bracket prep – Rush The Court

All Brackets Considered: Final Prep For the Big Dance

rtmsf — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 21:35:35 +0000

Unless you’re a major procrastinator, you probably already have a pretty strong idea of who your Final Four choices will be this year. Maybe you’ve already completed your bracket and put it to bed. Or maybe you’re one of those people who likes to have all available and possible information at your fingertips before making your final decisions. For those of you that fall into the latter camp, this post is for you. We’ve aggregated all of the RTC NCAA Tournament prep materials in one place for your ease of use. We can’t guarantee that you’ll go 63-0 on your [...]

The Official RTC Bracket: Midwest And West Regions

KDoyle — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 19:08:23 +0000

We released the Official RTC Bracket for the South and East Regions earlier today — be sure to check that out if you need a refresher on our methodology for this exercise — and we’ll save you the fluff this time and cut right to the chase with the Midwest and West Regions. (note: our Final Four selections are after the analyses)

Quick Hitters From the Midwest Region

Advancing to Atlanta: #1 Louisville Round of 64 Upset: #11 St. Mary’s over #6 Memphis Later Round Upset: N/A Three Most Disputed Games: #5 Oklahoma State over #12 Oregon, #11 St. Mary’s over #6 Memphis, #2 Duke over #3 Michigan [...]

The Official RTC Bracket: South and East Regions

KDoyle — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 17:06:14 +0000

With the NCAA Tournament officially underway as of last night’s game between North Carolina A&T and Liberty — although, let’s be honest, things don’t really begin to heat up until Thursday afternoon — we are unveiling the Official RTC Bracket today. Up first are the South and East Regions with the Midwest and West Regions to follow later this afternoon. Prior to revealing the picks, some quick analysis, and four questions to our bracket experts, here’s our methodology.

The inspiration behind the bracket largely comes from our weekly Blogpoll where a number of ballots from key contributors are combined to form [...]

A Non-Sports Woman’s Guide to March Madness

rtmsf — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 19:55:22 +0000

The RTC Babe is back this year to give her unique take on what we call March Madness.

March Madness is like the guy version of the Oscars. We spend weeks analyzing and guessing who will get a bid and then, once teams are selected, we spend another several days predicting the outcome. I like to think of right now — the days leading up to the Big Dance — as the red carpet. Sadly though there is lot less fashion to critique unless you want to include Digger’s daily tie selections or the occasional coach sporting a bold look (i.e., [...]

Bracket Prep: West Region Analysis

AMurawa — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 19:01:56 +0000

Throughout Monday, we will roll out our region-by-region analysis on the following schedule: East (9 AM), Midwest (11 AM), South (1 PM), West (3 PM). Here, Andrew Murawa (@amurawa) breaks down the West Region from top to bottom. Also, be sure to follow our RTC West Region handle on Twitter for continuous updates the next two weeks (@RTCwestregion).

You can also check out our RTC Podblast with Andrew breaking down the West Region, which will drop both on the site and on iTunes Tuesday.

West Region

Favorite: #2 Ohio State (26-7, 16-5 Big Ten). Not to take anything away from Gonzaga, a team and a program that should be very pleased [...]

Bracket Prep: South Region Analysis

KDoyle — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 17:24:21 +0000

Throughout Monday, we will roll out our region-by-region analysis on the following schedule: East (9 AM), Midwest (11 AM), South (1 PM), West (3 PM). Here, Kevin Doyle (@kldoyle11) breaks down the South Region from top to bottom. Also, be sure to follow our RTC South Region handle on Twitter for continuous updates the next two weeks (@RTCsouthregion).

You can also check out our RTC Podblast with Kevin breaking down the South Region, which will drop both on the site and on iTunes Tuesday.

South Region

Favorite: #3 Florida (26-7, 16-5 SEC). A month ago, Florida looked like it was destined for a #1 seed and primed for a Final [...]

Bracket Prep: Midwest Region Analysis

BHayes — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 15:01:30 +0000

Throughout Monday, we will roll out our region-by-region analysis on the following schedule: East (9 AM), Midwest (11 AM), South (1 PM), West (3 PM). Here, Bennet Hayes (@HoopsTraveler) breaks down the Midwest Region from top to bottom. Also, be sure to follow our RTC Midwest Region handle on Twitter for continuous updates the next two weeks (@RTCmidwestregion).

You can also check out our RTC Podblast with Bennet breaking down the Midwest Region, which will drop both on the site and on iTunes Tuesday.

Midwest Region

Favorite: #1 Louisville (29-5, 17-4 Big East). It stands to reason that the top overall seed in the field is also the favorite to emerge [...]

Bracket Prep: East Region Analysis

Brian Otskey — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 13:01:22 +0000

Throughout Monday, we will roll out our region-by-region analysis on the following schedule: East (9 AM), Midwest (11 AM), South (1 PM), West (3 PM). Here, Brian Otskey (@botskey) breaks down the East Region from top to bottom. Also, be sure to follow our RTC East Region handle on Twitter for continuous updates the next two weeks (@RTCeastregion).

You can also check out our RTC Podblast with Brian breaking down the East Region, which will drop both on the site and on iTunes Tuesday.

