Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Conference #8 - AAC

Conference Winner:  Cincinnati

Yes, this should have been SMU but Larry Brown is as dirty as John Calipari but just doesn’t cover his tracks as good.  Either way I thought the Bearcats would give them a good run at the top spot.  All starters for Cincinnati return from last years’ tournament team but more importantly Mick Cronin is back after having to take the season off to recover from his brain aneurism.  That alone with SMU out and a weak bottom half conference should be enough for Cincinnati to return to prominence.

At-Large:  Connecticut

I considered Connecticut for a little while at the top but the loss of Ryan Boatwright is going to be bigger than people think.  Kevin Ollie is a good coach and I like a few of their pieces, including a couple graduate transfers, but it usually takes a while for those players to mesh together.  I see the Huskies as a team that stubbles out of the block; finishes under the radar and then wreaks havoc upon the bracket when they are under seeded.

At-Large:  Tulsa

Frank Haith returns his top 8 players from last year and look to take that next step from the NIT to the NCAA.  Last year they started hot, going 10-0 but then kind of limped through finishing 23-11.  This year they have a little tougher non-conference schedule so 10-0 may not be possible but I guarantee their computer numbers will be a lot better.  I don’t expect 30 wins but Tulsa is good enough to secure a bid around 10-11 seed.

Possible At-Large:  Memphis


Too much turnover and turmoil at Memphis.  Josh Pastner may be on the hot seat at this point. 

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