In The Waiting Line...

Please enjoy a very appropriate Buffet Music Offering as you consume the Waiting Line:



In the Waiting Line…

The DMV. Southwest Airlines boarding gate. Einstein’s Bagels on Friday bagel day. The betting window at the Mandalay 5 minutes before tip time of a game pod. A 21 year old Scottsdale girl wanting to gain entrance into the Buffet’s HQ.

What do all these locations have in common? All famous for having long, competitive lines… where else?

The NCAA Tournament. As the regular season draws to its final week, what work is left for teams to do? Who needs a deep run in their conference tourney? Who need to avoid being the team to give DePaul or Air Force its first conference win, or give Arkansas, Indiana, Georgia Tech or Colorado its second …

Let’s take a number, watch Oklahoma, Xavier, Pitt and UConn get their second helpings at the Buffet as we take a step into the Waiting Line…

Who’s Enjoying the Buffet Already, Not Automatically:

ACC: Clemson, Duke, Florida State, North Carolina Wake Forest (5)

Atlantic 10: Xavier (1)

Big East: Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Marquette, Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia (7)

Big Ten: Michigan State, Illinois (2)

Big 12: Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Texas (4)

Horizon: Butler (1)

Mountain West: Utah (1)

Pacific 10: Arizona State, California, UCLA, Washington (4)

Southeastern Conference: LSU, Tennessee (2)

West Coast Conference: Gonzaga (1) (auto-qualifier)

Who’s Waiting in Line:
ACC: Boston College, Maryland, Miami (FL), Virginia Tech (4)
Atlantic 10: Dayton, Rhode Island, Temple (3)
Big East: Cincinnati, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Providence (4)
Big Ten: Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin (6)
Big Twelve: Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M (3)
Missouri Valley: Creighton (1)
Mountain West: BYU, San Diego St, UNLV (3)
Pacific 10: Arizona, Southern California (2)
SEC: Auburn, Florida, South Carolina (3)
Southern: Davidson (1)
WAC: Utah State (1)
WCC: St. Mary’s (1)


Automatic Qualifiers: 31
Invitees: 28 (with a possible 9 becoming autoqualifiers)
Teams Waiting in Line: 32
Available Spots (assuming all 9 auto-spots taken by current invitee): 15

America East:
Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Conference Championship: Binghamtom Bearcats vs. UMBC Retrievers

Atlantic Coast Conference:
Enjoying the Buffet: North Carolina, Duke, Wake Forest, Florida St, Clemson,

In the Waiting Line…: Boston College, Maryland, Miami (FL), Virginia Tech

Boston College Eagles: 21-10 (9-7 (ACC); 57 RPI, 59 SOS (211 NC); 3-3 vs. top 25, 4-5 vs. top 50, 7-7 vs top 100 – 5-5 on the road, 8-5 in last 12 (Began 5-0, then went 3-4)

The good: wins over Duke (RPI 2); @UNC (road win over RPI 3); Florida State (RPI 16); and vs. UAB (44 – and fellow line waiter); wins @ Maryland (67 rpi – fellow line sitter); Va Tech (63 – fellow line sitter); Providence (71, ditto); 8-4 L12

The Bad: Loss @Saint Louis (113); Loss @ NC State; 12 point home loss to Harvard (72 hours after beating UNC in Chapel Hill, taking some shine off that win); plummeting RPI & SOS, and a weak 3-4 in last 7

The Outlook: Hard to imagine with wins over UNC, Duke, and 20+ wins plus a winning record in a tough conference record, they won’t make it. Getting swept by Miami, who is also in Line… BC needs to help itself, and that starts today versus Virginia, who isn’t a tournament sealing win but could be a deal-breaker of a loss – then they get Duke, a win, and obviously they’d be in, a close loss would probably do the same, a blowout wouldn’t be as damaging as losing to UVA, but it would make the sweat begin…

Maryland Terrapins: 18-12 (7-9 ACC); 67 RPI; 26 SOS (125 NC); 2-6 vs. Top 25; 3-7 vs. Top 50; 7-10 vs. top 100 – 2-6 on the road; 5-7 in last 10.

The Good: wins over UNC (3 RPI); vs. Michigan State (18 point win on neutral court – 6 RPI); Michigan (42 RPI, fellow line waiter, and with each Michigan win the Maryland victory looks better than better); Miami (FL) (52, fellow line waiter); Virginia Tech (63 & fellow line waiter); 3 top 50 wins (7 top 100)

The Bad: That finish – to lose to Wake, especially by only 2 is ok, to follow it up with a disastrous loss at Virginia – the Buffet does not care how well UVA has played at home recently (which couldn’t be more overtouted) – below.500 in conference, road record; last 12 games; loss to Morgan St (at home – 135); 3-4 versus Line… waiters (losses to Georgetown, Miami (split home and home); Boston College and @Florida State.

