to the MAC Championship game against top seed Kent State .
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Monday, March 6
Game 1: No. 7 Toledo 77, No. 10 Bowling Green 52
Game 2: No. 6 Western Michigan 60, No. 11 Eastern Michigan 55
Game 3: No. 8 Buffalo 80, No. 9 Ball State 72
Game 4: No. 5 Ohio 82, No. 12 Central Michigan 53
QUARTERFINALS
At Quicken Loans Arena
Cleveland
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 7 Toledo 78, No. 2 Northern Illinois 77
Game 6: No. 3 Akron 72, No. 6 Western Michigan 57
Game 7: No. 1 Kent State 76, No. 8 Buffalo 67
Game 8: No. 5 Ohio 73, No. 4 Miami 58
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 1 Kent State 72, No. 5 Ohio 59
Game 10: No. 7 Toledo 77, No. 3 Akron 69
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: No. 1 Kent State vs. No. 7 Toledo, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
MEAC:
Hampton advances to the MEAC title game to face top seed Delaware State.
At the RBC Center
Raleigh, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 7 Norfolk State 73, No. 10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 71
Game 2: No. 9 Howard 62, No. 8 North Carolina A&T 52
Wednesday, March 8
Game 3: No. 6 Hampton 63, No. 11 Morgan State 51
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, March 8
Game 4: No. 1 Delaware State 59, No. 9 Howard 47
Game 5: No. 7 Norfolk State 79, No. 2 Coppin State 67
Thursday, March 9
Game 6: No. 6 Hampton 57, No. 3 Bethune-Cookman 55
Game 7: No. 4 South Carolina State 60, No. 5 Florida A&M 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 8: No. 1 Delaware State 63, No. 4 South Carolina State 51
Game 9: No. 6 Hampton 73, No. 7 Norfolk State 56
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 10: No. 1 Delaware State vs. No. 6 Hampton, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Mountain West:
San Diego State survives UNLV to advance to the Mountain West championship game against 7 seed Wyoming.
At The Pepsi Center
Denver
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 8 Colorado State 64, No. 9 TCU 60
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 2: No. 1 San Diego State 64, No. 8 Colorado State 52
Game 3: No. 4 UNLV 65, No. 5 New Mexico 64
Game 4: No. 7 Wyoming 57, No. 2 Air Force 55
Game 5: No. 6 Utah 74, No. 3 BYU 70
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 6: No. 1 San Diego State 63, No. 4 UNLV 60
Game 7: No. 7 Wyoming 60, No. 6 Utah 47
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: No. 1 San Diego State vs. No. 7 Wyoming, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Pac Ten:
California outlasts Oregon in 2 overtimes for the right to face UCLA in the Pac Ten Championship game.
At Staples Center
Los Angeles
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Oregon State 71, No. 8 Arizona State 68
Game 2: No. 7 Oregon 66, No. 10 Washington State 55
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 4 Arizona 73, No. 5 Stanford 68
Game 4: No. 1 UCLA 79, No. 9 Oregon State 47
Game 5: No. 3 California 82, No. 6 USC 67
Game 6: No. 7 Oregon 84, No. 2 Washington 73
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 7: No. 1 UCLA 71, No. 4 Arizona 59
Game 8: No. 3 California 91, No. 7 Oregon 87, 2OT
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 3 California , 6:15 p.m.
Patriot:
Bucknell wins their second straight Patriot League Championship.
Friday, March 3
At Sojka Pavilion
Lewisburg, Pa.
Game 1: No. 4 American 75, No. 5 Lafayette 62
Game 2: No. 1 Bucknell 59, No. 8 Army 47
At Hart Center
Worcester, Mass.
Game 3: No. 3 Lehigh 48, No. 6 Colgate 44
Game 4: No. 2 Holy Cross 78, No. 7 Navy 50
SEMIFINALS
Sunday, March 5
At Sojka Pavilion
Lewisburg, Pa.
Game 5: No. 1 Bucknell 64, No. 4 American 50
At Hart Center
Worcester, Mass.
Game 6: No. 2 Holy Cross 73, No. 3 Lehigh 66
CHAMPIONSHIP
At higher seed
Friday, March 10
Game 7: No. 1 Bucknell 74, No. 2 Holy Cross 59
SEC:
Florida escapes against Arkansas and joins LSU, Kentucky and South Carolina in the SEC semifinals.
At The Gaylord Entertainment Center
Nashville, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: E5 South Carolina 59 W4 Mississippi State 44
Game 2: E3 Kentucky 71, W6 Ole Miss 57
Game 3: E4 Vanderbilt 76, W5 Auburn 71
Game 4: W3 Arkansas 80, E6 Georgia 67
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: E5 South Carolina 79, E1 Tennessee 71
Game 6: E3 Kentucky 68, W2 Alabama 61
Game 7: W1 LSU 92, E4 Vanderbilt 73
Game 8: E2 Florida 74, W3 Arkansas 71
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: E3 Kentucky vs. E5 South Carolina, 1 p.m.
Game 10: W1 LSU vs. E2 Florida, 3:15 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m.
SWAC:
Arkansas-Pine Bluff pulls off another upset to advance to the championship game of the SWAC where they will face top seed Southern.
At Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Center Arena
Birmingham, Ala.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 5 Jackson State 83, No. 4 Alabama State 65
Game 2: No. 3 Grambling 50, No. 6 Mississippi Valley State 49
Game 3: No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 64, No. 2 Alabama A&M 54
Game 4: No. 1 Southern 73 No. 8 Alcorn State 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 61, No. 3 Grambling 49
Game 6: No. 1 Southern 66, No. 5 Jackson State 59
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: No. 1 Southern vs. No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff , 8:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
WAC:
Utah State advances to their conference championship to face host team Nevada.
At Lawlor Events Center
Reno, Nev.
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 3 Louisiana Tech 75 No. 6 Boise State 64
Game 2: No. 2 Utah State 76, No. 7 San Jose State 67
Game 3: No. 1 Nevada 68, No. 8 Idaho 55
Game 4: No. 5 New Mexico State 58, No. 4 Hawaii 57
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 2 Utah State 68, No. 3 Louisiana Tech 64
Game 6: No. 1 Nevada 70, No. 5 New Mexico St. 59
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 12
Game 7: No. 1 Nevada vs. No. 2 Utah State , 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Conference Tournament Updates 3/09/06
Updated brackets for every conference tournament (including every major conference tournament) are now available at Bubbleteams.com along with new conference tournament previews and updated scores.
We will continue to offer real-time updates and tournament results. This is the one and ONLY site that updates tournament brackets with scores and results as they happen.
ACC:
Maryland dominates Georgia Tech to join Wake Forest, Miami and Virginia in the ACC quarterfinals.
At Greensboro Coliseum
Greensboro, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Miami 66, No. 9 Clemson 63
Game 2: No. 12 Wake Forest 78, No. 5 Florida State 66
Game 3: No. 7 Virginia 60, No. 10 Virginia Tech 56
Game 4: No. 6 Maryland 82, No. 11 Georgia Tech 64
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Duke vs. No. 8 Miami, noon (ESPN2)
Game 6: No. 4 N.C. State vs. No. 12 Wake Forest, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 7: No. 2 North Carolina vs. No. 7 Virginia, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 8: No. 3 Boston College vs. No. 6 Maryland, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Atlantic Ten:
The top four seeds all lose in the quarterfinals as Temple, St. Joseph's, Xavier and Fordham all advance to the conference semifinals.
At U.S. Bank Arena
Cincinnati
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Temple 74, No. 8 Rhode Island 45
Game 2: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 67, No. 12 Dayton 55
Game 3: No. 10 Xavier 75, No. 7 Massachusetts 66
Game 4: No. 6 Fordham 45, No. 11 Richmond 37
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 9 Temple 68, No. 1 George Washington 53
Game 6: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 56, No. 4 Saint Louis 37
Game 7: No. 10 Xavier 59, No. 2 Charlotte 55
Game 8: No. 6 Fordham 64, No. 3 La Salle 62
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 9 Temple vs. No. 5 Saint Joseph's, 6:30 p.m.
Game 10: No. 6 Fordham vs. No. 10 Xavier, 9 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Big East:
Villanova joins upset winners Syracuse and Georgetown in the Big East semifinals.
At Madison Square Garden
New York City
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Syracuse 74, No. 8 Cincinnati 73
Game 2: No. 5 Georgetown 67, No. 12 Notre Dame 63
Game 3: No. 10 Rutgers 61, No. 7 Seton Hall 48
Game 4: No. 6 Pittsburgh 61, No. 11 Louisville 56
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 9 Syracuse 86, No. 1 Connecticut 84, OT
Game 6: No. 5 Georgetown 62, No. 4 Marquette 59
Game 7: No. 2 Villanova 87, No. 10 Rutgers 55
Game 8: No. 6 Pittsburgh 68, No. 3 West Virginia 57
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 9 Syracuse vs. No. 5 Georgetown, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 6 Pittsburgh, 9 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Big Ten:
Penn State, Minnesota and Michigan State each advance to the quarterfinals.
At Conseco Fieldhouse
Indianapolis
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Penn State 60, No. 9 Northwestern 42
Game 2: No. 10 Minnesota 59, No. 7 Michigan 55
Game 3: No. 6 Michigan State 70, No. 11 Purdue 58
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 4: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 8 Penn State, 12 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 5: No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 5 Indiana, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6: No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 10 Minnesota, 6:40 p.m.
Game 7: No. 3 Illinois vs. No. 6 Michigan State, 9:10 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 1:40 p.m.
Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 4:05 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 10: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3:30 p.m.
Big 12:
Top seeds Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Colorado and Nebraska all advance to the Big 12 quarterfinals.
At American Airlines Center
Dallas
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Texas Tech 73, No. 9 Kansas State, 65
Game 2: No. 5 Colorado 65, No. 12 Baylor 61
Game 3: No. 7 Oklahoma State 79, No. 10 Iowa State 70
Game 4: No. 6 Nebraska 71, No. 11 Missouri 64
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Texas vs. No. 8 Texas Tech, 12:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 6: No. 4 Texas A&M vs. No. 5 Colorado, 3 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 7: No. 2 Kansas vs. No. 7 Oklahoma State, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 8: No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 6 Nebraska, 9:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 4:20 p.m. (ESPN2)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
Big West:
Long Beach State nips UC Irvine to join Cal Poly in the Big West semifinals.
At Anaheim Convention Center Arena
Anaheim, Calif.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 76, No. 8 UC Riverside 44
Game 2: No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 73, No. 7 Cal State Northridge 63
SECOND ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 3 Long Beach State 94, No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 91
Game 4: No. 4 Cal Poly 57, No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 50
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Pacific vs. No. 4 Cal Poly, 9 p.m.
Game 6: No. 2 UC Irvine vs. No. 3 Long Beach State, 11:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, midnight (ESPN)
Conference USA:
The top four seeds, Houston, UAB, UTEP and Memphis easily advance to advance to the semifinals.
At the FedExForum
Memphis, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 10 SMU 61, No. 7 Rice 59
Game 2: No. 11 Southern Miss 66, vs. No. 6 Tulsa 61
Game 3: No. 8 Tulane 64, No. 9 Marshall 58
Game 4: No. 5 Central Florida 65, No. 12 East Carolina 52
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 2 UAB 69, No. 10 SMU 55
Game 6: No. 3 UTEP 66, No. 11 Southern Miss 47
Game 7: No. 1 Memphis 75, Tulane 56
Game 8: No. 4 Houston 71, No. 5 Central Florida 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 1 Memphis vs. No. 4 Houston, 4:30 p.m.
Game 10: No. 2 UAB vs. No. 3 UTEP, 7 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 11:35 a.m.
Mid-American:
Toledo, Akron, Ohio and Kent State all advance to the MAC semifinals.
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Monday, March 6
Game 1: No. 7 Toledo 77, No. 10 Bowling Green 52
Game 2: No. 6 Western Michigan 60, No. 11 Eastern Michigan 55
Game 3: No. 8 Buffalo 80, No. 9 Ball State 72
Game 4: No. 5 Ohio 82, No. 12 Central Michigan 53
QUARTERFINALS
At Quicken Loans Arena
Cleveland
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 7 Toledo 78, No. 2 Northern Illinois 77
Game 6: No. 3 Akron 72, No. 6 Western Michigan 57
Game 7: No. 1 Kent State 76, No. 8 Buffalo 67
Game 8: No. 5 Ohio 73, No. 4 Miami 58
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 7 Toledo vs. No. 3 Akron, 7 p.m.
Game 10: No. 1 Kent State vs. No. 5 Ohio, 9:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
MEAC:
Hampton and South Carolina State advance to the conference semifinals.
At the RBC Center
Raleigh, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 7 Norfolk State 73, No. 10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 71
Game 2: No. 9 Howard 62, No. 8 North Carolina A&T 52
Wednesday, March 8
Game 3: No. 6 Hampton 63, No. 11 Morgan State 51
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, March 8
Game 4: No. 1 Delaware State 59, No. 9 Howard 47
Game 5: No. 7 Norfolk State 79, No. 2 Coppin State 67
Thursday, March 9
Game 6: No. 6 Hampton 57, No. 3 Bethune-Cookman 55
Game 7: No. 4 South Carolina State 60, No. 5 Florida A&M 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 8: No. 1 Delaware State vs. No. 4 South Carolina State, 6 p.m.
Game 9: No. 6 Hampton vs. No. 7 Norfolk State, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Mountain West:
UNLV plays San Diego State and Wyoming faces Utah in the Mountain West semifinals.
