Here's the final product. Thanks to Wisconsin's win over Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament final, the Badgers jump Virginia for the final top seed, a change from this morning.
Bracketology: Final 2015 NCAA Tournament projections
Chris Dobbertean’s final bracket features a change among top seeds from this morning’s bracket returning, and a single change among the at-large teams, a switch of a pair of SEC teams.
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At the cut line, bubble teams are cheering SMU's victory over Connecticut in the American Athletic Conference final in Hartford, a result that preserved a place for the likes of Boise State, BYU, Georgia, Indiana, LSU, Ole Miss, Temple Owls, and Texas. After taking a long last look at the profiles and some history, I switched Ole Miss out for Georgia, thanks to the Bulldogs' sweep and superior RPI. I have more information on why in my final bubble post of 2015.
But with that here is my final projection of the season.
| (1) MIDWEST Cleveland (Thu/Sat) | (2) EAST Syracuse (Fri/Sun) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisville (Thu/Sat) | Pittsburgh (Thu/Sat) | ||
| 1 | KENTUCKY (SEC) | 1 | VILLANOVA (Big East) |
| 16 | HAMPTON/ROBERT MORRIS | 16 | COASTAL CAROLINA (Big South) |
| 8 | Dayton | ↑ 8 88 | North Carolina State |
| ↓ 9 | Cincinnati | 9 | Ohio State |
| Seattle (Fri/Sun) | Columbus (Fri/Sun) | ||
| 5 | West Virginia | 5 | Louisville |
| 12 | WOFFORD (SoCon) | ↓ 122 | WYOMING (MW) |
| 4 | NORTHERN IOWA | 4 | Oklahoma |
| 13 | GEORGIA STATE (Sun Belt) | 13 | EASTERN WASHINGTON (Big Sky) |
| Columbus (Fri/Sun) | Pittsburgh (Thu/Sat) | ||
| 6 | Wichita State | ↑ 6 | VCU (A 10) |
| 11 | BYU/Boise State | 11 | Indiana/Texas |
| 3 | NOTRE DAME (ACC) | 3 | Maryland |
| 14 | NORTH DAKOTA STATE (Summit) | 14 | NORTHEASTERN (CAA) |
| Omaha (Fri/Sun) | Charlotte (Fri/Sun) | ||
| 7 | Butler | 7 | Oregon |
| ↓ 10 | Purdue | ↑ 10 | LSU |
| 2 | Kansas | ↓ 2 | Virginia |
| 15 | TEXAS SOUTHERN (SWAC) | 15 | ALBANY (AE) |
| (4) WEST Los Angeles (Thu/Sat) | (3) SOUTH Houston (Fri/Sun) | ||
| Omaha (Fri/Sun) | Charlotte (Fri/Sun) | ||
| 1 | WISCONSIN (Big Ten) | 1 | Duke |
| 16 | LAFAYETTE (Patriot) | 16 | MANHATTAN/NORTH FLORIDA |
| 8 | San Diego State | 8 | Iowa |
| 9 | St. John's | ↑ 9 | Colorado State |
| Jacksonville (Thu/Sat) | Portland (Thu/Sat) | ||
| 5 | SMU (AAC) | ↑ 5 | Utah |
| 12 | BUFFALO (MAC) | 12 | STEPHEN F. AUSTIN (Southland) |
| 4 | North Carolina | 4 | Arkansas |
| 13 | VALPARAISO (Horizon) | 13 | HARVARD (Ivy) |
| Jacksonville (Thu/Sat) | Louisville (Thu/Sat) | ||
| 6 | Michigan State | ↓ 6 | Providence |
| 11 | Temple | *11 | Georgia |
| 3 | Baylor | 3 | IOWA STATE (Big 12) |
| ↑ 14 | BELMONT (OVC) | 14 | UAB (C-USA) |
| Portland (Thu/Sat) | Seattle (Fri/Sun) | ||
| 7 | Xavier | 7 | Georgetown |
| ↓ 10 | Davidson | 10 | Oklahoma State |
| 2 | ARIZONA (Pac-12) | 2 | GONZAGA (WCC) |
| 15 | NEW MEXICO STATE (WAC) | ↓ 15 | UC IRVINE (Big West) |
| FIRST FOUR (Dayton) | |||
| Tuesday: To Louisville | Tuesday: To Louisville | ||
| *16 | HAMPTON (MEAC) | ↓ 11 | Boise State |
| 16 | ROBERT MORRIS (NEC) | ↑ 11 | BYU |
| Wednesday: To Charlotte | Wednesday: To Columbus | ||
| 16 | MANHATTAN (MAAC) | ↓ 11 | Indiana |
| 16 | NORTH FLORIDA (A-Sun) | 11 | Texas |
* = new team
| BIDS BY CONFERENCE | AVOIDING DAYTON | ARRIVALS | DEPARTURES |
| Big 12: 7 | Davidson | Georgia | Ole Miss |
| Big Ten: 7 | LSU | ||
| ACC: 6 | Temple | ||
| Big East: 6 | Georgia | ||
| MW: 4 | LAST FOUR IN | ||
| SEC: 4 | Texas | ||
| AAC: 3 | BYU | ||
| A 10: 3 | Boise State | ||
| Pac-12: 3 | Indiana | ||
| MVC: 2 | FIRST FOUR OUT | ||
| WCC: 2 | Ole Miss | ||
| One-Bid Conferences: 21 | Miami | ||
| UCLA | |||
| Tulsa | |||
| NEXT FOUR OUT | |||
| Illinois | |||
| Richmond | |||
| Old Dominion | |||
| Texas A&M |
Also considered (in rank order): Stanford, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Iona, Louisiana Tech, Murray State, Green Bay
Note that I switched BYU’s position with one of the First Four games to keep the Cougars on a Thursday-Saturday path through both the first and second weekends.
Thank you all so much for reading along over the past few months. I’m looking forward to sharing more thoughts with you over the next few weeks, starting tonight after the Selection Show is over.
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