As we move further into February, there’s been no shortage of high-quality basketball but, more importantly, there’s been a plethora of games that has caused a shift in my projected tournament field.
Tennessee is back up to the one line after a huge win against Florida on Saturday, though Iowa State’s three-game losing streak is what opened up a spot for that one seed. The Cyclones have lost games to Kansas State and Kansas since my last projection, bringing them all the way down to the three line.
In addition to Tennessee’s win and Iowa State’s upset loss, last Saturday saw some of the most exciting basketball of the entire season. Auburn beat Ole Miss, Texas Tech beat Houston, USC beat Michigan State, UConn beat Marquette, Baylor beat Kansas, Missouri beat Mississippi State Georgia Tech beat Louisville and Oklahoma beat Vandebilt, all of this happening in the span of one afternoon.
While all the games mentioned were great, two blockbusters highlighted the action: North Carolina at Duke and Arkansas at Kentucky. Duke throttled UNC as the favorite but then, in what was a surprise to most, Arkansas went into Rupp Arena and stunned Kentucky.
Things wouldn’t get much better for the ‘Cats, as just two days ago they dropped another game, this time to Ole Miss. Also on Tuesday, Marquette lost to St. John’s for its second consecutive loss as well.
All these games had a profound impact on my latest projection so, without further ado, here’s my first bracketology update of February.
