Bring On The Cats

BLOGGING THE BRACKET: Midwest Region

2010-03-16T05:00:22Z

The Jayhawks are the best team in the hardest region. Will they be able to win their second national championship in three years?

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As you might have noticed, I went back and added predictions for all games in the East Region, courtesy of RealTimeRPI, Ken Pomeroy and Jeff Sagarin. I'll continue doing that for each region, of course.

Follow the jump for discussion of the Midwest Region, a.k.a. the Bracket of Death.

Previous Entry:

East Region

The Teams

The Sites

Milwaukee, Wis.
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Providence, R.I.
Spokane, Wash.
St. Louis, Mo. (Sweet Sixteen | Elite Eight)

The Breakdown

No. 1 Kansas (32-2) vs. No. 16 Lehigh (22-10)
March 18 | 8:30 p.m. | Oklahoma City

Why the Death Bracket, you might ask? Well, surely you've heard the wailing and gnashing of teeth out of Lawrence by now. If not, here's a brief recap. And if that's not salty enough for you, this should do it.

Yes, the committee did Kansas no favors with this (rock) chalky field. Despite being the No. 1 overall seed, a reward that theoretically should carry with it the worst No. 2, 4 and 6 seeds in the tournament, Kansas instead drew:

No. 2 seed Ohio State, a Big Ten co-champion that many projected as a potential No. 1 seed, with the likely National Player of the Year, Evan Turner;
No. 3 Georgetown, a team that beat Duke, Syracuse and Villanova, and has the talent to reach a Final Four;
No. 4 Maryland, the ACC co-champion, featuring ACC Player of the Year Greivis Vasquez;
No. 5 Michigan State, another Big Ten co-champion that beat the Jayhawks twice last season;
No. 6 Tennessee and No. 7 Oklahoma State, teams that already beat the Jayhawks this season.

Granted, KU only has to face two of those teams, but if it makes the Final Four, it definitely will have earned it.

In the Hawk fight, though, Lehigh should present no trouble.

GAMER: Kansas 80, Lehigh 62
KenPom: Kansas 90, Lehigh 63
Sagarin: Kansas 86, Lehigh 59

No. 2 Ohio State (27-7) vs. No. 15 UCSB (20-9)
March 19 | 8:35 p.m. | Milwaukee

Well, I don't know too much about UCSB, a team Joe Lunardi projected us to play for the longest time.

But I do know that Ohio State beat Minnesota by 30 just the other day, then Minnesota was invited to the tournament.

I know that Evan Turner is a freakishly good player. And I know that Thad Matta has a pretty good history in this event, with multiple teams.

Don't look for a 15-over-2 upset here. (Heck, don't look for one anywhere — it's pretty darn rare.)

GAMER: Ohio State 72, UCSB 61
KenPom: Ohio State 76, UCSB 58
Sagarin: Ohio State 78, UCSB 65

No. 3 Georgetown (23-10) vs. No. 14 Ohio (21-14)
March 18 | 6:25 p.m. | Providence

Ohio is the first of three consecutive teams that won their conference tournaments in upset fashion and now will face top-seeded teams in the first round.

Don't look for the Cinderella story to continue in this game. Georgetown came within a hair's breadth of winning the Big East Tournament and is much better than its record.

GAMER: Georgetown 70, Ohio 61
KenPom: Georgetown 78, Ohio 66
Sagarin: Georgetown 79, Ohio 66

No. 4 Maryland (23-8) vs. No. 13 Houston (19-15)
March 19 | 2:50 p.m. | Jacksonville

Maryland beat Duke and most of the other ACC teams. Houston did approximately nothing until its conference tournament.

Nothing to see here. Move along.

GAMER: Maryland 78, Houston 65
KenPom: Maryland 90, Houston 76
Sagarin: Maryland 88, Houston 77

No. 5 Michigan State (24-8) vs. No. 12 New Mexico State (22-11)
March 19 | 6:20 p.m. | Spokane

Michigan State slid a bit toward the end of the season, but don't be fooled — this still is a very good team.

Furthermore, Tom Izzo's teams always play their best basketball in the NCAA Tournament and the Spartans will be a tough out for anybody, because of their hard-nosed defense.

Meanwhile, New Mexico State probably is a notch better than Houston or Ohio, but that isn't saying too much. When 12s upset 5s, it's usually because they are under-seeded. But 12s that win their conference tournaments in upsets typically are over-seeded, and the Aggies appear to be a perfect example of that.

No upset alerts for the top five seeds? Now you know why this is the Bracket of Death region.

GAMER: Michigan State 68, NMSU 63
KenPom: Michigan State 83, NMSU 71
Sagarin: Michigan State 76, NMSU 67

UPSET ALERT: No. 6 Tennessee (25-8) vs. No. 11 San Diego State (25-8)
March 18 | 8:45 p.m. | Providence

Tennessee and San Diego State have identical records, and while a casual observer might dismiss that by saying that Tennessee played in a better conference, I'm not so sure that's the case.

BYU and New Mexico were ranked for almost all of the season, and the Mountain West received four bids — same as the SEC did.

Yes, Tennessee beat Kansas and Kentucky, but both wins came at home. The Big Dance is played away from home, and I'm hard-pressed to point to one really good win the Volunteers had outside of Knoxville.

Meanwhile, San Diego State spent last week winning a "neutral" tournament against UNLV, on UNLV's home floor, in order to secure a bid that might not otherwise have come. That "win or you're done" attitude continues this week, and it should serve the Aztecs well.

Plus, Steve Fisher has done this before. Anyone remember the Fab Five?

GAMER: Tennessee 69, SDSU 66
KenPom: Tennessee 65, SDSU 64
Sagarin: Tennessee 67, SDSU 64

UPSET ALERT: No. 7 Oklahoma State (22-10) vs. No. 10 Georgia Tech (22-12)
March 19 | 6:15 p.m. | Milwaukee

Oklahoma State appears to be a popular pick for a first-round loss and many people are saying Georgia Tech is a bad match-up for the Cowboys because of how physical the Yellow Jackets' interior is.

Even the three computer systems favor Georgia Tech by a slight margin.

Personally, I don't see it. Marshall Moses and Matt Pilgrim are plenty physical, and there is no way Georgia Tech has a player who can outscore Big 12 Player of the Year James Anderson.

Georgia Tech was an inconsistent program in an inconsistent league, and that doesn't just go away overnight.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma State beat the top four seeds in its league and has the ability to score with any team in the field. I'm a big believer that the Big 12 is going to win most of its first-round games, and this is the perfect example of what I'm talking about.

