March is quickly approaching and that means the buzz is starting about who is in and who still needs to win some more games in order to be included in the NCAA tournament. Not only does this make for great water cooler talk, it also can be used as a handicapping tool. The pressure of making the tournament can weigh heavily on coaching staffs and players alike. Some rise to the occasion while other crack under the stress. Here is a breakdown of the power conferences with who I consider locks to make the dance and those who need some more wins to qualify.
ACC
Locks: Duke, Maryland, Wake Forest, Virginia Tech
Work Left: Virginia, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Clemson
Big 12
Locks: Kansas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Texas, Missouri, Baylor
Work Left: Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech
Big East
Locks: Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia, Georgetown, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Notre Dame, Marquette
Work Left: Cincinnati, South Florida, Connecticut
Big Ten
Locks: Michigan State, Wisconsin, Ohio State, Purdue, Illinois
Work Left: Minnesota, Northwestern
PAC 10
Locks: None
Work Left: Everyone
SEC
Locks: Kentucky, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Florida
Work Left: Mississippi, Mississippi State
You may notice the defending champs, North Carolina, are nowhere to be found on my list and that no one from the PAC 10 is listed. Perennial March Madness participants like the Tar Heels, UCLA, Arizona and even Memphis out of C-USA probably won’t be dancing this season. That means there could be at-large bids for quality teams out of the mid-major conferences like Northern Iowa, Wichita State, St. Mary’s and even two Ivy League competitors in Cornell and Harvard.
When handicapping a game involving the “Work Left” teams look for veteran coaches that know how to get teams to the NCAA tournament. These coaches understand how to manage important games and get their teams playing well late in the season.
Enjoy the rest of conference play and get geared up for March.
