Tuesday Top Ten: NCAA Tournament Edition

This year's NCAA Tournament brackets have been announced, and I think this will be another unpredictable NCAA Tournament.  While there are a handful of top teams, every one of them has a flaw and is beatable, and there are about ten teams who I think could legitimately win it all.  Or they could all lose before the end of the first weekend, which would destroy my brackets but bring me so much joy.  I have already filled out 107 brackets, and I have zero confidence in any of them.  

Here are a couple initial random thoughts and fun facts:

• As with last year, I don't think any 1-seeds have an easy path to the Final Four.  I wouldn't be surprised if none of them make it to Indianapolis or if all four of them do.  
• East 1-seed Duke's road is particularly tough, especially considering the injuries the Blue Devils are dealing with at the moment.  They will likely have to go through Big East champ St. John's or Kansas in the Sweet 16, and then UConn or Michigan State to get to the Final Four.  
• South 1-seed and defending champ Florida shouldn't have too much trouble getting to the Sweet 16, but they could face a Vanderbilt team that recently beat them by 17 in the SEC Tournament or a streaky Nebraska team that, when firing on all cylinders, can compete with anyone in the country.  And then an Elite 8 matchup would loom potentially with Houston (the team they beat in the national championship game last year) -- in Houston, mind you -- or Illinois, which has the height and shooting to take anyone down.
• West 1-seed Arizona seems to be the team most picked to win it all by college basketball pundits, and I think they probably have the easiest path to Indy of the four 1-seeds, but it's still not a walk in the park.  Assuming all goes chalky, the Wildcats would play either SEC champ Arkansas or Big Ten runner-up Wisconsin in the Sweet 16, and then either Big Ten champ Purdue (who I think is overseeded as a 2-seed) or Gonzaga in the Elite 8.
• Finally, Midwest 1-seed Michigan's path to the Elite 8 may have just gotten a little easier, as Alabama star guard Aden Holloway was arrested on felony drug charges a couple days ago and has been dismissed from the team.  I'm not saying that necessarily means the Crimson Tide won't make it to the Sweet 16, but it hurts their chances to go much further, assuming they get past 13-seed Hofstra in the first round and battle-tested Texas Tech or MAC champ Akron in the second round.  In the Elite 8, Michigan could potentially face a one of two teams ranked in the Top 10, Iowa State or Virginia.
• As always, I would not be surprised if all of the 12-seeds beat all of the 5-seeds.  Or none.  But I would be more surprised if none of them win.
• The MAC has two teams in the same NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1999, and Miami (OH) and Akron will be trying to get the MAC's first NCAA Tournament win since 2021, when Ohio beat Virginia as a 13-seed in the first round.  The last time the MAC won a total of two or more games in the NCAA Tournament was 2012, when Ohio went to the Sweet 16, also as a 13-seed.  Miami (OH) hasn't won an NCAA Tournament game since going to the Sweet 16 in 1999, and Akron has never won an NCAA Tournament game in their seven prior trips to the Big Dance.
• We have two teams in this year's field who are making their NCAA Tournament debuts (at the D-1 level, anyway):
• Cal Baptist (13-seed East)
• Queens (15-seed West)
• By winning the Atlantic Sun Tournament, the Queens Royals are not only in the Big Dance for the first time, but made it in their first year of D-1 eligibility, which I believe is only the fourth time in the last 50+ years that has happened and the second year in a row (UC San Diego did it last year).
• Of the 18 schools with 35 or more NCAA Tournament appearances (including this year) -- Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas, UCLA, Duke, Indiana, Louisville, Villanova, Texas, Michigan State, Marquette, Notre Dame, Syracuse, UConn, Arkansas, Arizona, Illinois, and Purdue -- only four didn't receive bids to this year's NCAA Tournament (Indiana, Marquette, Notre Dame, and Syracuse).
• The longest drought between NCAA Tournament appearance for any team in this year's tournament is Big Sky champion Idaho (15-seed in the South Region), who is in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1990.  The Vandals' 36-year span between NCAA Tournament appearances doesn't hold a candle to the longest span between appearances.  Here are the schools that have gone 40 or more years between NCAA Tournament appearances:
• 66 years:  Harvard (1946-2012)
• 54 years:  Yale (1962-2016)
• 47 years:
• Brown (1939-1986)
• Duquesne (1977-2024)
• Stanford (1942-1989)
• Wisconsin (1947-1994)
• 43 years:  Furman (1980-2023)
• 42 years:  Air Force (1962-2004)
• 41 years:  Iowa State (1944-1985)
• One of the March Madness factoids that gets thrown around every year -- but which is still true -- is that no team that lost in the quarterfinals of its conference tournament has ever won the national championship.  Of course, before 2018, no 16-seed ever beat a 1-seed, but it's happened twice now.  But if you're someone who takes these kinds of things into account, here are this year's NCAA Tournament teams that lost in their conference tournament quarterfinals (or before, as noted):
• 3-seed Illinois
• 3-seed Michigan State
• 4-seed Alabama
• 4-seed Nebraska
• 5-seed Texas Tech
• 6-seed BYU
• 6-seed Louisville
• 6-seed North Carolina
• 6-seed Tennessee
• 7-seed Kentucky
• 8-seed Georgia (lost in second round of SEC Tournament)
• 8-seed Ohio State
• 8-seed Villanova
• 9-seed Iowa
• 9-seed TCU
• 10-seed Missouri (lost in second round of SEC Tournament)
• 10-seed Texas A&M (lost in second round of SEC Tournament)
• 10-seed UCF
• 11-seed Miami (OH)
• 11-seed North Carolina State
• 11-seed SMU (lost in second round of ACC Tournament)
• 11-seed Texas (lost in first round of SEC Tournament)
• Here are the ten teams in this year's NCAA Tournament with the most tournament appearances, but no NCAA championship.  I'm including the team's seed and region in this year's tournament, the number of NCAA Tournament appearances (not including vacated appearances), the overall rank in number of appearances, and last Final Four appearance, if applicable (* means a team has lost in a national title game, ** means the furthest the team has gone is the Final Four, and *** means the team has never been to a Final Four):
• Texas** - 11-seed West:  40 appearances (9th overall); 2003
• Illinois* - 3-seed South:  36 appearances (T-17th overall); 2005
• Purdue* - 2-seed West:  36 appearances (T-17th overall); 2024
• BYU*** - 6-seed East:  33 appearances (T-20th overall); No Final Four
• St. John's* - 5-seed East:  31 appearances (T-25th overall); 1985
• Iowa* - 9-seed South:  30 appearances (T-28th overall); 1980
• Missouri*** - 10-seed West:  30 appearances (T-28th overall); No Final Four
• Gonzaga* - 3-seed West:  28 appearances (T-34th overall); 2021
• Tennessee*** - 6-seed Midwest:  28 appearances (T-34th overall); No Final Four
• Houston* - 2-seed South:  27 appearances (T-39th overall); 2025
• Here are the teams in this year's tournament that are looking for their first-ever NCAA Tournament win (along with their all-time tournament record):
• Akron (12-seed Midwest) (0-7)
• Cal Baptist (13-seed East) (0-0)
• High Point (12-seed West) (0-1)
• Hofstra (13-seed Midwest) (0-4)
• Howard (16-seed Midwest) (0-4)
• Kennesaw State (14-seed West) (0-1)
• LIU (16-seed West) (0-7)
• Nebraska (4-seed South) (0-8)
• Prairie View A&M (16-seed South) (0-2)
• Queens (15-seed West) (0-0)
• Tennessee State (15-seed Midwest) (0-2)
• Troy (13-seed South) (0-3)
• Fuck Purdue

Anyway, as I do every year, here are a couple lists of five teams each in a few categories that you should consider when filling out your brackets.  Expect there to be some contradictions, since that's the nature of predicting the NCAA Tournament.  Teams are in seed order.  So you don't think I'm entirely full of shit (or perhaps to prove that I am), I'll put in parentheses what I correctly predicted last years.

