A-10
The A-10 is going to D.C. for its conference tournament. The league has 6 teams in the KenPom top-100 but only 2 in the top 50. Regular season champ Davidson checks in at 45 and runner-up Dayton is 46. Brian had Davidson at 10 in his last mock, VCU first 4 out and Dayton staring forlornly from the also considered bin. It’s possibly a 1-bid league
St. Louis and VCU are 61 and 63 with pre-season darling St, Bonaventure at 86. Davidson might get an at-large? No bad losses other than Rhode Island (128 in KenPom) and a win over Alabama could get them in but they’ll sweat if they don’t win the conference tournament.
It’s a potential bid thief league and I’ll say Dayton wins a berth and Davidson sweats with VCU.
Big XII
No big preview. Tourney is in Kansas City. Oklahoma is bubbly but needs help. Iowa State and TCU seem safe but I’d try and win a game.
Most importantly, how will Baylor’s short rotation hold up? That’s what I’ll be watching. The pick is Texas Tech
Big East
No big preview. Tourney is at MSG. Xavier would be advised to beat Butler or have a long weekend. The pick is UConn
Big Sky
The Big Sky descends upon Boise for Boise Madness. Montana State won the league and is 142nd in KenPom. Southern Utah finished 2nd and is 162nd in KenPom and Weber State finished 3rd and is 179th. No other team is top-200.
The pick is Montana State and they get a 15-seed and make a 2-seed sweat.
Big 14
The Big 14 travels to Indy. Michigan and Indiana battle in the 8-9. I think Michigan is safe at the moment but a loss here will make them have a long couple of days. Indiana has to have it.
There’s no national title contender here except Illinois and they’re the pick to click.
MEAC
The MEAC will be playing in Norfolk,VA. Norfolk State is 165 in KenPom and the only top-200 team. They should win here. Just about any other winner is a certainty to be in the play-in game.
Mountain West
The Mountain West is traveling to Vegas and will be a ist see Tournament. They have 7 top-100 KenPom teams and 4 tournament teams. This is also a definitive bid thief league.
Fresno State, UNLV and Utah State are outside looking in at the moment but all are capable of pulling the upset and winning the league title. Utah State is 53 in KenPom. Even Nevada at 12-17 and 116 in KenPom could be worth a nickel.
I’ll pick Utah State to steal a bid in what ought to be a super fun week.
Pac-12
The Pac-12 will also be in Vegas. Remember when Vegas was off-limits because of gambling fears? Wild. Anyway, the story here is Oregon who has lost 3 straight and is out. Also, Washington State is 55 in KenPom. They’ve been as high as 32 but a brutal February was killer. They both need to win to get in.
We’re in bid thief territory here but I like Arizona to take care of business and solidify that 1-seed.
SEC
The SEC is going to Tampa for some ungodly reason. Florida opens against Texas A&M and needs to win or probably miss out. A&M needs a lot of help, too. It’s basically the biggest game in the tournament from a bid standpoint. A&M won’t be in with a win but they can at-least get considered.
The pick here is Kentucky to remind the league who the big dog is. A&M seems to be the only legit bid thief.
SOUTHLAND
The Southland plays their league tournament in Katy, TX. The Southland isn’t very good with no top-200 KenPom teams. Regular season champ Nicholls State is 201. They beat UNI and had a shot to win in Madison and they’re the pick. This is 16-seed territory with Nicholls State being a possible thorn as such.
SWAC
The SWAC is going to Birmingham which is somehow worse than Tampa. Anyway, 16-seee land. Texas Southern is the winner or maybe not.
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