The Outlook: Maryland is plummeting – that recent win over North Carolina was big time, they gave Duke a fight, and it would have been real nice to have gotten that game – the road win @ North Carolina State was real helpful, … the blow-out loss on a neutral court to Georgetown is troubling, considering where G’Town is, but under closer inspection, that did start off a 7-game Hoya winning streak including wins over Memphis (potential 2-3 seed) and UConn (likely 1-seed) – Maryland has Wake on March 3 and @Virginia.

After losing to Virginia and Wake – a deep ACC run is all that Maryland can use to go Buffet’ing

Miami (Fl) Hurricanes: 17-11 (7-9 ACC); 52 RPI; 23 SOS (204 NC); 2-6 vs. top 25, 2-7 vs. top 50; 6-9 vs. top 100 – 6-7 on the road, 5-7 in L12

The Good: Strength of Schedule; wins over Wake Forest (RPI 10); Florida State (RPI 16); Swept Boston College (RPI 57 and fellow waiting liner; and beat both Maryland (67) and Kentucky (79) – both (somewhat) in the Waiting Line…

The Bad: 5-7 in last 10; sub .500 conference record; losses to waiting liners Virginia Tech; Ohio State & Florida State … no strong NC win; losing at Ga Tech and beating NC St actually hurt, because it gave them 2 RPI 100+ losses

The Outlook: Miami is a tough case – a couple nice top 25 wins, but almost no non-conference work (Kentucky barely counts), and they are under .500 in the ACC – what works in their favor is how difficult their ACC schedule was (2 games vs. UNC, 2 vs. Maryland, 2 vs. Boston College – they jump in SOS from NC to conference demonstrates this) … after that Ga Tech loss, Miami cannot afford to slip up and seems to need at least 2 ACC wins, and that means beating UNC, but on the bright side beating UNC would like up a bid fo’ sho’

Currently being down 51-37 to Va Tech with 9:00 minutes left isn’t all that helpful.

Virginia Tech: 17-13 (7-9 ACC); RPI 63; SOS 24 (159 NC); 2-7 vs. Top 25; 2-8 vs. Top 50; 5-11 vs. top 100 – 5-6 on road; 4-8 in L12

The Good: Top 3 wins all on road -- @Clemson, @Wake; @Miami; SOS … that isn’t a lot of good.

The Bad: Average RPI; zero non-conference work; sub .500 in last 12; 2 @Virginia by 14 points (109); and at Georgia by one (186); losses to Waiting Liners Wisconsin, @Maryland, Boston College – an under .500 record against RPI Top 200.

The Outlook: Head scratcher of a team – can’t win @ Virginia, on a neutral vs. Seton or beat Wisconsin at home – but can beat both Wake Forest & Clemson on the road? That road work is compelling, and helps keep Va Tech in the discussion. but having lost 4/5, if they lose both remaining games and can win’t twice in ACC – sayanora. But that means beating UNC.

On the flip side of that Miami score – 57-37 with 7:02 left, which really bodes well for them.

Atlantic Ten:
Enjoying the Buffet: Xavier

At the front of the Waiting Line…: Dayton

In the Waiting Line…: Rhode Island, Temple

Dayton: 25-6 (11-5 A10); RPI 23; 95 SOS (129 NC); 1-1 v. Top 25; 3-2 v. Top 50; 8-3 vs. Top 100 – 5-6 on the Road; 8-4 in L12 (all road losses)
The Good: RPI; Conference record; wins over Xavier (11); Marquette (with D.James, 30 now); and Temple (40); 8-4 in last 10; Road/Neutral record;

The Bad: Losses @: St. Louis (113); Massachussetts (166) & Charlotte (210 – how does Bobby Lutz still have a job) – relatively light on Top 50 wins (just 3); SOS has come down which helps, but it is still hovering around 100.

The Outlook: Hard to see how they won’t – beat Temple and Duquense to take care of business (no shame in losing on road @Xavier, especially having taken the first of two) … Dayton should get in … a win over Richmond would virtually seal it, although the Cmte can get funny with weaker RPI conference teams …

Rhode Island: 22-9 (11-5 A10); RPI 65, 124SOS (120); 1-4 v. top 25; 3-5 v. top 50; 6-6 v. top 100 – 9-5 on road; 10-2 in L12
The Good: wins over fellow conference waiting liners Dayton & Temple, and CAA champ VCU (50); #2 seed in A10 (ahead of likely tourney team Dayton); won 10 of 12 -- competitive in virtually every game this season (lost by 3 at Duke, 2 v. Xavier; 14 vs. Okla St, 6 vs. Temple and the crushing heartbreaking loss to end season v. Massachusetts); Road Record is strong; 5 point NC win versus Waiting Liner Penn State