Teams with the best shot at winning it all (last year, I had Florida on this list):

1.  Arizona (1-seed West).  The Wildcats seem to be the team the most "experts" are picking to win it all, and with good reason.  They're 32-2 and won the Big 12 regular season title outright by two games, then followed it up with a Big 12 Tournament title.  They are one of the best rebounding teams in the country and score 86.1 points per game.  If they can win it all, they would become the first team west of Lawrence, Kansas to win the NCAA Tournament since the Wildcats won in 1997.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  14-2

2.  Florida (1-seed South).  The defending champs have reloaded, and they're out-rebounding opponents by an astounding 14.5 boards.  They have five guys averaging in double figures, and they don't rely too heavily on any one person.  Can they join UCLA as the only other school to win back-to-back titles multiple times?
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  19-5

3.  Michigan (1-seed Midwest).  The Wolverines won the regular season Big Ten title by an astounding four games -- and that's with four other teams that have consistently been in the top ten (Illinois, Michigan State, Nebraska, Purdue).  They rank in the top 20 in the country in various categories on both offense and defense:  scoring (87.3 ppg, 10th), point differential (+18.3, 4th), FG percentage (50.7%, 8th), rebounding (40.2 rpg, 18th), assists (18.6 apg, 5th), blocks (6.0 bpg, 3rd), defensive FG percentage (38.0%, 2nd), and rebound differential (+8.9, 8th).  They have a very good chance at ending the Big Ten's 26-year national title drought.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  15-3

4.  Houston (2-seed South).  With 28 wins, Kelvin Sampson's Cougars have won 27+ games eight times in the last nine years.  As with last year's NCAA Tournament runner-up team, this year's Cougars are one of the best overall defensive teams in the country, first in the nation in opponents' field goals made per game (20.9), second in opponents' points per game (62.9 ppg), and 16th in opponents' field goal percentage (40.0%).  They also protect the ball well, ranking first in fewest turnovers per game (8.5), and they're 12th in scoring differential (+14.2).  All six of their losses were to NCAA Tournament teams (Arizona (twice), Iowa State, Kansas, Tennessee, and Texas Tech).  And to top things off, assuming they advance to the second weekend, those games will be in Houston, so they'll have a significant home-court advantage in the Sweet 16 and Elite 8.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  7-6

5.  Iowa State (2-seed Midwest).  The fact that I have three Big 12 teams out of my top five national championship contenders should tell you something about the strength of the Big 12 this year -- and certainly at the top of the league standings.  They've been in the top ten since early December and got as high as No. 2.  They average 81.8 points per game, shoot 49% from the field, shoot 38.7% from three-point range, average 17 assists per game, and outscore their opponents by an average of 16.6 points per game.  On the defensive end, they only give up 65.1 points per game and average 9 steals per game.  Don't be surprised if the Cyclones cut down the nets in Indy.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  7-6

Final Four sleepers (teams seeded 4 or higher) (last year, no team seeded 4 or higher went to the Final Four for the first time since 2009):

1.  Arkansas (4-seed West).  The Razorbacks have been ranked in the Top 15-20 for much of the year, and they are riding a five-game winning streak coming into the NCAA Tournament, fresh off their SEC Tournament title.  Hate him or love him (I'm more the former), Coach Cal knows how to win in March.  In the last five tournaments, the Razorbacks have gone to two Elite 8s and another three Sweet 16s.  If they make it to the Sweet 16 to face Arizona, they have a chance to knock the Wildcats off, and there's no one else in the region they can't beat.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  10-7

2.  St. John's (5-seed East).  The Red Storm were rewarded for their outright Big East regular season crown and Big East Tournament title with . . . a 5-seed?  They are one of the hottest teams in the country, having only lost once since January 3.  Assuming they make it past Northern Iowa in the first round, they'd likely play a down Kansas team in the second round.  Then a date with a hobbled Duke team would likely await them in the Sweet 16.  I'll take Pitino over Scheyer in March.  Then they'd have a potential rematch with UConn -- a team they've beaten twice this year -- in the Elite 8.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  4-4

3.  Vanderbilt (5-seed South).  The Commodores were another SEC team ranked in the Top 15-20 for most of the year and had their share of ups and downs in the gauntlet of the SEC.  But they got it together in March and reeled off four straight wins -- including two over Tennessee and one over Florida -- before falling to Arkansas in the SEC Tournament title game.  Vanderbilt has never made it past the Sweet 16, but this could be the year.  If they make it past McNeese (which is no guarantee), then they would play either an inconsistent Nebraska team (see below in the next section) or 13-seed Troy.  And if they get past the second round, their likely Sweet 16 opponent would be Florida, a team they dominated by 17 points in the SEC Tournament semifinals.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  11-6

4.  BYU (6-seed West).  The NCAA Tournament is often a platform for stars to shine and lead their team on an improbable run.  BYU has a bona fide star in freshman phenom AJ Dybantsa, who leads the country in scoring (25.3 ppg) and throws in 6.7 rebounds per game and nearly 4 assists a game, all while shooting over 51% from the field.  The Cougars are in the Top 25 in scoring, shoot almost 48% from the field as a team, and rebound the ball well.  They've also gone through a gauntlet in the Big 12.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  8-8

5.  Tennessee (6-seed Midwest).  For whatever reason, I'm usually too high on Tennessee in March.  Maybe it's because I like Rick Barnes.  The Vols aren't quite as good as they were the last two years, when they went to the Elite 8, but they have a good mix of experience and talent.  In their quadrant, they'd likely play Virginia in the second round (see below in the next section), and potentially Iowa State in the Sweet 16, which is winnable.  After that, it would likely be Michigan, who, as Purdue proved this past Sunday, are not invincible.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  9-9

Teams seeded 4 or better who may not make it to the second weekend (last year, I had Iowa State and Wisconsin on this list, but did not have St. John's or Texas A&M on this list):

1.  Duke (1-seed East).  Duke is really good, but they will be without guard Caleb Foster for the rest of the season, and center Patrick Ngongba II will likely miss at least a couple NCAA Tournament games.  Obviously, I don't think Siena is going to pose a threat to the Blue Devils, but I wouldn't be completely shocked if 8-seed Ohio State or 9-seed TCU pulls an upset in the second round, especially if Ngongba isn't back in the lineup.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  15-2

2.  Purdue (2-seed West).  The Boilermakers have a long and storied history . . . of underachieving in March.  Purdue has been a top-4 seed in the NCAA Tournament 18 times since seeding began in 1979, failing to advance to the Sweet 16 eight of those times.  Sure, they made it to the Sweet 16 last year and the national title game the year before that, but the year before that, they became the second 1-seed in NCAA Tournament history to lose to a 16-seed in the first round.  The year before, they made it the Sweet 16, only to be ousted by 15-seed St. Peter's.  The year before that, they lost to 13-seed North Texas in the first round.  The Boilermakers have been inconsistent, and they're probably overseeded as a 2-seed.  Before winning the Big Ten Tournament, the lost four of six and had a three-game losing streak in late January.  Assuming they get by Queens in the first round, either Miami (FL) or Missouri could create problems for Purdue.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  10-7