GAMER: Georgia Tech 69, Oklahoma State 65
KenPom: Georgia Tech 72, Oklahoma State 69
Sagarin: Georgia Tech 65, Oklahoma State 64

UPSET ALERT: No. 8 UNLV (25-8) vs. No. 9 Northern Iowa (28-4)
March 18 | 6:10 p.m. | Oklahoma City

I know I said I don't consider 9-over-8 to be an upset, but if a one-bid league champion knocks off a multi-bid conference's at-large team, it probably qualifies.

That's true even if the former team is as good as UNI and the latter team is as inconsistent as UNLV.

This basically is a 50-50 pick 'em game. Don't sweat it too much — the winner ain't getting past KU.

GAMER: UNI 63, UNLV 56
KenPom: UNI 58, UNLV 57
Sagarin: UNI 55, UNLV 54

RPI WATCH: 3/15/2010

2010-03-15T17:00:52Z

More photos » E. DeGasero - AP

It's BracketCat's favorite time of the year! Brackets galore!

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This is it — the final RPI WATCH of the regular season.

Since the only game of note yesterday was Fort Hays State's loss to conference foe Central Missouri in the NCAA Division II Tournament, I went ahead and updated everyone's RPIs and rankings with the final numbers, in order to justify posting this.

I will continue this feature through the next three weeks (albeit likely with a new name), not so much to follow the NCAA Tournament — because everyone and their dog will be glued to that for the rest of March — but more to follow the obscure tournaments — the NIT, the CBI and the CIT — so no one else has to waste time paying attention to them.

AP Ranking = 7

ESPN/USA Today Ranking = 7

Overall Record = 26-7

Big 12 Record = 11-5

Big 12 Seed = 2

NCAA Seed = 2 (West Region)

RPI = 6

SOS = 2

Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = Xavier, Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor (x2)

Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = Dayton, IUPUI, UNLV, Texas Tech, Missouri, Oklahoma State

Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = Iowa State

Loyola Chicago (14-16, 5-13) | RPI = 213
Western Illinois (13-17, 6-12) | RPI = 280
Boston University (19-13, 11-5) | RPI = 144 (College Basketball Invitational)
Ole Miss (21-10, 9-7) | RPI = 61 (No. 2 seed in the NIT)
Dayton (20-12, 8-8) | RPI = 54 (No. 3 seed in the NIT)
IUPUI (24-10, 15-3) | RPI = 83 (College Basketball Invitational)
No. 14* FHSU (22-7): Loss to No. 7 Central Missouri (80-73 in the NCAA Division II Tournament)
Washington State (16-15, 6-12) | RPI = 172
No. 25 Xavier (24-8, 14-2) | RPI = 19 (No. 6 seed in the West Region)
UNLV (25-8, 11-5) | RPI = 48 (No. 8 seed in the Midwest Region)
Alabama (17-15, 6-10) | RPI = 102
UAPB (17-15, 14-4) | RPI = 183 (No. 16 seed in the South Region)
Cleveland State (16-17, 10-8) | RPI = 165
South Dakota (22-9) | RPI = 216 (CollegeInsider.com Tournament)
Missouri (22-10, 10-6) | RPI = 44 (No. 10 seed in the East Region)
No. 23 Texas A&M (23-9, 11-5) | RPI = 13 (No. 5 seed in the South Region)
Colorado (15-16, 6-10) | RPI = 120
Texas (24-9, 9-7) | RPI = 29 (No. 8 seed in the East Region)
Oklahoma State (22-10, 9-7) | RPI = 32 (No. 7 seed in the Midwest Region)
No. 19 Baylor (25-7, 11-5) | RPI = 9 (No. 3 seed in the South Region)
No. 1 Kansas (32-2, 15-1) | RPI = 1 (No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region)
Nebraska (15-18, 2-14) | RPI = 149
Iowa State (15-17, 4-12) | RPI = 123
Oklahoma (13-18, 4-12) | RPI = 124
Texas Tech (17-15, 4-12) | RPI = 72 (No. 5 seed in the NIT)

*Division II Top 25

BLOGGING THE BRACKET: East Region

2010-03-15T05:00:24Z

More photos » Wade Payne - AP

DeMarcus Cousins' gutty shot to end regulation helped preserve Kentucky's winning streak and pushed the Wildcats to a No. 1 seed in the East Region.

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More than a year since I joined the site, the Wildcats are back in the NCAA Tournament — which means I finally can introduce a new feature that's been in the back of my mind ever since I first adopted my moniker.

So join me every night at midnight, from now until the first games ("real" games — Dayton doesn't count) tip off Thursday, as I break down a different region each night and offer some insights to consider when making your picks.

Hit the jump for discussion of the East Region.

The Teams

The Sites

Buffalo, N.Y.
Jacksonville, Fla.
New Orleans, La.
San Jose, Calif.
Syracuse, N.Y. (Sweet Sixteen | Elite Eight)

The Breakdown

No. 1 Kentucky (32-2) vs. No. 16 East Tennessee State (20-14)
March 18 | 6:15 p.m. | New Orleans

Congratulations to the Buccaneers for making it this far, but the road ends here.

GAMER: Kentucky 78, ETSU 65
KenPom: Kentucky 77, ETSU 60
Sagarin: Kentucky 72, ETSU 53

No. 2 West Virginia (27-6) vs. No. 15 Morgan State (27-9)
March 19 | 11:15 a.m. | Buffalo

Same goes for the Golden Bears.

How the heck did West Virginia, which in my estimation should have been a No. 1 seed, end up in the same region as the second-best team in the country? Some reward for winning the Big East Tournament, huh?

Should both teams make it that far, it will be an interesting match-up. Bob Huggins recruited Patrick Patterson and DeMarcus Cousins while at K-State, and watching Da'Sean Butler try to out-duel John Wall will be fun.

GAMER: West Virginia 72, Morgan State 61
KenPom: West Virginia 78, Morgan State 61
Sagarin: West Virginia 71, Morgan State 54

No. 3 New Mexico (29-4) vs. No. 14 Montana (22-9)
March 18 | 8:40 p.m. | San Jose

New Mexico could have been a No. 2 seed, in my opinion, so this is another tough draw for Kentucky.

The Lobos will compete with Washington for who can bring the largest fan base to San Jose, but I expect the former to advance out of the pod to the Sweet Sixteen.

GAMER: New Mexico 74, Montana 68
KenPom: New Mexico 72, Montana 65
Sagarin: New Mexico 76, Montana 67

UPSET ALERT: No. 4 Wisconsin (23-8) vs. No. 13 Wofford (26-8)
March 19 | 1:50 p.m. | Jacksonville

Call it a gut feeling, but I'm just not that impressed by Wisconsin this season. Maybe that sounds crazy, given how easily the Badgers dispatched us two years ago. But this is not one of Bo Ryan's better teams, and away from home, they really haven't done much.

