While I refuse to do an actual bracket taking into account conference affiliation, location, etc. until at least February, ranking teams 1-68 shouldn’t be so hard while sipping on a 3 Floyds Yum Yum or three and listening to Bill Walton.
The driving force behind many of my illogical thoughts.
1 Seeds
1. Oklahoma (14-1) – Good Lord is Buddy Hield good at basketball (still)
DEFINITELY the POY at this point.
2. Kansas (14-2) – Trip to Morgantown didn’t turn out so well. #BurnThoseCouches
3. UNC (15-2) – These guys may not lose again for a while (……)
4. Michigan State (16-2) – Well, they were beat with Valentine…handily by Iowa.
2 Seeds
5. Villanova (15-2) – Josh Hart not on the Wooden Watch?
6. Xavier (15-1) – Only blemish to Nova after Sumner had to be stretchered out a minute in. They get a pass for that one.
7. W. Virginia (13-1) – See above. #BurnThoseCouches. Get a chance at OU tomorrow.
8. Maryland (14-1) – Lost to Michigan without LeVert…alrighty then.
3 Seeds
9. Providence (15-2) – Dunn hit the buzzer-beater at the Fighting McDermotts, but he has been underwhelming since coming back from his illness.
10. Iowa (13-3) – Umm wow. Did not expect them to pound Sparty in East Lansing. Would be Top 5 if they finished in Ames.
11. Miami (13-2) – Predictable loss at Virginia, but they actually move up a spot.
12. Texas A&M (14-2) – Just continue to pile up wins…starting to gain some traction in the polls.
4 Seeds
13. Duke (14-3) – It seems like they lose at Clemson every year (but I could be wrong). Really hope they are 14-4…
14. Virginia (13-3) – Compounded the loss at VT with another at GT. Good rebound win over Miami at home.
15. Kentucky (13-3) – Still not impressed.
Skal is still a disaster.
16. Baylor (13-3) – Starting to look dangerous…
Once Rico gets it going…watch out.
5 Seeds
17. Arizona (14-3) – Got swept in LA, lost Trier to a broken hand…rebounded by bombing Washington (hope you all got that ticket in…)
18. Oregon (14-3) – Might be the class of the Pac 12. Crushed the always overrated Utah.
19. Louisville (14-3) – Well, they beat someone. How does Pitt score 86 at ND then 41 against the Cards?
20. Pittsburgh (14-2) – Man, that Pitt/ND game was a lot of fun…despite the outcome.
6 Seeds
21. Dayton (14-3) – Why are the mascot’s arms a different color than his face? They drop due to the loss to LaSalle…but a good week with wins over Davidson and GW.
22. Indiana (14-3) – May have put the beatdown of the year so far on Ohio State. That 2nd half against ND really turned the season around.
23. USC (15-3) – Andy Enfield seems to be a pretty damn good coach.
24. Iowa State (12-4) – Total freefall.
7 Seeds
25. S. Carolina (15-1) – It was only a matter of time before they got crushed…but to Alabama?
Someone has to pay the price for that loss to Alabama…
26. Butler (12-4) – Already with conference losses against Nova and Xavier.
27. Purdue (15-3) – Lack of guard play is going to keep this team from going anywhere.
28. LSU (10-6) – Victor and Hornsby have immediately improved this team. Lost at Florida, but not a horrible loss.
8 Seeds
29. Saint Mary’s (15-2) – We’ll see how good they are Jan. 21 against Duke West.
30. Michigan (13-4) – LeVert is still out, but picked up a quality win against Maryland. How? Beats me.
31. Valparaiso (14-3, Horizon Champ) – This might be high, but they absolutely pounded Oakland. #18 in KenPom rankings.
32. Notre Dame (11-5) – Brey has gone to the 1 big, 4 small lineup. We’ll see how it works tomorrow at Cameron. They rise as Iowa rises.
9 Seeds
33. Wichita State (11-5, MVC Champ) – FVV and Baker are starting to get the train rolling.
34. Monmouth (13-4, MAAC Champ) – Watching the Iona game was a bit annoying as the announcers focused on the bench for the majority of the 1st half. THEN, it looks like the bench guys were involved in the beginning of the postgame shenanigans. Starting to get old, especially because this team is very good.