3.  Virginia (3-seed Midwest).  Virginia is a sleeper Final Four pick for some of the "experts," but they are as enigmatic of an NCAA Tournament school as there can be.  After becoming the first 1-seed to ever lose to a 16-seed in 2018, the Cavaliers followed it up the next year with a national championship.  In their three NCAA Tournaments since then, they have lost twice in the first round as a 4-seed to a 13-seed in 2021 and 2023, and then lost in a First Four play-in game as a 10-seed in 2024.  Wright State isn't a pushover, having won the Horizon League regular season title outright and then the conference tournament.  And if the Cavaliers make it past the Raiders, they'd get a second round matchup with a feisty 6-seed Tennessee or the winner of the Miami (OH)/SMU play-in game, and all three of those teams could pull the upset.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  10-3

4.  Kansas (4-seed East).  Kansas always seems to be a go big or go home early type of team.  They haven't made it out of the first weekend of the tournament since 2022, when they won the national title.  Since winning the national title in 2008, Kansas has been a top four seed 15 times, and the Jayhawks lost to worse-seeded teams 11 of those 15 times. 13-seed Cal Baptist shouldn't be a problem, but you never know.  Then if they get by the Lancers, Big East champ 5-seed St. John's or a pesky 12-seed Northern Iowa team await the Jayhawks.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  10-7

5.  Nebraska (4-seed South).  The Cornhuskers have never won an NCAA Tournament game, and they'll certainly feel that pressure, as expectations are as high in Lincoln as they've ever been for basketball.  After starting the season 20-0, they went 6-6 to close out the regular season, including a 16-point loss to Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals.  First round opponent 13-seed Troy -- which won both the Sun Belt regular season outright and the conference tournament -- can't be overlooked.  And if Nebraska wins that, they'll get a second-round date with Vanderbilt or McNeese, either one of which could take down the Huskers.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  5-6

Teams seeded 12 or higher with the best chance of pulling an upset in the first round (last year, I had Colorado State and McNeese on this list, and those were the only two teams seeded 12 or higher that won a first-round game):

1.  Akron (12-seed Midwest).  Akron is still searching for its NCAA Tournament win, but this could be the year.  The Zips' only two losses since the beginning of January have been to fellow NCAA Tournament teams Troy and Miami (OH), and they shoot the three very well.  They play Texas Tech in the first round, and the Red Raiders have proven they can beat anyone in the country, but they are inconsistent, lost three in a row to end the regular season (including getting crushed by Iowa State in the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals), and are without their star forward JT Toppin, who is their leading scorer and rebounder.  They're 3-3 since he was lost for the season to a torn ACL on February 17.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  0-3

2.  High Point (12-seed West).  In the Panthers' first trip to the NCAA Tournament last year, they put up a pretty damn good fight as a 13-seed against 4-seed Purdue before ultimately falling 75-63.  They're even better this year, rolling through the Big South with only one loss and finishing the regular season 30-4.  They haven't lost since mid January, and they average 90 points a game.  On top of that, their first round opponent, Wisconsin, hasn't made it to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament since 2017 -- and the Badgers have lost their first round game each of the last three times they were a 5-seed (in 2024 to James Madison, in 2019 to Oregon, and 2013 to Ole Miss).
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  1-0

3.  McNeese (12-seed South).  This is the third NCAA Tournament in a row that the Cowboys are a 12-seed.  Two years ago, they got destroyed by 5-seed Gonzaga, but last year, they upset 5-seed Clemson in the first round for their first NCAA Tournament win ever.  This year's team is just as dangerous, ending the season on a ten-game winning streak.  They shoot well from three and force turnovers better than anyone else in the country, both good stats for an upset.  Plus, they're playing Vanderbilt, which has advance to the second round only once in its last seven NCAA Tournament appearances (in 2012) and hasn't made it to the Sweet 16 since 2007.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  0-2

4.  Northern Iowa (12-seed East).  The Panthers were a surprise winner of the MVC Tournament as a 6-seed, but don't let that fool you.  They lead the country in defensive points allowed (61.3 ppg), are 3rd in opponents' three-point percentage (28.5%), and are 26th in opponents' FG percentage (40.7%).  Also, MVC teams seeded 10th or worse have won five first round games in the last ten NCAA Tournaments.  Their opponent, St. John's, has won one NCAA Tournament game since 2000 and have been knocked out by double-digit seeds in four of their last six NCAA Tournaments.
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  1-1

5.  Hawaii (13-seed West).  The Rainbow Warriors are in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016, when they beat 4-seed Cal in the first round as a 13-seed.  And the Big West champions have a pretty good track record when seeded 13th or better.  Of the last five Big West champs to be seeded 13th or better, two have won their first round games -- 13-seed UC Irvine beat 4-seed Kansas State in 2019, and Hawaii's aforementioned win in 2016 -- and the other three lost by three or fewer points -- 12-seed UC San Diego in 2025 (lost to 5-seed Michigan 68-65), 12-seed UC Santa Barbara in 2021 (lost to 5-seed Creighton 63-62), and 13-seed UC Irvine in 2015 (lost to 4-seed Louisville 57-55).
Record against NCAA Tournament teams:  0-0

Final Championship Week Predictions: "Vehicle"

Here we are, you sons of bitches (no offense to your mothers).  We're at Selection Sunday.  It's the fucking Ides of March, so here's your Vehicle.  Enjoy a young Jim Peterik introducing you to his genius.

It was another day of close scores.  Of the 21 Championship Week games yesterday, 12 were decided by 10 points or less, 8 were decided by 5 points or less, and two went into OT.

With several other 1-seeds going down in the last couple days, we're up to 15 1-seeds that have lost in this year's Championship Week:  Belmont (MVC), Bethune-Cookman (SWAC), Central Arkansas (A-Sun), East Tennessee State (SoCon), Florida (SEC), Liberty (C-USA), Merrimack (MAAC), Miami (OH) (MAC), Navy (Patriot), Portland State (Big Sky), St. Louis (A-10), Stephen F. Austin (Southland), UC Irvine (Big West), UNC Wilmington (CAA), Utah Valley (WAC). 

Following up on my comment from a couple days ago, this year's Championship Week continues to be far more unpredictable than last year, where all but five conference tournaments were won by 1-seeds or 2-seeds (17 1-seeds and 9 2-seeds won) -- while only three schools seeded four or lower won.  By contrast, of the 26 conference tournaments that have already finished, five teams seed four or lower have won.  Here are the number of each seeds that have won:

• Thirteen 1-seeds (Arizona, Big 12; Duke, ACC; Gonzaga, WCC; High Point, Big South; Howard, MEAC; LIU, NEC; North Dakota State, Summit; St. John's, Big East; Tennessee State, OVC; Troy, Sun Belt; UMBC, America East; Utah State, Mountain West; Wright State, Horizon)
• Five 2-seeds (Akron, MAC; Cal Baptist, WAC; Hawaii, Big West; Lehigh, Patriot; McNeese, Southland)
• Three 3-seeds (Hofstra, CAA; Queens, A-Sun; Siena, MAAC)
• Three 6-seeds (Furman, SoCon; Kennesaw State, C-USA; Northern Iowa, MVC)
• One 7-seed (Idaho, Big Sky)
• One 8-seed (Prairie View A&M, SWAC)

So even if all three of the 1-seeds playing today win their conference tournaments, we would still have fewer 1-seeds who won their conference tournaments than last year.