At The Pepsi Center
Denver
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 8 Colorado State 64, No. 9 TCU 60
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 2: No. 1 San Diego State 64, No. 8 Colorado State 52
Game 3: No. 4 UNLV 65, No. 5 New Mexico 64
Game 4: No. 7 Wyoming 57, No. 2 Air Force 55
Game 5: No. 6 Utah 74, No. 3 BYU 70
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 6: No. 1 San Diego State vs. No. 4 UNLV 9 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 7: No. 6 Utah vs. No. 7 Wyoming, Midnight (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Pac Ten:
California and Oregon join UCLA and Arizona in the semifinals of the Pac Ten Tournament.
At Staples Center
Los Angeles
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Oregon State 71, No. 8 Arizona State 68
Game 2: No. 7 Oregon 66, No. 10 Washington State 55
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 4 Arizona 73, No. 5 Stanford 68
Game 4: No. 1 UCLA 79, No. 9 Oregon State 47
Game 5: No. 3 California 82, No. 6 USC 67
Game 6: No. 7 Oregon 84, No. 2 Washington 73
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 7: No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 4 Arizona, 9 p.m.
Game 8: No. 3 California vs. No. 7 Oregon, 11:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 6:15 p.m.
SEC:
Arkansas joins Vanderbilt, South Carolina and Kentucky as each advance to the quarterfinals.
At The Gaylord Entertainment Center
Nashville, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: E5 South Carolina 59 W4 Mississippi State 44
Game 2: E3 Kentucky 71, W6 Ole Miss 57
Game 3: E4 Vanderbilt 76, W5 Auburn 71
Game 4: W3 Arkansas 80, E6 Georgia 67
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: E1 Tennessee vs. E5 South Carolina, 1 p.m.
Game 6: W2 Alabama vs. E3 Kentucky, 3:15 p.m.
Game 7: W1 LSU vs. E4 Vanderbilt, 7:30 p.m.
Game 8: E2 Florida vs. W3 Arkansas, 9:45 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 3:15 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m.
Southland:
Northwestern State will host their second straight championship game against 2 seed Sam Houson State.
At higher seeds
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 1 Northwestern State 75, No. 8 Texas-San Antonio 61
Game 2: No. 4 Stephen F. Austin 72, No. 5 McNeese State 70
Game 3: No. 2 Sam Houston State 86, No. 7 Texas-Arlington 84, 2OT
Game 4: No. 6 Lamar 68, No. 3 Southeastern Louisiana 65
SEMIFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 1 Northwestern State 80, No. 6 Lamar 66
Game 6: No. 2 Sam Houston State 78, No. 4 Stephen F. Austin 72
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 7: No. 1 Northwestern State vs. No. 2 Sam Houston State, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
SWAC:
Upsets abound in the SWAC Tournament as lower seeds Jackson State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff advance to the semifinals where they will join 3 seed Grambling and 1 seed Southern.
At Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Center Arena
Birmingham, Ala.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 5 Jackson State 83, No. 4 Alabama State 65
Game 2: No. 3 Grambling 50, No. 6 Mississippi Valley State 49
Game 3: No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 64, No. 2 Alabama A&M 54
Game 4: No. 1 Southern 73 No. 8 Alcorn State 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Southern vs. No. 5 Jackson State, 6 p.m.
Game 6: No. 3 Grambling vs. No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 8:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
WAC:
Host Nevada wins to face New Mexico State while Utah State and Louisiana Tech both advance to play each other in the semifinals.
At Lawlor Events Center
Reno, Nev.
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 3 Louisiana Tech 75 No. 6 Boise State 64
Game 2: No. 2 Utah State 76, No. 7 San Jose State 67
Game 3: No. 1 Nevada 68, No. 8 Idaho 55
Game 4: No. 5 New Mexico State 58, No. 4 Hawaii 57
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 3 Louisiana Tech vs. No. 2 Utah State, 9 p.m.
Game 6: No. 1 Nevada vs. No. 5 New Mexico St., 11:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 12
Game 7: Semifinal winners, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
We will continue to offer real-time updates and tournament results. This is the one and ONLY site that updates tournament brackets with scores and results as they happen.
ACC:
Maryland dominates Georgia Tech to join Wake Forest, Miami and Virginia in the ACC quarterfinals.
At Greensboro Coliseum
Greensboro, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Miami 66, No. 9 Clemson 63
Game 2: No. 12 Wake Forest 78, No. 5 Florida State 66
Game 3: No. 7 Virginia 60, No. 10 Virginia Tech 56
Game 4: No. 6 Maryland 82, No. 11 Georgia Tech 64
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Duke vs. No. 8 Miami, noon (ESPN2)
Game 6: No. 4 N.C. State vs. No. 12 Wake Forest, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 7: No. 2 North Carolina vs. No. 7 Virginia, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 8: No. 3 Boston College vs. No. 6 Maryland, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Atlantic Ten:
The top four seeds all lose in the quarterfinals as Temple, St. Joseph's, Xavier and Fordham all advance to the conference semifinals.
At U.S. Bank Arena
Cincinnati
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Temple 74, No. 8 Rhode Island 45
Game 2: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 67, No. 12 Dayton 55
Game 3: No. 10 Xavier 75, No. 7 Massachusetts 66
Game 4: No. 6 Fordham 45, No. 11 Richmond 37
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 9 Temple 68, No. 1 George Washington 53
Game 6: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 56, No. 4 Saint Louis 37
Game 7: No. 10 Xavier 59, No. 2 Charlotte 55
Game 8: No. 6 Fordham 64, No. 3 La Salle 62
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 9 Temple vs. No. 5 Saint Joseph's, 6:30 p.m.
Game 10: No. 6 Fordham vs. No. 10 Xavier, 9 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Big East:
Villanova joins upset winners Syracuse and Georgetown in the Big East semifinals.
At Madison Square Garden
New York City
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Syracuse 74, No. 8 Cincinnati 73
Game 2: No. 5 Georgetown 67, No. 12 Notre Dame 63
Game 3: No. 10 Rutgers 61, No. 7 Seton Hall 48
Game 4: No. 6 Pittsburgh 61, No. 11 Louisville 56
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 9 Syracuse 86, No. 1 Connecticut 84, OT
Game 6: No. 5 Georgetown 62, No. 4 Marquette 59
Game 7: No. 2 Villanova 87, No. 10 Rutgers 55
Game 8: No. 6 Pittsburgh 68, No. 3 West Virginia 57
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 9 Syracuse vs. No. 5 Georgetown, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 6 Pittsburgh, 9 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Big Ten:
Penn State, Minnesota and Michigan State each advance to the quarterfinals.
At Conseco Fieldhouse
Indianapolis
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Penn State 60, No. 9 Northwestern 42
Game 2: No. 10 Minnesota 59, No. 7 Michigan 55
Game 3: No. 6 Michigan State 70, No. 11 Purdue 58
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 4: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 8 Penn State, 12 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 5: No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 5 Indiana, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6: No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 10 Minnesota, 6:40 p.m.
Game 7: No. 3 Illinois vs. No. 6 Michigan State, 9:10 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 1:40 p.m.
Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 4:05 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 10: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3:30 p.m.
Big 12:
Top seeds Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Colorado and Nebraska all advance to the Big 12 quarterfinals.
At American Airlines Center
Dallas
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Texas Tech 73, No. 9 Kansas State, 65
Game 2: No. 5 Colorado 65, No. 12 Baylor 61
Game 3: No. 7 Oklahoma State 79, No. 10 Iowa State 70
Game 4: No. 6 Nebraska 71, No. 11 Missouri 64
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Texas vs. No. 8 Texas Tech, 12:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 6: No. 4 Texas A&M vs. No. 5 Colorado, 3 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 7: No. 2 Kansas vs. No. 7 Oklahoma State, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 8: No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 6 Nebraska, 9:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 4:20 p.m. (ESPN2)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
Big West:
Long Beach State nips UC Irvine to join Cal Poly in the Big West semifinals.
At Anaheim Convention Center Arena
Anaheim, Calif.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 76, No. 8 UC Riverside 44
Game 2: No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 73, No. 7 Cal State Northridge 63
SECOND ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 3 Long Beach State 94, No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 91
Game 4: No. 4 Cal Poly 57, No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 50
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Pacific vs. No. 4 Cal Poly, 9 p.m.
Game 6: No. 2 UC Irvine vs. No. 3 Long Beach State, 11:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, midnight (ESPN)
Conference USA:
The top four seeds, Houston, UAB, UTEP and Memphis easily advance to advance to the semifinals.
At the FedExForum
Memphis, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 10 SMU 61, No. 7 Rice 59
Game 2: No. 11 Southern Miss 66, vs. No. 6 Tulsa 61
Game 3: No. 8 Tulane 64, No. 9 Marshall 58
Game 4: No. 5 Central Florida 65, No. 12 East Carolina 52
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 2 UAB 69, No. 10 SMU 55
Game 6: No. 3 UTEP 66, No. 11 Southern Miss 47
Game 7: No. 1 Memphis 75, Tulane 56
Game 8: No. 4 Houston 71, No. 5 Central Florida 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 1 Memphis vs. No. 4 Houston, 4:30 p.m.
Game 10: No. 2 UAB vs. No. 3 UTEP, 7 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 11:35 a.m.
Mid-American:
Toledo, Akron, Ohio and Kent State all advance to the MAC semifinals.
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Monday, March 6
Game 1: No. 7 Toledo 77, No. 10 Bowling Green 52
Game 2: No. 6 Western Michigan 60, No. 11 Eastern Michigan 55
Game 3: No. 8 Buffalo 80, No. 9 Ball State 72
Game 4: No. 5 Ohio 82, No. 12 Central Michigan 53
QUARTERFINALS
At Quicken Loans Arena
Cleveland
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 7 Toledo 78, No. 2 Northern Illinois 77
Game 6: No. 3 Akron 72, No. 6 Western Michigan 57
Game 7: No. 1 Kent State 76, No. 8 Buffalo 67
Game 8: No. 5 Ohio 73, No. 4 Miami 58
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: No. 7 Toledo vs. No. 3 Akron, 7 p.m.
Game 10: No. 1 Kent State vs. No. 5 Ohio, 9:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
MEAC:
Hampton and South Carolina State advance to the conference semifinals.
At the RBC Center
Raleigh, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 7 Norfolk State 73, No. 10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 71
Game 2: No. 9 Howard 62, No. 8 North Carolina A&T 52
Wednesday, March 8
Game 3: No. 6 Hampton 63, No. 11 Morgan State 51
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, March 8
Game 4: No. 1 Delaware State 59, No. 9 Howard 47
Game 5: No. 7 Norfolk State 79, No. 2 Coppin State 67
Thursday, March 9
Game 6: No. 6 Hampton 57, No. 3 Bethune-Cookman 55
Game 7: No. 4 South Carolina State 60, No. 5 Florida A&M 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 8: No. 1 Delaware State vs. No. 4 South Carolina State, 6 p.m.
Game 9: No. 6 Hampton vs. No. 7 Norfolk State, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Mountain West:
UNLV plays San Diego State and Wyoming faces Utah in the Mountain West semifinals.
At The Pepsi Center
Denver
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 8 Colorado State 64, No. 9 TCU 60
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 2: No. 1 San Diego State 64, No. 8 Colorado State 52
Game 3: No. 4 UNLV 65, No. 5 New Mexico 64
Game 4: No. 7 Wyoming 57, No. 2 Air Force 55
Game 5: No. 6 Utah 74, No. 3 BYU 70
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 6: No. 1 San Diego State vs. No. 4 UNLV 9 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 7: No. 6 Utah vs. No. 7 Wyoming, Midnight (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Pac Ten:
California and Oregon join UCLA and Arizona in the semifinals of the Pac Ten Tournament.
At Staples Center
Los Angeles
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Oregon State 71, No. 8 Arizona State 68
Game 2: No. 7 Oregon 66, No. 10 Washington State 55
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 4 Arizona 73, No. 5 Stanford 68
Game 4: No. 1 UCLA 79, No. 9 Oregon State 47
Game 5: No. 3 California 82, No. 6 USC 67
Game 6: No. 7 Oregon 84, No. 2 Washington 73
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 7: No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 4 Arizona, 9 p.m.
Game 8: No. 3 California vs. No. 7 Oregon, 11:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 6:15 p.m.
SEC:
Arkansas joins Vanderbilt, South Carolina and Kentucky as each advance to the quarterfinals.
At The Gaylord Entertainment Center
Nashville, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: E5 South Carolina 59 W4 Mississippi State 44
Game 2: E3 Kentucky 71, W6 Ole Miss 57
Game 3: E4 Vanderbilt 76, W5 Auburn 71
Game 4: W3 Arkansas 80, E6 Georgia 67
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: E1 Tennessee vs. E5 South Carolina, 1 p.m.
Game 6: W2 Alabama vs. E3 Kentucky, 3:15 p.m.
Game 7: W1 LSU vs. E4 Vanderbilt, 7:30 p.m.
Game 8: E2 Florida vs. W3 Arkansas, 9:45 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 3:15 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m.
Southland:
Northwestern State will host their second straight championship game against 2 seed Sam Houson State.
