Bracketology Breakdown

With the last weeks of February rapidly approaching, so too are conference tournaments in men's college basketball.  Sixty-eight teams will receive an invite to the "Big Dance"; the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.  There, they will start down the grueling path to a possible national championship.  

Knowing a few things about college basketball myself, I have taken the liberty of making some predictions.  Here are the teams who I think will be "dancing" come "March Madness" (listed by conference).  

Major Conferences (champion in bold italics)

• ACC: Florida State, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Clemson, Louisville

• Big East: Creighton, Villanova, Seton Hall, Xavier

• Big 10: Michigan, Illinois, Ohio State, Iowa, Wisconsin, Purdue, Rutgers, Indiana, Minnesota

• Big 12: Baylor, Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, West Virginia, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State

• Pac-12: USC, UCLA, Colorado, Stanford

• SEC: Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee, LSU, Missouri, Florida

Mid-Majors

• American: Houston, Memphis, Wichita State, SMU

• Atlantic Sun: Liberty

• Atlantic 10: St. Bonaventure, VCU

• America East: Vermont

• Big Sky: Eastern Washington

• Big South: Winthrop

• Big West: California-Santa Barbara

• Colonial:  James Madison

• Conference USA: Louisiana Tech, Western Kentucky

• Horizon: Wright State

• Ivy: Season Canceled (see Note 1)

• Metro Atlantic: Siena

• Mid-American: Toledo

• Mid-Eastern: North Carolina A&T

• Missouri Valley: Loyola Chicago, Drake

• Mountain West: San Diego State, Boise State

• Northeast: Wagner

• Ohio Valley: Belmont

• Patriot: Colgate

• Southern: North Carolina-Greensboro

• Southland: Sam Houston State

• Summit: North Dakota State

• Sun Belt: Texas State

• Southwestern: Prairie View A&M

• Western: Grand Canyon

• West Coast: Gonzaga, BYU

Bubble Teams/Last Four In

    1. Drake

    2. Minnesota

    3. SMU

    4. Stanford

Selection Sunday is set for March 14; the NCAA Tournament bracket will be revealed at approximately six PM eastern time (1).  

Which teams will have the big games? Who will be sweating it out, and who will be saying "maybe next year"? Grab the popcorn, and get ready for some big-time action.  The games are on...this should be very interesting.

Note 1: On November 12, 2020, the Ivy League canceled all winter competitions (due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic) (2).  

Note 2: These projections were made using data from ESPN (including current conference standings) (3,4).  

Sources:

1. "2021 Selection Sunday: Start Time, Date, Schedule". Ncaa.Com, 2021, https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/2021-selection-sunday-time-dates-schedule. Accessed 19 Feb 2021.

2. Norlander, Matt. "Ivy League Cancels Basketball Season For 2020-21 As Part Of Ban On Winter Sports Due To COVID-19". Cbssports.Com, 2020, https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/ivy-league-cancels-basketball-season-for-2020-21-as-part-of-ban-on-winter-sports-due-to-covid-19/. Accessed 19 Feb 2021.

3. Lunardi, Joe. "The Varying States Of NCAA Tournament Bracketology". ESPN.Com, 2021, https://www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/30302581/the-varying-states-ncaa-tournament-bracketology. Accessed 19 Feb 2021.

4. "2020-21 Men's College Basketball Standings | ESPN". ESPN.Com, 2021, https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/standings. Accessed 19 Feb 2021.