I'll admit that I don't know too much about Wofford, but it seems like those usually are the most dangerous of the teams seeded between 13 and 15. The Terriers were competitive in road losses to Illinois and Michigan State, and that experience should serve them well in the opening round. They also beat Georgia and South Carolina.

GAMER: Wisconsin 64, Wofford 56
KenPom: Wisconsin 63, Wofford 52
Sagarin: Wisconsin 68, Wofford 59

UPSET ALERT: No. 5 Temple (29-5) vs. No. 12 Cornell (27-4)
March 19 | 11:30 a.m. | Jacksonville

A preface: Temple deserved a No. 4 seed more than Wisconsin did.

That said, I honestly think Cornell will win this game. Now, I'm not going to pull a Jay Bilas and predict the Big Red all the way to the Elite Eight, but two scores stand out in my mind when evaluating this match-up:

Kansas 84, Temple 52. Kansas 71, Cornell 66.

The former game was at Temple; the latter, in Allen Fieldhouse. Sounds like the perfect recipe for a 5-12 upset to me.

GAMER: Temple 61, Cornell 60
KenPom: Temple 63, Cornell 58
Sagarin: Temple 67, Cornell 63

UPSET ALERT: No. 6 Marquette (22-11) vs. No. 11 Washington (24-9)
March 18 | 6:20 p.m. | San Jose

Notice a theme here? Yes, there appear to be a few over-seeded/under-seeded teams in this particular region.

Marquette might be the most schizophrenic team in the country. Everyone felt sorry for the Golden Eagles back in January, when they were losing multiple games by one-possession margins, including two in a week to West Virginia.

Then they finally figured out how to win those close games and subsequently ripped off a nice little winning streak.

But this is one of the less impressive-looking Big East teams I've seen in a while, and it's a far cry from the guard-loaded teams that did so much damage in the tournament the last few years. They could be prone to an upset.

Meanwhile, Washington's record isn't particularly impressive and its league sure as hell isn't, but don't sleep on the Huskies. They will have a home crowd, they're on a nice roll after winning the Pac-10 Tournament, and they have one of the speediest and most explosive point guards in the nation, Isaiah Thomas.

GAMER: Marquette 68, Washington 64
KenPom: Marquette 73, Washington 72
Sagarin: Marquette 66, Washington 64

UPSET ALERT: No. 7 Clemson (21-10) vs. No. 10 Missouri (22-10)
March 19 | 1:35 p.m. | Buffalo

The committee did Missouri no favors. The Tigers have to fly to New York, where they will meet a clone of themselves in a genuine Tiger fight. Clemson is to the ACC as Mizzou is to the Big 12 — that annoying team that presses the hell out of you and is a pain in the ass to prepare for.

And if Missouri survives that (and I think it will — I've never been that impressed with Oliver Purnell's squads), it gets to face Bob Huggins and the West Virginia Mountaineers. Huggs not only is familiar with Mike Anderson's system from his one year at K-State, but also from the years when the two dueled at Cincinnati and UAB. Bad match-up.

GAMER: Clemson 68, Missouri 63
KenPom: Clemson 70, Missouri 69
Sagarin: Missouri 66, Clemson 65

No. 8 Texas (24-9) vs. No. 9 Wake Forest (19-10)
March 18 | 8:35 p.m. | New Orleans

No two teams are entering the tournament with less momentum than Texas and Wake Forest. The Longhorns have lost nine of their last 16 games, while the Demon Deacons have lost five of their last six. Yuck.

So why no upset alert, you might ask? Well, first, I don't consider a No. 9 seed beating an 8 to be an upset. And second, I actually think Texas might win this game. I'm not sure Wake Forest is that much better than Iowa State or Oklahoma State, and the Longhorns were able to handle both of those teams in the last month.

Besides, Texas simply has too much talent not to pull at least one NCAA win out of you-know-where. But with a likely date against Kentucky looming in the second round, I'd be shocked if Rick Barnes' bunch advanced to the second weekend.

GAMER: Texas 76, Wake Forest 69
KenPom: Texas 77, Wake Forest 72
Sagarin: Texas 78, Wake Forest 74

K-State Secures #2 Seed in the West

2010-03-15T04:05:19Z

More photos » Orlin Wagner - AP

1 day ago: Kansas State seniors Chris Merriewether, right, Luis Colon, second from right and Denis Clemente, third from right, celebrate with teammates while watching the NCAA college basketball tournament selection show Sunday, March 14, 2010, in Manhattan, Kan. Kansas State is scheduled to face North Texas on Thursday in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

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Kansas State got that much desired (and deserved) number two seed in the West region.

KSU will face North Texas in the first round, and if they're fortunate enough to get through that game, they'll face the winner of the BYU(7)/Florida(10). If they get through the first weekend, they'll head to Salt Lake City to play, most likely, the Pitt Panthers(3). However, Xavier(6), a previous opponent this season, waits in the wings.

The full bracket can be found, well, pretty much anywhere, but I've linked one for you here.

And, if you're in your 20s/30s, and you grew up watching Dick Vitale, it will warm your heart to see and hear him pick KSU to be in the Final Four. It may not happen, obviously, but to hear it is nothing short of amazing.

Congratulations, Cats. Go out there and wreck those brackets.

And here's Frank and the team watching and reacting to the selection show.

Big 12 Tournament Reaction

2010-03-15T00:10:42Z

More photos » Charlie Neibergall - AP

"I complimented your hair, what else do you want?" (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

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Coming into the Big 12 tournament, a few questions had started to creep in for K-State. A 17-point loss to KU and a home loss to Iowa State will do that to a team and a fanbase. On top of that, a quarterfinal matchup with Oklahoma State, who beat the Cats in Bramlage this season, led many to wonder if K-State would enter next week's NCAA Tournament riding a three-game losing streak.

Those fears were quickly put to rest as the Wildcats put together what might have been their best 20 minutes of basketball in blistering Oklahoma State to the tune of 51-26 in the first half before cruising to an 83-64 victory. Jamar Samuels was the star of the day, going off for 27 points and 10 rebounds. For two years now, Panjandrum has told anyone who will listen that Samuels has the most potential of anyone on K-State's roster, and this weekend he really showed it off. His stat line against the Cowboys was ridiculous: 7-9 FG, 2-3 3FG, 11-14 FT. As Pan texted me at halftime, that's lottery pick good. Now, of course, comes the hard part, which is sustaining that level of play.

Friday brought a rematch of one of the best regular season games in the Big 12 as K-State met Baylor. The rematch was hardly a disappointment. Baylor got off to a good start behind LaceDarius Dunn and Ekpe Udoh, with a nice contribution from Josh Lomers. When the Bears pulled out to a nine-point lead, I started to wonder if we had gotten a little too content with the big win from the day before. But Jake Pullen hit three big three-pointers in the last four minutes of the first half and a jumper by Dominique Sutton helped get us to half down only one.

