Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology, a biweekly assessment of where the best of college basketball will land in the NCAA Tournament, includes eight Big 12 teams in its latest prediction. The biggest changes include UCF getting a bump as a No. 9 seed and Houston falling one spot to No. 3 while remaining the top seed in the Oklahoma City quadrant of Lunardi’s bracket.
Arizona, still the No. 1 seed in the San Diego quadrant, received a new first-round opponent at No. 16, Utah Tech, falling a spot following its latest 2-1 stretch. The Wildcats have seemingly recovered from their two-game losing skid with three consecutive wins over ranked BYU, Houston and Baylor.
There were some interesting non-league developments, too. Blue bloods Kentucky and Villanova each received a bump; Old foe Missouri also kicked up to a No. 10 seed following a 73-69 win over ranked Tennessee on Tuesday. That said, let’s take an inside look at each Big 12 team in the field:
UCF Knights
Record: 20-7, 9-6 Big 12
Seed: 9
First-round matchup: No. 8 Iowa (Greenville, South Carolina)
Rundown: The Knights have won three in a row and are projected to land no higher than a No. 7 seed on Selection Sunday. Baylor, Oklahoma State and West Virginia are all winnable games for the Johnny Dawkins crew heading into the conference tournament in Kansas City, Missouri.
Kansas Jayhawks
Record: 21-7, 11-4 Big 12
Seed: 3
First–round matchup: No. 14 Austin Peay (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
Rundown: Kansas travels to Arizona this weekend for an opportunity to prove its place among top-3 seeds with a tall task in Tucson. The tables are flipped this time around, with the Wildcats getting Darryn Peterson and Bill Self on their home floor.
Iowa State Cyclones
Record: 24-4, 11-4 Big 12
Seed: 2
First-round matchup: No. 15 Portland State (St. Louis, Missouri)
Rundown: Milan Momcilovic slowed down in the BYU loss and looked closer to himself during a 16-point road win at Utah on Tuesday. Next, the Cyclones travel to No. 16 Texas Tech this weekend for another top-25 Big 12 contest that belongs on your television set.
Arizona Wildcats
Record: 26-2, 13-2 Big 12
Seed: 1
First-round matchup: No. 16 Utah Tech (San Diego, California)
Rundown: The Wildcats have two key contests remaining: this weekend at Kansas and another top-10 home matchup against Iowa State on Monday. Koa Peat and Dwayne Aristode returned to practice but aren’t yet green-lighted for Kansas.
Texas Tech Red Raiders
Record: 21-7, 11-4 Big 12
Seed: 4
First-round matchup: No. 13 North Dakota State (Portland, Oregon)
Rundown: The Red Raiders, now without JT Toppin (ACL), could still potentially cement themselves as a top-5 seed with a win at No. 4 Iowa State this weekend. It’s a tough road ahead, and certainly not one they planned on doing without their star forward, but guards Christian Anderson and Donovan Atwell are capable shooters and give this team every reason to remain hopeful down the stretch.
Houston Cougars
Record: 23-5, 11-4 Big 12
Seed: 3
First-round matchup: No. 14 East Tennessee State (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
Rundown: Kingston Flemings and the Cougars have dropped three games in a row entering their final three-game stretch with Colorado, Baylor and Oklahoma State. It’s hard to imagine another loss somewhere in there, but it’s not impossible to imagine Houston even lower when the dust settles.
BYU Cougars
Record: 20-8, 8-7 Big 12
Seed: 6
First-round matchup: No. 11 San Diego State (Portland, Oregon)
Rundown: It’s been far from a perfect second half for BYU, lined up for two winnable contest against West Virginia and Cincinnati before ending the regular season at home against No. 16 Texas Tech. Aleksej Kostic, Kennard Davis and Tyler Mrus are all stepping up to replenish those minutes before its too late.
The Bubble
Lunardi included TCU, Auburn, Santa Clara and Indiana in his last four teams to make the field. The Horned Frogs (18-10, 8-7 Big 12) are headed to lowly Kansas State this weekend before ending the regular season at No. 16 Texas Tech and returning home for Cincinnati.
VCU, Virginia Tech, Seton Hall and Cincinnati are the last four out. The Bearcats (15-13, 7-8 Big 12) provided a compelling road win over Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse over the weekend but followed it up with a 12-point loss at No. 16 Texas Tech. A win in Lubbock, and a win over No. 19 BYU next week, could’ve reshaped their future in Lunardi’s eyes but who knows. Cincinnati has losses to West Virginia, Arizona State and Eastern Michigan working against them.