Here's what happened yesterday and what we have to look forward to today:

• In the ACC title game, those fucking twats top seed Duke topped beat 2-seed Virginia, 74-70, setting up yet another disappointing NCAA Tournament for the Blue Devils, who will be playing in their 48th NCAA Tournament and 5th in a row.
• In the America East final, 1-seed UMBC beat the fuck out of 2-seed Vermont, 74-59.  The Retrievers will be playing in their 3rd Big Dance and first since 2018, when they were the first ever.
• In the Big 12 championship, 1-seed Arizona outlasted 2-seed Houston dominated, 79-74, which is a complete bullshit score.  The Wildcats will be playing in their 40th NCAA Tournament and 5th in a row, and they aren't going to win anything important.
• In the Big East title, top seed St. John's completely beat the everliving shit out of 2-seed UConn, 72-52.  The Red Storm will be playing in their 32nd NCAA Tournament and second in a row. 
• In the Big West championship game, 2-seed Hawaii vol-fucking-canoed 1-seed UC Irvine, 71-64.  The Rainbow Warriors will be playing in their 6th NCAA Tournament and first since 2016, when they upset Cal in the first round as a 13-seed.
• In the Conference USA final, 6-seed Kennesaw State downed 4-seed Louisiana Tech like a shot of Fireball, 71-60, to clinch the Owls' second NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 2023.
• In the miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-MAC title game 2-seed Akron beat 4-seed Toledo, 79-76, in a game very few south of I-80 gave a single shit about.  The Zips will be playing in their 8th NCAA Tournament and third in a row.  Maybe this'll be the year they finally get their first NCAA Tournament win.
• In the MEAC championship, top seed Howard decided not to be fucking pieces of shit and beat 3-seed North Carolina Central, 70-63.  The Bison will be playing in their 5th NCAA Tournament berth and first since 2024.
• In the Mountain West final, 1-seed Utah State cut the throats out of 2-seed San Diego State, 73-62. I want to be crystal fucking clear:  the Aggies will be playing in their 26th NCAA Tournament and 4th in a row.
• In the SWAC title game, 8-seed Prairie View A&M did the un-fucking-thinkable, beating 3-seed Southern. 72-66. The Panthers will be playing in their 3rd Big Dance and first since 2019.
• In the wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-WAC winning game, 2-seed Cal Baptist got a game-winning three with 17 seconds left to beat 1-seed Utah Valley, clinching the Lancers' first-ever NCAA Tournament berth
• In the AAC semifinals, top seed South Florida beat the piss out of the 5-seed Charlotte, 86-64, and 2-seed Wichita State didn't do much shocking, if you know what I mean, when they beat 3-seed Tulsa, 81-68.  When they face off in tomorrow afternoon's title game, the Bulls will be seeking their 4th NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 2012, when they downed Temple as a 12-seed (remember when Temple was good?), and the Shockers will be seeking their 17th appearance and first since 2021.
• In the A-10 semis, 4-seed Dayton beat top seed St. Louis, 70-69, in a pretty fucking exciting game, while 2-seed VCU didn't have a fucking problem with 3-seed St. Joseph's, 77-64.  When these fuckers face off tomorrow for the whole damn thing, the Flyers will be playing for their 20th trip to the Big Dance and first since 2024, while the Rams will be playing for their 21st trip and second in a row.
• In the Big Ten semifinals, 1-seed Michigan got a 3 with less than a second left to beat the everlastingly annoying 5-seed Wisconsin, 68-65, while 7-seed Purdue played better than they ever will in the NCAA Tournament, beating 6-seed UCLA, 73-66.  Both are locks for the NCAA Tournament.  The Wolverines will be playing in their 32nd NCAA Tournament and second in a row.  The Boilermakers will be playing in their 37th NCAA Tournament and 11th in a row they didn't win.
• In the Ivy League semis, top seed Yale handled 4-seed Cornell, 88-76, while 3-seed Penn beat some fucking smaht kids in OT, downing 2-seed Harvard, 62-60.  When they face off like a bunch of fucking academic phenoms, the Bulldogs will be playing for their 9th NCAA Tournament and 3rd in a row, while the Quakers will be playing for their 25th and first since 2018.
• In the SEC semifinals, 4-seed Vanderbilt beat top seed Florida with a tire iron, 91-74, and 3-seed Arkansas crushed 15-seed Mississippi's Cinderella hopes with a 93-90 win.   They're both locks.  What the fuck ever.  The Commodores -- no relation to Lionel Richie's band -- will be playing in their 19th NCAA Tournament berth and second in a row, while the Razorbacks will be playing in their 37th and second in a row.
• We have the remaining 5 conference tournament championship games today.
• Bubble teams that won yesterday (in conference tournaments):  San Diego State, South Florida, VCU
• Bubble teams that lost yesterday (in conference tournaments):  St. Louis

Bids up for grabs today (all times Eastern)

-Ivy (12 p.m.; ESPN2):  (1) Yale vs. (3) Penn

-Atlantic 10 (1 p.m.; CBS):  (2) VCU vs. (4) Dayton

-SEC (1 p.m.; ESPN2):  (3) Arkansas vs. (4) Vanderbilt

-AAC (3:15 p.m.; ESPN):  (1) South Florida vs. (2) Wichita State

-Big Ten (3:30 p.m.; CBS):  (1) Michigan  vs. (7) Purdue

Already clinched automatic berths (I will add in parentheses the NCAA tournament appearances for each school, including the bid just clinched and last NCAA Tournament appearance where applicable, and for conferences whose tournaments have not yet ended, I'll list the date of the championship game)

-AAC (March 15)

-ACC: Duke (48; 2025)

-America East:  UMBC (3; 2018)

-Atlantic 10 (March 15)

-Atlantic Sun:  Queens (1)

-Big 12:  Arizona (40; 2025)

-Big East: St. John's (32; 2025)

-Big Sky:  Idaho (5; 1990)

-Big South:  High Point (2; 2025)

-Big Ten (March 15)

-Big West:  Hawaii (6; 2016)

-Coastal:  Hofstra (5; 2001)

-Conference USA:  Kennesaw State (2; 2021)

-Horizon:  Wright State (5; 2022)

-Ivy League (March 15)

-MAAC:  Siena (7; 2010)

-MAC: Akron (8; 2025)

-MEAC:  Howard (5; 2024)

-Missouri Valley:  Northern Iowa (9; 2016)

-Mountain West:  Utah State 26; 2025)

-Northeast Conference:  LIU (8; 2018)

-Ohio Valley:  Tennessee State (3; 1994)

-Patriot League:  Lehigh (6; 2012)

-SEC (March 15)

-Southern Conference:  Furman (8; 2023)

-Southland:  McNeese (5; 2025)

-Summit:  North Dakota State (5; 2019)

-Sun Belt:  Troy (4; 2025)

-SWAC:  Prairie View A&M (3; 2019)

-WAC:  Cal Baptist (1)

-West Coast:  Gonzaga (28; 2025)

Remaining Tournaments (all times are Eastern)

AAC (March 11-15; Birmingham)

3/15 – Finals

3:15 p.m. (ESPN) (1) South Florida vs. (2) Wichita State.  Predicted winner:  Wichita State

Atlantic 10 (March 11-15; Pittsburgh)

3/15 – Finals

1 p.m. (CBS) (2) VCU vs. (4) Dayton.  Predicted winner:  Dayton

Big Ten (March 10-15; Chicago)

3/15 – Finals

3:30 p.m. (CBS) (1) Michigan vs. (7) Purdue.  Predicted winner:  Michigan

Ivy League (March 14-15; Ithaca, NY)

3/15 - Finals

12 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Yale vs. (3) Penn.  Predicted winner:  Yale

SEC (March 11-15; Nashville)

3/15 – Finals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (3) Arkansas vs. (4) Vanderbilt.  Predicted winner:  Vanderbilt

Updated Championship Week Predictions: "Rebel Rebel"

Today's song is David Bowie's glam rag "Rebel Rebel," in honor of 15-seed Ole Miss's win over 2-seed Alabama in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.  On top of that, a few more bubble teams lost, and three of the top four seeds in the Big Ten Tournament went down.

