As the month of February wraps up, teams continue to jockey for positioning
in their upcoming conference tournaments. At-large bids change hands every day
this time of year, and BetUS Sportsbook asks five burning questions regarding
the March Madness picks of the future.
1: When the dust settles this Sunday, who will be on the #1 line?
It sure seems like a given that Kansas and Kentucky are both going to hold their
positions as #1 seeds. The combination of Purdue, Duke, Syracuse, and Villanova
is a significantly different story, though.
If we had to make our March Madness picks right now, we'd put the Boilermakers
and Orange as the other #1s. But Villanova can make a case to jump back to the
top line this Saturday night at the Carrier Dome, while Duke would probably move
up with two wins this week paired with a loss by Nova and Purdue. The Boilers
have a very tricky test at Minnesota in a perfect sandwich spot before the home
date with Michigan State.
2: Can Kansas State do anything to help its own cause?
The Wildcats may be the best team in the country that you don't know a heck of a
lot about. Kansas has been stealing the show all season long, while Texas' hype
was rampant until the Longhorns fell off the face of the earth a few weeks ago.
This is a crucial week for KSU. A road game at Texas Tech and a home date with
Missouri; both teams of which are sitting squarely on the bubble; can really
help out. Unfortunately though, for as long as the teams in front of them keep
winning, the Wildcats have nowhere to go but down from the #2 line.
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3: Who's Making the Cut in the A-10?
This is the biggest week of A-10 basketball all season. Just a few weeks ago, it
looked like this could legitimately be a six, or maybe even a seven bid league.
Now, it could be as few as three.
Lots will be determined this week. On Wednesday, Dayton visits Temple and Xavier
travels to St. Louis, while on Sunday, Xavier plays host to Richmond.
4: Can the Mountain West earn some respect this week?
The winner of the New Mexico/BYU game on Saturday night is going to be one of
the best games that you'll see all season long. The Lobos won at "The Pit" 76-72
just four weeks ago, and a second win against the Cougars could really see the
Lobos all the way onto the #2 line in the tourney.
If not, still expect to see both BYU and New Mexico getting preferential
treatment in the brackets as long as neither one has a colossal slip before
March Madness.
5: Will the Big East bubble ever thin itself out?
This is a very interesting case right now. At bare minimum, this is a five bid
league to the dance. Louisville is now 9-5 in conference, and with good computer
numbers in tote, the Cardinals are probably just a win or two away from joining
the "lock" category.
However, what about Marquette, Notre Dame, South Florida, Connecticut, Seton
Hall, Cincinnati, and maybe even St. John's? The loser of Sunday's game between
the Golden Eagles and Pirates will almost certainly be out of the field once and
for all, but the rest can make big statements on Saturday. Don't be surprised if
this conference still has ten teams sweating it out come Selection Sunday.
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