Big 12 Eyes Record-Tying 11 NCAA Tournament Bids in Latest Bracketology
The Big 12 could be on the verge of making history in the 2024 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament if things continue to trend the way they are as we enter the final stretch of January.
There’s no conference in America that plays better basketball than the Big 12. Just turn on a random game in league play and you’ll know the difference between this conference and the rest.
With Big 12 play about to hit its most pivotal stretch, there are still a lot of cards to be played and plenty of things that could change between now and tournament time, but for the time being, this league is set up to make one heck of a run into March.
Only one conference in history has gotten 11 tournament bids in a single NCAA Tournament, a distinction that belongs to the Big East back in 2011. That season, the Big East had five teams with Top 4 seeds, including No. 1 seed Pittsburgh, No. 2 seed Notre Dame, No. 3 seed Syracuse, No. 3 seed UConn, and No. 4 seed Louisville.
The Big 12 is looking at a very similar situation in the latest Bracketology from ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, as 10 teams are in the tournament, and one team has appeared on the bubble.
The 11 teams that were mentioned in the update currently hold a collective record of 157-43 (.785).
Here’s how things look for the Big 12 in the latest Bracketology update, courtesy of ESPN.
Projected Big 12 Teams in NCAA Tournament
(1) Houston vs. (16) Sam Houston
(2) Kansas vs. (15)South Dakota State
(4) Baylor vs. (13) Drexel
(5) Oklahoma vs. (12) Drake
(5) Iowa State vs. (12) Samford
(5) BYU vs. (12) McNeese State
(8) Texas Tech vs. (9) Boise State
(7) Clemson vs. (10) TCU
(11) Kansas State vs. (11) Ole Miss
(12) Cincinnati vs. (12) Oregon
Last Four Byes: TCU, New Mexico, Northwestern, South Carolina
Last Four In: Kansas State, Ole Miss, Cincinnati, Oregon
First Four Out: Gonzaga, Providence, Colorado, Wake Forest
Next Four Out: Indiana State, Nevada, Florida, Texas
The Big 12 is right on target to get double-digit teams into the tournament and has the chance to do something very special if the teams at the bottom of the league standings continue to prove that they belong.
You’d better hope your team shows up for every game on their schedule from here on out because things are heating up and every game in this league is capable of going both ways.