Yesterday was another day filled with a lot of close games.  Out of the 34 games yesterday, 22 were decided by ten points or less, 13 were decided by five points or less, and we had two overtime games, including one that went to triple overtime. 

And today we have 11 conference championship games and another 10 semifinal games.

Here's what happened yesterday and what we have to look forward to today:

• In the ACC semifinals, top seed Duke topped 5-seed Clemson, 73-61, and 2-seed Virginia crushed 3-seed Miami, 84-62, to advance to tonight's final.  Both teams are locks for the NCAA Tournament.  The Blue Devils will be playing in their 48th NCAA Tournament and 5th in a row, and the Cavaliers will be playing in their 27th and first since 2024.
• In the Big 12 semis, 1-seed Arizona got a jumper at the buzzer to beat 5-seed Iowa State, 82-80, and 2-seed Houston dominated 3-seed Kansas, 69-47, to advance to this evening's title game.  Both teams are locks for the NCAA Tournament, and this could be a battle for a 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament.  The Wildcats will be playing in their 40th NCAA Tournament and 5th in a row, while the Cougars will be playing in their 27th and 8th in a row.
• In the Big East semifinals, top seed St. John's dropped 4-seed Seton Hall, 78-68, and 2-seed UConn disposed of 11-seed Georgetown, 67-51, to advance to tonight's championship game.  Both teams are locks for the NCAA Tournament.  The Red Storm will be playing in their 32nd NCAA Tournament and second in a row, and the Huskies will be playing in their 39th NCAA Tournament and 6th in a row. 
• In the Big West semis, 1-seed UC Irvine handled 4-seed Cal State Northridge, 93-78, and 2-seed Hawaii sailed past 3-seed Cal State Fullerton, 78-63.  When they face of in tonight's title game, the Anteaters will be seeking their 3rd NCAA Tournament berth and first since 2019, when they upset Kansas in the first round as a 14-seed, and the Rainbow Warriors will be seeking their 6th berth and first since 2016, when they upset Cal in the first round as a 13-seed.
• In the Conference USA semifinals, 2-seed Sam Houston held off 6-seed Kennesaw State, 79-73, and 4-seed Louisiana Tech made it past 9-seed Missouri State.  When they play in tonight's final, the Bearkats will be playing for their 3rd trip to the Big Dance and first since 2010, and the Bulldogs will be playing for their 6th trip and first since 1991.
• In the miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-MAC semifinals, 2-seed Akron beat rival 3-seed Kent State, 75-68, and 4-seed Toledo downed 8-seed UMass, 77-67.  When they meet in tonight's championship game, the Zips will be seeking their 8th NCAA Tournament bid and third in a row, and the Rockets will be seeking their 5th bid and first since 1980.
• In the MEAC semis, top seed Howard cruised past 5-seed South Carolina State, 78-61, while 3-seed North Carolina beat 7-seed Delaware State, 59-53.  When they face off in this afternoon's title game, the Bison will be playing for their 5th NCAA Tournament berth and first since 2024, and the Eagles will also be playing for their 5th berth and first since 2019.
• In the Mountain West semifinals, 1-seed Utah State triumphed over 5-seed Nevada, 79-66, and 2-seed San Diego State edged 3-seed New Mexico, 64-62.  When they play each other in this evening's championship, the Aggies are likely a lock regardless and will be playing in their 26th NCAA Tournament and 4th in a row.  The Aztecs likely need to win to go to the Big Dance, and they'll be playing for their 18th berth and 6th in a row.
• In the SWAC semis, 3-seed Southern bounced 2-seed Florida A&M, and 8-seed Prairie View A&M throttled 5-seed Alabama A&M, 74-55.  When they play in tonight's final, the Jaguars will be playing for their 10th NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 2016, and the Panthers will be playing for their 3rd appearance and first since 2019.
• In the wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-WAC semifinals, 1-seed Utah Valley survived a scare, but ended up beating 4-seed UT-Arlington, 67-65, and 2-seed Cal Baptist bounced 3-seed Utah Tech, 86-72.  Both the Wolverines and the Lancers will be playing for their first-ever NCAA Tournament berth!
• In the AAC quarterfinals, 5-seed Charlotte took out 4-seed UAB, 83-78, and 3-seed Tulsa topped 6-seed North Texas in a highly entertaining 90-84 triple overtime game, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the A-10 quarters, top seed St. Louis survived 9-seed George Washington, 88-81, 2-seed VCU held off 7-seed Duquesne, 71-66, 3-seed St. Joseph's downed 6-seed Davidson, and 4-seed Dayton staved off 13-seed St. Bonaventure, 68-63, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the Big Ten quarterfinals, 1-seed Michigan beat archrival 8-seed Ohio State, 71-67, 7-seed Purdue upset 2-seed Nebraska, 74-58, 6-seed UCLA upset 3-seed Michigan State, 88-84, and 5-seed Wisconsin fought past 4-seed Illinois in an exciting 91-88 OT game, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the SEC quarters, top seed Florida avoided disaster with a 71-63 win over 9-seed Kentucky, 15-seed Mississippi continued its improbably run by beating 2-seed Alabama, 80-79, 3-seed Arkansas survived 11-seed Oklahoma, 82-79, and 4-seed Vanderbilt topped in-state rival 5-seed Tennessee, 75-68, to advance to today's semifinals.
• One conference tournament start today, and 16 conference tournaments have games today.
• 5 conference tournaments have semifinals today (AAC, A-10, Big Ten, Ivy, and SEC) and 11 conference tournaments have championship games until tomorrow (ACC, America East, Big 12, Big East, Big West, C-USA, MAC, MEAC, Mountain West, SWAC, WAC).
• Here are the teams that have never been to the NCAA Tournament (not including teams who are ineligible for this year's NCAA Tournament) that are still alive:
• WAC:  1-seed Utah Valley, 2-seed Cal Baptist
• Bubble teams that won yesterday (in conference tournaments):  San Diego State, St. Louis, VCU
• Bubble teams that lost yesterday (in conference tournaments):  New Mexico, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Seton Hall
• Bubble teams that have not yet started conference tournaments:  South Florida

Here are the tournaments starting today, the tournaments with games today, bids up for grab today, who has already clinched an automatic berth, and my predictions for the remaining conference tournaments.