The Bad: SOS; mediocre RPI; 11-9 vs. top 200; loss to RPI #127 Richmond; #102 St. Joe’s & at home to end season versus #147 UMass; outside of Penn State, nothing of note in NC;

The Outlook: Nothing quite like being hot at the right time, a 6 game winning streak late in the season and of 12 in January/February/March is genius – prior to that UMass loss, URI was trending perfectly – now, it seems they must beat Dayton in the A10 tourney but advancing to the final should be enough (even if Dayton/Temple lose early) or a semifinal could be enough depending how other Waiting Liners… break)

Temple: 19-11 (11-5 A10); RPI 40; SOS 48 (NC 24); 1-5 v. Top 25; 1-5 v. Top 50; 4-8 v. Top 100 – 9-8 road; 8-4 in L12

The Good: SOS (NC of 24 is real strong); road record; win over Tennessee (22 RPI and a likely 5-7 seed); splitting with URI; @Penn St (Waiting Liner…)

The Bad: 1-5 record versus RPI top 50; 3 losses 101-200 (La Salle (113); @Long Beach (155); @UMass (147); failure to get marquee wins despite several opportunities (losses @Kanass (by 12); Xavier (9); Clemson (4); Villanova (17) and Dayton (5)

The Outlook: Temple’s pair of non-conference Waiting Line… wins are nice – but their resume (outside of a split w/ URI) sort of stops there, even though they’ve won 5 of 7 and 8 of 11, anything short of an A10 final berth (unless they get Xavier prior and beat them in quarters or something) and they’re NIB (Not In Buffet)

Atlantic Sun:
Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Conference Tournament Champion: East Tennessee State Bucs

Big East:
Enjoying the Buffet: Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Marquette, Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia

In the Waiting Line…: Cincinnati, Georgetown Notre Dame, Providence

Cincinnati Bearcats: 17-14 (8-11 BE); 83 RPI; 41 SOS (83 NC) 0-8 v. top 25; 2-9 v. top 50; 7-12 v. top 100 – 4-7 on Road; 5-7 in L12

The Good: SOS; win over West Virginia; sweeping G’Town; wins over fellow Line Waiters… UAB, @UNLV and Notre Dame; 7-4 vs. teams 26-100

The Bad: Not competitive versus top echelon (losses @Pitt, home v. UConn, @Memphis, Louisville, Xavier, @Villanova, vs. Fla St, Syracuse); blown out by Syracuse in late Waiting Line game (87-63); swept by fellow Line Waiters… Providence;. 4 game losing streak to end the season, a loss when they couldn’t afford it to #99 Seton Hall.

The Outlook: No.

Georgetown Hoyas: 16-14 (7-12 BE); 59 RPI; SOS #4 (10 NC) – 3-8 on Road; 4-5 v. Top 25; 4-8 v. Top 50; 7-12 vs. Top 100; 8-12 in Last 12

The Good: Oh the SOS. 4 wins versus top 25 (including at UConn & Villanova); and against Waiting Liners… Syracuse (split); Maryland by 27, Providence; only 1 loss against a RPI 100+ (road BE game to Seton Hall)

The Bad: At 15-14, it is one thing to play a tough schedule, it is another to barely be above .500 against them. Struggling badly up until and after the Villanova win …

The Outlook: . What a strange team, 4-6 versus top 25 might be a losing record, but 4 wins, 2 on the road, and a couple of great NC feathers (at Memphis and a 27 point win against Maryland on a neutral court) … but then they can’t win against 25-100 (3-5) where you should be chomping people up. They will not be invited in the Buffet

Notre Dame Fighting Irish: 17-14 (9-11 BE); RPI 74; SOS 39 (216 NC); 1-7 v. top 25; 2-12 v. top 50; 5-13 v. top 100 – 3-8 on road; 6-6 L12.

The Good: Demolition of Louisville with season on the line, vs. Texas in Maui; wins over Waiting Liners Providence & G’Town. Strong SOS.

The Bad: The rest of their season – sub .500 conference record, only 2 games over .500 overall, double-digit losses to Pitt; UNC; Louisville, W.Virginia, Syracuse, UCLA, & Cincy. Loss to St. John’s (147 RPI); and the barely bothering to appear at MSG for the BET.

The Outlook: No

Providence Friars: 19-12 (11-8 Big East); 71 RPI; 55 SOS (162 NC); 2-4 v. top 25; 2-7 v. top 50; 6-12 v. top 100 – 4-6 on the road; 6-6 L12

The Good: Resume popping win over then #1 (and RPI #1) Pittsburgh, win v. Syracuse (17); wins over Waiting Liners: Cincy (sweep) and Rhode Island (53); over .500 v. Big East

The Bad: 2-7 versus top 50; low RPI; losing road record; loses to lots of Waiting Liners: G’Town, Boston College, vs. St. Mary’s, and vs. Baylor (are they even a waiting liner?); Notre Dame (same question applies); 3-7 versus 26-50 (typical Waiting Line rankings)

The Outlook: Providence is a classic Waiting Liner – each win & loss pushes them from in line to watching the line – only regular season game left is @Villanova, which will be hard pressed not to be a loss. Win opening round BET game, and either their second game as well or at least a competitive `2nd round game, and the Pride of Maris Laksa rides again…

Update: 18 point loss against Louisville pretty much dooms Providence to the NIT – resume is just too lightweight to survive a loss like that.