35. Texas (10-6) – Impressive home wins over UNC and ISU. Now need to get one on the road.
36. G. Washington (14-4) – The early win over UVa is good…recent losses to DePaul and SLU are not.
10 Seeds
37. Florida (10-6) – W over LSU, close L at A&M and #3 SOS get them in…but these teams aren’t very good.
38. Seton Hall (12-4) – Surprised they beat Wichita…
39. Marquette (12-5) – Maybe the most surprising win of the year at Providence.
40. Cincinnati (13-5) – You’d have to pay me to watch the Cincy/Temple game tomorrow. Two teams in the 300s in tempo.
11 Seeds
41. UCLA (11-7) – The Pac 12 is a mess…or is it just really deep? UCLA epitomizes the conference at this point. Just got housed at home by USC.
42. Utah (12-5) – 1-3 start in the Pac 12…woof.
43. Texas Tech (11-4) – Tubby’s boys have lost three in a row and could be out of the next list.
44. Cal (12-6) – 12-6? Very disappointing with all the talent they have.
45. UT-Arlington (13-2, Sun Belt Champ) – Fun conference race with three solid teams: UTA, Georgia St. and UALR.
46. Evansville (16-3) – At this point, most of the alternatives are just bad or haven’t proven themselves. Mockevicius and Ballentine can play. They are going to need a W over Wichita.
12 Seeds
47. Arkansas Little-Rock (15-1) – Wins at SDSU and Tulsa certainly aren’t terrible. They could be an interesting bubble case because the SOS is brutal.
48. BYU (13-5) – Nate Austin is my current favorite player.
This made my week.
49. Gonzaga (13-4) – Lost again at home to another average team…but they’ll probably be ranked again soon. SO OVERRATED.
50. Chattanooga (15-3, Southern Champ) – 15-3 and have beaten Dayton, Georgia and Illinois. Cinderella candidate.
13 Seeds
51. UAB (Conf USA Champ) – I still think Louisiana Tech may end up winning this conference, but UAB is off to a hot start.
52. Boise State (MWC Champ) – Amazingly, the MWC looks like a one bid league this year, unless something drastic happens.
53. Hawaii (Big West Champ) – Will battle with the Anteaters for the auto bid.
54. Stony Brook (America East Champ) – Jameel Warney. Beast.
14 Seeds
55. Bill & Mary (CAA Champ) – Some solid teams in the CAA, and that conference tourney is always fun to watch. Almost knocked off the Flyers.
56. Akron (MAC Champ) – This conference has been a crapshoot for years.
57. South Dakota State (Summit Champ) – This conference has turned into the battle of the Dakotas lately.
58. Belmont (OVC Champ) – Looks like Steve Prohm got out at the right time as Murray St. is 7-7.
15 Seeds
59. Yale (Ivy Champ) – Probably the class of the conference, but don’t count Harvard out.
60. High Point (Big South Champ) – John Brown. Also a beast.
61. Grand Canyon (WAC Champ) – Wins over SDSU and Houston aren’t horrible. If they don’t play in a stadium inside the actual Grand Canyon, then they shouldn’t be eligible for the tournament.
62. N. Florida (Atlantic Sun Champ) – Look out for too NJIT, too NJIT to quit. Hey Hey.
16 Seeds
63. Stephen F. Austin (Southland Champ) – Stone Cold struggling out of the gate.
64. Navy (Patriot Champ) – 1/23…Army/Navy. Fun.
65. Weber State (Big Sky Champ) – This conference is terrible.
66. Hampton (MEAC Champ) – Still love this guy.
67. Wagner (NEC Champ) – Like the SWAC, no one in the conference has a Top 100 RPI win.
68. Southern (SWAC Champ) – I guess?
HEAD VS GUT 
I think that we will see UNC as a no. 1 seed by the end of the season. Brice Johnson is an absolute beast. He had a monster game against FSU and then had eight impressive assists against Syracuse. Teams have really struggled to contain him so far. When you have a 30-15-10 threat, you have to like your chances.
Plus, UNC is chock-full of players that could put up quality minutes. This team looks like a true contender, not an inconsistent underachiever with issues in vital things like free throws and foul trouble like like we’ve seen in the past.
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