The first two weeks of conference play in college basketball have felt a bit like a changing of the guard, at least for this season, in some ways. Already, both North Carolina and Kansas have stumbled, and the Jayhawks are dealing with a number of issues heading into a Big 12 slate that is only getting tougher. That is reflected with a little slip in this Bracketology.
On the other hand, two potential elites have emerged in two of the top conferences in America. Both Nebraska and Vanderbilt are still unbeaten after collecting very impressive wins last week. Mark Byington's Commodores knocked off Alabama at home — the first of two losses on the week for the Tide — and Nebraska got a pair of gritty road wins over tournament-caliber teams in Ohio State and Nebraska.
Elsewhere in the Big Ten, Michigan took a stunning loss to a seemingly resurgent Wisconsin club, leaving Nebraska as the Big Ten AQ in the middle of January. Who had that on the bingo card?
As the state of the conferences start to take shape, let's dive into what the current March Madness bracket projection looks like in th latest Bracketology.
Bold = Automatic Qualifier
Note – Now that conference play is in full swing, the AQ for each conference is given to the team in first place in the conference standings as of the morning of Monday, Jan. 12.
West Region
1. Arizona
16. Merrimack/NC Central
8. Miami (FL)
9. St. Mary's
5. Virginia
12. Utah Valley
4. Alabama
13. East Tennessee State
6. Utah State
11. Miami (OH)
3. BYU
14. Navy
7. Villanova
10. Texas A&M
2. Purdue
15. Austin Peay
Midwest Region
1. Michigan
16. Dartmouth
8. St. John's
9. Auburn
5. Louisville
12. Murray State
4. Texas Tech
13. UNC Wilmington
6. Georgia
11. Oklahoma State/New Mexico
3. Houston
14. Tulane
7. Tennessee
10. NC State
2. Gonzaga
15. Nicholls
East Region
1. UConn
16. Long Island
8. Saint Louis
9. UCF
5. Arkansas
12. Liberty
4. Michigan State
13. UC Irvine
6. Kansas
11. George Mason
3. Nebraska
14. Portland State
7. Iowa
10. SMU
2. Vanderbilt
15. Southern Miss
South Region
1. Iowa State
16. UMass Lowell/Arkansas Pine-Bluff
8. Seton Hall
9. Indiana
5. Florida
12. High Point
4. North Carolina
13. Wright State
6. Clemson
11. USC/LSU
3. Illinois
14. North Dakota State
7. Kentucky
10. Wisconsin
2. Duke
15. UT Martin
Bubble Watch
Last Four Byes: NC State, SMU, Texas A&M, Wisconsin
Last Four In: USC, LSU, Oklahoma State, New Mexico
First Four Out: Ohio State, UCLA, Missouri, Baylor
Next Four Out: Oklahoma, Virginia Tech, TCU, Texas
Multi-bid leagues
SEC – 10
Big Ten – 9
Big 12 – 8
ACC – 8
Big East – 4
WCC – 2
Mountain West – 2
Atlantic 10 – 2
Games of the Week
Tuesday, Jan. 13 – Virginia at Louisville
Tuesday, Jan. 13 – Iowa State at Kansas
Tuesday, Jan. 13 – UConn at Seton Hall
Wednesday, Jan. 14 – Iowa at Purdue
Wednesday, Jan. 14 – Vanderbilt at Texas
Saturday, Jan. 17 – Kentucky at Tennessee
Saturday, Jan. 17 – Virginia at SMU
Saturday, Jan. 17 – Iowa at Indiana
Saturday, Jan. 17 – Arkansas at Georgia
Saturday, Jan. 17 – BYU at Texas Tech
Biggest storylines to watch
This will be a bit of a prove-it week for Ryan Odom and Virginia, as the Cavaliers seem to be somewhat revived with a 14-2 record in mid-January. However, a pair of road games against NCAA Tournament teams await Virginia with trips to Louisville and SMU coming.
Iowa State comes to Allen Fieldhouse on Tuesday night, and it's time for the Jayhawks to show some mettle. Coming back to beat TCU in truly improbable fashion last week was impressive and showed heart, but that same kind of performance against the unbeaten Cyclones will get Bill Self and company run off the court. On top of that, the Darryn Peterson injury/cramping storyline is not going away anytime soon until the superstar guard can make it all the way through a game.
Texas is in a bit of an interesting spot after standing tall to get a shocking win over Alabama on the road, responding to Sean Miller's callout in the best way possible. Now, the Longhorns are squarely on the bubble and will get another chance to boost their resume with a home game against undefeated Vanderbilt on Wednesday night. Did Miller's comments stick, or was it just a one-time response from his team?
The final team to watch this week is Iowa, which is still kind of finding itself in the hierarchy of the Big Ten in its first season under Ben McCollum. Bennett Stirtz is one of the best guards in the country, but his efficiency really floundered in losses to Minnesota and Illinois this week while defenses threw a ton of bodies at him. The rest of the roster failed to carry the load offensively, which could be a big issue moving forward. The Hawkeyes have two brutal road games coming against Purdue and Indiana with a possible slide looming.