Big Sky:
Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Conference Tournament Champion: Portland State Vikings

Big South:
Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Conference Tournament (& Reg Season) Champs:
Radford Highlanders

Big Ten:
Enjoying the Buffet: Michigan State, Purdue, Illinois

In the Waiting Line…: Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin

Michigan Wolverines: 19-12 (9-9); RPI 42; SOS 10 (59 NC); 2-4 v. top 25; 6-9 v. top 50; 10-11 v. top 100 – 3-8 on road; 6-6 in L12

The Good: Great NC wins (Duke & UCLA); a pretty impressive 6 wins versus top 50 (Illinois, Minnesota twice & Purdue in conference); strong SOS; win at Northwestern and Minnesota when Home Court Hero label was getting attached. Win 2 of 3 down the stretch

The Bad: loss at Iowa (105 rpi); Waiting Line losses to Wisconsin (swept); Ohio St (swept); Maryland and @ Penn St (split home and home thought); Home Court Hero (3-8 on the road); just average 4-5 against teams 26-50.

The Outlook: Michigan was on the edge, their Duke, Illinois, UCLA & Purdue wins held up nicely – but they couldn’t close out Wisconsin or Connecticut on the road to really solidify a berth. To really feel safe.

The road win at Minnesota was season defining, the blowout win to open B10 tourney gets them in.

Minnesota Golden Gophers: 21-9 (10-9 B10); RPI 37; SOS 37 (NC 165); 2-3 v. top 25; 5-7 v. top 50; 9-9 v. top 100 – 4-6 on road; 6-6 in L12

The Good: non-conference win versus Louisville (10) on neutral court; win over Illinois (18); Waiting Line sweep over @Wisconsin (40); Ohio State 38– split); Penn State (66 – split) and Northwestern (72– won 2 of 3); top 50 SOS; no bad losses

The Bad: only 1 major road win, loss to Michigan at home in reg season finale; only one major road scalp (losses to Michigan St, Illinois, Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and Northwestern); middling record versus top 50;

The Outlook: Buffet prescribed a least win one of last two and then first BET game. They got that – they are in

Northwestern Wildcats: 17-13 (8-10 B10); RPI 72; 40 SOS (NC 213); 2-3 v. top 25; 6-10 v. top 50; 6-9 v. top 100 – 4-8 on the road; 6-6 in last 12

The Good: Wins at Michigan St, (6) vs. Florida St (16), at Purdue (33) wins over Waiting Liners… Wisconsin (40), Ohio State (38) and Mnnesota (37).

The Bad: Overall record (just 17 wins), sub .500 versus B10; RPI (72), losses at Stanford (110) and Iowa (112); Lost 2 straight to close season

The Outlook: Can’t. Too many bad losses, not enough good wins to overcome their consistent losses to top 50 teams, even with that nice resume building win over Purdue. It was cool for the smart kids and Bill Carmody to give it a shot, and it may not have been fair to demand wins at Ohio St & versus Minnesota, but they didn’t do either, and now they can play in the NIT.

Ohio State Buckeyes: 20-9 (10-8 Big 10); 38 RPI; 32 SOS (133 NC); 1-5 v. top 25; 5-8 v. top 50; 9-9 v. top 100 – 4-6 on the road; 7-5 L12

The Good: Wins over Butler (20); and a bunch of waiting liners; Minnesota (37 - split); Purdue (33 – split); swept Michigan (42 – which is KEY and looking better and better with how Michigan is playing); @Miami (FL) (63); Penn State (66) and N’Western when the Wildcats absolutely needed it to make the tourney. No bad losses. Nice 8-4 record versus teams ranked 26-50.

The Bood: Consistently lost to top competition (swept by Michigan St, Illinois and lost to West Virginia badly at home); sub .500 road record,

The Outlook: Hard to see a scenario where Ohio St gets left out, answered a slump (losing 4 of 5) with 2 straight wins, including a tough one at Iowa. They beat several teams gasping for an invitation (Michigan, Miami (FL), Penn St, Notre Dame – with splits against Purdue and Minnesota). From a Waiting Line... standpoint, I wish they had shown better in some of their losses, but it shouldn’t matter too much. They are in

Penn State Nittany Lions: 21-9 (10-8 B10); 66 RPI; 81 SOS (308 NC); 3-1 v. top 25; 6-8 v. top 50; 7-9 v. top 100 – 5-6 on the road; 7-5 in last 12

The Good: Their record, finished above in B10; sparkling record versus RPI Top 25 and 7 top 100 wins overall; great road wins at Illinois (no matter how gross that game was) & Michigan St. Waiting Line wins over Northwestern, Minnesota, & Michigan. Picked great time to win 4 of 6.