Sutton got the party started in the second half with a three-point play on a dunk over Lomers. That keyed a 10-2 run that put the Cats ahead by seven. The Bears were far from done, but each time the Bears regained the lead, K-State had an answer. While Samuels was the star against OSU, it was the backcourt that shined in this one, as Denis Clemente and Pullen combined for 50 points on the evening, a huge showing against a duo like Dunn and Tweety Carter. Sutton chipped in nicely with 14 points and 14 rebounds.

Hit the jump for more!

K-State's win against Baylor set up the championship game Kansas City had been hoping for as the Wildcats would meet KU for the third time this season. The atmosphere did not disappoint, as the Sprint Center was filled to the brim with 19,003 basketball fans. As per form, K-State got off to a terrible start, clanging its first twelve field goal attempts and trailing 5-0 at the first media timeout. The Cats steadied themselves and gained the lead on a Jamar Samuels three-pointer at the 9:46 mark, but gave up the lead on KU's next possession and would never regain it.

As good as Pullen and Clemente were against Baylor, they were mediocre against KU, combining for only 30 points on 12-32 shooting. Pullen was 1-8 from three-point range. Samuels was on fire from three-point range, hitting 4-5, but was only 1-6 from inside the arc. Curtis Kelly was in foul trouble most of the game and wasn't much of a factor.

Now, with the recaps out of the way, read on for some random thoughts on the tournament in general.

--A title-game appearance is yet another sign of progress for Frank Martin's program. Prior to this year, we were winless in the conference tournament under Frank. Beating two good teams and giving the top seed a fairly tough game in the final was a good showing.

--LaceDarius Dunn is Baylor's engine. When he went out in the first half against Texas, the Bears floundered and it looked like Texas may be able to pull the upset. Alas, when Dunn returned in the second half, Baylor finished the Longhorns off for what has to be an agonizing third loss to Baylor this season for UT.

--Now that the Power & Light District is finished, Kansas City is an excellent host for the tournament. The KC Live! block and surrounding bars/restaurants are plenty large enough for even the biggest crowds, and there's nothing better than having a few $7 beers and then walking across the street for some great basketball. OK, the weather could have been better, but I was warm and dry underneath the canopy at the P&L.

--Even the Texas fans we ran into at Arthur Bryant's admitted that KC has some damn good BBQ. Maybe there is hope for the warring factions of BBQ fans around this country.

--The NCAA really needs to do something about players running onto the court when a timeout is called. KU is far from the only team that does this, but against Texas A&M in the semifinals, their bench nearly ran over Donald Sloan as he tried to walk back to his bench after Mark Turgeon called a timeout in the second half. Words were exchanged and the players had to be separated. This happens way too often.

--Crowd turnout for the Wednesday games was a little disappointing, and other than the K-State and KU games on Thursday, there were a lot of empty seats. I've always taken pride in KC's support for even the "other" games during the tournament, but that pride took a bit of a hit this year. Count me as one of those who is not a fan of the Wednesday start to the tournament. I'd like to be able to just take two days off from work so I could go see everything on Thursday and Friday, even if K-State isn't playing until Friday night. Taking off three days isn't really feasible, and I hate going from basketball back to work and then back to basketball. I think the Wednesday start affected the turnouts for some of the games.

--The only way KU won't win a national title three weeks from now is if the beaks beat themselves along the way. While it's frustrating to lose to them three times in one season, it's time to just admit that the team down the river is really freaking good right now. I looked back through the program at some of the earlier years in the Big 12, and I feel pretty confident that the team we have this season would have been good enough to win this conference in a lot of those years.

--One thing that sets KU apart is the looks their offense gets. The difference last night was striking. While our team played pretty well, a lot of the shots we hit are off the dribble or off cuts where getting squared up is difficult. KU's shooter are almost always squared up to the basket before they even catch the basketball, and as often as not are wide open.

--The transitive property played out nearly to perfection this season in K-State's three meetings with KU. In Manhattan, we had a chance to win in regulation and barely lost in overtime. In Lawrence, we were competitive into the second half before losing by double digits. On a neutral floor, the game was relatively close most of the way, but KU led most of the way and we never could make a run in the second half.

--Who wants one more chance at KU, this time in Indianapolis?

RPI WATCH: 3/14/2010

2010-03-14T17:00:37Z

More photos » Amelia C. Warden - AP

Well, that didn't exactly go the way we wanted it to.

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Three K-State opponents fell short in their conference tournament's final game — Boston U., UNLV and Xavier.

The latter two probably will make it in as at-large teams, but the former is out of luck. Life's tough in the one-bid leagues and, unfortunately for the Terriers, the Vermont program appears to be back.

But how's this for a silver lining? The Golden Lions are dancing!

That's right — the sad little SWAC team that started its season 0-11, had never made a conference final and never has been to the NCAA Tournament (hell, UAPB only became Division I a few years ago) now likely will appear in the play-in game at Dayton on Tuesday.

So at least someone was happy last night...

AP Ranking = 9

ESPN/USA Today Ranking = 9

Overall Record = 26-7

Big 12 Record = 11-5

Big 12 Seed = 2

Projected NCAA Seed = 2

RPI = 6

SOS = 4

Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = Xavier, Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor (x2), Oklahoma State

Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = Dayton, IUPUI, UNLV, Alabama, Texas Tech, Missouri

Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = Iowa State

Loyola Chicago (14-16, 5-13) | RPI = 208
Western Illinois (13-17, 6-12) | RPI = 280
Boston University (19-13, 11-5) | RPI = 151: Loss at Vermont (83-70 in the America East Tournament)
Ole Miss (21-10, 9-7) | RPI = 56
Dayton (20-12, 8-8) | RPI = 51
IUPUI (24-10, 15-3) | RPI = 85
No. 14* FHSU (22-6): Win over Central Oklahoma (80-64 in the NCAA Division II Tournament)
Washington State (16-15, 6-12) | RPI = 156
No. 24 Xavier (24-8, 14-2) | RPI = 21: Loss to Richmond (89-85 in overtime, in the A-10 Tournament)
UNLV (25-8, 11-5) | RPI = 50: Loss to San Diego State (55-45 in the Mountain West Tournament)
Alabama (17-15, 6-10) | RPI = 97
UAPB (17-15, 14-4) | RPI = 192: Win over Texas Southern (50-38 in the SWAC Tournament)
Cleveland State (16-17, 10-8) | RPI = 159
South Dakota (22-9) | RPI = 223: Win over Houston Baptist (91-86)
Missouri (22-10, 10-6) | RPI = 39
No. 23 Texas A&M (23-9, 11-5) | RPI = 12
Colorado (15-16, 6-10) | RPI = 105
Texas (24-9, 9-7) | RPI = 26
Oklahoma State (22-10, 9-7) | RPI = 28
No. 21 Baylor (25-7, 11-5) | RPI = 7
No. 1 Kansas (32-2, 15-1) | RPI = 1: Win over No. 9 Kansas State (72-64 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Nebraska (15-18, 2-14) | RPI = 153
Iowa State (15-17, 4-12) | RPI = 114
Oklahoma (13-18, 4-12) | RPI = 112
Texas Tech (17-15, 4-12) | RPI = 71

*Division II Top 25

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: 03.13.10 (Open Game Thread)

2010-03-13T21:00:24Z

More photos » Charlie Neibergall - AP

Frank says: "It's championship time."

