Note: The new bracket is out here.
March and the ensuing madness have arrived! There are only two weeks until Selection Sunday and here’s how I see the field breaking down as March 1. I’ve also broken down and included Kansas State and Florida. I think it’s highly unlikely that either team would be included if under .500, but… Their resumes aren’t awful.
You’ll note that Kansas State and Florida are squarely on the bubble. Also, I figured out this week that according to Team Rankings’ conference tournament projections there will be at least 10 automatic bids used to the NIT. I’m being safe and currently projecting 12. Thus teams in the 6-8 seed range are in danger of being dropped.
Final NCAA Teams: Georgia, Mississippi, Purdue, Cincinnati, BYU, N.C. State
NIT Bracket (bubble in italics):
1. Stanford
8. Memphis
4. Richmond
5. Old Dominion
3. Rhode Island
6. Kansas St.
2. Miami (FL)
7. Florida
1. UCLA
8. Illinois St.
4. Connecticut
5. Buffalo
3. Seton Hall
6. George Washington
2. Temple
7. Yale
1. Pittsburgh
8. Arizona St.
4. Green Bay
5. Massachusetts
3. Alabama
6. Toledo
2. Minnesota
7. Central Michigan
1. Illinois
8. Oregon St.
4. Clemson
5. UTEP
3. St. Mary’s
6. Wyoming
2. Oregon
7. Michigan
CIT / CBI Teams (No Particular Order, locals bold): NJIT, James Madison, Hofstra, UNCW, Rider, Georgia St., Louisiana Monroe, North Dakota St., Eastern Kentucky, Belmont, Tennessee Martin, Lehigh, Lafayette, High Point, Coastal Carolina, Radford, Chattanooga, Montana, Eastern Washington, Vermont, Stony Brook, New Hampshire, Florida Gulf Coast, USC Upstate, Norfolk St., UMES, Alabama St., TCU, Northwestern, Penn St., California, Pepperdine, Evansville, Loyola (IL), Kent St., Utah St., UC Irvine, Hawaii, Cleveland St., Western Kentucky, Northeastern, Sam Houston St., Vanderbilt
NYC Buckets Archive 
The Summit league has co-champions, so don’t you need to reserve a spot in the NIT for whichever of those teams doesn’t win the tournament and get the Summit auto-bid?
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Well, all those bubble teams in italics are the ones that are in big trouble once champions start losing. But… The NIT is only required to take the #1 seed of a conference tournament that doesn’t make the NCAA tournament. Only South Dakota State would receive an automatic bid to the NIT if it lost in the Summit Tournament, despite the semantics of “co-champions” by the league.
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Similar question re the loser of the Harvard-Yale play-in game.
1) Is NIT required to take the whichever team would have been the 1-seed if the Ivy had a tournament, in the event that team loses?
2) With RPIs both in the 60s, might the NIT take the loser anyway on merit?
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1) Nope. Only No. 1 seeds that lose in their conference tournament receive an automatic bid. Because there is no No. 1 seed the Ivy League wouldn’t get an auto bid.
2) Yes. It’s quite possible that Harvard or Yale has an NIT worthy resume anyways. It will partly depend on how many auto bids are handed out though. The Ivy schools lack a signature win that definitely puts them in.
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Think URI should get a shot @ The Dance, but if not, you have to put them in same NIT bracket !
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with Buffalo…sorry !!
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Ha! I strongly considered it. I don’t know if the committee would do it. Would make for some great TV storylines / ratings probably!
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Let’s make it happen and …we’ll play the game in White Eagle Hall !!
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Looks like Princeton will win out to end up 16-14. Also has wins vs. Rider and Stony Brook, teams you include in your CIT/CBI list. The Ivy League sent 5 teams to the postseason last year with some strong performances, including the Tigers. At 9-5 the Tigers would boast an attractive resume as the third place Ivy finisher in a stronger league than it has ever been. (Forget the loss to Lafayette. That seems like it was years ago!)
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If Princeton wins out – which is still an if with Cornell and Columbia coming to Jadwin this weekend – then the Tigers would certainly be a candidate for the CBI/CIT if they wanted to play. There are a few Ivy League teams beyond Yale/Harvard that control their postseason destiny depending on what happens this weekend.
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Dartmouth, Princeton and the Yale-Harvard loser deserve to get chances to play post-season, regardless of the NIT. The Ivy League could send half its members into the post-season for the second straight year, a clear indicator of the rising talent level and performance among the Ancient Eight. A second bid can’t be too far away!!!!!
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I’m Assuming you Think Florida St will not at finish at or above .500? I don’t even see them on the cbi list lol
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I have been assuming that Florida State will finish under .500, but they’ve got a toss-up game coming up here with Pittsburgh. I highly doubt they make the NIT, but they could probably finagle a CBI bid if they wanted one?
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Roll tide
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