At higher seeds
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 1 Northwestern State 75, No. 8 Texas-San Antonio 61
Game 2: No. 4 Stephen F. Austin 72, No. 5 McNeese State 70
Game 3: No. 2 Sam Houston State 86, No. 7 Texas-Arlington 84, 2OT
Game 4: No. 6 Lamar 68, No. 3 Southeastern Louisiana 65
SEMIFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 1 Northwestern State 80, No. 6 Lamar 66
Game 6: No. 2 Sam Houston State 78, No. 4 Stephen F. Austin 72
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 7: No. 1 Northwestern State vs. No. 2 Sam Houston State, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
SWAC:
Upsets abound in the SWAC Tournament as lower seeds Jackson State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff advance to the semifinals where they will join 3 seed Grambling and 1 seed Southern.
At Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Center Arena
Birmingham, Ala.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 5 Jackson State 83, No. 4 Alabama State 65
Game 2: No. 3 Grambling 50, No. 6 Mississippi Valley State 49
Game 3: No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 64, No. 2 Alabama A&M 54
Game 4: No. 1 Southern 73 No. 8 Alcorn State 52
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Southern vs. No. 5 Jackson State, 6 p.m.
Game 6: No. 3 Grambling vs. No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 8:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
WAC:
Host Nevada wins to face New Mexico State while Utah State and Louisiana Tech both advance to play each other in the semifinals.
At Lawlor Events Center
Reno, Nev.
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 3 Louisiana Tech 75 No. 6 Boise State 64
Game 2: No. 2 Utah State 76, No. 7 San Jose State 67
Game 3: No. 1 Nevada 68, No. 8 Idaho 55
Game 4: No. 5 New Mexico State 58, No. 4 Hawaii 57
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 3 Louisiana Tech vs. No. 2 Utah State, 9 p.m.
Game 6: No. 1 Nevada vs. No. 5 New Mexico St., 11:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 12
Game 7: Semifinal winners, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
Bubble Wrap 3/09/06
This is one of the most active days for bubble teams. We will continue to update results for every bubble team from every conference tournament as the day progresses. Be sure to check Bubbleteams.com for updated scores, conference tournament brackets and NCAA Tournament bracket projections.
Syracuse: What does an upset of the number 1 team in the country and the top seed in the Big East Tournament get you ?? How about an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Orangemen played their last two games like they want to be invited to the Big Dance and despite a lackluster finish to their regular season; two solid wins in the Big East Tournament should propel them into the NCAA Tournament. The bigger question is.... who do the Orangemen replace ???
George Washington: No, GW is NOT a bubble team, but their loss to Temple in the Atlantic Ten quarterfinals means two teams will be going to the NCAA Tournament from the A-10 and that means one less at-large bid out there for all those hopeful bubble teams. The sense of urgency must be immediate for many at-large teams and now is NOT the time to come out in your conference tournament and play flat.
UAB: The Blazers did what they needed to do today, beat SMU. Now UAB needs to take down the UTEP Miners and make the Conference USA finals. Given the happenings across the college basketball world, UAB needs to take care of business and not give the NCAA Selection Committee a reason to dent them a bid.
Florida State: The Seminoles do not appear to want to make the NCAA Tournament. How else do you explain an opening round loss to the last place team in the ACC after knowing so many other teams have made inroads towards an at-large bid. Florida State might still make it, but only because so many other teams have failed to seal the deal and win the games they needed to make the NCAA Tournament.
Michigan: Add Michigan to the ever-expanding list of bubble teams who have come out and played like an at-large bid is not in their interest. The Wolverines dropped their opening round game of the Big Ten Tournament to a Minnesota squad that the Wolverines dominated in two meetings this year. Michigan is in greater trouble than many other bubble teams because they have lost seven of their last nine games and finished just 8-8 in the Big ten and 18-10 overall.
Colorado: The Buffaloes almost became another bubble casualty, narrowly avoiding an upset to Baylor. Colorado now faces Texas A&M in what might be an elimination game for an at-large bid.
Kentucky: No one will be impressed by the Wildcats win against Mississippi, but at least Kentucky did not lose (like so many other bubble teams). Now Kentucky faces Alabama in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament. Both teams are felt to be safe for an at-large bid, but with all the happenings across the country, a victory would certainly make either team feel a little safer.
Arizona: The Wildcats won their opening round game without the services of Hassan Adams. Arizona is a safe bet to make the NCAA Tournament, even if they should lose their semifinal game.
Air Force: The Falcons lose in the Mountain West quarterfinals..... again. Air Force entered the Mountain West Championship looking for their first ever tournament win. They exited, yet again, with another loss. This loss will cost the Falcons any further consideration for an at-large bid. A 24-6 record and a second place finish in the Mountain West is a nice season for Air Force, but not enough for a bid to the NCAA Tournament.
California: The Bears did not solidify an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament with their win against USC. They did avoid taking a bad loss, which would have probably dropped them from consideration for a bid. California would likely lock up a bid with one more win in the semifinals.
Arkansas: We can finally drop the Razorbacks from the list of "bubble" teams. Arkansas has done everything it can to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Razorbacks can even afford to lose tomorrow and not affect their seeding.
Maryland: The Terrapins are trying to make a late season surge towards the at-large spot Florida State gave away. Maryland needs more than just a win against Boston College to grab an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament. If the Terrapins win their next two games, then they would deserve a position in the NCAA Tournament; otherwise, Maryland is just teasing their fans with a few late season wins.
Syracuse: What does an upset of the number 1 team in the country and the top seed in the Big East Tournament get you ?? How about an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Orangemen played their last two games like they want to be invited to the Big Dance and despite a lackluster finish to their regular season; two solid wins in the Big East Tournament should propel them into the NCAA Tournament. The bigger question is.... who do the Orangemen replace ???
George Washington: No, GW is NOT a bubble team, but their loss to Temple in the Atlantic Ten quarterfinals means two teams will be going to the NCAA Tournament from the A-10 and that means one less at-large bid out there for all those hopeful bubble teams. The sense of urgency must be immediate for many at-large teams and now is NOT the time to come out in your conference tournament and play flat.
UAB: The Blazers did what they needed to do today, beat SMU. Now UAB needs to take down the UTEP Miners and make the Conference USA finals. Given the happenings across the college basketball world, UAB needs to take care of business and not give the NCAA Selection Committee a reason to dent them a bid.
Florida State: The Seminoles do not appear to want to make the NCAA Tournament. How else do you explain an opening round loss to the last place team in the ACC after knowing so many other teams have made inroads towards an at-large bid. Florida State might still make it, but only because so many other teams have failed to seal the deal and win the games they needed to make the NCAA Tournament.
Michigan: Add Michigan to the ever-expanding list of bubble teams who have come out and played like an at-large bid is not in their interest. The Wolverines dropped their opening round game of the Big Ten Tournament to a Minnesota squad that the Wolverines dominated in two meetings this year. Michigan is in greater trouble than many other bubble teams because they have lost seven of their last nine games and finished just 8-8 in the Big ten and 18-10 overall.
Colorado: The Buffaloes almost became another bubble casualty, narrowly avoiding an upset to Baylor. Colorado now faces Texas A&M in what might be an elimination game for an at-large bid.
Kentucky: No one will be impressed by the Wildcats win against Mississippi, but at least Kentucky did not lose (like so many other bubble teams). Now Kentucky faces Alabama in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament. Both teams are felt to be safe for an at-large bid, but with all the happenings across the country, a victory would certainly make either team feel a little safer.
Arizona: The Wildcats won their opening round game without the services of Hassan Adams. Arizona is a safe bet to make the NCAA Tournament, even if they should lose their semifinal game.
Air Force: The Falcons lose in the Mountain West quarterfinals..... again. Air Force entered the Mountain West Championship looking for their first ever tournament win. They exited, yet again, with another loss. This loss will cost the Falcons any further consideration for an at-large bid. A 24-6 record and a second place finish in the Mountain West is a nice season for Air Force, but not enough for a bid to the NCAA Tournament.
California: The Bears did not solidify an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament with their win against USC. They did avoid taking a bad loss, which would have probably dropped them from consideration for a bid. California would likely lock up a bid with one more win in the semifinals.
Arkansas: We can finally drop the Razorbacks from the list of "bubble" teams. Arkansas has done everything it can to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Razorbacks can even afford to lose tomorrow and not affect their seeding.
Maryland: The Terrapins are trying to make a late season surge towards the at-large spot Florida State gave away. Maryland needs more than just a win against Boston College to grab an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament. If the Terrapins win their next two games, then they would deserve a position in the NCAA Tournament; otherwise, Maryland is just teasing their fans with a few late season wins.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Conference Tournament Updates 3/08/06
Updated brackets for every conference tournament (including every major conference tournament) are now available at Bubbleteams.com along with new conference tournament previews and updated scores.
We will continue to offer real-time updates and tournament results. This is the one and ONLY site that updates tournament brackets with scores and results as they happen.
Atlantic Ten:
Xavier scores an upset to advance to the quarterfinals along with Temple, St. Joseph's and Fordham.
At U.S. Bank Arena
Cincinnati
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Temple 74, No. 8 Rhode Island 45
Game 2: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 67, No. 12 Dayton 55
Game 3: No. 10 Xavier 75, No. 7 Massachusetts 66
Game 4: No. 6 Fordham 45, No. 11 Richmond 37
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 1 George Washington vs. No. 9 Temple, 12 p.m.
Game 6: No. 4 Saint Louis vs. No. 5 Saint Joseph's, 2:30 p.m.
Game 7: No. 2 Charlotte vs. No. 10 Xavier, 6:30 p.m.
Game 8: No. 3 La Salle vs. No. 6 Fordham, 9 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 6:30 p.m.
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 9 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Big East:
Syracuse and Rutgers both pull of small upsets to advance to the quarterfinals with Georgetown and Pitt, who held off a momentous Louisville comeback.
At Madison Square Garden
New York City
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Syracuse 74, No. 8 Cincinnati 73
Game 2: No. 5 Georgetown 67, No. 12 Notre Dame 63
Game 3: No. 10 Rutgers 61, No. 7 Seton Hall 48
Game 4: No. 6 Pittsburgh 61, No. 11 Louisville 56
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 1 Connecticut vs. No. 9 Syracuse, 12 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6: No. 4 Marquette vs. No. 5 Georgetown, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 7: No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 10 Rutgers, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 8: No. 3 West Virginia vs. No. 6 Pittsburgh, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN)
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 9 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Big Sky:
Montana wins at Northern Arizona to advance to their second straight NCAA TOurnament.
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Saturday, March 4
Game 1: No. 5 Sacramento State 71, No. 4 Montana State 70
Game 2: No. 3 Eastern Washington 81, No. 6 Portland State 75
SEMIFINALS
At Walkup Skydome
Flagstaff, Ariz.
Tuesday, March 7
Game 3: No. 2 Montana 73, No. 3 Eastern Washington 71, OT
Game 4: No. 1 Northern Arizona 98, No. 5 Sacramento State 83
CHAMPIONSHIP
At higher seed
Wednesday, March 8
Game 5: No. 2 Montana 73, No. 1 Northern Arizona 60
Big West:
UCSB hammers UC RIverside to advance to the second round.
At Anaheim Convention Center Arena
Anaheim, Calif.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 76, No. 8 UC Riverside 44
Game 2: No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 73, No. 7 Cal State Northridge 63
SECOND ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 3 Long Beach State vs. No. 6 Cal State Fullerton, 9 p.m.
Game 4: No. 4 Cal Poly vs. No. 5 UC Santa Barbara, 11:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Pacific vs. Lowest remaining seed, 9 p.m.
Game 6: No. 2 UC Irvine vs. Second-lowest remaining seed, 11:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, midnight (ESPN)
Conference USA:
SMU and Southern Miss pull off upsets to advance to join Tulane and Central Florida in the quarterfinals
At the FedExForum
Memphis, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 10 SMU 61, No. 7 Rice 59
Game 2: No. 11 Southern Miss 66, vs. No. 6 Tulsa 61
Game 3: No. 8 Tulane 64, No. 9 Marshall 58
Game 4: No. 5 Central Florida 65, No. 12 East Carolina 52
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 2 UAB vs. No. 10 SMU, 1 p.m.
Game 6: No. 3 UTEP vs. No. 11 Southern Miss, 3:30 p.m.
Game 7: No. 1 Memphis vs. No. 8 Tulane, 7 p.m.
Game 8: No. 4 Houston vs. No. 5 Central Florida, 9:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: Semifinal 1 (with highest seed remaining), 4:30 p.m.
Game 10: Semifinal 2, 7 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 11:35 a.m.
MEAC:
Hampton advances to the quarterfinals with a win against Morgan State and top seeded Delaware State advances to the semifinals with a win against Howard as 7 seed Norfolk State upsets 2 seed Coppin State.
At the RBC Center
Raleigh, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 7 Norfolk State 73, No. 10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 71
Game 2: No. 9 Howard 62, No. 8 North Carolina A&T 52
Wednesday, March 8
Game 3: No. 6 Hampton 63, No. 11 Morgan State 51
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, March 8
Game 4: No. 1 Delaware State 59, No. 9 Howard 47
Game 5: No. 7 Norfolk State 79, No. 2 Coppin State 67
Thursday, March 9
Game 6: No. 3 Bethune-Cookman vs. No. 6 Hampton, 6 p.m.
Game 7: No. 4 South Carolina State vs. No. 5 Florida A&M, 8:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 8: No. 1 Delaware State vs. Game 6 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 9: Game 7 winner vs. No. 7 Norfolk State, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Northeast:
Monmouth upsets top seed Fairleigh Dickinson to earn their fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament.