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After a long and historic season, it all comes down to this: 40 minutes of basketball separating K-State from its first Big 12 men's basketball championship ever.

I'm so damn tired of losing to these guys. I sat through their victory in the final game two seasons ago, and that was insufferable enough. Words cannot describe how horrific it will feel to hear that bloody chant echoing off the Sprint Center rafters if we drop a sixth straight game to the University of Kansas.

So let's win instead. Losing is easy, and it won't cost us a thing. But winning takes guts, and those have been on display aplenty this week. Winning means something — it sends a message and it sets a tone for next year.

And most important, winning temporarily will silence one of the most vocal fan bases in all of March Madness. How sweet would that be?

Sagarin's prediction: No. 1 Kansas 86, No. 2 Kansas State 80 (5 p.m., ESPN)

Aw, go to hell, Sagarin.

Yesterday's Results

No. 1 Kansas 79, No. 4 Texas A&M 66
No. 2 Kansas State 82, No. 3 Baylor 75

Unfortunately, Sagarin has his thumb firmly on the pulse of this particular Big 12 Tournament. After upset-minded Session 1 came to an end, it's been all chalk since then.

For the sake of the Wildcats, let's hope that pattern doesn't continue today.

Poll

Who will claim the automatic bid as the Big 12 Tournament Champion?

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have been thinking about today's championship game, and I can't help but...

2010-03-13T18:24:12Z

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have been thinking about today's championship game, and I can't help but draw parallels between today and December 6, 2003. On that night, I was in Kansas City, Mo., to watch K-State play for a conference title against what many considered an unstoppable juggernaut. To quote my friend's sign from that evening: "I believe!"

See you at Sprint Center tonight.

Go Cats!

RPI WATCH: 3/13/2010

2010-03-13T18:00:51Z

More photos » Charlie Neibergall - AP

Guards making plays, baby — that's what it's all about.

Browse more photos »

Dayton and Ole Miss both lost Friday in their respective conference tournaments, so they both can say "Hello" to the NIT. Guess Puerto Rico didn't do much for our resume after all.

Meanwhile, UNLV and Xavier both grabbed big wins to advance in their tourneys — UNLV to the final against San Diego State and Xavier to the semifinals against Richmond. SDSU did us a huge favor by beating New Mexico, which, when coupled with the win against Baylor, virtually locked us into a No. 2 seed in Oklahoma City.

Alabama, like Ole Miss, lost in the quarterfinals, but the Crimson Tide gave Kentucky everything it wanted to before falling in defeat, which should get 'Bama into the NIT. And Alabama's in-state counterpart, Alabama State, lost in the SWAC Tournament, guaranteeing a .500 record for BOTC fan favorite Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

Of course, absolutely none of this matters if Frank Martin wins the biggest game of his career tonight. That would produce a championship, an automatic bid, a potential No. 1 seed (if Duke loses today to Miami) and purple frenzy in the Power & Light District. Please, God...

AP Ranking = 9

ESPN/USA Today Ranking = 9

Overall Record = 26-6

Big 12 Record = 11-5

Big 12 Seed = 2

Projected NCAA Seed = 2

RPI = 6

SOS = 4

Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = Xavier, Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor (x2), Oklahoma State

Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = Dayton, IUPUI, UNLV, Alabama, Texas Tech, Missouri

Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = Iowa State

Loyola Chicago (14-16, 5-13) | RPI = 208
Western Illinois (13-17, 6-12) | RPI = 280
Boston University (19-12, 11-5) | RPI = 151
Ole Miss (21-10, 9-7) | RPI = 56: Loss to No. 15 Tennessee (76-65 in the SEC Tournament)
Dayton (20-12, 8-8) | RPI = 51: Loss to No. 24 Xavier (78-73 in the A-10 Tournament)
IUPUI (24-10, 15-3) | RPI = 85
No. 15* FHSU (21-6)
Washington State (16-15, 6-12) | RPI = 156
No. 24 Xavier (24-7, 14-2) | RPI = 21: Win over Dayton (78-73 in the A-10 Tournament)
UNLV (25-7, 11-5) | RPI = 50: Win over No. 14 BYU (70-66 in the Mountain West Tournament)
Alabama (17-15, 6-10) | RPI = 97: Loss to No. 2 Kentucky (73-67 in the SEC Tournament)
UAPB (16-15, 14-4) | RPI = 192: Win over Alabama State (46-44 in the SWAC Tournament)
Cleveland State (16-17, 10-8) | RPI = 159
South Dakota (21-9) | RPI = 223: Win over UTPA (76-71)
Missouri (22-10, 10-6) | RPI = 39
No. 23 Texas A&M (23-9, 11-5) | RPI = 12: Loss to No. 1 Kansas (79-66 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Colorado (15-16, 6-10) | RPI = 105
Texas (24-9, 9-7) | RPI = 26
Oklahoma State (22-10, 9-7) | RPI = 28
No. 21 Baylor (25-7, 11-5) | RPI = 7: Loss to No. 9 Kansas State (82-75 in the Big 12 Tournament)
No. 1 Kansas (31-2, 15-1) | RPI = 1: Win over No. 23 Texas A&M (79-66 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Nebraska (15-18, 2-14) | RPI = 153
Iowa State (15-17, 4-12) | RPI = 114
Oklahoma (13-18, 4-12) | RPI = 112
Texas Tech (17-15, 4-12) | RPI = 71

*Division II Top 25

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: 03.12.10 (Open Game Thread)

2010-03-12T22:00:14Z

More photos » Reed Hoffmann - AP

The Baylor Bears would like nothing more than to spoil the expected 1-vs.-2 match-up between KU and K-State in the championship game.

Browse more photos »

Two games. Four ranked teams. One crappy TV network.

Let the Big 12 Final Four begin.

My dream is a 50-50 Sprint Center tomorrow — half blue Hawk and half purple Cat.

Yeah, it probably will be closer to 70-30, but a guy can dream, can't he?