East Region

Favorite: #1 Indiana (27-6, 14-5 Big Ten). Ranked No. 1 in 10 of the [...]

Bracket Prep: All 31 Automatic Qualifiers

rtmsf — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 00:46:27 +0000

For the last week or so, we’ve been writing up brief descriptions of what to consider on each of the 31 automatic qualifiers for the NCAA Tournament. While it’s true that there are 37 other NCAA teams in the field, we’re going to bank on the fact that you already know most of those. This series will help you break down many of the smaller conference teams that you may not have seen play all season (or at most, once). And keep in mind that we’ll be coming hard with analysis on each region Monday and game-by-game breakdowns as well [...]

Bracket Prep: Saint Louis, Miami, Mississippi & Ohio State

BHayes — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 22:00:59 +0000

The last four auto-bids were handed out on this most special of college basketball Sundays, and as we have for each of the 31 automatic qualifiers to play their way into the Dance, we take some time to give you an analytical snapshot of each team that you can refer back to when you’re picking your brackets.

Saint Louis

Dwayne Evans, Jordair Jett And The Rest Of The Billikens Are Headed Back To The Big Dance

Atlantic-10 Champion (27-6, 16-3) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #22/#17/#15 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +12.2 Likely NCAA Seed: #3-#5

Three Bruce Pearls of Wisdom.

In a crazy year of Atlantic-10 basketball, one complete with new faces, [...]

Bracket Prep: Akron, Louisville, Northwestern State, Montana, Oregon, Pacific & New Mexico State

BHayes — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 18:40:05 +0000

Saturday’s flurry of bid snatching wound down out West and left us with a near-complete picture of the puzzle. Just four automatic bids remain to be earned on Selection Sunday. As we have for each of the 31 automatic qualifiers to play their way into the Dance, we’ll take some time to give you an analytical snapshot of each team that you can refer back to when you’re picking your brackets this week.

Akron

Zeke Marshall And Akron Overcame Late-Season Drama To Reach The NCAA Tournament

MAC Champion (26-6, 16-2) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #49/#54/#62 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +10.7 Likely NCAA Seed: #12-#13

Three Bruce Pearls of Wisdom.

Last year’s [...]

Bracket Prep: Albany, Memphis, Southern, North Carolina A&T, Kansas & New Mexico

BHayes — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 17:01:55 +0000

Championship Week reached a crescendo on the eve of Selection Sunday, as thirteen automatic bids were handed out. As each of the 31 automatic qualifiers plays their way into the Dance over the next week, we’ll take some time to give you an analytical snapshot of each team that you can refer back to when you’re picking your brackets this week.

Albany

How About A Court Storming On An Opponent’s Home Floor? Completely Legal, Especially If A Trip To The Big Dance Is On The Line. Congratulations Albany.

America East Champion (24-10, 12-7) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #143/#152/#172 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +2.0 Likely NCAA Seed: #16

Three Bruce Pearls [...]

Bracket Prep: LIU-Brooklyn, South Dakota State, Valparaiso, Bucknell

BHayes — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 21:31:04 +0000

Over the course of the last two nights, four more teams made their Big Dance dreams a reality. As each of the 31 automatic qualifiers plays their way into the Dance over the next week, we’ll take some time to give you an analytical snapshot of each team that you can refer back to when you’re picking your brackets next weekend.

LIU-Brooklyn

It’s An NEC Tournament Three-Peat For The Blackbirds. Welcome Back To The Big Dance!

NEC Champion (20-13, 15-6) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #178/#184/#162 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +0.2 Likely NCAA Seed: #16

Three Bruce Pearls of Wisdom.

While it might be a bit of hyperbole to announce the Long [...]

Bracket Prep: Western Kentucky, Davidson, James Madison, Gonzaga & Iona

BHayes — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 21:01:16 +0000

Championship Week continued in full blast on Monday night, as five more NCAA Tournament tickets were punched. As each of the 31 automatic qualifiers plays their way into the Dance over the next week, we’ll take some time to give you an analytical snapshot of each team that you can refer back to when you’re picking your brackets next weekend.

Western Kentucky

Sun Belt Cinderellas Again — Welcome Back To The Big Dance Hilltoppers

Sun Belt Champion (20-15, 14-10) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #166/#183/#184 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +0.5 Likely NCAA Seed: #15-#16

Three Bruce Pearls of Wisdom.

Who needs the regular season anyways? For the second consecutive campaign, Western Kentucky [...]

Bracket Prep: Belmont, Florida Gulf Coast, Harvard, Liberty & Creighton

BHayes — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 19:15:23 +0000

The first five NCAA Tournament bids were earned over the weekend, so as each of the 31 automatic qualifiers plays their way into the Dance over the next week, we’ll take some time to give you an analytical snapshot of each team that you can refer back to when you’re picking your brackets next weekend.

Belmont

The Belmont Bruins Are Dancing Again

OVC Champion (26-6, 16-2) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #18/#47/#50 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +13.1 Likely NCAA Seed: #10-#12

Three Bruce Pearls of Wisdom.

In what is becoming a spring ritual as routine as Groundhog Day, the Belmont Bruins are back in the NCAA Tournament field. It’s the third straight [...]