Bracketology – Bracket Projection

Bracket Projection

(From games played through 3/12/22)

This is a projection of how the bracket will look on Selection Sunday – not if the tournament started now. I use my team ratings (based on how teams have played so far) to project how they will finish at the end of the conference tournaments.

Check out the Bracket Matrix to compare the bracketology projections of many bracketologists.

Bracket Projection

1Gonzaga1Arizona
16Jksnville St16Bryant
8Seton Hall8Ohio State
9N Carolina9Loyola-Chi
5Illinois5Connecticut
12UAB12Xavier/SMU
4Iowa4Houston
13Vermont13Chattanooga
6St Marys6Providence
11Davidson11Wyoming
3Texas Tech3UCLA
14Akron14Yale
7Alabama7USC
10Murray St10Michigan
2Kentucky2Tennessee
15Delaware15Wright State
1Kansas1Baylor
16TX A&M-CC/TX Southern16Norfolk St/CS Fullerton
8Iowa State8Boise State
9San Francisco9TX Christian
5Texas5LSU
12S Dakota St12Richmond
4Wisconsin4Arkansas
13Montana St13N Mex State
6Memphis6San Diego St
11Miami (FL)/Indiana11VA Tech
3Villanova3Purdue
14Longwood14Colgate
7Michigan St7Colorado St
10Creighton10Marquette
2Auburn2Duke
15Georgia St15St Peters

Overall Seeds

1Gonzaga
2Arizona
3Baylor
4Kansas
5Kentucky
6Tennessee
7Duke
8Auburn
9Texas Tech
10UCLA
11Purdue
12Villanova
13Iowa
14Houston
15Arkansas
16Wisconsin
17Illinois
18Connecticut
19LSU
20Texas
21St Marys
22Providence
23San Diego St
24Memphis
25Alabama
26USC
27Colorado St
28Michigan St
29Seton Hall
30Ohio State
31Boise State
32Iowa State
33N Carolina
34Loyola-Chi
35TX Christian
36San Francisco
37Murray St
38Michigan
39Marquette
40Creighton
41Davidson
42Wyoming
43Indiana
44Miami (FL)
45UAB
46SMU
47Xavier
48VA Tech
49S Dakota St
50Richmond
51Vermont
52Chattanooga
53N Mex State
54Montana St
55Akron
56Yale
57Colgate
58Longwood
59Delaware
60Wright State
61St Peters
62Georgia St
63Jksnville St
64Bryant
65CS Fullerton
66Norfolk St
67TX Southern
68TX A&M-CC

Last Four In

  • Indiana
  • Miami (FL)
  • SMU
  • Xavier

First Four Out

  • Oklahoma
  • Wake Forest
  • Notre Dame
  • Texas A&M

Next Four Out

  • Rutgers
  • North Texas
  • VCU
  • Dayton

62 thoughts on “Bracketology – Bracket Projection”

    1. BracketNinja Post author

      Great question. Thanks for asking. I have Boise St and CSU very close. My thought is that Boise State beating Wyoming and possibly San Diego State to win the conference tournament would give them the slight edge over a CSU team that loses to SD State.

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        1. BracketNinja Post author

          Thanks! I’m definitely better at predicting wins/losses than seeding, so we’ll see if the Selection Committee rewards Boise St with a better seed.

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        1. BracketNinja Post author

          Thanks, Adam. I appreciate it. I was right about UAB and USC (see comments below), too, but we’ll see how that translates to seeding tomorrow. I was wrong about Providence – they just kept winning.

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    1. BracketNinja Post author

      Great catch, Sean. Thank you for calling that out. Long story short, I’m trying to automate parts of my process, and that was the result of an error that is now fixed. I am projecting UAB to win their conference tournament. I agree, 11-seed is their ceiling.

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  3. Confused Trojan

    How is USC out?? They’re 25-4 … 10-3 against Q1 and Q2 … 9 true road wins … 12-2 road/neutral … 27 in NET, 28 in KP . By every conceivable measure, they’re in – maybe an 8 at worst.

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    1. BracketNinja Post author

      You’re totally right. Thank you for the message. I’ve corrected the mistake. I’m projecting USC to finish 1-3, including the conference tournament games. Huge game tonight!

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Great question! Virginia’s resume is a little bit better than NC State’s right now. The Duke win (by 2) is nice. NC State beat em by 22. I’ve been expecting Virginia losses, but they keep skating by on 1-3 pt wins. They’re my first team out right now. My bubble group of teams is large and could change a lot based on what happens in the next two weeks.