At higher seeds
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 2
Game 1: No. 1 Fairleigh Dickinson 66, No. 8 Quinnipiac 65
Game 2: No. 2 Central Connecticut 86, No. 7 Sacred Heart 68
Game 3: No. 3 Monmouth 74, No. 6 LIU-Brooklyn 63
Game 4: No. 5 Robert Morris 67, No. 4 Mount Saint Mary's 66
SEMIFINALS
At higher seeds
Sunday, March 5
Game 5: No. 1 Fairleigh Dickinson 71 No. 5 Robert Morris 55
Game 6: No. 3 Monmouth 62, No. 2 Central Connecticut 48
CHAMPIONSHIP
Wednesday, March 8
Game 7: No. 3 Monmouth 49, No. 1 Fairleigh Dickinson 48
Pac Ten:
Oregon State makes a second half comeback to stage a mild upset of Arizona State and advance to the quarterfinals along with Oregon, who dispatched Washington State and ended Dick Bennett's career in Pullman.
At Staples Center
Los Angeles
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Oregon State 71, No. 8 Arizona State 68
Game 2: No. 7 Oregon 66, No. 10 Washington State 55
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 5 Stanford, 3 p.m.
Game 4: No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 9 Oregon State, 5:30 p.m.
Game 5: No. 3 Cal vs. No. 6 USC, 9 p.m.
Game 6: No. 2 Washington vs. No. 7 Oregon, 11:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 9 p.m.
Game 8: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 11:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 6:15 p.m.
We will continue to offer real-time updates and tournament results. This is the one and ONLY site that updates tournament brackets with scores and results as they happen.
Atlantic Ten:
Xavier scores an upset to advance to the quarterfinals along with Temple, St. Joseph's and Fordham.
At U.S. Bank Arena
Cincinnati
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Temple 74, No. 8 Rhode Island 45
Game 2: No. 5 Saint Joseph's 67, No. 12 Dayton 55
Game 3: No. 10 Xavier 75, No. 7 Massachusetts 66
Game 4: No. 6 Fordham 45, No. 11 Richmond 37
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 1 George Washington vs. No. 9 Temple, 12 p.m.
Game 6: No. 4 Saint Louis vs. No. 5 Saint Joseph's, 2:30 p.m.
Game 7: No. 2 Charlotte vs. No. 10 Xavier, 6:30 p.m.
Game 8: No. 3 La Salle vs. No. 6 Fordham, 9 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 6:30 p.m.
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 9 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 6 p.m. (ESPN)
Big East:
Syracuse and Rutgers both pull of small upsets to advance to the quarterfinals with Georgetown and Pitt, who held off a momentous Louisville comeback.
At Madison Square Garden
New York City
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Syracuse 74, No. 8 Cincinnati 73
Game 2: No. 5 Georgetown 67, No. 12 Notre Dame 63
Game 3: No. 10 Rutgers 61, No. 7 Seton Hall 48
Game 4: No. 6 Pittsburgh 61, No. 11 Louisville 56
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 1 Connecticut vs. No. 9 Syracuse, 12 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6: No. 4 Marquette vs. No. 5 Georgetown, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 7: No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 10 Rutgers, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 8: No. 3 West Virginia vs. No. 6 Pittsburgh, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN)
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 9 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Big Sky:
Montana wins at Northern Arizona to advance to their second straight NCAA TOurnament.
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Saturday, March 4
Game 1: No. 5 Sacramento State 71, No. 4 Montana State 70
Game 2: No. 3 Eastern Washington 81, No. 6 Portland State 75
SEMIFINALS
At Walkup Skydome
Flagstaff, Ariz.
Tuesday, March 7
Game 3: No. 2 Montana 73, No. 3 Eastern Washington 71, OT
Game 4: No. 1 Northern Arizona 98, No. 5 Sacramento State 83
CHAMPIONSHIP
At higher seed
Wednesday, March 8
Game 5: No. 2 Montana 73, No. 1 Northern Arizona 60
Big West:
UCSB hammers UC RIverside to advance to the second round.
At Anaheim Convention Center Arena
Anaheim, Calif.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 5 UC Santa Barbara 76, No. 8 UC Riverside 44
Game 2: No. 6 Cal State Fullerton 73, No. 7 Cal State Northridge 63
SECOND ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 3 Long Beach State vs. No. 6 Cal State Fullerton, 9 p.m.
Game 4: No. 4 Cal Poly vs. No. 5 UC Santa Barbara, 11:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Pacific vs. Lowest remaining seed, 9 p.m.
Game 6: No. 2 UC Irvine vs. Second-lowest remaining seed, 11:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, midnight (ESPN)
Conference USA:
SMU and Southern Miss pull off upsets to advance to join Tulane and Central Florida in the quarterfinals
At the FedExForum
Memphis, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 10 SMU 61, No. 7 Rice 59
Game 2: No. 11 Southern Miss 66, vs. No. 6 Tulsa 61
Game 3: No. 8 Tulane 64, No. 9 Marshall 58
Game 4: No. 5 Central Florida 65, No. 12 East Carolina 52
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 2 UAB vs. No. 10 SMU, 1 p.m.
Game 6: No. 3 UTEP vs. No. 11 Southern Miss, 3:30 p.m.
Game 7: No. 1 Memphis vs. No. 8 Tulane, 7 p.m.
Game 8: No. 4 Houston vs. No. 5 Central Florida, 9:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 9: Semifinal 1 (with highest seed remaining), 4:30 p.m.
Game 10: Semifinal 2, 7 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 11:35 a.m.
MEAC:
Hampton advances to the quarterfinals with a win against Morgan State and top seeded Delaware State advances to the semifinals with a win against Howard as 7 seed Norfolk State upsets 2 seed Coppin State.
At the RBC Center
Raleigh, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 7 Norfolk State 73, No. 10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 71
Game 2: No. 9 Howard 62, No. 8 North Carolina A&T 52
Wednesday, March 8
Game 3: No. 6 Hampton 63, No. 11 Morgan State 51
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, March 8
Game 4: No. 1 Delaware State 59, No. 9 Howard 47
Game 5: No. 7 Norfolk State 79, No. 2 Coppin State 67
Thursday, March 9
Game 6: No. 3 Bethune-Cookman vs. No. 6 Hampton, 6 p.m.
Game 7: No. 4 South Carolina State vs. No. 5 Florida A&M, 8:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 8: No. 1 Delaware State vs. Game 6 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 9: Game 7 winner vs. No. 7 Norfolk State, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Northeast:
Monmouth upsets top seed Fairleigh Dickinson to earn their fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament.
At higher seeds
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 2
Game 1: No. 1 Fairleigh Dickinson 66, No. 8 Quinnipiac 65
Game 2: No. 2 Central Connecticut 86, No. 7 Sacred Heart 68
Game 3: No. 3 Monmouth 74, No. 6 LIU-Brooklyn 63
Game 4: No. 5 Robert Morris 67, No. 4 Mount Saint Mary's 66
SEMIFINALS
At higher seeds
Sunday, March 5
Game 5: No. 1 Fairleigh Dickinson 71 No. 5 Robert Morris 55
Game 6: No. 3 Monmouth 62, No. 2 Central Connecticut 48
CHAMPIONSHIP
Wednesday, March 8
Game 7: No. 3 Monmouth 49, No. 1 Fairleigh Dickinson 48
Pac Ten:
Oregon State makes a second half comeback to stage a mild upset of Arizona State and advance to the quarterfinals along with Oregon, who dispatched Washington State and ended Dick Bennett's career in Pullman.
At Staples Center
Los Angeles
FIRST ROUND
Wednesday, March 8
Game 1: No. 9 Oregon State 71, No. 8 Arizona State 68
Game 2: No. 7 Oregon 66, No. 10 Washington State 55
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 3: No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 5 Stanford, 3 p.m.
Game 4: No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 9 Oregon State, 5:30 p.m.
Game 5: No. 3 Cal vs. No. 6 USC, 9 p.m.
Game 6: No. 2 Washington vs. No. 7 Oregon, 11:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 9 p.m.
Game 8: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 11:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 6:15 p.m.
Bubble Wrap 3/08/06
A few bubble teams take the court today with half of the power conferences starting their tournaments. Two automatic bids will be decided by the days end.
Syracuse: The Orangemen pull off a tremendous win against fellow bubble team Cincinnati. The win does not push the Orangemen back into the tournament as an at-large bid, but it does give Syracuse the chance to win their way in against top seed and 1 seed Connecticut. Should Syracuse somehow defeat the #1 Huskies, then their position on the bubble will be reevaluated.
Cincinnati: A tough loss for the Bearcats. This loss hurt Cincinnati more than it helped Syracuse. Cincinnati lost two of their three games against Syracuse, and three of their last four games. Cincinnati is just 4-8 vs the top 50 RPI (a respectable 10-10 vs the top100 RPI) and 5-7 on the road. Yet, the Bearcats have a solid RPI, 18 Division 1 wins, an 8-8 record in the Big East and a strength of schedule that is fourth in the NCAA. The NCAA Selection Committee has always rewarded teams with strong SOS; but somehow it feels like the verdict on whether the Bearcats deserve a bid will depend on the results from games being played elsewhere.
Seton Hall: What is it about being on the bubble in the Big East that leads teams to play uninspired games in their conference tournament when an at-large bid is on the line ? The Pirates lost to Rutgers placing an NCAA Tournament bid in question. Seton hall has left the fate of their tournament chances in the hands of the other bubble teams playing this weekend. The Pirates still have a solid resume, but will that be enough come Selection Sunday ?
Monmouth: The Hawks pulled off a stunning upset of the top seeded Fairleigh Dickinson Knights on their home floor to advance to their fourth NCAA Tournament.
Montana: The Grizzlies win their second straight Big Sky Tournament, this time on the home court of their opponent. Montana dominated Northern Arizona and is looking at either a 14 or 15 seed in the Big Dance.
Syracuse: The Orangemen pull off a tremendous win against fellow bubble team Cincinnati. The win does not push the Orangemen back into the tournament as an at-large bid, but it does give Syracuse the chance to win their way in against top seed and 1 seed Connecticut. Should Syracuse somehow defeat the #1 Huskies, then their position on the bubble will be reevaluated.
Cincinnati: A tough loss for the Bearcats. This loss hurt Cincinnati more than it helped Syracuse. Cincinnati lost two of their three games against Syracuse, and three of their last four games. Cincinnati is just 4-8 vs the top 50 RPI (a respectable 10-10 vs the top100 RPI) and 5-7 on the road. Yet, the Bearcats have a solid RPI, 18 Division 1 wins, an 8-8 record in the Big East and a strength of schedule that is fourth in the NCAA. The NCAA Selection Committee has always rewarded teams with strong SOS; but somehow it feels like the verdict on whether the Bearcats deserve a bid will depend on the results from games being played elsewhere.
Seton Hall: What is it about being on the bubble in the Big East that leads teams to play uninspired games in their conference tournament when an at-large bid is on the line ? The Pirates lost to Rutgers placing an NCAA Tournament bid in question. Seton hall has left the fate of their tournament chances in the hands of the other bubble teams playing this weekend. The Pirates still have a solid resume, but will that be enough come Selection Sunday ?
Monmouth: The Hawks pulled off a stunning upset of the top seeded Fairleigh Dickinson Knights on their home floor to advance to their fourth NCAA Tournament.
Montana: The Grizzlies win their second straight Big Sky Tournament, this time on the home court of their opponent. Montana dominated Northern Arizona and is looking at either a 14 or 15 seed in the Big Dance.
Conference Tournament Previews 3/08/06-(ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC, SWAC, WAC)
We are continuing to post the conference tournament previews from our other website here.
Visit Bubbleteams.com to view the other conference tournament previews and updated conference tournament brackets.
ACC:
At Greensboro Coliseum
Greensboro, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Miami vs. No. 9 Clemson, noon
Game 2: No. 5 Florida State vs. No. 12 Wake Forest, 2:30 p.m.
Game 3: No. 7 Virginia vs. No. 10 Virginia Tech, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 4: No. 6 Maryland vs. No. 11 Georgia Tech, 9:30 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Duke vs. Game 1 winner, noon (ESPN2)
Game 6: No. 4 N.C. State vs. Game 2 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 7: No. 2 North Carolina vs. Game 3 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 8: No. 3 Boston College vs. Game 4 winner, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Recap: The ACC was dominated for much of the season by Duke, yet as the conference play came to a close, the North Carolina Tar Heels began to flex their might and a late season win at Duke has put the strength of the Blue Devils in question. Duke finished the regular season with a 2 game cushion over North Carolina and until the last week of the season, Duke was undefeated in league play. North Carolina started the season with a struggle at home against tiny Gardner-Webb, beating the small school from Boiling Spring NC by just one point in their season opener. The Tar Heels made up for the loss of much of the talent on last season's championship team with a class of fantastic freshman and some unheralded upperclassmen. North Carolina finished the regular season 8-2 on the road, almost unheard of with such a young team; scoring victories at Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina State and Maryland. The only place the Tar Heels seemed to have trouble winning was at home, where the Heels were still 13-4. Boston College had a rough start to their inaugural ACC season, losing their first three games. By the end of the season, the Eagles had turned things around, winning eleven of their last 13 ACC games to finish second in the league. North Carolina State had the opposite fortune by season's end. The Wolfpack lost their last three ACC games to finish the season 10-6 in conference, good for fourth place. Many teams struggled within the ACC campaign including Maryland (hampered by the loss of senior guard Chris McCray), Virginia (improved, yet still struggling to learn how to win), Clemson (started the season 10-0 and finished 7-11), Georgia Tech (with just four wins in the ACC this season) and Wake Forest (inexplicably in last place with just 2 ACC wins on the season).
