Her Hoop Stats Bracketology: Selection Sunday Edition
Where do the top-16 seeds stand ahead of the Big 12 championship?
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Happy Selection Sunday! The NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball March Madness bracket will be revealed at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN tonight.
Plenty has changed since the committee’s last preview of the top-16 seeds on Feb. 23. Last weekend’s conference tournaments created chaos among the top two seed lines. This weekend, the Big 12 is still changing things up on the three and four-seed lines. Sunday’s championship game between Texas and Iowa State could still create some movement.
Here’s where I project things to fall among the top 16 seeds following the Big 12 semifinals:
And here’s how that looks by region:
Perhaps the most interesting debate surrounding this year’s Selection Sunday is who is the most deserving of a one-seed. South Carolina and Indiana have locked up the top two overall seeds, but you can make a case for everyone in the three through seven range to stake claim to a one-seed.
Ultimately, Virginia Tech and Iowa win out on the heels of their strong performances down the final stretch of the season. The Hokies have now won 11 straight games and dominated the ACC Tournament, winning their three games en route to the title by an average margin of over 18 points. Virginia Tech is now the owner of 10 top-25 NET wins.
Iowa closed out its regular season with a win over Indiana and followed it up with a Big Ten championship including a victory over Maryland and a demolition of Ohio State. The Hawkeyes, now one of the hottest teams in the country, are likely to be rewarded for their recent success against three teams among the top-16 seeds.
Here’s a look at all the potential one-seed resumes:
While the one and two seed lines are set at this point, expect the three and four lines to shift a bit based on today’s Big 12 Championship. Those shifts will also impact regional pairings. Keep an eye on Twitter for updates ahead of tonight’s selection show.
Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats Newsletter. If you like our work, be sure to check out our stats site, our podcast, and our social media accounts on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.
Her Hoop Stats Bracketology: Selection Sunday Edition
Everyone has penciled in VT as a 1-seed since the ACC tournament win, and as a Hokies fan I love that. But every time I see the resumes side by side I wonder why UCONN isn’t the most obvious choice for a 1-seed. 1 or 2, doesn’t really matter but I genuinely can’t understand why the consensus is what it is.