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      1. TJ

        This projection for Virginia is out of whack. Granted when you wrote it, NC State hadn’t been pounded by Duke.

        I understand that you were projecting Virginia to lose – but they keep winning. At some point, probably now, I think you need to adjust your methodology. Virginia is currently 22-7, 14-5 in the ACC (controlling their destiny for second place), with three wins over teams in the top 10 at the time they played, and ranked in both major polls.

        I’d be willing to bet no team with a resume like that has ever been left out of tournament.

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Thank you for the comment. I appreciate your passion for SoCon and completeness. I’m in the minority by projecting UNC Greensboro to win the conference tournament. I’ve got them as a 13 seed. I used an alternate spelling to save space, but they’re in there.

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  6. John Smith

    This bracket is laughably bad sorry to say. Some of the teams you leave out are mind baffling (Arizona State). I looked at Bracket Matrix standings and this bracket has performed near the bottom of all bracketologists the last couple of years, so take this one with a big grain of salt folks.

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Thank you for your comment and feedback. It looks like Arizona State is in a good spot, doesn’t it (currently 1st in the Pac-12)? According to my ratings and power scores, they’re not actually that good. I project they will lose 3 of their last 4 reg season games and lose to Colorado or Oregon in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament. Selection Sunday is 19 days away. There is still enough time for AZ St to prove who they really are and lots of other bubble teams to finish strong.

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      1. John Smith

        This is a really poor answer. Have you even watched their games this season? If the program you’re using has contributed to you finishing bottom 5 in bracket matrix back to back years, it may be time for a refresh.

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        1. gotstremph Post author

          Thank you for your concern. You’re right, I’m a below average bracketologist. My specialty and focus is analyzing the tournament, not predicting who will be selected. But I do aspire to improve my bracketology skills and hope that your criticism is not meant to discourage me from continuing my journey. Tread softly, John, because you tread on my dreams.

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  7. HTPinUtah

    Objectively PIttsburgh is trending up and has a nice last 6 games. Q index is 78/0.67 and should improve. Q1 2/6; Q2 2/1; Q3 6/1; Q4 5/1. 1-2 bad losses (Nichols and Wake) but they may be in Q3 soon. 3/3 down the stretch and 1-2 wins in the ACCT (likely good wins)….4th-5th place in the ACC may get them in…Again – objective numbers are not bad.

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    1. HTPinUtah

      Some very nice OOC wins too.. FSU, KState, Northwestern, Rutgers. Beat UNC twice. Played Duke and Louisville close (should have won Louisville).

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  8. Mike

    How is Creighton both an 11 seed and first 4 out? Also interesting that you have Seton Hall nowhere in sight (and I believe you’re the only one on bracketmatrix that has them out right now)…I’m assuming those 2 things are related?

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Great catch! Thank you, Mike. I’ve corrected my First Four and Next Four Out lists. A lot of positioning will get sorted out this week. I’m looking forward to seeing how the Big East Tournament plays out. Seton Hall is playing really well lately. Do you think they’ll avenge their 2OT loss to Georgetown on Thursday?

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      1. Bryan

        Why have St. Mary’s in the tournament? They don’t have a single win against another at-large team. They’re 3-9 against quadrant 1 and 2 teams while Seton Hall has 7 wins against at-large teams in your bracket and is 12-10 against Q1/Q2 teams.

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        1. gotstremph Post author

          Thanks for the question, Bryan. A good case can be made for Seton Hall. It seems most bracketologists consider them a lock, which I assume would remain the case even if they lose to Georgetown Thursday night. Looking at Seton Hall’s rank in several of the key advanced metric rating systems gives me pause – especially their NET rank. NET: 62, BPI: 58, KenPom: 59, Sagarin: 51. St. Mary’s is ranked significantly higher in each one (NET: 37, BPI: 39, KenPom: 33, Sagarin: 42). I know the Selection Committee will not only be looking at Q1/Q2 losses, so I’m trying to take everything into consideration. Anyways, these are both bubble teams to me and I’ll be shuffling and sorting those teams until Sunday. I wouldn’t be surprised if St. Mary’s wins tonight and get’s an auto-bid.

