The “semi” final bracket is up to start Selection Sunday. There are still five conference championship games before the NCAA releases the real bracket and four of those games could cause a change in the final bracket this afternoon.
The most potentially impactful of those is the American Athletic Conference title game between top-seed Memphis and No. 3 seed UAB. The Blazers’ only path to the NCAA Tournament is to win the AAC automatic bid. Memphis is in the field win or lose, so a UAB win steals a bid. In my bracket, it will be Boise State getting bounced with a victory by the Blazers.
There was one bid stolen on Saturday. Colorado State won the Mountain West Tournament, beating Boise State 69-56. That knocked Xavier out of my bracket, but it could end up being that the bid that was stolen came from the Rams’ own league. The Broncos and San Diego State are my last two teams in.
March Madness® is better with friends, especially when you beat them! Get your bracket pools ready now and invite your friends, family and co-workers to play.
The SEC Tournament title game between Tennessee and Florida has something at stake as well. I believe that game is a battle for the fourth No. 1 spot in the bracket. The winner will be on the top line and in the West Region and the loser is fifth overall seed and the No. 2 seed in the Midwest.
Bracketology top seeds
Check out Palm’s bracket and full field of 68 at the Bracketology hub.
Other title games could change bracket
The Big Ten Tournament championship game between Michigan and Wisconsin features two No. 3 seeds facing off, so nothing changes in the bracket as a result of that game.
The other two tournament championship games are in one-bid leagues. George Mason faces VCU in the Atlantic 10 and Yale takes on Cornell in the Ivy League. VCU and Yale are the top seeds and currently in the bracket, but need to win the title games.
2025 March Madness: Conference tournament scores, automatic bids, tickets punched to Big Dance, brackets
David Cobb
Bottom of bracket not set yet
The first four teams out are Xavier, Texas, North Carolina and Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons have not been on the bubble for a while. The Longhorns and Tar Heels each have something in their résumé that would be historically bad if they were selected.
Texas is 19-15 overall, but just 12-15 against teams in the top three quadrants. No team has ever received an at-large bid with that poor of a record in that group.
North Carolina is 1-12 in Quad 1 games. That is a lot of chances to prove themselves and in a way, the Tar Heels did. That would be a record for futility for NCAA Tournament teams that played that many Quad 1 games.
This season ended up being a pretty good example of why expansion isn’t necessary. It makes a better case for contraction. Let’s go back to 64!
SEC has 13 in field
There are a record 13 teams from the SEC in the bracket and nine from the Big Ten. There are only three from the ACC, while the Mountain West has five. However, the Mountain West also has the last two teams in the bracket, so they are going to be pretty nervous on Selection Sunday.
No matter what the committee gives us, enjoy the NCAA Tournament!