Of course, we both have to survive pesky Texas teams first, so don't count your Jayhawks before they're hatched and don't look a gift Wildcat in the mouth.

Sagarin Predictions

No. 1 Kansas 67, No. 4 Texas A&M 61 (6 p.m.)
No. 2 Kansas State 90, No. 3 Baylor 89 (8:20 p.m.)

Both of today's games will appear on the Big 12 Network — unfortunately.

Baylor is going to be very difficult to beat a second time.

Last time, we held LaceDarius Dunn and Ekpe Udoh to 17 combined points. That will be extremely difficult to duplicate.

The first game got into the 80s, and that was without Denis Clemente shooting particularly well. I think this will be even more of a track meet.

But I have faith in the Cats to get it done, even though the Bears will want revenge just as badly as we did last night.

I just think this tournament is destined for a Sunflower Showdown (Part 3) title game. Plus, the crowd will be heavily in our favor tonight.

Should be fun. If you can get up here and you don't have tickets yet, please try. We can't let the Hawks take the place over.

Yesterday's Results

No. 1 Kansas 80, No. 9 Texas Tech 68
No. 4 Texas A&M 70, No. 12 Nebraska 64
No. 2 Kansas State 83, No. 7 Oklahoma State 64
No. 3 Baylor 86, No. 6 Texas 67

Well, this tournament certainly is more chalky than last year's, and I don't just mean Rock Chalky.

Despite assertions to the contrary, I think there is a small gap between the three 11-5 teams that secured byes and the teams behind them that still will be in the NCAA Tournament.

Yeah, Mizzou finished 10-6, but the Tigers were somewhat lucky to beat us and easily could have been 9-7 like the other two. Plus, look no further than their performance two days ago to see why they're not on the same level this season — especially without Justin Safford.

What it all adds up to is this: Tonight's games should be the best two of the tournament yet, since KU and K-State finally will meet up with worthy opponents.

But I still think Baylor and Texas A&M are a slight notch below the top two (remember, K-State really should have been 12-4, if not for that inexplicable Senior Night stumble), and I expect that to play out tonight.

Poll

Who will play in tomorrow's championship game?

RPI WATCH: 3/12/2010

2010-03-12T18:00:40Z

More photos » Charlie Neibergall - AP

How 'bout dem Cats?!

Browse more photos »

The Big 12 Tournament proceeded in fairly pedestrian fashion, compared to the double-bye upset madness in the Big East.

Thus, all four top seeds will face off today in two match-ups of ranked teams that only will be on the Big 12 Network.

Have I mentioned that this conference's TV package sucks?

Meanwhile, the third time was the charm for UNLV, which finally beat Utah this season to proceed to the next round of the Mountain West Tournament.

Also, Alabama beat South Carolina for the second straight time to advance to a match-up today with No. 2 Kentucky.

Roll Tide!

AP Ranking = 9

ESPN/USA Today Ranking = 9

Overall Record = 25-6

Big 12 Record = 11-5

Big 12 Seed = 2

Projected NCAA Seed = 2

RPI = 6

SOS = 5

Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = Xavier, Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor, Oklahoma State

Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = Dayton, IUPUI, UNLV, Alabama, Texas Tech, Missouri

Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = Iowa State

Loyola Chicago (14-16, 5-13) | RPI = 208
Western Illinois (13-17, 6-12) | RPI = 280
Boston University (19-12, 11-5) | RPI = 151
Ole Miss (21-9, 9-7) | RPI = 56
Dayton (20-11, 8-8) | RPI = 51
IUPUI (24-10, 15-3) | RPI = 85
No. 15* FHSU (21-6)
Washington State (16-15, 6-12) | RPI = 156
No. 25 Xavier (23-7, 14-2) | RPI = 21
UNLV (24-7, 11-5) | RPI = 48: Win over Utah (73-61 in the Mountain West Tournament)
Alabama (17-14, 6-10) | RPI = 100: Win over South Carolina (68-63 in the SEC Tournament)
UAPB (15-15, 14-4) | RPI = 195
Cleveland State (16-17, 10-8) | RPI = 159
South Dakota (20-9) | RPI = 224
Missouri (22-10, 10-6) | RPI = 39
No. 23 Texas A&M (23-8, 11-5) | RPI = 11: Win over Nebraska (70-64 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Colorado (15-16, 6-10) | RPI = 105
Texas (24-9, 9-7) | RPI = 26: Loss to No. 21 Baylor (86-67 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Oklahoma State (22-10, 9-7) | RPI = 28: Loss to No. 9 Kansas State (83-64 in the Big 12 Tournament)
No. 21 Baylor (25-6, 11-5) | RPI = 8: Win over Texas (86-67 in the Big 12 Tournament)
No. 1 Kansas (30-2, 15-1) | RPI = 1: Win over Texas Tech (80-68 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Nebraska (15-18, 2-14) | RPI = 153: Loss to No. 23 Texas A&M (70-64 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Iowa State (15-17, 4-12) | RPI = 114
Oklahoma (13-18, 4-12) | RPI = 112
Texas Tech (17-15, 4-12) | RPI = 71: Loss to No. 1 Kansas (80-68 in the Big 12 Tournament)

*Division II Top 25

Link to the Open Game Thread

2010-03-12T00:18:12Z

Link to the Open Game Thread

It's rolled into the Big 12 Outlook today. Go there. I'm talking to myself.

RPI WATCH: 3/11/2010

2010-03-11T18:00:45Z

More photos » Charlie Neibergall - AP

Keiton Page and the Oklahoma State Cowboys are on fire in the Big 12 Tournament. Next up: K-State.

Browse more photos »

Stop the presses! Arkansas-Pine Bluff got to .500!

That's about the only happy news today.

Washington State hit a new low by losing to Oregon (a team with a lame-duck coach — pardon the pun) again, while Missouri probably cost itself a Sweet Sixteen appearance by losing to Nebraska and falling to an 8 or a 9 seed — which means a date with a No. 1 seed in the second round.