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      2. Mike

        I think they’re the better team, but Georgetown will be the more desperate team so it could go either way. I’m in agreement with the majority that Seton Hall is pretty much a lock at this point. I agree that their numbers that you listed below are slightly concerning, but they also have top wins that the majority of the bubble simply can’t compete with. If you look at their scores, they just play a lot of close games, which is related to why their efficiency numbers don’t look very impressive. And I know it’s no longer an official criteria, but their old RPI rank is 46 which would generally have them in fairly safe territory.

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      1. gotstremph Post author

        Thanks for the comment, Oliver. I know. I agree it’s shocking and hard to believe that Gonzaga would be seeded so low. Thank you for reminding me how biased people (including many bracketologists and even Selection Committee members) can be.
        My metrics and models help eliminate bias, and this early in the season, I rely on them heavily. Gonzaga is not as good as they have been in recent seasons. Some of the other top WCC teams have improved, making an undefeated conference schedule less likely. I’m excited to see how Gonzaga does in the next two months, especially given what my models are saying at the moment.

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  9. Henry J Muto

    Kentucky as a 3 seed was laughable. The committee almost gave them a 1 seed today. Probably should stick with ranking the teams as they stand now and not try and predict 6 weeks down the road you would come out looking better though your 47th ranked out of 60 newbies on the site so not sure that will help you out either. I scored more points than anyone 2 out of the last 4 years I don’t have a blog or get paid like Jerry Palm (who I have beat 13 out of the 15 years ) but I post my seed list on multiple sites before the selection Show each year.

    PS Nebraska lost their 2nd best player probably drop them from the bracket now.

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Thank you for the comment. While my specialty and expertise lie in analyzing the teams once they’re in the tournament, I’ve still got a bit of room to grow as a bracketologist.

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  10. Henry J Muto

    Kentucky as a 3 seed was laughable. They have been a 2 seed for a while now and the committee almost had them as a 1 seed toady (5th overall).

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      That’s a great question, Matthew. Thank you for asking. After a 5-game losing streak, we should definitely be questioning Nebraska’s tournament-worthiness. My quick answer: I think Nebraska is a better team than their record shows, and I project them to finish 9-11 (or better) in the Big Ten, one of the strongest conferences this year. Other metrics are in line with my assessment of Nebraska (NET: 33, BPI: 22, POM: 27, SAG: 21).

      Not so quick answer: My bracket is a prediction of what the bracket will look like on Selection Sunday, not if the tournament started today. I mostly use my own team ratings to project future performance. My numbers indicate Nebraska is good enough to warrant a 6-9 seed, so even according to my own numbers, a 6-seed is probably too optimistic. So I’ll agree with you on that point. My methodology also keeps me from overreacting to a loss or even a recent string of losses. Most bracketologists overreact to “what happened yesterday.” Only 5 days ago, Nebraska was in 91 out of 99 brackets. Now they’re in 62 of 102. All that said, all models are wrong and sometimes very wrong. We have a month of basketball left and Nebraska can get back on track tonight against Maryland (they’re currently a 2.5 point favorite). Let’s see how it goes…

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Great question, David. I use my statistical models to project how a team will perform between now and Selection Sunday. As we now are only a week and a half out, there is less uncertainty and I can focus more on what the committee will do. Your timing is perfect – I am shifting several projections tonight, and FSU will be a team with more movement than the rest (along with Miami, Butler, and Arkansas).

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      1. BleedinGold

        Your statistical models are flawed.

        During the Early Release by the committee on Feb 9th, Purdue was ranked as the Top 3 seed. Since then their only loss was on the road @Maryland. Which won’t hurt them considering everyone around them has since lost as many or more games than them….

        Does your model have them losing the last two (@Minn @NW), and then dropping the first game of the BTT? That’s the only way they even sniff a 5 seed.

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        1. gotstremph Post author

          I agree. My model is flawed. I’d go so far as to totally agree with the great statistician George Box, who famously noted that all models are wrong (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_models_are_wrong). I’m not sure why the BracketMatrix was showing Purdue as a 5-seed. I’ve had them as a 4 and close to a 3 for over a week. I definitely don’t see Purdue falling below the 4 line, and their performance over the next two weeks will show whether they should be bumped up to a 3-seed. Thanks for the comment.

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Thanks for the question. I agree Washington has some good wins. ASU has now lost more conference games than they’ve won, so that one’s losing some luster. There are a lot of teams this year with multiple good wins. Looking past the good wins, they’ve had close games against much weaker opponents and too many of their losses were not close. Another thing hurting the Huskies is how the Pac-12 isn’t as strong this year as it often is. If they finish the season strong, they’ll definitely make the tournament. But their performance against some of the middle-range teams isn’t giving me a high level of confidence that they’ll finish strong. I’m excited to see how it plays out!