Tournaments starting today

-Ivy League

Tournaments with games today

-AAC

-ACC

-America East

-Atlantic 10

-Big 12

-Big East

-Big Ten

-Big West

-Conference USA

-Ivy League

-MAC

-MEAC

-Mountain West

-SEC

-SWAC

-WAC

Bids up for grabs today (all times Eastern)

-America East (11 a.m.; ESPN2):  (2) Vermont at (1) UMBC

-MEAC (1 p.m.; ESPN2):  (1) Howard vs. (3) North Carolina Central

-Big 12 (6 p.m.; ESPN):  (1) Arizona vs. (2) Houston

-Mountain West (6 p.m.; CBS):  (1) Utah State vs. (2) San Diego State

-Big East (6:30 p.m.; Fox):  (1) St John's vs. (2) UConn

-SWAC (7:30 p.m.; ESPNU):  (3) Southern vs. (8) Prairie View A&M

-MAC (8 p.m.; ESPN2):  (2) Akron vs. (4) Toledo

-ACC (8:30 p.m.; ESPN):  (1) Duke vs. (2) Virginia

-Conference USA (8:30 p.m.; CBSSN):  (2) Sam Houston vs. (4) Louisiana Tech

-Big West (10 p.m.; ESPN2):  (1) UC Irvine vs. (2) Hawaii

-WAC (11:59 p.m.; ESPN2):  (1) Utah Valley vs. (2) Cal Baptist

Already clinched automatic berths (I will add in parentheses the NCAA tournament appearances for each school, including the bid just clinched and last NCAA Tournament appearance where applicable, and for conferences whose tournaments have not yet ended, I'll list the date of the championship game)

-AAC (March 15)

-ACC (March 14)

-America East (March 14)

-Atlantic 10 (March 15)

-Atlantic Sun:  Queens (1)

-Big 12 (March 14)

-Big East (March 14)

-Big Sky:  Idaho (5; 1990)

-Big South:  High Point (2; 2025)

-Big Ten (March 15)

-Big West (March 14)

-Coastal:  Hofstra (5; 2001)

-Conference USA (March 14)

-Horizon:  Wright State (5; 2022)

-Ivy League (March 15)

-MAAC:  Siena (7; 2010)

-MAC (March 14)

-MEAC (March 14)

-Missouri Valley:  Northern Iowa (9; 2016)

-Mountain West (March 14)

-Northeast Conference:  LIU (8; 2018)

-Ohio Valley:  Tennessee State (3; 1994)

-Patriot League:  Lehigh (6; 2012)

-SEC (March 15)

-Southern Conference:  Furman (8; 2023)

-Southland:  McNeese (5; 2025)

-Summit:  North Dakota State (5; 2019)

-Sun Belt:  Troy (4; 2025)

-SWAC (March 14)

-WAC (March 14)

-West Coast:  Gonzaga (28; 2025)

Remaining Tournaments (all times are Eastern)

AAC (March 11-15; Birmingham)

3/14 – Semifinals

3 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) South Florida vs. (5) Charlotte.  Predicted winner:  South Florida

5:30 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Wichita State vs. (3) Tulsa.  Predicted winner:  Wichita State

3/15 – Finals

3:15 p.m. (ESPN) (1) South Florida vs. (2) Wichita State.  Predicted winner:  Wichita State

ACC (March 10-14; Charlotte)

3/14 – Finals

8:30 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Duke vs. (2) Virginia.  Predicted winner:  Duke

America East (March 7, 10, 14; campus of higher seed)

3/14 – Finals

11 a.m. (ESPN2) (2) Vermont at (1) UMBC.  Predicted winner:  Vermont

Atlantic 10 (March 11-15; Pittsburgh)

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (CBSSN) (1) St. Louis vs. (4) Dayton.  Predicted winner:  St. Louis

3:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) VCU vs. (3) St. Joseph's.  Predicted winner:  VCU

3/15 – Finals

1 p.m. (CBS) (1) St. Louis vs. (2) VCU.  Predicted winner:  St. Louis

Big 12 (March 10-14; Kansas City)

3/14 – Finals

6 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Arizona vs. (2) Houston.  Predicted winner:  Houston

Big East (March 11-14; New York)

3/14 – Finals

6:30 p.m. (Fox) (1) St. John's v. (2) UConn.  Predicted winner:  UConn

Big Ten (March 10-15; Chicago)

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (CBS) (1) Michigan vs. (5) Wisconsin.  Predicted winner:  Michigan

3:30 p.m. (CBS) (6) UCLA vs. (7) Purdue.  Predicted winner:  UCLA

3/15 – Finals

3:30 p.m. (CBS) (1) Michigan vs. (6) UCLA.  Predicted winner:  Michigan

Big West (March 11-14; Henderson, NV)

3/14 – Finals

10 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) UC Irvine vs. (2) Hawaii.  Predicted winner:  UC Irvine

Conference USA (March 10-14; Huntsville, AL)

3/14 – Finals

8:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) Sam Houston vs. (4) Louisiana Tech.  Predicted winner:  Sam Houston

Ivy League (March 14-15; Ithaca, NY)

3/14 - Semifinals

11 a.m. (ESPNU) (1) Yale vs. (4) Cornell.  Predicted winner:  Yale

2 p.m. (ESPNews) (2) Harvard vs. (3) Penn.  Predicted winner:  Harvard

3/15 - Finals

12 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Yale vs. (2) Harvard.  Predicted winner:  Yale

MAC (March 12-14; Cleveland)

3/14 – Finals

8 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Akron vs. (4) Toledo.  Predicted winner:  Akron

MEAC (March 11-14; Norfolk, VA)

3/14 – Final

1:00 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Howard vs. (3) North Carolina Central.  Predicted winner:  Howard

Mountain West (March 11-14; Paradise, NV)

3/14 – Finals

6 p.m. (CBS) (1) Utah State vs. (2) San Diego State.  Predicted winner:  Utah State

SEC (March 11-15; Nashville)

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Florida vs. (4) Vanderbilt.  Predicted winner:  Florida

3:30 p.m. (ESPN) (3) Arkansas vs. (15) Mississippi.  Predicted winner:  Alabama

3/15 – Finals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Florida vs. (3) Arkansas.  Predicted winner:  Florida

SWAC (March 9-14; Atlanta)

3/14 – Finals

7:30 p.m. (ESPNU) (3) Southern vs. (8) Prairie View A&M.  Predicted winner:  Florida A&M

WAC (March 11-14; Paradise, NV)

3/14 – Finals

11:59 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Utah Valley vs. (2) Cal Baptist.  Predicted winner:  Utah Valley

Hair Band Friday - 3/13/26

1.  "Girls, Girls, Girls" by Mötley Crüe

2.  "Voodoo Kiss" by Mr. Big

3.  "In 'N' Out" by Van Halen

4.  "Crossfire" by Scorpions

5.  "Stay Hungry" by Twisted Sister

6.  "Nobody Knows" by Roxy Blue

7.  "Nice On Ice" by Kix

8.  "The Great Misconceptions of Me" by W.A.S.P.

9.  "Hide Your Heart" by KISS

10.  "Strange Things" by Black 'N Blue

Updated Championship Week Predictions: "When Worlds Collide"

This is my 5000th (!) post on GMYH, and if it wasn't gonna be Hair Band Friday, I'm glad it was a March Madness post.  In honor of this unholiest of milestones, today's song is Powerman 5000's "When Worlds Collide."

Yesterday was another disastrous one for many bubble teams, but I think the biggest news was previously unbeaten and MAC 1-seed Miami (OH)'s inexplicable loss to 8-seed UMass in the MAC Tournament quarterfinals.  How the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee handles the RedHawks will be interesting, but with the number of bubble teams shitting the bed this week, it's quite possible the MAC is a two-bid league this year.

It was also a day filled with a lot of close games.  Out of the 44 games yesterday, 28 were decided by ten points or less, 16 were decided by five points or less, and we had 3 overtime games.

With Miami (OH)'s loss, that means we're up to eleven 1-seeds that have lost in this year's Championship Week:  Belmont (MVC), Bethune-Cookman (SWAC), Central Arkansas (A-Sun), East Tennessee State (SoCon), Liberty (C-USA), Merrimack (MAAC), Miami (OH) (MAC), Navy (Patriot), Portland State (Big Sky), Stephen F. Austin (Southland), UNC Wilmington (CAA).  It should be a fun and competitive NIT.

And today, from tip off of the St. Louis/George Washington game in the A-10 Tournament quarterfinals at 11:30 a.m. ET to the end of the Mountain West semifinal between San Diego State and New Mexico, which is scheduled to tip at 11:59 p.m. ET, we have 34 conference tournament games over about 15 hours.