AP Ranking = 9

ESPN/USA Today Ranking = 9

Overall Record = 24-6

Big 12 Record = 11-5

Big 12 Seed = 2

Projected NCAA Seed = 2

RPI = 6

SOS = 5

Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = Xavier, Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor

Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = Dayton, IUPUI, UNLV, Alabama, Texas Tech, Missouri

Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = Iowa State

Loyola Chicago (14-16, 5-13) | RPI = 208
Western Illinois (13-17, 6-12) | RPI = 280
Boston University (19-12, 11-5) | RPI = 151
Ole Miss (21-9, 9-7) | RPI = 56
Dayton (20-11, 8-8) | RPI = 51
IUPUI (24-10, 15-3) | RPI = 85
No. 15* FHSU (21-6)
Washington State (16-15, 6-12) | RPI = 156: Loss to Oregon (82-80 in overtime, in the Pac-10 Tournament)
No. 25 Xavier (23-7, 14-2) | RPI = 21
UNLV (23-7, 11-5) | RPI = 47
Alabama (16-14, 6-10) | RPI = 98
UAPB (15-15, 14-4) | RPI = 195: Win over MVSU (69-66 in the SWAC Tournament)
Cleveland State (16-17, 10-8) | RPI = 159
South Dakota (20-9) | RPI = 224
Missouri (22-10, 10-6) | RPI = 39: Loss to Nebraska (75-60 in the Big 12 Tournament)
No. 23 Texas A&M (22-8, 11-5) | RPI = 12
Colorado (15-16, 6-10) | RPI = 105: Loss to Texas Tech (82-67 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Texas (24-8, 9-7) | RPI = 26: Win over Iowa State (82-75 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Oklahoma State (22-9, 9-7) | RPI = 28: Win over Oklahoma (81-67 in the Big 12 Tournament)
No. 21 Baylor (24-6, 11-5) | RPI = 8
No. 2 Kansas (29-2, 15-1) | RPI = 1
Nebraska (15-17, 2-14) | RPI = 153: Win over Missouri (75-60 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Iowa State (15-17, 4-12) | RPI = 114: Loss to Texas (82-75 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Oklahoma (13-18, 4-12) | RPI = 112: Loss to Oklahoma State (81-67 in the Big 12 Tournament)
Texas Tech (17-14, 4-12) | RPI = 71: Win over Colorado (82-67 in the Big 12 Tournament)

*Division II Top 25

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: 03.11.10 (Open Game Thread)

2010-03-11T17:00:55Z

More photos » Reed Hoffmann - AP

D'oh!

Browse more photos »

This essentially is the same feature as yesterday, except there is some brief discussion of yesterday's games after the jump.

It again will function as an open discussion thread throughout the day, including for K-State's game against Oklahoma State, because I don't have time to set up a "normal" open game thread.

Also, sorry I forgot to have a poll yesterday. I've rectified that mistake today.

Predictions and yesterday's results are after the jump.

Sagarin Predictions

No. 1 Kansas 96, No. 9 Texas Tech 80 (11:30 a.m. | ESPN2)
No. 4 Texas A&M 87, No. 12 Nebraska 77 (2 p.m. | Big 12 Network)
No. 2 Kansas State 89, No. 7 Oklahoma State 85 (6 p.m. | Big 12 Network)
No. 3 Baylor 89, No. 6 Texas 88 (OT) (8:20 p.m. | ESPN2)

Well, Tech's not gonna beat KU, so perish the thought. I also give Nebraska less than a 10-percent chance to up-end the Aggies, and even if they do, there's no way the Huskers will beat KU, either — so the morning games are sort of uninteresting to me as far as K-State's prospects are concerned.

But that's what happens when you have upsets.

On the south side of the bracket, both top seeds advanced, setting up a pair of doozies today. Any two of these four teams could advance to tomorrow and it wouldn't surprise me.

As hard is this is for Cat fans to do, if we survive Okie Lite, we need to be loud Texas fans in the nightcap. I'd much rather have to face a Longhorn team playing its third game (that still doesn't look like much of a team) than the Bears in just their second.

Yesterday's Results

No. 9 Texas Tech 82, No. 8 Colorado 67
No. 12 Nebraska 75, No. 5 Missouri 60
No. 7 Oklahoma State 81, No. 10 Oklahoma 67
No. 6 Texas 82, No. 11 Iowa State 75

Three out of four ain't bad, and it fits with my 5-1 pattern all season long.

I'm not really surprised Colorado lost, since it's hard to beat a team twice in five days, but I am a little surprised it got away from them in the second half after they had a strong start. Maybe the Buffs aren't quite as improved as we thought, because Tech snapped a seven-game losing streak and just isn't that good.

Missouri absolutely delivered a belly-flop, albeit an amusing one. I think they're still in the NCAA Tournament, but Mizzou sure gave the committee some reasons to question it.

Oklahoma State's gonna be a handful tonight for K-State. Worse yet, they did it without using James Anderson that much. I think we need to play the guy straight up, and not allow Keiton Page and Obi Muonelo to beat us the way Oklahoma did.

For much of the game, I thought Iowa State could seize the win, and although the Cyclones hung in there, they never jumped in front when the opportunities presented themselves, thus allowing Texas to maintain a slight edge the whole way. Plus, their crowd only got loud a few times, when it could have created a nice home advantage for them instead.

Poll

Who most is likely to be "upset" today?

RPI WATCH: 3/10/2010

2010-03-10T18:01:07Z

Eric Landwehr - AP

Just think — this could have been Ooey-Pooey.

View full size photo »

Dayton got a much-needed win against George Washington in the A-10 Tournament, but the Flyers still have a lot of work to do.

Meanwhile, IUPUI's bid to dance fell a hair short when the Jaguars were dispatched by Oakland, which will make its second-ever NCAA appearance. Oh, well.

AP Ranking = 9

ESPN/USA Today Ranking = 9

Overall Record = 24-6

Big 12 Record = 11-5

Big 12 Seed = 2

Projected NCAA Seed = 2

RPI = 6

SOS = 5

Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = Xavier, Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor

Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = Dayton, IUPUI, UNLV, Alabama, Texas Tech, Missouri

Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = Iowa State

Loyola Chicago (14-16, 5-13) | RPI = 208
Western Illinois (13-17, 6-12) | RPI = 280
Boston University (19-12, 11-5) | RPI = 151
Ole Miss (21-9, 9-7) | RPI = 56
Dayton (20-11, 8-8) | RPI = 51: Win over George Washington (70-60 in the Atlantic 10 Tournament)
IUPUI (24-10, 15-3) | RPI = 85: Loss to Oakland (76-64 in the Summit League Tournament)
No. 15* FHSU (21-6)
Washington State (16-14, 6-12) | RPI = 157
No. 25 Xavier (23-7, 14-2) | RPI = 21
UNLV (23-7, 11-5) | RPI = 47
Alabama (16-14, 6-10) | RPI = 98
UAPB (14-15, 14-4) | RPI = 197
Cleveland State (16-17, 10-8) | RPI = 159
South Dakota (20-9) | RPI = 224
Missouri (22-9, 10-6) | RPI = 36
No. 23 Texas A&M (22-8, 11-5) | RPI = 12
Colorado (15-15, 6-10) | RPI = 103
Texas (23-8, 9-7) | RPI = 27
Oklahoma State (21-9, 9-7) | RPI = 28
No. 21 Baylor (24-6, 11-5) | RPI = 8
No. 2 Kansas (29-2, 15-1) | RPI = 1
Nebraska (14-17, 2-14) | RPI = 155
Iowa State (15-16, 4-12) | RPI = 113
Oklahoma (13-17, 4-12) | RPI = 108
Texas Tech (16-14, 4-12) | RPI = 72

*Division II Top 25

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: 03.10.10 (Open Game Thread)

2010-03-10T15:00:56Z

More photos » Sue Ogrocki - AP

Are you ready for Bedlam, Part 3?