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Good question, Brian. Thank you for your comment! 103 out of 108 brackets in the matrix have them in. If today was Selection Sunday, I’d have them in too, but we still have a month of basketball left. Providence has a tough final stretch, where they will most likely go 3-4, to finish the season 19-12 (10-8). They have some good wins, but so do lots of other teams. I consider scoring margin, and Providence had some close wins against weaker opponents (Belmont-1 pt, Rider-4 pts, Brown-5 pts, Stony Brook-2 pts). They’re sitting at a 10-seed in the matrix right now, and losing 4 of their last 7 and an early exit from the conference tournament would very well knock them out.

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      1. Brian

        Wow so you are banking on them losing 5 out of 8, even though they are 7-4 with the third toughest sos so far in the BE.
        Pretty ridiculous.. only 1 team from the big east has not gotten in with 10 wins in the last 5+ years… andy you think pc would be one even though they would finish the year with 5+ quad 1 wins, an rpi of around 40 and sos under 20.

        Okay so this isn’t worth my time.

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        1. gotstremph Post author

          Probably more like 5 out of 9 (they’ll win in the first round of the Big East tournament). They might still make it. You’re right about the 10-win trend. Last year was the perfect example. 4 teams were 10-8 in conference and all made it in. 11-seed Providence lost their play-in game. 6-Creighton, 9-Seton Hall, and 10-Marquette all lost in the first round. Maybe the committee will think twice this time?
          Seriously, though, it’s really too soon to say Providence is a lock. Please check back in 4 weeks.

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  15. TJ

    It is time to adjust your team rankings when you are consistently sliding Duke up to the top line. They lost to Virginia — you keep them on the top line. They lose to St. Johns — you keep them on the top line.

    Any ranking system that still projects them to be seeded ahead of Virginia is just wrong.

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Thanks for the comment, TJ. I agree that I need to adjust. In fact, I was in the middle of updating when you commented. I disagree, however, that projecting Duke ahead of Virginia is absolutely wrong. There’s still a whole month of the season left before Selection Sunday. I’ll agree with “probably wrong” but not “just wrong.”

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  16. GPJ73

    Curious why you would have Old Dominion – with its zero wins over the top 100 RPI or KenPom – over teams like Alabama and Missouri … or, frankly, any of the other teams in your first 8 out. Their resume is *terrible*.

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      That’s a really good question. Thank you for bringing that up. This far away from Selection Sunday, my projections are still largely (though not entirely) based on my model’s team ratings, and Old Dominion scores well in a lot of the key team stats that go into that calculation. As we head down the stretch, I will shift more to a prediction of how the committee will make their selections. Old Dominion’s team rating is close behind MTSU’s rating for tops in C-USA, so I wouldn’t be surprised if ODU wound up winning the C-USA Tournament and got the automatic bid.

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      Great question, Ed. If Selection Sunday was yesterday, Virginia would’ve been given a 1-seed, without a doubt. This projection is my best guess on how the bracket will look on March 11th. Duke and Virginia are really close, which last week proved. My model helps look at the whole season and not put too much weight on any single game. Given the season performance of all teams to this point, Duke scores a little bit better than Virginia. I’m really excited to watch the ACC conference race down the stretch.
      Thanks for the question. Please check back later to see how my projections look as we get closer to Selection Sunday.

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  20. You can't Forecast

    I think you need a new computer. Seton hall is a lock and you have them as the. Next four out. LMAO…..every other site has them easily in. There are other laughable seedings in your bracket as well. Too many to mention. LOL

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    1. gotstremph Post author

      You can’t, thank for your comment! You’re totally right about my projection for Seton Hall. I based my projections (maybe too much) on my computer ratings for all of the teams. I think my model may need some tweaking to account more for strength of schedule. Nonetheless, playing Villanova close and winning by 9 @ Hawaii isn’t impressing me much. I think I might be the one laughing when Seton Hall makes their early exit from the tournament. Joking aside, I will be adjusting my bracket projection soon to how I think the committee will make their decisions. Stay tuned! And thanks, again, for the comment!

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      1. You can't Forecast

        Joking aside, both providence and Michigan state are getting in as well. also Houston is not making the tournament. I believe you have them as a 9 seed. Just a few more observations

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