A few notes on Monday's bracket:
* To avoid a conference matchup before the regional semifinals, Georgetown was bumped down to the top No. 6 seed rather than bottom No. 5 seed.
* Kentucky went from out of the field to a No. 10 seed after a pair of road victories. Oklahoma State leaped from a No. 10 seed to a No. 7 seed after winning at Kansas, and it could be argued the Cowboys warranted a spot on the No. 6 line. Not many teams are going to climb more than a couple lines a week moving forward, but it's still doable.
* Yes, Illinois is still in the field even though the Illini is doing a spot-on impression of itself from last year. With six losses in seven games, though, Illinois isn't going to hang in there much longer without turning things around.
* So why is the Illini still in the field? Mainly because of all the flawed teams hanging around the edge of the field. From teams who have yet to secure a victory of note (Brigham Young, Memphis) to teams who faced soft nonconference schedules (Arizona State, Maryland), filling out the final three spots in the field might best be accomplished by drawing names out of a hat.
The bracket:
EAST REGION
Philadelphia
(1) Duke vs. (16) MID-EASTERN/North Carolina Central
(8) Virginia Commonwealth vs. (9) Mississippi
San Jose, Calif.
(4) Kansas State vs. (13) WESTERN ATHLETIC/Louisiana Tech
(5) Minnesota vs. (12) Arizona State/Brigham Young
Auburn Hills, Mich.
(3) Michigan State vs. (14) SOUTHERN/Davidson
(6) San Diego State vs. (11) CONFERENCE USA/Southern Mississippi
Philadelphia
(2) BIG EAST/Syracuse vs. (15) IVY/Harvard
(7) Wichita State vs. (10) Baylor
MIDWEST REGION
Auburn Hills, Mich.
(1) Michigan vs. (16) NORTHEAST/Bryant-SOUTHWESTERN/Southern
(8) Oklahoma vs. (9) UCLA
Austin, Texas
(4) ATLANTIC 10/Butler vs. (13) SUMMIT/North Dakota State
(5) Cincinnati vs. (12) SUN BELT/Middle Tennessee
Salt Lake City
(3) WEST COAST/Gonzaga vs. (14) HORIZON/Valparaiso
(6) Pittsburgh vs. (11) Illinois
Austin, Texas
(2) ATLANTIC COAST/Miami vs. (15) BIG WEST/Long Beach State
(7) UNLV vs. (10) Kentucky
SOUTH REGION
Kansas City, Mo.
(1) BIG 12/Kansas vs. (16) COLONIAL/Northeastern
(8) Notre Dame vs. (9) North Carolina
Dayton, Ohio
(4) Ohio State vs. (13) MID-AMERICAN/Akron
(5) Oregon vs. (12) Saint Mary's
Lexington, Ky.
(3) Louisville vs. (14) SOUTHLAND/Stephen F. Austin
(6) N.C. State vs. (11) La Salle
Lexington, Ky.
(2) SOUTHEASTERN/Florida vs. (15) ATLANTIC SUN/Florida Gulf Coast
(7) Wisconsin vs. (10) Colorado State
WEST REGION
Dayton, Ohio
(1) BIG TEN/Indiana vs. (16) BIG SKY/Montana-BIG SOUTH/Charleston Southern
(8) Missouri vs. (9) Iowa State
Kansas City, Mo.
(4) Marquette vs. (13) PATRIOT/Bucknell
(5) MISSOURI VALLEY/Creighton vs. (12) Colorado/Memphis
Salt Lake City
(3) MOUNTAIN WEST/New Mexico vs. (14) AMERICA EAST/Stony Brook
(6) Georgetown vs. (11) OHIO VALLEY/Belmont
San Jose, Calif.
(2) PAC-12/Arizona vs. (15) METRO ATLANTIC/Niagara
(7) Oklahoma State vs. (10) Saint Louis
Last four in: Arizona State, Brigham Young, Memphis, Colorado
Last four out: Charlotte, Maryland, Air Force, Temple
Next four out: Massachusetts, Boise State, Alabama, St. John's
Moving in: Brigham Young, Bryant, Kentucky, Memphis, Saint Louis
Moving out: Maryland, Robert Morris, Temple, Villanova, Wyoming
Conference call: Big East (7), Big Ten (7), Big 12 (6), Pac-12 (5), Atlantic Coast (4), Atlantic 10 (4), Mountain West (4), Southeastern (4), West Coast (3), Conference USA (2), Missouri Valley (2)
--- Patrick Stevens
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