Favorite: Duke enters the ACC Tournament with 27 wins and a solid lock on a top seed in the NCAA Tournament. Yet all is not well in Durham, especially after two straight losses. The Blue Devils bounced back from a similar situation last season to take the ACC title (after UNC was upset by Georgia Tech) and perhaps the same will occur here. We like North Carolina as the favorite to win the ACC title. No team in the ACC is playing better than the Heels, undefeated since a home loss to Duke in early February and riding a six-game road winning streak. In fact, the Heels only lost one road game during the entire ACC season, a feat even last year's NCAA Championship team could not accomplish. The Heels will be tested in the semifinals by Boston College (if the Eagles get past the winner of Maryland/Georgia Tech). Should UNC make their way to the final, we like their chances in a possible rematch with Duke.
Darkhorse: There are popular choices amongst the 10 teams in the ACC Tournament not named Duke or North Carolina as darkhorses, i.e. Maryland or NC State. However, we like the BC Eagles as a possible darkhorse. Boston College dominated the Tar Heels at North Carolina and was the last team not named Duke to defeat UNC this season. Boston College plays too many games close to the vest, yet with their size and guard play, they have a solid chance to upset the favored Heels.
Big Ten:
At Conseco Fieldhouse
Indianapolis
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Penn State vs. No. 9 Northwestern, 12 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 2: No. 7 Michigan vs. No. 10 Minnesota, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 3: No. 6 Michigan State vs. No. 11 Purdue, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 4: No. 1 Ohio State vs. Game 1 winner, 12 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 5: No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 5 Indiana, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6: No. 2 Iowa vs. Game 2 winner, 6:40 p.m.
Game 7: No. 3 Illinois vs. Game 3 winner, 9:10 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 1:40 p.m.
Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 4:05 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 10: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3:30 p.m.
Recap: The Big Ten had a solid season with three teams winning more than 20 games and six teams winning 18 or more games. Ohio State surged ahead of a tight pack of teams to win the league title by one game over second place Iowa and Illinois. The Buckeyes were helped by a league leading five wins away from home, second in the Big Ten to only Illinois. Ohio State and Illinois ended the season much like they started 2005. The Buckeyes won their first 11 games (before losing at Indiana) and Illinois won their first 15 games (before losing their first game at Iowa). Iowa might have won the Big Ten if they had been able to find just one more win on the road. The Hawkeyes won every conference home game, yet just won just three road games in the Big Ten. The flip side to the success of these three Big Ten teams was the struggle of many more. Wisconsin started the conference season 4-0, and then lost five of their next six games and limped to a 9-7 Big Ten record. Indiana suffered much the same ignominy, starting their Big Ten season 4-1, losing 6 of their next 7 conference games (and a home game to Connecticut) and their head coach, before turning their season around with four straight wins heading into the conference tournament. Michigan State never quite lived up to pre-season expectations and hype, losing five of their last seven games, finishing 8-8 in the conference. The Spartans tied the Michigan Wolverines, who were also plagued by inconsistency. The most consistently inconsistent team was Penn State. The Nittany Lions won as many road games as home games and yet found a way to end Illinois' 33 game home winning streak. The Lions, plagued by a lack of size, guard play and leadership, somehow found their way to six conference wins. Penn State actually finished ahead of Minnesota, Northwestern and Purdue. Matt Painter found his first as Gene Keady's replacement a struggle, yet was able to score upsets of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota at home.
Favorite: Ohio State and Illinois are playing the best basketball of any two Big Ten teams, as the tournament gets under way. The Buckeyes have won nine of their last ten games (including wins at Michigan and Michigan State). The Illini have won five of their last six games and are looking to avenge a loss in their sole game against Ohio State this season. Waiting in the wings is Iowa, a surprising 2 seed in the Big ten Tournament. The Hawkeyes are hampered by their inability to win on the road in Big Ten play (3-5 this season, with their only wins coming at Penn State, Indiana and Purdue). Should the Hawkeyes and Illini meet, we like Illinois' chances.
Darkhorse: Michigan State is a popular pick as a darkhorse and if we were swayed by their abundance of talent, we might pick them to make some noise in the Big Ten Tournament. The problem is the Spartans defense is some of the worst in the NCAA and the loss of Matt Trannon (amazingly !!) has hurt their depth. Michigan State will make a great second round opponent for Illinois, but we doubt they will make a deep tournament run. We like the chances of the Michigan Wolverines as our darkhorse. Michigan gets a good draw, having to beat Minnesota (a team they routed twice during the regular season) and then the opportunity to play the solid, yet overseeded Iowa Hawkeyes. The horrific loss Michigan took at Iowa earlier this year is troubling, yet the Hawkeyes are a much different team away from Iowa City. Should the Wolverines get past the quarterfinals, they would likely face either Illinois (a team they played well in both games this season) or Michigan State. Given the Spartans spotty play and poor defense, we like Michigan's chances.
Big 12:
At American Airlines Center
Dallas
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Texas Tech vs. No. 9 Kansas State, 12:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 2: No. 5 Colorado vs. No. 12 Baylor, 3 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 3: No. 7 Oklahoma State vs. No. 10 Iowa State, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 4: No. 6 Nebraska vs. No. 11 Missouri, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Texas vs. Game 1 winner, 12:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 6: No. 4 Texas A&M vs. Game 2 winner, 3 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 7: No. 2 Kansas vs. Game 3 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 8: No. 3 Oklahoma vs. Game 4 winner, 9:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 4:20 p.m. (ESPN2)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
Recap: The Big 12 had four teams finish with 20 or more wins this season. However, only five teams finished with a winning conference record. Texas eked out a tie for the regular season conference title with a home win against Oklahoma in the season finale. The Longhorns overcame a difficult start that saw them lose by a big margin in back-to-back games to Duke and Tennessee. Kansas tied Texas for the conference title after starting the season 3-4. The Jayhawks won 19 of their next 22 games, including a mid-season winning streak of 22 in a row, to finish 22-7 overall. Oklahoma won four straight one-point games at season's end to help them to a third place finish. The Sooners finished just ahead of the league's hottest team, Texas A&M. The Aggies enter the conference tournament on a 7 game winning streak. Texas A&M was floundering at 3-6 in conference before they found their winning ways in early February. Colorado has been the league's most inconsistent team (or consistent, depending on your point of view). The Buffaloes lost just one conference home game, while winning only two conference road games, on their way to a 9-7 league record. A number of league teams struggled to finish after solid starts. Nebraska started the season 12-3 only to finish 5-9. Kansas State (12-4 to start and 3-8 to finish), Oklahoma State (12-5 to start and 4-9 to finish), and Iowa State (10-3 to start and 5-10 to finish) also experienced the same struggles at season's end. Missouri suffered through a seven game losing streak at mid-season that caused head coach Quin Snyder to resign. The Tigers only won two of their last 12 games. Baylor did not win their first game until February 1st, when they upset Kansas State at home. The Bears also did not play their first game until January 11 due to NCAA sanctions.
Favorite: Texas and Kansas enter the league tournament playing the best basketball of any team in the Big 12. The Longhorns have been undone by several losses to marginal conference teams, yet when Texas needed to win a big game, they found a way to pull through. Kansas found hit their winning stride by mid-January. The Jayhawks beat every conference team with a worse record during their winning stretch. The only game Kansas was unable to win was at Texas, losing handily in late February. The Jayhawks won six road games during the conference campaign, best in all the Big 12. The Jayhawks proved they are capable of beating the teams seeded 4-12 during the season. The Jayhawks trouble came against the one team that was above them in the standings. Kansas should be able to roll through their half of the bracket to the semifinals where they will likely face Oklahoma. That is where Kansas might yet again experience some difficulty against squads that provide better competition. Texas is pushing towards a high seed in the NCAA Tournament and this year the conference tournament is being played in their own backyard in Dallas, Texas. The Longhorns have traditionally not received big support from their own fans (unless they are playing a big game). Texas has the advantage of playing their half of the bracket against five teams they defeated during the season. That should be good enough to get Texas to the title game, where they are likely to meet either Oklahoma or Kansas, two teams they beat handily at home.
Darkhorse: It is hard to find a darkhorse from this league, given the difficulty almost every team seeded 5-12 has had either winning games away from home, or just winning games the last half of the season. Oklahoma State, perhaps buoyed by the loss of their head coach, Eddie Sutton, is one of the few teams seeded in the bottom half of the bracket that has found a way to win big games at season's end. The Cowboys have won three of their last five games (including in that streak is a one-point loss in the final seconds at Oklahoma). The Cowboys have the misfortune to face the Kansas Jayhawks in the second round. Kansas dominated Oklahoma State during the regular season, defeating the Cowboys by 15 in Stillwater. Nebraska enters the tournament having lost three in a row and six of their last 8 games. We like their draw against struggling Missouri and then Oklahoma, yet how can anyone have much faith in a team that struggled so mightily to end the season. Given the makeup of the bracket, it is hard to find almost any other team that can pull of the few upsets it takes to be a darkhorse.
SEC:
At The Gaylord Entertainment Center
Nashville, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: E5 South Carolina vs. W4 Mississippi State, 1 p.m.
Game 2: W6 Ole Miss vs. E3 Kentucky, 3:15 p.m.
Game 3: W5 Auburn vs. E4 Vanderbilt, 7:30 p.m.
Game 4: E6 Georgia vs. W3 Arkansas, 9:45 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: E1 Tennessee vs. Game 1 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 6: W2 Alabama vs. Game 2 winner, 3:15 p.m.
Game 7: W1 LSU vs. Game 3 winner, 7:30 p.m.
Game 8: E2 Florida vs. Game 4 winner, 9:45 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 3:15 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m.
Recap: The SEC was full of surprises as the season unfolded. Tennessee and LSU won each division with ease, although Tennessee needed to win two close games against Florida to solidify their hold on the top spot in the east. The Volunteers started the season 11-1 and won another 8 games in a row before losing three of their last five to finish the season 12-4 in conference. The LSU Tigers were even more dominant in the West, losing just two games in conference (at Alabama and at Florida). The Tigers suffered through a frustrating non-conference campaign, losing five games by a total of 11 points. LSU won the West by four games over pre-season favorite Alabama and surging Arkansas. The Crimson Tide turned around a 7-5 non-conference record with a solid showing in the SEC. Arkansas enters the SEC Tournament as the hottest team in the league, riding a five game winning streak. The Razorbacks have scored wins against Alabama, Florida and Tennessee in that streak. Florida started the season 17-0 and found some difficulty in conference play, losing twice to Tennessee and South Carolina. Kentucky might be the most talked about team as the SEC Tournament starts play.... and not because of their stellar play. Kentucky, in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament, plays Mississippi in the first round of the SEC Tournament (a date on which the Wildcats are not used to playing). The Rebels will be searching for a new coach after dismissing head coach Rod Barnes at the end of the season.
Favorite: LSU and Tennessee enter the tournament as top seeds, yet LSU is playing the best basketball of anyone in the SEC (except maybe Arkansas). The Tigers have won 14 of their last 16 games and appear to be on a roll towards the NCAA Tournament. LSU would have to face Florida (one of two teams to beat the Tigers) or possibly Arkansas in the semifinals. The bracket does provide a challenge to the Tigers. On the other side, Tennessee would face struggling South Carolina or Mississippi State in the quarterfinals and either Kentucky or Alabama in the semifinals. Both teams were able to score an upset of the top seeded Volunteers in the weeks leading up to the SEC Tournament. Both teams are favorites, yet we are uneasy about their chances to take the SEC Tournament title.
Darkhorse: Arkansas is on a roll as they enter the SEC Tournament. While it is unlikely the Razorbacks will win four straight to take the title, we like their chances to make some noise in the tournament. Arkansas has won the games they are supposed to win and home wins against Alabama and Florida seemed to give this squad the confidence they needed to beat Tennessee on the road. Arkansas is capable of making the semifinals, where they are likely to face LSU. Unfortunately, the Tigers beat the Razorbacks twice this season, so we will head to the opposite side of the bracket for our darkhorse. The Alabama Crimson Tide is the only team in the SEC Tournament to have at least one win against the top four seeds from both sides of the bracket. The Tide finished the regular season 4-2 against the eastern half of the conference (beating the top four teams from the East while losing to the bottom two teams-South Carolina and Georgia) and 6-4 against the Western half of the conference. The Tide has had more trouble with the worse teams in the league than the best teams. If the Tide can get past Georgia (no mean feat considering the Bulldogs beat Alabama in their only meeting this year), they have a good chance to run past a struggling Kentucky and a struggling Tennessee. That would place them in the finals against either LSU, Arkansas (as we predict). Having to play four games in four days would be a hindrance for the Tide, but we like their chances.
SWAC:
At Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Center Arena
Birmingham, Ala.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 1 Southern vs. No. 8 Alcorn State, 8:30 p.m.
Game 2: No. 4 Alabama State vs. No. 5 Jackson State, 11 a.m.
Game 3: No. 2 Alabama A&M vs. No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 6 p.m.
