Selection Sunday for the NCAA men's basketball tournament is days away. But first, fans will be treated to Duke vs North Carolina III, plus other tickets to be punched.
The closer we get to the NCAA men's tournament, the more the excitement grows. Zion Williamson proved that on Thursday night.
Williamson, the true freshman and heir apparent to greatness, returned to the lineup for the Duke Blue Devils on Thursday night. And, even with a few weeks of being out due to a knee injury, there are no new superlatives to describe his play.
Marvelous. Magnificent. Unparalleled.
All aspects of Williamson's game were on display in Duke's ACC quarterfinal victory over Syracuse. He had highlight reel dunks. There were displays of Williamson's highly touted skills on offense (a perfect 13-13 from the field, 29 points). He also showed off on the other end of the court, with five steals and 14 total rebounds. Even with Duke's considerable talent, Williamson proved how much better the team is when he's on the court.
His return arrived at the perfect time. Thanks to the victory, and a victory by the North Carolina Tar Heels over Louisville, fans will be treated to Duke-UNC III.
This time, with more Williamson.
Williamson missed both of the matchups this season, outside of a few seconds in game one before his sneaker gave way. North Carolina won both of these games, sweeping Duke in the regular season for the first time since 2008-09.
Duke, it should be noted, has not gone 0-3 against a team in one season since they were swept by a Tim Duncan-led Wake Forest team in the mid-90's.
The winner of this semifinal game will likely secure a no. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, though even the loser might still snare one of the four spots. Gonzaga lost to Saint Mary's in the finals of the WCC tournament, meaning the overall top spot is up for grabs. Also factoring into final decisions will Virginia taking on Florida State in the other semifinal game.
All told, this final weekend promises to be interesting. Let the games begin.
Bubble teams
A hotly debated topic this time of year is about the multiple teams who should or should not be in the tournament. Should a 17-15 Indiana team be in? (No). How about a 18-14 Alabama team? (Maybe, especially if they pick up a quarterfinal victory in the SEC tournament today.)
Every season -- or at least it seems every season -- there is a team from a power conference with 17-19 wins who gets into the tournament. This is usually done by leaving a 24 to 26-win team from a lower-tier conference out of the tournament. This is a team who was likely upset in their conference tournament or were just beaten out for the title by a slightly better team.
There are three teams this season who came up just short in their conference tournaments. Three bubble teams that should be in the NCAA tourney but likely won't be. The Belmont Bruins (26-5) are one of these teams.
Three of Belmont's five losses were to teams that went a combined 51-11, including an OVC championship game loss to Murray State (who the Bruins defeated in the regular season). A fourth loss occurred to a likely tournament-bound Purdue team.
The fact the Bruins do have a couple of significant wins over the Lipscomb Bisons (25-7). The trouble here is that Lipscomb is also considered a bubble team.
Lipscomb fell to Liberty in the ASUN championship game. The Bisons do have a victory over a Big 12 team (TCU) and played Louisville close in a 72-68 loss. Unfortunately, close losses against these power programs don't seem to count for much and Lipscomb could very well be on the outside looking in.
The UNC Greensboro Spartans (28-6) had the unfortunate luck of playing in the same conference as Wofford (29-4) this season, losing three times to the nation's 20th-ranked team, including a loss in the Southern Conference championship game. The Spartans lost by only six to LSU.
Should these teams automatically be given opportunities simply because of their win-loss record? No, but they shouldn't be discounted simply because the front of their uniforms don't say Indiana, Oklahoma, or Ohio State.
My top ten
- Virginia 29-2
- North Carolina 27-5
- Kentucky 26-5
- Gonzaga 30-3
- Duke 27-5
- Tennessee 27-4
- Michigan State 26-6
- Michigan 26-5
- Houston 30-2
- Texas Tech 26-6
What to watch
The Mountain West conference could turn into a three-bid league if the Utah State Aggies or Nevada Wolf Pack fails to win the tournament title. Something that could have never been imagined when conference play began.
Nevada should be a lock to get in, no matter the outcome of the tournament. Utah State should be in as well, thanks to a victory over Saint Mary's earlier this season and a 26-6 record. Both the Wolf Pack and the Aggies won their quarterfinal games in the MW tourney.
Keep an eye on the SEC as well. Florida may have just sneaked into the tournament thanks to a last-second victory over the top-seeded LSU Tigers in the SEC tournament. The winner of a possible semifinal game between Tennessee and Kentucky will likely determine who lands a no. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Over in the A-10, a loss by top-seeded VCU in the quarterfinals likely knocked another bubble team out of the tournament. Things could get even more dicey if Davidson or Dayton, with 23 and 21 wins, respectively, fails to win the conference tournament.
Be sure to follow along with posts throughout the NCAA tournament.
picture credit: pixabay.com
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