Here's what happened yesterday and what we have to look forward to today:

• In the ACC quarterfinals, injury-riddled top seed Duke survived a major scare and beat 8-seed Florida State, 80-79, 2-seed Virginia ousted 7-seed NC State, 81-74, 3-seed Miami dropped 6-seed Louisville, 78-73, and 5-seed Clemson early blew a 15-point lead with five minutes left, but held on to beat 4-seed North Carolina, 80-79, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the Big 12 quarters, 1-seed Arizona dominated 8-seed UCF, 81-59, 2-seed Houston snuck by 10-seed BYU, 73-66, 3-seed Kansas outlasted 6-seed TCU in a back-and-forth 78-73 affair, and 5-seed Iowa State made easy work of 4-seed Texas Tech, 75-53, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the Big East quarterfinals, top seed St. John's cruised by 9-seed Providence, 85-72, 2-seed UConn crushed 10-seed Xavier, 93-68, 11-seed Georgetown upset 3-seed Villanova, 78-64, and 4-seed Seton Hall topped 5-seed Creighton, 72-61, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the Big West quarters, 3-seed Cal State Fullerton downed 6-seed UC Davis, 82-70, and 4-seed Cal State Northridge stopped 5-seed UC San Diego, 80-70, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the second half of the Conference USA quarters, 6-seed Kennesaw State upset 3-seed Western Kentucky, 96-87, and 4-seed Louisiana Tech dropped 5-seed Middle Tennessee State, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-miggity-MAC quarterfinals, as noted above 8-seed UMass upset previously unbeaten 1-seed Miami (OH), 87-83, 2-seed Akron snuck by 7-seed Buffalo, 73-70, 3-seed Kent State handled 6-seed Ohio, 86-75, and 4-seed Toledo made two free throws with 10 seconds left to beat 5-seed Bowling Green, 77-76, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the second half of the MEAC quarterfinals, 3-seed North Carolina Central needed OT to dispense with 6-seed Maryland Eastern Shore, 83-76, and 5-seed South Carolina State bounced 4-seed Norfolk State, 88-82, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the Mountain West quarters, top seed Utah State dominated 8-seed UNLV, 80-60, 2-seed San Diego State beat 7-seed Colorado State, 71-62, 3-seed New Mexico toppled 11-seed San Jose State, 93-77, and 5-seed Nevada held off 4-seed Grand Canyon, 84-80, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the second half of the SWAC quarterfinals, 3-seed Southern survived 6-seed Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 84-81, and 5-seed Alabama A&M beat 4-seed Texas Southern, 85-74, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-wiggity-WAC quarterfinals, 3-seed Utah Tech beat 6-seed Abilene Christian, 80-74, and 4-seed UT Arlington topped 5-seed Southern Utah, 69-63, to advance to today's semifinals.
• In the Third Round of the Big Ten, 5-seed Wisconsin squeezed by 12-seed Washington, 72-69, 6-seed UCLA got the first triple-double in Big Ten Tournament history from Donovan Dent to take down 14-seed Rutgers, 72-59, 7-seed Purdue beat 15-seed Northwestern, 81-68, and 8-seed Ohio State outlasted 9-seed Iowa, 72-69, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• In the Second Round of the AAC, 5-seed Charlotte took down 9-seed Tulane, 74-60, and 6-seed North Texas toughed out a 74-70 win over 7-seed FAU, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• In the Second Round of the A-10, 13-seed St. Bonaventure upset 5-seed George Mason, 63-57, 6-seed Davidson survived 14-seed Loyola (IL), 64-59 in OT, 7-seed Duquesne topped 10-seed Rhode Island, 67-61, and 9-seed George Washington beat 8-seed Fordham, 66-62, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• In the Second Round of the SEC, 5-seed Tennessee pulled away late to beat 12-seed Auburn, 72-62, 11-seed Oklahoma significantly helped its NCAA Tournament hopes with a convincing 83-63 win over 6-seed Texas A&M, 15-seed Mississippi upset 7-seed Georgia, 76-72, and 9-seed Kentucky took out 8-seed Missouri, 78-72, to advance to today's quarterfinals.
• No conference tournaments start today, and 14 conference tournaments have games today.
• 4 conference tournaments have quarterfinals today (AAC, A-10, Big Ten, SEC), 10 conference tournaments have semifinals today (ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big West, C-USA, MAC, MEAC, Mountain West, SWAC, WAC), and no conference tournaments have championship games until tomorrow.
• Here are the teams that have never been to the NCAA Tournament (not including teams who are ineligible for this year's NCAA Tournament) that are still alive:
• WAC:  1-seed Utah Valley, 2-seed Cal Baptist, 3-seed Utah Tech
• Bubble teams that won yesterday (in conference tournaments):  New Mexico, Ohio State, Oklahoma, San Diego State, Seton Hall, UCLA
• Bubble teams that lost yesterday (in conference tournaments):  Auburn, Iowa, Miami (OH), Missouri, NC State, Texas A&M, TCU, UCF
• Bubble teams that have not yet started conference tournaments:   South Florida, St. Louis, VCU

Here are the tournaments starting today, the tournaments with games today, bids up for grab today, who has already clinched an automatic berth, and my predictions for the remaining conference tournaments.

Tournaments starting today

-None

Tournaments with games today

-AAC

-ACC

-Atlantic 10

-Big 12

-Big East

-Big Ten

-Big West

-Conference USA

-MAC

-MEAC

-Mountain West

-SEC

-SWAC

-WAC

Bids up for grabs today (all times Eastern)

-None

Already clinched automatic berths (I will add in parentheses the NCAA tournament appearances for each school, including the bid just clinched and last NCAA Tournament appearance where applicable, and for conferences whose tournaments have not yet ended, I'll list the date of the championship game)

-AAC (March 15)

-ACC (March 14)

-America East (March 14)

-Atlantic 10 (March 15)

-Atlantic Sun:  Queens (1)

-Big 12 (March 14)

-Big East (March 14)

-Big Sky:  Idaho (5; 1990)

-Big South:  High Point (2; 2025)

-Big Ten (March 15)

-Big West (March 14)

-Coastal:  Hofstra (5; 2001)

-Conference USA (March 14)

-Horizon:  Wright State (5; 2022)

-Ivy League (March 15)

-MAAC:  Siena (7; 2010)

-MAC (March 14)

-MEAC (March 14)

-Missouri Valley:  Northern Iowa (9; 2016)

-Mountain West (March 14)

-Northeast Conference:  LIU (8; 2018)

-Ohio Valley:  Tennessee State (3; 1994)

-Patriot League:  Lehigh (6; 2012)

-SEC (March 15)

-Southern Conference:  Furman (8; 2023)

-Southland:  McNeese (5; 2025)

-Summit:  North Dakota State (5; 2019)

-Sun Belt:  Troy (4; 2025)

-SWAC (March 14)

-WAC (March 14)

-West Coast:  Gonzaga (28; 2025)

Remaining Tournaments (all times are Eastern)

AAC (March 11-15; Birmingham)

3/13 – Quarterfinals

1 p.m. (ESPN2) (4) UAB vs. (5) Charlotte.  Predicted winner:  UAB

9 p.m. (ESPN2) (3) Tulsa vs. (6) North Texas.  Predicted winner:  Tulsa

3/14 – Semifinals

3 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) South Florida vs. (4) UAB.  Predicted winner:  South Florida

5:30 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Wichita State vs. (3) Tulsa.  Predicted winner:  Wichita State

