bracket prep – Rush The Court

Bracket Prep: West Region Analysis

Andrew Murawa — Tue, 17 Mar 2015 18:01:31 +0000

Throughout Tuesday, we will roll out our region-by-region analysis on the following schedule: East (10:00 AM), South (11:00 AM), Midwest (1:00 PM), West (2:00 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).

West Region

Stanley Johnson And His Arizona Teammates Have To Be Considered Co-Favorites In The West Region. (Getty)

Favorite: Arizona, #2, 31-3. Wisconsin fans won’t like this, so let me first cover my butt: The Wildcats are the second-best team nationally according to KenPom and the Badgers are the third-best. Still, [...]

Bracket Prep: Midwest Region Analysis

Walker Carey — Tue, 17 Mar 2015 17:01:28 +0000

Throughout Tuesday, we will roll out our region-by-region analysis on the following schedule: East (10:00 AM), South (11:00 AM), Midwest (1:00 PM), West (2:00 PM). Here, Walker Carey (@walkerRcarey) 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 (@RTCMWregion).

Midwest Region

Favorite: #1 Kentucky (34-0, 18-0 SEC). The unbeaten Wildcats enter the NCAA Tournament as not only the favorites in the Midwest Region but also for the entire tournament. John Calipari’s squad has been able to reach 34-0 due to its star power combined with its ability to play tremendously well as a [...]

Bracket Prep: South Region Analysis

Bennet Hayes — Tue, 17 Mar 2015 15:01:40 +0000

Throughout Tuesday, we will roll out our region-by-region analysis on the following schedule: East (10:00 AM), South (11:00 AM), Midwest (1:00 PM), West (2:00 PM). Here, Bennet Hayes (@hoopstraveler) 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).

South Region

Favorite: #1 Duke (29-4, 16-4 ACC). The top-seeded Blue Devils are rightful favorites in the South region. Not only are the Blue Devils REALLY good (they are a #1 seed for a reason), but they were fortunate enough to avoid a region with Arizona or Virginia in a year where six teams could stake [...]

Bracket Prep: East Region Analysis

Tommy Lemoine — Tue, 17 Mar 2015 14:01:41 +0000

Throughout Tuesday, we will roll out our region-by-region analysis on the following schedule: East (10:00 AM), South (11:00 AM), Midwest (1:00 PM), West (2:00 PM). Here, Tommy Lemoine (@hoopthink) 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).

East Region

Favorite: #1 Villanova (32-2, 16-2 Big East). For as good as Virginia has been this season, Villanova enters the NCAA Tournament as hot and seemingly infallible as any team outside of Kentucky. The Big East champion Wildcats are currently riding a 15-game winning streak, including 11 victories by double-figures [...]

Bracket Prep: New Mexico State, UC Irvine & Georgia State

Tommy Lemoine — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 22:31:44 +0000

Let’s finish off the Bracket Prep series with our reviews of each of the weekend mid-major automatic qualifiers to help you fill out your bracket. Here’s a primer on each of the most recent bid winners. The entire series can be found here.

New Mexico State

New Mexico State is going dancing for the fourth-straight year. (Photo by Tim Barnett-Queen)

WAC Champion (23-10, 13-1) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #103/#88/#106 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +6.5 NCAA Seed: #15

Strength: The Aggies are not your average low-seeded mid-major. They have great size – 32nd nationally in effective height – and good athleticism that should allow them to match up with Kansas, at least [...]

Bracket Prep: Buffalo, Stephen F. Austin & Eastern Washington

Tommy Lemoine — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 22:01:47 +0000

Buffalo

Buffalo is going dancing for the first time in school history. (Ken Blaze, Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports)

MAC Champion (23-9, 12-6) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #28/#54/#59 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +8.4 NCAA Seed: #12

Strength: Buffalo has some serious offensive weapons and tends to set them free. The Bulls were the most uptempo offense in the MAC this season, using just 17.4 seconds per possession and [...]