Browse more photos »

For today, at least, this will be short and sweet — a quick poll of Mr. Sagarin to see who should win today, just in time for it all to get shot to hell by that wonderful phenomenon known as parity. (Pomeroy and GAMER do not project postseason games.) Just for fun, I'll make up some predicted scores, too.

All of today's games will air on the Big 12 Network:

No. 9 Texas Tech 79, No. 8 Colorado 78 (11:30 a.m.)
No. 5 Missouri 87, No. 12 Nebraska 77 (2 p.m.)
No. 7 Oklahoma State 84, No. 10 Oklahoma 77 (6 p.m.)
No. 6 Texas 88, No. 11 Iowa State 79 (8:20 p.m.)

K-State fans probably should root for Iowa State, Missouri and Oklahoma. That would give the Wildcats the easiest potential path to the finals. I don't think a rematch with either Baylor or Texas really is something we want to see.

I also don't think the winner of Colorado-Texas Tech is relevant — I can't see either one of those teams getting past Kansas tomorrow.

As I mentioned earlier, feel free to use this entry as a live discussion thread today. I'll try to pop in throughout the day, but a BlackBerry Curve only can do so much — and I've got basketball to watch, dammit.

Welcome Back to Kansas City

2010-03-10T04:07:43Z

Welcome one and all to the City of Fountains for this year's Big 12 men's and women's basketball tournaments!

Two years ago, when the tournament was here, I did a long post as a guide to Kansas City for visiting fans. I didn't have time to do that this year, but feel free to use the comments section to ask questions, discuss the tournaments, or talk about anything else.

It's good to have the tourney back in KC. I'm looking forward to a good week.

RPI WATCH: 3/9/2010

2010-03-09T18:00:57Z

During conference tournament week, "survive and advance" is the name of the game.

IUPUI did precisely that, outlasting Oral Roberts 69-65 in the Summit League Tournament.

Now the Jaguars will play No. 1 seed Oakland for the right to advance to the NCAA Tournament.

If they pull that off, I think you have to say that was a pretty good win for K-State in Kansas City — at least, better than we thought at the time.

AP Ranking = 9

ESPN/USA Today Ranking = 9

Overall Record = 24-6

Big 12 Record = 11-5

Big 12 Seed = 2

Projected NCAA Seed = 2

RPI = 6

SOS = 5

Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = Xavier, Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor

Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = Dayton, IUPUI, UNLV, Alabama, Texas Tech, Missouri

Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = Iowa State

Loyola Chicago (14-16, 5-13) | RPI = 208
Western Illinois (13-17, 6-12) | RPI = 280
Boston University (19-12, 11-5) | RPI = 151
Ole Miss (21-9, 9-7) | RPI = 56
Dayton (19-11, 8-8) | RPI = 51
IUPUI (24-9, 15-3) | RPI = 91: Win over Oral Roberts (69-65 in the Summit League Tournament)
No. 15* FHSU (21-6)
Washington State (16-14, 6-12) | RPI = 157
No. 25 Xavier (23-7, 14-2) | RPI = 21
UNLV (23-7, 11-5) | RPI = 47
Alabama (16-14, 6-10) | RPI = 98
UAPB (14-15, 14-4) | RPI = 197
Cleveland State (16-17, 10-8) | RPI = 159
South Dakota (20-9) | RPI = 224
Missouri (22-9, 10-6) | RPI = 36
No. 23 Texas A&M (22-8, 11-5) | RPI = 12
Colorado (15-15, 6-10) | RPI = 103
Texas (23-8, 9-7) | RPI = 27
Oklahoma State (21-9, 9-7) | RPI = 28
No. 21 Baylor (24-6, 11-5) | RPI = 8
No. 2 Kansas (29-2, 15-1) | RPI = 1
Nebraska (14-17, 2-14) | RPI = 155
Iowa State (15-16, 4-12) | RPI = 113
Oklahoma (13-17, 4-12) | RPI = 108
Texas Tech (16-14, 4-12) | RPI = 72

*Division II Top 25

2010 Football Ticket Options Announced

2010-03-09T17:43:18Z

2010 Football Ticket Options Announced

For the first time, the Kansas State Athletics Department is offering a full menu of ticket options for the 2010 football season, highlighted by unchanged season ticket prices, and a new variety of mini-packages and single-game choices for one of the most exciting home football schedules in recent memory.

K-State is holding steady on the cost of tickets — public season bench seating in Bill Snyder Family Stadium remains priced at $300 and chairback seating $335, the same price levels that have been in place since the 2006 season.

Prices for K-State faculty/staff are $241 for bench and $268 for chairback.

Sweat Named to All-Big 12 First Team

2010-03-09T17:41:24Z

Sweat Named to All-Big 12 First Team

Kansas State senior forward Ashley Sweat was named to the All-Big 12 first team in an announcement by the Big 12 Conference on Monday afternoon.

This is the second straight year Sweat has earned first-team honors.

In the 14-year history of the Big 12, K-State has earned 36 citations on the All-Big 12 first, second or honorable-mention teams.

Bring On The Cats

BLOGGING THE BRACKET: Midwest Region

The Teams

The Sites

The Breakdown

Who will win the Midwest Region?

RPI WATCH: 3/15/2010

BLOGGING THE BRACKET: East Region

The Teams

The Sites

The Breakdown

Who will win the East Region?

K-State Secures #2 Seed in the West

Big 12 Tournament Reaction

RPI WATCH: 3/14/2010

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: 03.13.10 (Open Game Thread)

Yesterday's Results

Who will claim the automatic bid as the Big 12 Tournament Champion?

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have been thinking about today's championship game, and I can't help but...

RPI WATCH: 3/13/2010

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: 03.12.10 (Open Game Thread)

Sagarin Predictions

Yesterday's Results

Who will play in tomorrow's championship game?

RPI WATCH: 3/12/2010

Link to the Open Game Thread

Link to the Open Game Thread

RPI WATCH: 3/11/2010

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: 03.11.10 (Open Game Thread)

Sagarin Predictions

Yesterday's Results

Who most is likely to be "upset" today?

RPI WATCH: 3/10/2010

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: 03.10.10 (Open Game Thread)

Welcome Back to Kansas City

RPI WATCH: 3/9/2010

2010 Football Ticket Options Announced

2010 Football Ticket Options Announced

Sweat Named to All-Big 12 First Team

Sweat Named to All-Big 12 First Team