We’ve got fresh NIT Bracketology up in preparation for toNITe’s action, and our methodology has slightly changed. As we warned you we would do, we’ve switched to “bridge” mode, which doesn’t seem to have made too huge a shift but is responsible for a little bit of wiggle beyond what the games this weekend caused.
Now.
The fun stuff.
You can already see who’s in the projected field, so we’re just filling in the gaps here. First, though, yes: Kentucky is currently projected as our top overall seed. After a decade in the wilderness (and one year of skipping straight past us, but that was fair, because we were in Frisco), the Cats are back, and we welcome them. Thankfully for our friends in Lexington, Robert Morris is nowhere to be seen.
Here’s what else to know:
First Four Out: Tulane, Santa Clara, Vanderbilt, UNLV
The good news for Vanderbilt fans is that their team is alive once more, and it’s projected to finish at .500. The bad news is that they probably need just ooooooone extra win, beyond the expected, to project themselves into the field. It’s tight, but that’s what they’re working with in Nashville. Meanwhile, our dear friends Tulane have found themselves locked on the porch. We’re sure they’ll get back in here, though. They are immortal, after all.
Next Four Out: St. John’s, Loyola Marymount, Syracuse, BYU
Power hitters here on the second layer of bench. Remember, Syracuse fans: Other college basketball teams exist, and they also can make the NIT.
Sub-.500 Projected: Oklahoma, Ohio State, Texas Tech, Washington State, Villanova
Were the .500 “requirement” known to not be real, Oklahoma and Ohio State would be in our projected field, while Texas Tech, Wazzu, and Villanova would be hanging around the UNLV crew. Not a bad crew to hang out with. Remember when UNLV’s quarterback got in trouble for eating sushi on reality television off of a live naked person? That was weird, and not something I would do for fun, but I bet they do other things that are more fun. Like host the 2023 NIT Final Four!
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We’ll be back with full NIT coverage tomorrow, but for this evening, watch the Hofstra/Charleston race in the CAA (Hofstra can’t lose, nobody cares what Charleston does), and watch UNC try to take a mediocre home loss to Miami, and watch Texas Tech try to rear its raging head and tear apart Texas. Also, I’m told Baylor and West Virginia play, but I’d rather watch the Ottawa Senators, who might not have a goalie right now?