The Bad; 3-7 versus top 26-50 means they can’t handle competition on their own level all too well; low RPI (66); that NC Strength of Schdeule, is ugly – best non-conference win is Mount Saint Mary’s (at 116) – which means they did nothing out of conference.

The Outlook: ITBO, they got in when the finished off the sweep of Illinois, but to be safe, they finish off Indiana (up 42-28) – but, after finishing off Indiana, they need a good showing against Purdue, who may notice wasn’t listed among “The Good” – this is because when they beat them at home – but who came there without Chris Kramer and Robbie Hummel – which makes it less of a great win.

Wisconsin Badgers: 18-11 (10-8 B10); 40 RPI; 11 SOS (34); 1-3 v. top 25; 4-9 v. top 50; 9-10 v. top 100 – on road 4-7, 7-5 L12.

The Good: Wins over Illinois, Ohio State, swept Michigan, at Virginia Tech & Penn State (swept them); Likely to have 18-20 wins versus #11 schedule; solid work on road (Va Tech, Penn St, Michigan).

The Bad: loss at Iowa (116); not a lot done out of conference despite the schedule (@Va Tech is only non-conference win that enhances their result).

The Outlook: Keep on keeping on, they’re pretty much in, but they should play tough against Ohio St to be safe. After that dreadful 6 game losing streak, was impressive to see them bounce back with 5 straight, including wins over Illinois, @Penn State; Ohio State, but they’ve come back to earth a bit, going .500 the rest of the way, but they are still 10-8 in conference … and strong enough schedule, enough good wins to overcome a lack of NC work.

Big Twelve:
Enjoying the Buffet: Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Texas

In the Waiting Line…: Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M

Close, But Not in the Waiting Line…: Baylor

This is why the Buffet doesn’t even consult or read Lunardi/ESPN Prognosticators when preparing for Buffetology – the Buffet’s Editor-in-Chief attended Texas, there’s no hiding that fact, so a bit of homerism is involved whenever they come up in discussion. However, there is no way a team with 20 wins, top 35 RPI, over .500 record versus top 50 (including 2-1 versus top 25); non-conference wins versus Villanova (in NYC, 15); UCLA (23), and @Wisconsin (31) – not to mention wins over #4 Oklahoma, #25 Oklahoma St, Texas A&M (35), and sweeping then-Waiting Liner Baylor, is not included, so Texas has been invited in. Catcalls of “HOMER” can begin now.

Kansas State Wildcats: 20-11 (9-8 B12); RPI 80; 95 SOS (305NC); 1-5 v. top 25; 3-6 vs. top 50; 5-9 v. top 100 – 5-5 on the road; 8-4 L12

The Good: 20 wins; strong road record, and were as hot as they come -- 9-3 going into B12 tourney; have a legit superstar in Denis Clemente; road wins at Texas A&M (35) and Texas (36) and 16 point win at home versus Missouri (11)

The Bad: Oh that NC SOS, and RPI, to be honest. Also, zero non-conference work (@Cleveland St is best win). Swept by Kansas, lost to Oklahona, losses to Waiting Liners… Oklahoma St, Nebraska, Kentucky. Losses to Oregon (162) and Iowa (116). Lost 2 of 3 (albeit both were tough road games.

The Outlook: The resume is just too light, despite the 8-4L12 and pair of Lone Star state road wins. Needed to beat Texas in B12, did not, and now they will not Buffet.

Oklahoma State: 21-10 (10-7 B12); RPI 21, SOS 9 (38 NC); 1-6 v. Top 25; 3-9 v. Top 50; 8-10 v. Top 100 – 4-6 on Road, 8-4 in L12.

The Good: Wins over Texas, A&M (waiting liner), vs. Rhode Island (waiting liner), and Kansas St. (former waiting liner); not to mentioned RPI #18 Siena. Got hot in February (winning 8 of 12 and six straight before a tough loss at Oklahoma). The RPI and the gorgeous SOS.

The Bad: They cannot beat good teams, 1-6 v. top 25, and 2-3 v. RPI 26-50, no significant road wins (Nebraska & Texas Tech are their best), and lost every big NC game they played (Mich St, Washington, Gonzaga).

How Can They Get Their Fil: Their hot march, waiting line wins, 21+ wins versus the 9th best schedule – Okla St.

Texas A&M: 22-9 (9-8); RPI 35; 44 (153); 2-4 v. top 25, 4-5 v. top 50, 8-8 v. top 100 – road 5-5; 8-4 L12.