Bracket Prep: Texas Southern, Harvard & Wyoming

Tommy Lemoine — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 21:40:10 +0000

Texas Southern

Texas Southern is going dancing for the second-straight year. (hbcubuzz.com)

SWAC Champion (22-12, 16-2) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #130/#207/#204 Adjusted Scoring Margin = -2.1 NCAA Seed: #15

Strength: You don’t often see SWAC teams with as much talent as Texas Southern, especially in the backcourt. Conference Player of the Year Madarious Gibbs (14.2 PPG, 4.3 APG), Marshall transfer Chris Thomas (12.6 PPG) and former Nebraska [...]

Bracket Prep: Albany, Hampton & UAB

Tommy Lemoine — Sun, 15 Mar 2015 01:09:24 +0000

As we move through Championship Weekend, we’ll continue to bring you short reviews of each of the automatic qualifiers to help you fill out your bracket next week. Here’s what you need to know about the most recent bid winners.

Albany

Sam Rowley and the Great Danes are going dancing for the third-straight year. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

America East Champion (24-8, 15-1)

RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #108/#132/#134 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +3.1 Likely NCAA Seed: #14 or #15

Strength: Albany led the America East in both adjusted offensive efficiency (110.2 AdjO) and time taken per offensive possession; which is to say, the Great Danes are slow but [...]

Bracket Prep: Lafayette

Tommy Lemoine — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 18:01:07 +0000

As we move through Championship Week, we’ll continue to bring you short reviews of each of the automatic qualifiers to help you fill out your bracket next week. Here’s what you need to know about the most recent bid winners.

Lafayette

Lafayette clinched its first NCAA Tournament bid since 2000. (Austin Drucker / Lafayette Student News)

Patriot League Champion (20-12, 9-9) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #127/#197/#175 Adjusted Scoring Margin = -0.2 Likely NCAA Seed: #16

Strength: Lafayette is one of the best shooting teams in college basketball, ranking among the top-15 nationally in three-point percentage (41%), effective field goal percentage (55.8%) and free throw shooting (76.5%). In [...]

Bracket Prep: Valparaiso, Robert Morris & North Dakota State

Tommy Lemoine — Wed, 11 Mar 2015 18:31:17 +0000

Valparaiso

Valparaiso is heading back to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in five years. (horizonleague.com)

Horizon League Champion (28-5, 13-3) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #59/#66/#73 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +6.9 Likely NCAA Seed: #12

Strength: The Crusaders are an excellent defensive unit equipped with one of the best interior defenders at the mid-major level in 6’10” center Vashil Fernandez; the senior led the Horizon League [...]

Bracket Prep: Wofford, Northeastern & Manhattan

Tommy Lemoine — Tue, 10 Mar 2015 19:01:17 +0000

Wofford

Wofford will be a scary #12-seed next week if the matchup is right. (AP Photo/Adam Jennings)

Southern Conference Champion (28-6, 16-2) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #48/#90/#86 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +5.0 Likely NCAA Seed: #12

Strength: Control is the name of the game for Wofford, on both sides of the ball. Offensively, the Terriers like to slow things down (19.1 seconds per possession) and look for [...]

Bracket Prep: Belmont

Tommy Lemoine — Sun, 08 Mar 2015 17:01:59 +0000

As we move through Championship Week, we’ll continue to bring you short reviews of each of the automatic qualifiers to help you fill out your bracket next week. The first team to gain entry into the 2015 NCAA Tournament is Belmont, the Ohio Valley Conference champion. Here’s what you need to know about the most recent bid winner.

Belmont Bruins

Belmont took down the 25th-ranked Racers and punched a ticket to the Dance. (Samuel M. Simpkins / The Tennessean)

OVC Champion (22-10, 11-5) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #144/#147/#151 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +2.4 Likely NCAA Seed: #15

Strength: Another year, another Belmont roster loaded with outside shooters. [...]