This week's bracket could be called "As the Bubble Churns." Three teams dropped out of the bracket since Monday, including one that won its only game this week. That's life on the bubble though. Other than winning your conference tournament, nothing is a sure thing. Winning may not even hold your spot because you are at the mercy of what other teams do.
Boise State's win on Thursday not only knocked the Aggies out of first place in the Mountain West but also knocked them out of the bracket entirely. Utah State had been in as the projected automatic qualifier from the MWC, just short of being among the group of at-large teams in the bracket.
The Broncos moved in as an at-large team. San Diego State is now the AQ in the Mountain West. That's because I use the team with the fewest conference losses and break ties with the NET. I have had to make a couple of exceptions at times this season to deal with teams that have played much fewer games than most of the league.
Seton Hall beat DePaul on Wednesday night and fell out of the bracket anyway. Minnesota fell out as well after losing its eighth road game in eight tries at Indiana.
Maryland jumped into the field now that it has a good enough overall record to get picked. The Terrapins knocked off Nebraska on back-to-back nights to move to 12-10 and into the bracket.
Wichita State defeated Houston on Thursday night to take over first place in the American Athletic Conference. The Shockers are new to the bracket as well and avoid being on the wrong side of the cutline by being projected as the automatic qualifier.
Showdown of No. 1 seeds
For the first time this season, two teams that are No. 1 seeds in my bracket will face off. Michigan travels to Ohio State on Sunday, but there may not be much more on the line that bragging rights for Michigan. The Wolverines have built a cushion between themselves and the No. 4 overall Buckeyes that would withstand even a loss in Columbus, Ohio.
Ohio State may not be so fortunate if it loses. Illinois, the highest No. 2 seed, is right on the Buckeyes' heels and may jump past OSU to the top line of the bracket if the Illini can win at Minnesota on Saturday.
Bracketology top seeds
Check out Palm's latest bracket, full field of 68 and all the teams on the bubble on the Bracketology hub.
Conference tournaments tweaked
The Atlantic 10 announced a change to its conference tournament dates on Thursday. The league moved the preliminary rounds from March 10-13 to March 3-6. Those games will still be played in Richmond, Virginia, but he championship game has been moved to Dayton, Ohio.
There is a story out this week that indicates that Gonzaga and BYU have not yet committed to play in the West Coast Conference Tournament. One thing I learned last weekend is that there are only two conferences that do not require schools to participate in conference tournaments if they are held. I do not know which two those are, but perhaps the WCC is one of them.
The NCAA announced last week that conferences have until Feb. 26 to determine how they will determine their automatic qualifier. It would be problematic for the selection committee and a bad look for the WCC if it hosted a watered-down conference tournament and awarded its automatic qualifier to a team that had no other chance of getting in.