The Good: Wins over Missou, Texas and then SEC ChampLSU on a neutral court. Beat Waiting Liners Okla St and Arizona. .500 on Road, solid RPI & SOS

The Bad: Not enough great wins, and a terrible terrible loss to #115 Tech

How Do They Get Their Fill?: Texas A&M was in, and they probably still are, but you blow a 19 pt halftime lead like that, especially when it costs the Buffet real money. A&M is still probably safe, but that loss sits attached to them like a scarlet letter.


Big West:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Tonight’s Quarterfinals:

UC Davis v. Pacific (just the 3 seed and 157 in RPI, Christian Maaraker, where have you gone?


Colonial Athletic Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Close, but no Waiting Line… number issued: George Mason

Conference Tournament Champ: Virginia Commonwealth Rams

Conference USA:

Enjoying the Buffet: Memphis

Close, but no Waiting Line… number issued: Houston, Tulsa, UAB

Horizon League:

Enjoying the Buffet: Butler

Conference Tourney Champ: Cleveland St.

Ivy League:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Regular Season Conference Champs: Cornell Big Red

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:

Conference Tourney Champion: Siena Saints

Mid-American Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Tourney Matchups:

Left to go tonight:
Ohio (9 seed) v. Bowling Green (1 seed)
Akron (5 seed) v. Miami (OH) (4 seed)

Tomorrow: Semi-finals: Ball St v. Buffalo
Ohio/Bowling Green v. Akron/Miami

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Morgan St. Bears


Missouri Valley Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Northern Iowa Panthers

In the Waiting Line…: Creighton

Close, but no Waiting Line number issued: Illinois State

Creighton Bluejays: 26-7 (15-5 MVC); 41 RPI, SOS 106 (141); 1-0 v. top 25; 2-2 v. top 50; 9-5 v. top 100 – 8-4 road; 11-1 L12

The Good: 26 wins, and dominant conference record. Great road record and hot as can be going into that Illinois St tourney disaster. Wins over Waiting Liners Dayton, New Mexico, and MVC champ Northern Iowa (on the road)

The Bad: That loss to Illinois State leaves a terrible impression, also bad, that many good things can be said

The Outlook: It’s hard to imagine this weak of a resume can do it, but if any year was the year – here we are. Nothing left to do but hope more teams pull a G’Town, Arizona, Providence, Miami, etc.

Mountain West Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet: Utah

In the Waiting Line…: BYU, San Diego State, UNLV

Close, but no Waiting Line Number Issued: New Mexico (Danny Granger, come back)

Brigham Young Cougars: 24-6 (13-4 MWC); RPI 22; SOS 71 (71); 1-2 v. top 25; 4-3 v. top 50; 6-6 v. top 100 – 9-3 on the road; 10-2 L12

The Good: Wins over Utah (12); vs. WAC champ Utah St (68-53); swept waiting liner SD St; win @ would-be Waiting Liner Tulsa. MWC Regular Season Co-Champ

The Bad: That I can’t say anything better about them – 24 wins are nice, especially against the #71 schedule – but who did they beat? 4 nice conference wins, a win over a team many consider has an inflated RPI and a win over Tulsa in a key spot. BYU should be safe, especially after handling a pesky Air Force team … but one more MWC tourney win would be helpful.

San Diego State Aztecs: 19-8 (11-5 MWC); RPI 43; SOS 64 (110 NC); 1-3 v. top 25; 1-5 v. top 50; 4-7 v. top 100 – 5-5 on the road; 8-4 L12

The Good: Strong season record and record in a solid conference, with a chance to get to 20+; good road record, hot at the right time – sweep of Waiting Liner UNLV and win over RPI 12 – Utah.

The Bad: Just one win versus top 50 (could have used either the or both of the St. Mary’s or Arizona games; just not much on this resume to really hold on to – 0 non-conference work, 1 real road win of note…


The Outlook: If they make a deep MWC run, I think they’ll turn into locks. Which ITBO would make them one of the more fraudulent resume invites ever – what have they done not in their conference? Not to mention that they lost to Arizona and St. Mary’s – two teams waiting for an invite. But, that said, beat UNLV on their home floor in the tourney and win a second game, and they should be good to go.

Northeast Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Robert Morris Colonials

Ohio Valley Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Morehead State

Pacific Ten Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet: Washington, Arizona State; UCLA, California

In the Waiting Line…: Arizona, Southern California

Close, but no Waiting Line… Number Issued: Washington State

Arizona Wildcats: 19-13 (9-10 P10); RPI 59; SOS 29 (70); 2-1 v. top 25; 5-9 v. top 50; 9-13 v. top 100 – 2-9 on Road. 7-5 L12.