Game 4: No. 3 Grambling vs. No. 6 Mississippi Valley State, 1:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 8:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Recap: Southern entered conference entered conference play in a similar circumstance as many of their league counterparts. The Jaguars had only two wins in their first 10 games. Yet, Southern found the ability to turn around their season and dominate the SWAC; winning the conference by four games over their nearest competition. In fact, the Jaguars were the only conference team that finished the regular season with more than 13 wins and one of only two SWAC teams to finish with a winning record. The entire conference had such difficulty in their non-conference schedule that all 10 league teams had just eight non-conference wins against Division 1 competition (Savannah State, Duquesne, Coppin State, Stephen F. Austin, Texas-San Antonio, Lipscomb, Louisiana Tech and South Alabama). Compare that to the 11 wins league teams had against non-division 1 competition and it paints a picture of a rough non-conference schedule for every SWAC team. The two last place teams (Texas Southern and Prairie View A&M) failed to make the conference tournament.
Favorite: Southern is the odds-on favorite to advance to the win the SWAC Tournament and advance to the NCAA Tournament. The Jaguars three conference losses all came away from home and all were by six points or less. Regular season champions have historically done well in the SWAC Tournament and it is anticipated that Southern will hold true to that form.
Darkhorse: Given that over half the conference teams have less than 10 wins (both inside the conference and overall); finding a darkhorse will not be easy. Alabama A&M enters the SWAC Tournament on a five game winning streak and the Bulldogs played Southern well during the regular season, losing twice to the Jaguars by seven and four points. Our choice is the Alabama State Hornets as the darkhorse from the SWAC. The Hornets own three of the eight non-conference wins from the league and were one of three conference teams to upend Southern. Alabama State may be the one SWAC team that played Southern the toughest this season, losing at Southern in overtime and beating the Jaguars at home by 4. If the Hornets are able to get by Jackson State in the quarterfinals, they have a good shot at upsetting Southern in the conference semifinals.
WAC:
At Lawlor Events Center
Reno, Nev.
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 3 Louisiana Tech vs. No. 6 Boise State, 3 p.m.
Game 2: No. 2 Utah State vs. No. 7 San Jose State, 5:30 p.m.
Game 3: No. 1 Nevada vs. No. 8 Idaho, 9 p.m.
Game 4: No. 4 Hawaii vs. No. 5 New Mexico State, 11:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 9 p.m.
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 11:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 12
Game 7: Semifinal winners, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
Recap: Nevada won their third straight conference title after struggling to start conference play. Nevada started the regular season and ranked in the top 25 after wins against UNLV, Kansas, Pacific and Georgia. The Wolf Pack lost four of their next 7 games to fall to 3-3 in conference and out of the top 25. The Wolf Pack regained their composure to win their last eleven games and outlast Utah State and Louisiana Tech for the WAC title. Louisiana Tech started the WAC season strong, posting a 7-1 record the first half of the conference campaign. The Bulldogs were unable to carry that momentum into the second half of conference play after losing three of four games (twice to Nevada and once at home to Utah State). Utah State had a chance to win the regular season title with a win at home against Nevada on February 25th. The Aggies lost that game to finish in a tie for second place in the conference. Utah State was undone by two losses to new WAC member New Mexico State. Last place team Idaho would not have made the conference tournament, after finishing the conference season 1-15, were it not for Fresno State being ruled ineligible for the WAC Tournament for NCAA sanctions.
Favorite: Nevada is the hottest team in the WAC and the Wolf Pack host the tournament for the second straight season. Nevada enters the conference tournament on an eleven game winning streak (the Wolf Pack have not lost since January 23 to Utah State). Nevada has scored conference wins at Utah State, at Louisiana Tech and at home against Akron and Louisiana Tech. The Wolf Pack must avoid last season's disappointment when the Wolf Pack were upset at home in the conference quarterfinals by Boise State.
Darkhorse: While Nevada enters the conference tournament as the hottest team in the league, there are at least two teams playing nearly as well as the Wolf Pack. Hawaii has won seven of their last nine games, including three games away from home (where the Rainbows have historically had difficulty). The Rainbows also own wins against Nevada and Utah State (albeit at home, where Hawaii has always been tough to beat). The Rainbows quarterfinal opponent is New Mexico State, winners of six of their last seven games. The Aggies own wins against Utah State at home and at Pacific during their stretch run. Despite starting the season 7-10, New Mexico State found a way to turn around their level of play and currently sit at 15-13, guaranteed of a winning record in their inaugural season in the WAC. New Mexico State faces the task of having to defeat Hawaii in the first round and then play Nevada on their own home court in the semifinals. Another possible candidate for a darkhorse is Louisiana Tech. The Bulldogs have won four of their last five games, including wins at Southern Illinois and Hawaii (both traditionally tough places to find victories). Louisiana Tech will face a Boise State squad they swept this season (although both games were close contests). Our pick is Utah State. While the Aggies certainly do not enter the conference tournament as a lower seed, they are an underdog to win on Nevada's home floor. Utah State already won at Nevada earlier this season and the Aggies face a good draw (having to beat 6-24 San Jose State and either Boise State or Louisiana Tech, two teams Utah State was undefeated against this season). We like Nevada to continue their winning streak, but finding their way to a conference tournament title will be a greater challenge than many think.
Visit Bubbleteams.com to view the other conference tournament previews and updated conference tournament brackets.
ACC:
At Greensboro Coliseum
Greensboro, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Miami vs. No. 9 Clemson, noon
Game 2: No. 5 Florida State vs. No. 12 Wake Forest, 2:30 p.m.
Game 3: No. 7 Virginia vs. No. 10 Virginia Tech, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 4: No. 6 Maryland vs. No. 11 Georgia Tech, 9:30 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Duke vs. Game 1 winner, noon (ESPN2)
Game 6: No. 4 N.C. State vs. Game 2 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 7: No. 2 North Carolina vs. Game 3 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 8: No. 3 Boston College vs. Game 4 winner, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Recap: The ACC was dominated for much of the season by Duke, yet as the conference play came to a close, the North Carolina Tar Heels began to flex their might and a late season win at Duke has put the strength of the Blue Devils in question. Duke finished the regular season with a 2 game cushion over North Carolina and until the last week of the season, Duke was undefeated in league play. North Carolina started the season with a struggle at home against tiny Gardner-Webb, beating the small school from Boiling Spring NC by just one point in their season opener. The Tar Heels made up for the loss of much of the talent on last season's championship team with a class of fantastic freshman and some unheralded upperclassmen. North Carolina finished the regular season 8-2 on the road, almost unheard of with such a young team; scoring victories at Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina State and Maryland. The only place the Tar Heels seemed to have trouble winning was at home, where the Heels were still 13-4. Boston College had a rough start to their inaugural ACC season, losing their first three games. By the end of the season, the Eagles had turned things around, winning eleven of their last 13 ACC games to finish second in the league. North Carolina State had the opposite fortune by season's end. The Wolfpack lost their last three ACC games to finish the season 10-6 in conference, good for fourth place. Many teams struggled within the ACC campaign including Maryland (hampered by the loss of senior guard Chris McCray), Virginia (improved, yet still struggling to learn how to win), Clemson (started the season 10-0 and finished 7-11), Georgia Tech (with just four wins in the ACC this season) and Wake Forest (inexplicably in last place with just 2 ACC wins on the season).
Favorite: Duke enters the ACC Tournament with 27 wins and a solid lock on a top seed in the NCAA Tournament. Yet all is not well in Durham, especially after two straight losses. The Blue Devils bounced back from a similar situation last season to take the ACC title (after UNC was upset by Georgia Tech) and perhaps the same will occur here. We like North Carolina as the favorite to win the ACC title. No team in the ACC is playing better than the Heels, undefeated since a home loss to Duke in early February and riding a six-game road winning streak. In fact, the Heels only lost one road game during the entire ACC season, a feat even last year's NCAA Championship team could not accomplish. The Heels will be tested in the semifinals by Boston College (if the Eagles get past the winner of Maryland/Georgia Tech). Should UNC make their way to the final, we like their chances in a possible rematch with Duke.
Darkhorse: There are popular choices amongst the 10 teams in the ACC Tournament not named Duke or North Carolina as darkhorses, i.e. Maryland or NC State. However, we like the BC Eagles as a possible darkhorse. Boston College dominated the Tar Heels at North Carolina and was the last team not named Duke to defeat UNC this season. Boston College plays too many games close to the vest, yet with their size and guard play, they have a solid chance to upset the favored Heels.
Big Ten:
At Conseco Fieldhouse
Indianapolis
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Penn State vs. No. 9 Northwestern, 12 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 2: No. 7 Michigan vs. No. 10 Minnesota, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 3: No. 6 Michigan State vs. No. 11 Purdue, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 4: No. 1 Ohio State vs. Game 1 winner, 12 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 5: No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 5 Indiana, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6: No. 2 Iowa vs. Game 2 winner, 6:40 p.m.
Game 7: No. 3 Illinois vs. Game 3 winner, 9:10 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 1:40 p.m.
Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 4:05 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 10: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3:30 p.m.
Recap: The Big Ten had a solid season with three teams winning more than 20 games and six teams winning 18 or more games. Ohio State surged ahead of a tight pack of teams to win the league title by one game over second place Iowa and Illinois. The Buckeyes were helped by a league leading five wins away from home, second in the Big Ten to only Illinois. Ohio State and Illinois ended the season much like they started 2005. The Buckeyes won their first 11 games (before losing at Indiana) and Illinois won their first 15 games (before losing their first game at Iowa). Iowa might have won the Big Ten if they had been able to find just one more win on the road. The Hawkeyes won every conference home game, yet just won just three road games in the Big Ten. The flip side to the success of these three Big Ten teams was the struggle of many more. Wisconsin started the conference season 4-0, and then lost five of their next six games and limped to a 9-7 Big Ten record. Indiana suffered much the same ignominy, starting their Big Ten season 4-1, losing 6 of their next 7 conference games (and a home game to Connecticut) and their head coach, before turning their season around with four straight wins heading into the conference tournament. Michigan State never quite lived up to pre-season expectations and hype, losing five of their last seven games, finishing 8-8 in the conference. The Spartans tied the Michigan Wolverines, who were also plagued by inconsistency. The most consistently inconsistent team was Penn State. The Nittany Lions won as many road games as home games and yet found a way to end Illinois' 33 game home winning streak. The Lions, plagued by a lack of size, guard play and leadership, somehow found their way to six conference wins. Penn State actually finished ahead of Minnesota, Northwestern and Purdue. Matt Painter found his first as Gene Keady's replacement a struggle, yet was able to score upsets of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota at home.
Favorite: Ohio State and Illinois are playing the best basketball of any two Big Ten teams, as the tournament gets under way. The Buckeyes have won nine of their last ten games (including wins at Michigan and Michigan State). The Illini have won five of their last six games and are looking to avenge a loss in their sole game against Ohio State this season. Waiting in the wings is Iowa, a surprising 2 seed in the Big ten Tournament. The Hawkeyes are hampered by their inability to win on the road in Big Ten play (3-5 this season, with their only wins coming at Penn State, Indiana and Purdue). Should the Hawkeyes and Illini meet, we like Illinois' chances.
Darkhorse: Michigan State is a popular pick as a darkhorse and if we were swayed by their abundance of talent, we might pick them to make some noise in the Big Ten Tournament. The problem is the Spartans defense is some of the worst in the NCAA and the loss of Matt Trannon (amazingly !!) has hurt their depth. Michigan State will make a great second round opponent for Illinois, but we doubt they will make a deep tournament run. We like the chances of the Michigan Wolverines as our darkhorse. Michigan gets a good draw, having to beat Minnesota (a team they routed twice during the regular season) and then the opportunity to play the solid, yet overseeded Iowa Hawkeyes. The horrific loss Michigan took at Iowa earlier this year is troubling, yet the Hawkeyes are a much different team away from Iowa City. Should the Wolverines get past the quarterfinals, they would likely face either Illinois (a team they played well in both games this season) or Michigan State. Given the Spartans spotty play and poor defense, we like Michigan's chances.
Big 12:
At American Airlines Center
Dallas
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 8 Texas Tech vs. No. 9 Kansas State, 12:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 2: No. 5 Colorado vs. No. 12 Baylor, 3 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 3: No. 7 Oklahoma State vs. No. 10 Iowa State, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 4: No. 6 Nebraska vs. No. 11 Missouri, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Texas vs. Game 1 winner, 12:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 6: No. 4 Texas A&M vs. Game 2 winner, 3 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 7: No. 2 Kansas vs. Game 3 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 8: No. 3 Oklahoma vs. Game 4 winner, 9:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 4:20 p.m. (ESPN2)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
Recap: The Big 12 had four teams finish with 20 or more wins this season. However, only five teams finished with a winning conference record. Texas eked out a tie for the regular season conference title with a home win against Oklahoma in the season finale. The Longhorns overcame a difficult start that saw them lose by a big margin in back-to-back games to Duke and Tennessee. Kansas tied Texas for the conference title after starting the season 3-4. The Jayhawks won 19 of their next 22 games, including a mid-season winning streak of 22 in a row, to finish 22-7 overall. Oklahoma won four straight one-point games at season's end to help them to a third place finish. The Sooners finished just ahead of the league's hottest team, Texas A&M. The Aggies enter the conference tournament on a 7 game winning streak. Texas A&M was floundering at 3-6 in conference before they found their winning ways in early February. Colorado has been the league's most inconsistent team (or consistent, depending on your point of view). The Buffaloes lost just one conference home game, while winning only two conference road games, on their way to a 9-7 league record. A number of league teams struggled to finish after solid starts. Nebraska started the season 12-3 only to finish 5-9. Kansas State (12-4 to start and 3-8 to finish), Oklahoma State (12-5 to start and 4-9 to finish), and Iowa State (10-3 to start and 5-10 to finish) also experienced the same struggles at season's end. Missouri suffered through a seven game losing streak at mid-season that caused head coach Quin Snyder to resign. The Tigers only won two of their last 12 games. Baylor did not win their first game until February 1st, when they upset Kansas State at home. The Bears also did not play their first game until January 11 due to NCAA sanctions.
