Storyline: It’s a special time of year, especially for schools that rarely make headlines. For them it’s more than March Madness. It’s Merry Clinchmas.
With the turn of the calendar comes the best time of the year for college basketball fans–tournament time. March Madness is a wonderful time of year and this weekend we jumped right into it.
But Madness is not just for fans. It reaps big benefits for schools many of us never hear about — except at this time of year. So how is the bracket shaping up for these small conference teams? Four teams made the tournament.
Courtesy: FGCU Basketball
Florida Gulf Coast clinched a return to the tournament by winning the Atlantic Sun championship. You may remember FGCU from its run in the 2013 tournament. As a 15-seed, the Eagles topped a Georgetown team that was viewed widely as a top contender for the NCAA crown. FGCU went on to The Sweet Sixteen, where they fell to 3-seed Florida. The Eagles found themselves back in Madness last year. They beat Fairleigh Dickinson in a 16-seed play-in game before losing to North Carolina in the First Round. According to ESPN Bracketology, this year the Eagles are looking at a 14-seed, their highest ever.
Wichita State also clinched a tournament bid by defeating Illinois State in the Missouri Valley tournament final. The Shockers had been a bubble team looking for an at-large bid. But WSU’s win opens up a spot for another at-large team. In 2013, WSU entered as a 9-seed and made a run to the Final Four where the Shockers lost to Louisville in a very close game. And they were a top seed in 2014 before losing to Kentucky in the second game. They are currently projected as an 8-seed.
Courtesy: Scolin’s Sports Venues Visited
Also on Sunday Big South Champion, Winthrop, punched its ticket to The Dance. They’re in for the first time since 2010 when the Eagles–playing as a 16-seed–lost in the opening round to Arkansas. No stranger to The Dance, this is Winthrop’s 10th appearance. But they’ve not experienced much success, only once escaping a first-round loss. This time they’re projected to be a 14-seed which, if it happens, would be the Eagles highest ranking since 2008.
The fourth and final clinch from Sunday was Jacksonville State (from Alabama, not Florida) out of the Ohio Valley Conference. With a conference championship and 20-win season, this will be the Gamecocks first Division 1 appearance. JSU looks to be a 16-seed slated for a play-in game.
The other mid-major conference lock-in conference champs early this week. The major conferences follow later in the week. By Sunday afternoon all conference champs will be known. That day the NCAA Committee will announce at-large bids and seed all the teams. Play-in games begin the following Tuesday.
Get ready!