The Good: NC wins versus B12 champ Kansas (9) and WCC Champ Gonzaga (27); conference versus P10 champ Washington (14) and UCLA (29), plus wins over waiting liners SD St, Southern California, and would-be Wler Washington State. 2-1 v. top 25, 0 bad losses

The Bad: If there was ever the definition of Home Court Hero designation – Arizona gets it. Zero good wins outside the state of Arizona, and that hurts. The 2-1 record v. top 25 is nice, but they could have used to pull out that Washington win that they had, the game at A&M or the meltdown Timeout II game versus So California. Also, losing to WLer UAB on Jamelle Horn’s idiocy hurts too … what will really kill them more than anything is losing 5 of 6 down the stretch, which really makes their 7-5 in the L12 a fallacy.

The Outlook: This has been a major source of contention – the Buffet looks at Arizona’s resume and says, that looks like a tourney team – 19-13 record plus 2 of the better NC that you will find, but they way they finished the season, the fact that they didn’t win outside of the 520/480/602/623 is going to kill them. They are 3-4 games they wish they could have back, but they can’t, but maybe the Georgetown/Arizona NIT game will be good … Arizona has put themselves in the horrible position of having to hope no one among the last 8-12 out coming into the 12 Days of Conference Tourneys makes a run, or wins too many games

Southern California Trojans: 18-12 (9-9 P10); RPI 61; SOS 30 (60); 0-4 v. top 25, 2-8 v. top 50; 7-11 v. top 100. – 2-8 on road; 6-6 L12

The Good: Home wins versus Ariz St & California, as well as Waiting Liner Arizona, good SOS, and 7 top 100 wins.

The Bad: No resume defining win, the Home Court Hero label applies here too, and lost 6 of 7 against the Pac 10 elite (UCLA, Arizona, Arizona St, Washington, Cal, and Stanford – beating only non-Waiting Liner Wash St in that stretch

The Outlook: Picked a terrible time to tank, couldn’t win away from home, and since the tourney is in LA, wins won’t be as helpful as they could be … a P10 championship game berth is pretty much all they can do to get back in the discussion (not the Buffet), winning P10 might be the only way in

Patriot League:

Championship Game on March 13.

Southeastern Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet: Louisiana State, Tennessee

In the Waiting Line…: Auburn, Florida, South Carolina

Close, but not Waiting Line… Number Issued: Vanderbilt; Mississippi State

Auburn Tigers: 20-10 (10-6 SEC); RPI 65; SOS 67 (200 NC); 1-2 v. top 25; 2-5 v. top 50, 5-9 v. top 100 – 5-5 on road; 9-3 L12

The Good: Could a team be any hotter? Won 8 of 9, including against SEC champ LSU (36) and Tennessee (20) – 3 road wins, and rocketed up the SEC standings. 20 wins, 10 conference wins, decent SOS and .500 on road.

The Bad: sub .500 record versus top 100, loss to Mercer, yes, Mercer (181), and absolutely nothing against non-conference teams – best win is @Virginia (and no matter what Dick Vitale & Jay Bilas try to tell you, just because they won a game or two at home, Virginia on the road is NOT a good win). Close losses fill their schedule (7 @Xavier, 1 in OT vs. Dayton, 7 @ LSU, 6 vs. No.Iowa) – but close doesn’t cut it.

The Outlook: This is a team that’s easy to like, but like and Buffet-worthy don’t always count, or else the Buffet would make Siena, UAB circa 2002, the High Point Highs, and whatever local YMCA team the Mad Bomb Jack Leisure was currently playing on as one seeds. Auburn, if they want ANY prayer of a non-automatic invite (which shouldn’t be ruled out, they are as hot as they come) needs to get to the SEC final at a minimum.

Florida Gators: 22-9 (9-7 SEC); RPI 48; SOS 85 (240); 1-4 v. top 25; 2-6 v. top 50; 8-8 v. top 100 – 2-7 on road; 6-6 L12

The Good: 22 wins, over .500 in SEC, solid RPI for at-large team, NC neutral court versus P10 champ Washington, wins over waiting liners So Carolina, @Auburn, and Kentucky.

The Bad: The 2-6 record versus RPI top 50; too many losses in key opportunities; weak NC RPI; lost 3 of 4 down the stretch, including what many thought was a playoff game versus Tennessee; loss at Georgia (190).

The Outlook: Florida is a team compared to Arizona a lot – and this is where the Buffet has a problem … explain how Florida is ranked higher. Only 3 more wins versus a schedule ranked 60 spots lower, a higher RPI, but less wins versus top 25 and top 50 … same amount of road inaction, and Florida’s best win (Washington) is Arizona’s 2nd best, and one of 4 good wins. Florida needs to make some SEC tourney hay – it starts with Arkansas, and then Auburn … win both, and they are likely in, because they’ll have done more at the right time than some other Waiting Liners.