Favorite: Texas and Kansas enter the league tournament playing the best basketball of any team in the Big 12. The Longhorns have been undone by several losses to marginal conference teams, yet when Texas needed to win a big game, they found a way to pull through. Kansas found hit their winning stride by mid-January. The Jayhawks beat every conference team with a worse record during their winning stretch. The only game Kansas was unable to win was at Texas, losing handily in late February. The Jayhawks won six road games during the conference campaign, best in all the Big 12. The Jayhawks proved they are capable of beating the teams seeded 4-12 during the season. The Jayhawks trouble came against the one team that was above them in the standings. Kansas should be able to roll through their half of the bracket to the semifinals where they will likely face Oklahoma. That is where Kansas might yet again experience some difficulty against squads that provide better competition. Texas is pushing towards a high seed in the NCAA Tournament and this year the conference tournament is being played in their own backyard in Dallas, Texas. The Longhorns have traditionally not received big support from their own fans (unless they are playing a big game). Texas has the advantage of playing their half of the bracket against five teams they defeated during the season. That should be good enough to get Texas to the title game, where they are likely to meet either Oklahoma or Kansas, two teams they beat handily at home.
Darkhorse: It is hard to find a darkhorse from this league, given the difficulty almost every team seeded 5-12 has had either winning games away from home, or just winning games the last half of the season. Oklahoma State, perhaps buoyed by the loss of their head coach, Eddie Sutton, is one of the few teams seeded in the bottom half of the bracket that has found a way to win big games at season's end. The Cowboys have won three of their last five games (including in that streak is a one-point loss in the final seconds at Oklahoma). The Cowboys have the misfortune to face the Kansas Jayhawks in the second round. Kansas dominated Oklahoma State during the regular season, defeating the Cowboys by 15 in Stillwater. Nebraska enters the tournament having lost three in a row and six of their last 8 games. We like their draw against struggling Missouri and then Oklahoma, yet how can anyone have much faith in a team that struggled so mightily to end the season. Given the makeup of the bracket, it is hard to find almost any other team that can pull of the few upsets it takes to be a darkhorse.
SEC:
At The Gaylord Entertainment Center
Nashville, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: E5 South Carolina vs. W4 Mississippi State, 1 p.m.
Game 2: W6 Ole Miss vs. E3 Kentucky, 3:15 p.m.
Game 3: W5 Auburn vs. E4 Vanderbilt, 7:30 p.m.
Game 4: E6 Georgia vs. W3 Arkansas, 9:45 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: E1 Tennessee vs. Game 1 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 6: W2 Alabama vs. Game 2 winner, 3:15 p.m.
Game 7: W1 LSU vs. Game 3 winner, 7:30 p.m.
Game 8: E2 Florida vs. Game 4 winner, 9:45 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 11
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 10: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 3:15 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m.
Recap: The SEC was full of surprises as the season unfolded. Tennessee and LSU won each division with ease, although Tennessee needed to win two close games against Florida to solidify their hold on the top spot in the east. The Volunteers started the season 11-1 and won another 8 games in a row before losing three of their last five to finish the season 12-4 in conference. The LSU Tigers were even more dominant in the West, losing just two games in conference (at Alabama and at Florida). The Tigers suffered through a frustrating non-conference campaign, losing five games by a total of 11 points. LSU won the West by four games over pre-season favorite Alabama and surging Arkansas. The Crimson Tide turned around a 7-5 non-conference record with a solid showing in the SEC. Arkansas enters the SEC Tournament as the hottest team in the league, riding a five game winning streak. The Razorbacks have scored wins against Alabama, Florida and Tennessee in that streak. Florida started the season 17-0 and found some difficulty in conference play, losing twice to Tennessee and South Carolina. Kentucky might be the most talked about team as the SEC Tournament starts play.... and not because of their stellar play. Kentucky, in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament, plays Mississippi in the first round of the SEC Tournament (a date on which the Wildcats are not used to playing). The Rebels will be searching for a new coach after dismissing head coach Rod Barnes at the end of the season.
Favorite: LSU and Tennessee enter the tournament as top seeds, yet LSU is playing the best basketball of anyone in the SEC (except maybe Arkansas). The Tigers have won 14 of their last 16 games and appear to be on a roll towards the NCAA Tournament. LSU would have to face Florida (one of two teams to beat the Tigers) or possibly Arkansas in the semifinals. The bracket does provide a challenge to the Tigers. On the other side, Tennessee would face struggling South Carolina or Mississippi State in the quarterfinals and either Kentucky or Alabama in the semifinals. Both teams were able to score an upset of the top seeded Volunteers in the weeks leading up to the SEC Tournament. Both teams are favorites, yet we are uneasy about their chances to take the SEC Tournament title.
Darkhorse: Arkansas is on a roll as they enter the SEC Tournament. While it is unlikely the Razorbacks will win four straight to take the title, we like their chances to make some noise in the tournament. Arkansas has won the games they are supposed to win and home wins against Alabama and Florida seemed to give this squad the confidence they needed to beat Tennessee on the road. Arkansas is capable of making the semifinals, where they are likely to face LSU. Unfortunately, the Tigers beat the Razorbacks twice this season, so we will head to the opposite side of the bracket for our darkhorse. The Alabama Crimson Tide is the only team in the SEC Tournament to have at least one win against the top four seeds from both sides of the bracket. The Tide finished the regular season 4-2 against the eastern half of the conference (beating the top four teams from the East while losing to the bottom two teams-South Carolina and Georgia) and 6-4 against the Western half of the conference. The Tide has had more trouble with the worse teams in the league than the best teams. If the Tide can get past Georgia (no mean feat considering the Bulldogs beat Alabama in their only meeting this year), they have a good chance to run past a struggling Kentucky and a struggling Tennessee. That would place them in the finals against either LSU, Arkansas (as we predict). Having to play four games in four days would be a hindrance for the Tide, but we like their chances.
SWAC:
At Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Center Arena
Birmingham, Ala.
FIRST ROUND
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 1 Southern vs. No. 8 Alcorn State, 8:30 p.m.
Game 2: No. 4 Alabama State vs. No. 5 Jackson State, 11 a.m.
Game 3: No. 2 Alabama A&M vs. No. 7 Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 6 p.m.
Game 4: No. 3 Grambling vs. No. 6 Mississippi Valley State, 1:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 8:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Recap: Southern entered conference entered conference play in a similar circumstance as many of their league counterparts. The Jaguars had only two wins in their first 10 games. Yet, Southern found the ability to turn around their season and dominate the SWAC; winning the conference by four games over their nearest competition. In fact, the Jaguars were the only conference team that finished the regular season with more than 13 wins and one of only two SWAC teams to finish with a winning record. The entire conference had such difficulty in their non-conference schedule that all 10 league teams had just eight non-conference wins against Division 1 competition (Savannah State, Duquesne, Coppin State, Stephen F. Austin, Texas-San Antonio, Lipscomb, Louisiana Tech and South Alabama). Compare that to the 11 wins league teams had against non-division 1 competition and it paints a picture of a rough non-conference schedule for every SWAC team. The two last place teams (Texas Southern and Prairie View A&M) failed to make the conference tournament.
Favorite: Southern is the odds-on favorite to advance to the win the SWAC Tournament and advance to the NCAA Tournament. The Jaguars three conference losses all came away from home and all were by six points or less. Regular season champions have historically done well in the SWAC Tournament and it is anticipated that Southern will hold true to that form.
Darkhorse: Given that over half the conference teams have less than 10 wins (both inside the conference and overall); finding a darkhorse will not be easy. Alabama A&M enters the SWAC Tournament on a five game winning streak and the Bulldogs played Southern well during the regular season, losing twice to the Jaguars by seven and four points. Our choice is the Alabama State Hornets as the darkhorse from the SWAC. The Hornets own three of the eight non-conference wins from the league and were one of three conference teams to upend Southern. Alabama State may be the one SWAC team that played Southern the toughest this season, losing at Southern in overtime and beating the Jaguars at home by 4. If the Hornets are able to get by Jackson State in the quarterfinals, they have a good shot at upsetting Southern in the conference semifinals.
WAC:
At Lawlor Events Center
Reno, Nev.
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 1: No. 3 Louisiana Tech vs. No. 6 Boise State, 3 p.m.
Game 2: No. 2 Utah State vs. No. 7 San Jose State, 5:30 p.m.
Game 3: No. 1 Nevada vs. No. 8 Idaho, 9 p.m.
Game 4: No. 4 Hawaii vs. No. 5 New Mexico State, 11:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 5: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 9 p.m.
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 11:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 12
Game 7: Semifinal winners, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
Recap: Nevada won their third straight conference title after struggling to start conference play. Nevada started the regular season and ranked in the top 25 after wins against UNLV, Kansas, Pacific and Georgia. The Wolf Pack lost four of their next 7 games to fall to 3-3 in conference and out of the top 25. The Wolf Pack regained their composure to win their last eleven games and outlast Utah State and Louisiana Tech for the WAC title. Louisiana Tech started the WAC season strong, posting a 7-1 record the first half of the conference campaign. The Bulldogs were unable to carry that momentum into the second half of conference play after losing three of four games (twice to Nevada and once at home to Utah State). Utah State had a chance to win the regular season title with a win at home against Nevada on February 25th. The Aggies lost that game to finish in a tie for second place in the conference. Utah State was undone by two losses to new WAC member New Mexico State. Last place team Idaho would not have made the conference tournament, after finishing the conference season 1-15, were it not for Fresno State being ruled ineligible for the WAC Tournament for NCAA sanctions.
Favorite: Nevada is the hottest team in the WAC and the Wolf Pack host the tournament for the second straight season. Nevada enters the conference tournament on an eleven game winning streak (the Wolf Pack have not lost since January 23 to Utah State). Nevada has scored conference wins at Utah State, at Louisiana Tech and at home against Akron and Louisiana Tech. The Wolf Pack must avoid last season's disappointment when the Wolf Pack were upset at home in the conference quarterfinals by Boise State.
Darkhorse: While Nevada enters the conference tournament as the hottest team in the league, there are at least two teams playing nearly as well as the Wolf Pack. Hawaii has won seven of their last nine games, including three games away from home (where the Rainbows have historically had difficulty). The Rainbows also own wins against Nevada and Utah State (albeit at home, where Hawaii has always been tough to beat). The Rainbows quarterfinal opponent is New Mexico State, winners of six of their last seven games. The Aggies own wins against Utah State at home and at Pacific during their stretch run. Despite starting the season 7-10, New Mexico State found a way to turn around their level of play and currently sit at 15-13, guaranteed of a winning record in their inaugural season in the WAC. New Mexico State faces the task of having to defeat Hawaii in the first round and then play Nevada on their own home court in the semifinals. Another possible candidate for a darkhorse is Louisiana Tech. The Bulldogs have won four of their last five games, including wins at Southern Illinois and Hawaii (both traditionally tough places to find victories). Louisiana Tech will face a Boise State squad they swept this season (although both games were close contests). Our pick is Utah State. While the Aggies certainly do not enter the conference tournament as a lower seed, they are an underdog to win on Nevada's home floor. Utah State already won at Nevada earlier this season and the Aggies face a good draw (having to beat 6-24 San Jose State and either Boise State or Louisiana Tech, two teams Utah State was undefeated against this season). We like Nevada to continue their winning streak, but finding their way to a conference tournament title will be a greater challenge than many think.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
NCAA Tournament Bracket Update 3/08/06
We will continue to replicate the NCAA Tournament bracket projection from our other website Bubbleteams.com all week through Selection Sunday.
Washington Region
Philadelphia, PA
1-Connecticut
16-FDU/Southern
8-Alabama
9-Northern Iowa
San Diego, CA
5-Washington
12-Florida State
4-Iowa
13-South Alabama
Greensboro, NC
6-Georgetown
11-California
3-NC
14-Pacific
Dallas, TX
7-Arkansas
10-Seton Hall
2-Texas
15-Northwestern State
Oakland Region
Dallas, TX
1-Memphis
16-Albany
8-Wichita State
9-Kentucky
San Diego, CA
5-Pitt
12-Wisconsin Milwaukee
4-UCLA
13-Iona
Jacksonville, FL
6-Florida
11-NC Wilmington
3-George Washington
14-Penn
Dayton, OH
7-Marquette
10-Texas A&M
2-Ohio State
15-Davidson
Minneapolis Region
Greensboro, NC
1-Duke
16-Belmont
8-Indiana
9-Arizona
Auburn Hills, MI
5-Oklahoma
12-George Mason
4-WVU
13-Kent State
Dayton, OH
6-Wisconsin
11-Bucknell
3-Tennessee
14-Murray State
Salt Lake City, UT
7-Michigan State
10-UAB
2-Gonzaga
15-Northern Arizona
Atlanta Region
Philadelphia, PA
1-Villanova
16-Delaware State
8-Michigan
9-Southern Illinois
Salt Lake City, UT
5-BC
13-San Diego State
4-Kansas
12-Missouri State
Jacksonville, FL
6-NC State
11-Bradley
3-LSU
14-Winthrop
Auburn Hills, MI
7-Nevada
10-Cincinnati
2-Illinois
15-Oral Roberts
We will continue to tweak the bracket as the week continues. Check back each day for more updates.