3/15 – Finals

3:15 p.m. (ESPN) (1) South Florida vs. (2) Wichita State.  Predicted winner:  Wichita State

ACC (March 10-14; Charlotte)

3/13 – Semifinals

7 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2) (2) Virginia vs. (3) Miami (FL).  Predicted winner:  Virginia

9:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2) (1) Duke vs. (5) Clemson.  Predicted winner:  Duke

3/14 – Finals

8:30 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Duke vs. (2) Virginia.  Predicted winner:  Duke

America East (March 7, 10, 14; campus of higher seed)

3/14 – Finals

11 a.m. (ESPN2) (2) Vermont at (1) UMBC.  Predicted winner:  Vermont

Atlantic 10 (March 11-15; Pittsburgh)

3/13 – Quarterfinals

11:30 a.m. (USA) (1) St. Louis vs. (9) George Washington.  Predicted winner:  St. Louis

2 p.m. (USA) (4) Dayton vs. (13) St. Bonaventure.  Predicted winner:  Dayton

5 p.m. (USA) (2) VCU vs. (7) Duquesne.  Predicted winner:  VCU

7:30 p.m. (CNBC) (3) St. Joseph's vs. (6) Davidson.  Predicted winner:  St. Joseph's

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (CBSSN) (1) St. Louis vs. (4) Dayton.  Predicted winner:  St. Louis

3:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) VCU vs. (3) St. Joseph's.  Predicted winner:  VCU

3/15 – Finals

1 p.m. (CBS) (1) St. Louis vs. (2) VCU.  Predicted winner:  St. Louis

Big 12 (March 10-14; Kansas City)

3/13 – Semifinals

7 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Arizona vs. (5) Iowa State.  Predicted winner:  Iowa State

9:30 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Houston vs. (3) Kansas.  Predicted winner:  Houston

3/14 – Finals

6 p.m. (ESPN) (2) Houston vs. (5) Iowa State.  Predicted winner:  Houston

Big East (March 11-14; New York)

3/13 – Semifinals

5:30 p.m. (Fox) (1) St. John's vs. (4) Seton Hall.  Predicted winner:  St. John's

8 p.m. (FS1) (2) UConn vs. (11) Georgetown.  Predicted winner:  UConn

3/14 – Finals

6:30 p.m. (Fox) (1) St. John's v. (2) UConn.  Predicted winner:  UConn

Big Ten (March 10-15; Chicago)

3/13 – Quarterfinals

12 p.m. (BTN) (1) Michigan vs. (8) Ohio State.  Predicted winner:  Michigan

2:30 p.m. (BTN) (4) Illinois vs. (5) Wisconsin.  Predicted winner:  Illinois

6:30 p.m. (BTN) (2) Nebraska vs. (7) Purdue.  Predicted winner:  Nebraska

9 p.m. (BTN) (3) Michigan State vs. (6) UCLA.  Predicted winner:  Michigan State

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (CBS) (1) Michigan vs. (4) Illinois.  Predicted winner:  Illinois

3:30 p.m. (CBS) (2) Nebraska vs. (3) Michigan State.  Predicted winner:  Michigan State

3/15 – Finals

3:30 p.m. (CBS) (3) Michigan State vs. (4) Illinois.  Predicted winner:  Michigan State

Big West (March 11-14; Henderson, NV)

3/13 – Semifinals

9 p.m. (ESPNU) (1) UC Irvine vs. (4) Cal State Northridge.  Predicted winner:  UC Irvine

11:30 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Hawaii vs. (3) Cal State Fullerton.  Predicted winner:  Hawaii

3/14 – Finals

10 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) UC Irvine vs. (2) Hawaii.  Predicted winner:  UC Irvine

Conference USA (March 10-14; Huntsville, AL)

3/13 – Semifinals

12:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (4) Louisiana Tech vs. (9) Missouri State.  Predicted winner:  Louisiana Tech

3 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) Sam Houston vs. (6) Kennesaw State.  Predicted winner:  Sam Houston

3/14 – Finals

8:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) Sam Houston vs. (4) Louisiana Tech.  Predicted winner:  Sam Houston

Ivy League (March 14-15; Ithaca, NY)

3/14 - Semifinals

11 a.m. (ESPNU) (1) Yale vs. (4) Cornell.  Predicted winner:  Yale

2 p.m. (ESPNews) (2) Harvard vs. (3) Penn.  Predicted winner:  Harvard

3/15 - Finals

12 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Yale vs. (2) Harvard.  Predicted winner:  Yale

MAC (March 12-14; Cleveland)

3/13 – Semifinals

5 p.m. (CBSSN) (4) Toledo vs. (8) UMass.  Predicted winner:  Toledo

7:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) Akron vs. (3) Kent State.  Predicted winner:  Akron

3/14 – Finals

8 p.m. (ESPN2) (2) Akron vs. (4) Toledo.  Predicted winner:  Akron

MEAC (March 11-14; Norfolk, VA)

3/13 – Semifinals

6 p.m. (ESPN+) (1) Howard vs. (5) South Carolina State.  Predicted winner:  Howard

8 p.m. (ESPN+) (3) North Carolina Central vs. (7) Delaware State.  Predicted winner:  North Carolina Central

3/14 – Final

1:00 p.m. (TBD) (1) Howard vs. (3) North Carolina Central.  Predicted winner:  Howard

Mountain West (March 11-14; Paradise, NV)

3/13 – Semifinals

9:30 p.m. (CBSSN) (1) Utah State vs. (5) Nevada.  Predicted winner:  Utah State

11:59 p.m. (CBSSN) (2) San Diego State vs. (3) New Mexico.  Predicted winner:  San Diego State

3/14 – Finals

6 p.m. (CBS) (1) Utah State vs. (2) San Diego State.  Predicted winner:  Utah State

SEC (March 11-15; Nashville)

3/13 – Quarterfinals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Florida vs. (9) Kentucky.  Predicted winner:  Florida

3:30 p.m. (ESPN) (4) Vanderbilt vs. (5) Tennessee.  Predicted winner:  Tennessee

7 p.m. (SEC Network) (2) Alabama vs. (15) Mississippi.  Predicted winner:  Alabama

9:30 p.m. (SEC Network) (3) Arkansas vs. (11) Oklahoma.  Predicted winner:  Arkansas

3/14 – Semifinals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (1) Florida vs. (5) Tennessee.  Predicted winner:  Tennessee

3:30 p.m. (ESPN) (2) Alabama vs. (3) Arkansas.  Predicted winner:  Alabama

3/15 – Finals

1 p.m. (ESPN) (2) Alabama vs. (5) Tennessee.  Predicted winner:  Alabama

SWAC (March 9-14; Atlanta)

3/13 – Semifinals

2 p.m. (ESPN+) (5) Alabama A&M vs. (8) Prairie View A&M.  Predicted winner:  Texas Southern

8:30 p.m. (ESPN+) (2) Florida A&M vs. (3) Southern.  Predicted winner:  Florida A&M

3/14 – Finals

7:30 p.m. (TBD) (2) Florida A&M vs. (5) Alabama A&M.  Predicted winner:  Florida A&M

WAC (March 11-14; Paradise, NV)

3/13 – Semifinals

9 p.m. (ESPN+) (1) Utah Valley vs. (4) UT Arlington.  Predicted winner:  Utah Valley

11:30 p.m. (ESPN2/ESPNU) (2) Cal Baptist vs. (3) Utah Tech.  Predicted winner:  Cal Baptist

3/14 – Finals

11:59 p.m. (ESPN2) (1) Utah Valley vs. (2) Cal Baptist.  Predicted winner:  Utah Valley