South Carolina Gamecocks: 21-8 (10-6 SEC); RPI 49; SOS 94 (281); 0-2 v. top 25; 1-5 v. top 50; 7-7 v. top 100 – 5-6 on road; 8-4 L12

The Good: 1 point win over Florida, wins over Waiting Liner Auburn, RPI is nice as is 21 wins and 10-6 conference record, got hot at the right time, when people were looking at the SEC and wondering who was coming, and So Carolina got red hot. 6-2 record versus 51-100 distinguishes them from teams not invited.

The Bad: Just nothing on the resume between 1-50, a one point home win versus Florida looks like a fluke amongst the balance of that resume. Scheduled poorly, no big road games – except Baylor (which again was a 1 point win and didn’t look like a particularly good one until Baylor went bonkers in the B12 tournament) … this team needs a deep SEC run – as no team has ever made the tournament with 0 top 50 wins or a win against a team in the field (So Carolina has a win over #48 only) which puts them in a precarious position – unless they get 1-2 good wins, they can go play NIT.

Southwestern Athletic Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Regular Season Conference Champs: Alabama State Hornets

Southern Conference:

In the Waiting Line…: Davidson (hanging by a thin thin West Virginia thread)

Conference Tourney Champs: UT-Chattanooga Mocs

Davidson Wildcats: 25-7 (19-3 SoCon); RPI 69; SOS 163 (NC 13); 1-3 v. top 25; 1-4 v. top 50; 2-4 v. top 100 – 10-2 on road; 8-4 L12.

The Good: Resume propping-up win versus West Virginia; win over NC State (for whatever it’s worth) – close loss at Oklahoma (imagine if Curry didn’t shoot 8-4000 in that game); nice road record SoCon reg season championship;

The Bad: 3 100+ losses, including an inexcusable loss pre-tourney final (losing to Chattanooga at home would have been better pill to swallow than semis to neutral courting Charleston); lack of top 100 work; and had their chances (@Duke, @Oklahoma, home versus Butler, and neutral court v. Purdue) and they couldn’t do it – there’s just not a lot on this resume to really tout them on.

The Outlook: If they can point to the West Virginia win, their conference dominance and get a Stephen Curry sympathy vote based on his magic last year, they’ve got a shot, but it’s not a good one, basically blindfolded in the dark against a moving target

Southland Conference

Regular Season Conference Champs: Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks

Summit Conference (formerly Mid-Continent)

Conferemce Tourney Champs: North Dakota St Bison

Western Athletic Conference:

In the Waiting Line…: Utah State (hanging by a thread)

Regular Season Champs: Utah State Aggies

Utah State Aggies: 26-4 (14-2 WAC); RPI 28; SOS 138 (192 NC); 1-1 v. top 25, 1-2 v. top 50; 2-3 v. top 100 – 10-3 on road; 9-3 L12

The Good: lots and lots of wins, WAC regular championship, win over Utah (12); and hot in last 12. great road record

The Bad: Where are the resume wins – this is a lot of hope being pinned to a win over Utah – which isn’t like beating UNC, Pitt or UConn. Got beat up big time by Nevada in Reno – where the WAC tourney is being played. 1 win v. top 25, and only 2 v. top 50 (the Nevada team that just blew them out) Nothing in non-conference and no strong road wins in the 10-3 record

The Outlook: It is hard to see a team with all those wins and high RPI get left out – but what did they run those numbers up against? Not very much. Must make the WAC final and hope a Nevada is their opponent, anything else would be a bad loss at the wrong time.


West Coast Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Gonzaga Bulldogs

In the Waiting Line…: St. Mary’s

Saint Mary’s Gaels: 23-6 (11-5 WCC); RPI 46; SOS 145 (82); 0-0 v. top 25; 2-3 v. top 50; 3-4 v. top 100, 7-5 L12

The Good: win v. Utah St (29 – and short-handed without Patrick Mills); win v. Waiting Liner SD State on a neutral court, same versus Providence on NC. All those wins, and while they didn’t play anyone in top 25 the jump from 82 to 145 in SOS means they played some strong NC teams (can’t help Oregon, Kent St, and So Illinois were not good). Except for the bad loss to Portland (which should be tossed out because it was the first game AP (After Patty), they held the line nicely without him so that probably won’t play a role either way.

The Bad: Neutral court wins are nice, no big road wins, swept by Gonzaga with diminishing returns (83-58 WCC final on a neutral court); losses to Portland (120) and Santa Clara (196) shows their road weakness. No wins (no games!) versus top 25, only 2 versus top 50 and only 3 versus top 100.

The Outlook: They have the rare opportunity to erase the WCC memories with a random game tomorrow night versus Eastern Washington, a terrible team, but if they can win 80-50 or something like that, they might show what full strength can do. St. Mary’s needs a 12 Days of Conf Tourneys miracle, and hope no long runs among the teams Last 4 In/Out in order to get in.