Washington Region
Philadelphia, PA
1-Connecticut
16-FDU/Southern
8-Alabama
9-Northern Iowa
San Diego, CA
5-Washington
12-Florida State
4-Iowa
13-South Alabama
Greensboro, NC
6-Georgetown
11-California
3-NC
14-Pacific
Dallas, TX
7-Arkansas
10-Seton Hall
2-Texas
15-Northwestern State
Oakland Region
Dallas, TX
1-Memphis
16-Albany
8-Wichita State
9-Kentucky
San Diego, CA
5-Pitt
12-Wisconsin Milwaukee
4-UCLA
13-Iona
Jacksonville, FL
6-Florida
11-NC Wilmington
3-George Washington
14-Penn
Dayton, OH
7-Marquette
10-Texas A&M
2-Ohio State
15-Davidson
Minneapolis Region
Greensboro, NC
1-Duke
16-Belmont
8-Indiana
9-Arizona
Auburn Hills, MI
5-Oklahoma
12-George Mason
4-WVU
13-Kent State
Dayton, OH
6-Wisconsin
11-Bucknell
3-Tennessee
14-Murray State
Salt Lake City, UT
7-Michigan State
10-UAB
2-Gonzaga
15-Northern Arizona
Atlanta Region
Philadelphia, PA
1-Villanova
16-Delaware State
8-Michigan
9-Southern Illinois
Salt Lake City, UT
5-BC
13-San Diego State
4-Kansas
12-Missouri State
Jacksonville, FL
6-NC State
11-Bradley
3-LSU
14-Winthrop
Auburn Hills, MI
7-Nevada
10-Cincinnati
2-Illinois
15-Oral Roberts
We will continue to tweak the bracket as the week continues. Check back each day for more updates.
Conference Tournament Updates 3/07/06
Updated brackets for every conference tournament (including every major conference tournament) are now available at Bubbleteams.com along with new conference tournament previews and updated scores.
We will continue to offer real-time updates and tournament results. This is the one and ONLY site that updates tournament brackets with scores and results as they happen.
Big Sky:
Top seeds Montana and Northern Arizona both advance to the conference championship.
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Saturday, March 4
Game 1: No. 5 Sacramento State 71, No. 4 Montana State 70
Game 2: No. 3 Eastern Washington 81, No. 6 Portland State 75
SEMIFINALS
At Walkup Skydome
Flagstaff, Ariz.
Tuesday, March 7
Game 3: No. 2 Montana 73, No. 3 Eastern Washington 71, OT
Game 4: No. 1 Northern Arizona 98, No. 5 Sacramento State 83
CHAMPIONSHIP
At higher seed
Wednesday, March 8
Game 5: No. 1 Northern Arizona vs. No. 2 Montana, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Horizon:
Wisconsin-Milwaukee wins the Horizon Tournament for the second straight season and the third time in four years.
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Tuesday, Feb. 28
Game 1: No. 6 Illinois-Chicago 77, No. 7 Wright State 64
Game 2: No. 5 Detroit 92, No. 8 Cleveland State 58
Game 3: No. 4 Loyola-Chi. 76, No. 9 Youngstown State 61
QUARTERFINALS
At The Klotsche Center
Milwaukee, Wis.
Friday, March 3
Game 4: No. 3 Wisconsin-Green Bay 76, No. 6 Illinois-Chicago 66
Game 5: No. 4 Loyola-Chi. 64, No. 5 Detroit 55
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 4
Game 6: No. 2 Butler 73, No. 3 Wisconsin-Green Bay 51
Game 7: No. 1 Wisconsin-Milwaukee 80, No. 4 Loyola-Chi 66
CHAMPIONSHIP
At higher seed
Tuesday, March 7
Game 8: No. 1 Wisconsin-Milwaukee 87, No. 2 Butler 71
MEAC:
Norfolk State and Howard each advance to the quarterfinals to face the top two seeds.
At the RBC Center
Raleigh, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 7 Norfolk State 73, No. 10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 71
Game 2: No. 9 Howard 62, No. 8 North Carolina A&T 52
Wednesday, March 8
Game 3: No. 6 Hampton vs. No. 11 Morgan State, 6 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, March 8
Game 4: No. 1 Delaware State vs. No. 9 Howard, 8:15 p.m.
Game 5: No. 2 Coppin State vs. No. 7 Norfolk State, 10:30 p.m.
Thursday, March 9
Game 6: No. 3 Bethune-Cookman vs. Game 3 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 7: No. 4 South Carolina State vs. No. 5 Florida A&M, 8:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Mid-Continent:
Oral Roberts denies Chicago State their cinderella story to advance to their first NCAA Tournament since 1984.
At John Q. Hammons Arena
Tulsa, Okla.
FIRST ROUND
Saturday, March 4
Game 1: No. 1 Oral Roberts 60, No. 8 Western Illinois 53
Game 2: No. 2 IUPUI 69, No. 7 Oakland 63
Sunday, March 5
Game 3: No. 4 Valparaiso 77 No. 5 Southern Utah 66
Game 4: No. 6 Chicago State 75,No. 3 UMKC 66
SEMIFINALS
Monday, March 6
Game 5: No. 1 Oral Roberts 77, No. 4 Valparaiso 58
Game 6: No. 6 Chicago State 57, No. 2 IUPUI 53
CHAMPIONSHIP
Tuesday, March 7
Game 7: No. 1 Oral Roberts 85, No. 6 Chicago State 72
Mountain West:
Colorado State defeats TCU to advance to the quarterfinals where they will face top seed San Diego State.
At The Pepsi Center
Denver
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 8 Colorado State 64, No. 9 TCU 60
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 2: No. 1 San Diego State vs. No. 8 Colorado State, 2 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 3: No. 4 UNLV vs. No. 5 New Mexico, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 4: No. 2 Air Force vs. No. 7 Wyoming, 9 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 5: No. 3 BYU vs. No. 6 Utah, Midnight (ESPN)
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 6: Game 2 winner vs. Game 3 winner 9 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 7: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, Midnight (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Southland:
At higher seeds
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 1 Northwestern State 75, No. 8 Texas-San Antonio 61
Game 2: No. 4 Stephen F. Austin 72, No. 5 McNeese State 70
Game 3: No. 2 Sam Houston State 86, No. 7 Texas-Arlington 84, 2OT
Game 4: No. 6 Lamar 68, No. 3 Southeastern Louisiana 65
SEMIFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 1 Northwestern State vs. No. 6 Lamar, 8 p.m.
Game 6: No. 2 Sam Houston State vs. No. 4 Stephen F. Austin, 8 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Sun Belt:
South Alabama dominates Western Kentucky to win the Sun Belt Conference Championship.
At the Murphy Center
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Friday, March 3
Game 1: W4 New Orleans 76, E5 Florida International 56
Game 2: E4 Arkansas-Little Rock 72, W5 North Texas 55
Game 3: W6 Troy 107, E3 Arkansas State 83
QUARTERFINALS
Sunday, March 5
Game 4: W3 Denver 58, E2 Middle Tennessee 57
Game 5: E1 Western Kentucky 80, W4 New Orleans 61
Game 6: W1 South Alabama 78, E4 Arkansas-Little Rock 53
Game 7: W2 Louisiana-Lafayette 62, E3 Arkansas State 59, OT
SEMIFINALS
Monday, March 6
Game 8: W1 South Alabama 75, W3 Denver 65
Game 9: E1 Western Kentucky 80, W2 Louisiana-Lafayette 72
CHAMPIONSHIP
Tuesday, March 7
Game 10: W1 South Alabama 95, E1 Western Kentucky 70
We will continue to offer real-time updates and tournament results. This is the one and ONLY site that updates tournament brackets with scores and results as they happen.
Big Sky:
Top seeds Montana and Northern Arizona both advance to the conference championship.
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Saturday, March 4
Game 1: No. 5 Sacramento State 71, No. 4 Montana State 70
Game 2: No. 3 Eastern Washington 81, No. 6 Portland State 75
SEMIFINALS
At Walkup Skydome
Flagstaff, Ariz.
Tuesday, March 7
Game 3: No. 2 Montana 73, No. 3 Eastern Washington 71, OT
Game 4: No. 1 Northern Arizona 98, No. 5 Sacramento State 83
CHAMPIONSHIP
At higher seed
Wednesday, March 8
Game 5: No. 1 Northern Arizona vs. No. 2 Montana, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Horizon:
Wisconsin-Milwaukee wins the Horizon Tournament for the second straight season and the third time in four years.
FIRST ROUND
At higher seeds
Tuesday, Feb. 28
Game 1: No. 6 Illinois-Chicago 77, No. 7 Wright State 64
Game 2: No. 5 Detroit 92, No. 8 Cleveland State 58
Game 3: No. 4 Loyola-Chi. 76, No. 9 Youngstown State 61
QUARTERFINALS
At The Klotsche Center
Milwaukee, Wis.
Friday, March 3
Game 4: No. 3 Wisconsin-Green Bay 76, No. 6 Illinois-Chicago 66
Game 5: No. 4 Loyola-Chi. 64, No. 5 Detroit 55
SEMIFINALS
Saturday, March 4
Game 6: No. 2 Butler 73, No. 3 Wisconsin-Green Bay 51
Game 7: No. 1 Wisconsin-Milwaukee 80, No. 4 Loyola-Chi 66
CHAMPIONSHIP
At higher seed
Tuesday, March 7
Game 8: No. 1 Wisconsin-Milwaukee 87, No. 2 Butler 71
MEAC:
Norfolk State and Howard each advance to the quarterfinals to face the top two seeds.
At the RBC Center
Raleigh, N.C.
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 7 Norfolk State 73, No. 10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 71
Game 2: No. 9 Howard 62, No. 8 North Carolina A&T 52
Wednesday, March 8
Game 3: No. 6 Hampton vs. No. 11 Morgan State, 6 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, March 8
Game 4: No. 1 Delaware State vs. No. 9 Howard, 8:15 p.m.
Game 5: No. 2 Coppin State vs. No. 7 Norfolk State, 10:30 p.m.
Thursday, March 9
Game 6: No. 3 Bethune-Cookman vs. Game 3 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 7: No. 4 South Carolina State vs. No. 5 Florida A&M, 8:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 8:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN Classic)
Mid-Continent:
Oral Roberts denies Chicago State their cinderella story to advance to their first NCAA Tournament since 1984.
At John Q. Hammons Arena
Tulsa, Okla.
FIRST ROUND
Saturday, March 4
Game 1: No. 1 Oral Roberts 60, No. 8 Western Illinois 53
Game 2: No. 2 IUPUI 69, No. 7 Oakland 63
Sunday, March 5
Game 3: No. 4 Valparaiso 77 No. 5 Southern Utah 66
Game 4: No. 6 Chicago State 75,No. 3 UMKC 66
SEMIFINALS
Monday, March 6
Game 5: No. 1 Oral Roberts 77, No. 4 Valparaiso 58
Game 6: No. 6 Chicago State 57, No. 2 IUPUI 53
CHAMPIONSHIP
Tuesday, March 7
Game 7: No. 1 Oral Roberts 85, No. 6 Chicago State 72
Mountain West:
Colorado State defeats TCU to advance to the quarterfinals where they will face top seed San Diego State.
At The Pepsi Center
Denver
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 8 Colorado State 64, No. 9 TCU 60
QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 2: No. 1 San Diego State vs. No. 8 Colorado State, 2 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 3: No. 4 UNLV vs. No. 5 New Mexico, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 4: No. 2 Air Force vs. No. 7 Wyoming, 9 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 5: No. 3 BYU vs. No. 6 Utah, Midnight (ESPN)
SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 10
Game 6: Game 2 winner vs. Game 3 winner 9 p.m. (ESPN Full Court)
Game 7: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, Midnight (ESPN)
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 11
Game 8: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Southland:
At higher seeds
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 7
Game 1: No. 1 Northwestern State 75, No. 8 Texas-San Antonio 61
Game 2: No. 4 Stephen F. Austin 72, No. 5 McNeese State 70
Game 3: No. 2 Sam Houston State 86, No. 7 Texas-Arlington 84, 2OT
Game 4: No. 6 Lamar 68, No. 3 Southeastern Louisiana 65
SEMIFINALS
Thursday, March 9
Game 5: No. 1 Northwestern State vs. No. 6 Lamar, 8 p.m.
Game 6: No. 2 Sam Houston State vs. No. 4 Stephen F. Austin, 8 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunday, March 12
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Sun Belt:
South Alabama dominates Western Kentucky to win the Sun Belt Conference Championship.
At the Murphy Center
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
FIRST ROUND
Friday, March 3
Game 1: W4 New Orleans 76, E5 Florida International 56
Game 2: E4 Arkansas-Little Rock 72, W5 North Texas 55
Game 3: W6 Troy 107, E3 Arkansas State 83
QUARTERFINALS
Sunday, March 5
Game 4: W3 Denver 58, E2 Middle Tennessee 57
Game 5: E1 Western Kentucky 80, W4 New Orleans 61
Game 6: W1 South Alabama 78, E4 Arkansas-Little Rock 53
Game 7: W2 Louisiana-Lafayette 62, E3 Arkansas State 59, OT
SEMIFINALS
Monday, March 6
Game 8: W1 South Alabama 75, W3 Denver 65
Game 9: E1 Western Kentucky 80, W2 Louisiana-Lafayette 72
CHAMPIONSHIP
Tuesday, March 7
Game 10: W1 South Alabama 95, E1 Western Kentucky 70
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