The Athletic has stay protection of the 2025 Men’s March Madness Selection Show
(Editor’s observe: This text is a part of the Bracket Central collection, an inside take a look at the run-up to the boys’s & girls’s NCAA Tournaments, together with evaluation and picks in the course of the tournaments.)
Pencils down, please.
That is the ultimate guess on what the NCAA selection committee will do earlier than it lastly offers the solutions we crave tonight in among the finest moments every year in American sports activities. Late curveballs occur, and Colorado State unleashed one by deciding to simply exit and win the entire darn Mountain West tournament. The runner-up, Boise State, additionally has been on a tear, and the projection here’s a league that advantages from each runs and will get 5 groups within the subject of 68.
That will be greater than the Huge East and ACC. And it comes right here on the expense of the most effective convention — Texas falls to the primary crew out, dropping the SEC’s file variety of bids to 13 (poor SEC). Xavier and North Carolina additionally end simply out of the sphere. It’s definitely attainable that any of these three groups may slide in on the expense of Boise State. Indiana, too, may find yourself on both facet of the bubble.
Debate the numbers and what ought to matter most all you need. Simply bear in mind, the people who find themselves choosing these groups begin with these conversations after which dig deeper on each crew. Additionally, they’re people with biases, who forged infinite digital votes, who could have a problem with the Huge East simply getting 4 bids, or with a blue blood like North Carolina not getting credit score for scheduling so ambitiously.
Bear in mind, if UAB beats Memphis on Sunday within the AAC title sport, lop one other crew off the bracket. If George Mason beats VCU, that’s (in all probability) two. The Rams ought to be good for an at-large.
Amongst a number of adjustments on this closing bracket, Florida moves up to the No. 3 overall seed and into the Midwest, with Houston taking the West. That high line is ready. St. John’s strikes as much as a No. 2 seed and into the Midwest as effectively.
And although Tennessee could not love the concept of spilling its guts within the SEC title sport in opposition to the Gators with no No. 1 seed as a reward, the Vols’ work in Nashville has earned them an in depth journey to Lexington, Ky., for the primary weekend. And a possible sport there with Memphis. Convert that layup, committee, and also you get an A-plus.
| First 4 Out | Subsequent 4 Out | Final 4 In | Final 4 Byes |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Texas |
Nebraska |
San Diego State |
Arkansas |
|
North Carolina |
Dayton |
Oklahoma |
Vanderbilt |
|
Xavier |
UC Irvine |
Boise State |
West Virginia |
|
Ohio State |
Wake Forest |
Indiana |
Utah State |
Multi-bid conferences
| League | Bids |
|---|---|
|
SEC |
13 |
|
Huge Ten |
9 |
|
Huge 12 |
8 |
|
Mountain West |
5 |
|
Huge East |
4 |
|
ACC |
3 |
|
West Coast |
2 |
The Bracket Central collection is sponsored by E*Commerce from Morgan Stanley.
The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Sponsors haven’t any management over or enter into the reporting or modifying course of and don’t evaluate tales earlier than publication.
(Photograph of Colorado State: David Becker / Getty Photos)
Joe Rexrode is a senior author for The Athletic overlaying faculty soccer. He beforehand labored at The Tennessean, Detroit Free Press and Lansing State Journal, and coated the Pyeongchang, Rio and London Olympics for USA At this time. Observe Joe on Twitter @joerexrode
