Hello, college basketball/Big Ten fans!
I'm still working on this year's Schmolik 64 but before I do I decided this year to do a Schmolik 64 women's bracket. It isn't the first time I did it. I know the last time I did it there were only 64 teams although they just expanded to 68 teams recently.
| Greenville, SC | |||
| Columbia, SC | 1 | South Carolina * | 32-0 |
| 16 | |||
| 8 | Purdue | 19-10 | |
| 9 | Creighton | 22-8 | |
| Villanova, PA | 5 | NC State | 20-11 |
| 12 | Cleveland State * | 30-4 | |
| 4 | Villanova | 28-6 | |
| 13 | Toledo * | 28-4 | |
| Salt Lake City, UT | 6 | Louisville | 23-11 |
| 11 | |||
| 3 | Utah | 25-4 | |
| 14 | Southern Utah * | 21-9 | |
| College Park, MD | 7 | Florida State | 23-9 |
| 10 | Kansas | 19-11 | |
| 2 | Maryland | 25-6 | |
| 15 | Iona * | 26-6 | |
| Bloomington, IN | 1 | Indiana | 27-3 |
| 16 | |||
| 8 | USC | 21-9 | |
| 9 | South Dakota State * | 28-5 | |
| Ames, IA | 5 | Arizona | 21-9 |
| 12 | East Carolina * | 23-9 | |
| 4 | Iowa State * | 22-9 | |
| 13 | Drake * | 22-9 | |
| Durham, NC | 6 | Tennessee | 23-11 |
| 11 | Oklahoma State | 21-11 | |
| 3 | Duke | 25-6 | |
| 14 | Gardner Webb * | 29-4 | |
| Baton Rouge, LA | 7 | Colorado | 23-8 |
| 10 | Illinois | 22-9 | |
| 2 | LSU | 28-2 | |
| 15 | SE Louisiana * | 19-9 |
| Seattle, WA | |||
| Iowa City, IA | 1 | Iowa * | 26-6 |
| 16 | Chattanooga * | 18-12 | |
| 8 | Gonzaga | 28-4 | |
| 9 | Mississippi | 23-8 | |
| Austin, TX | 5 | Washington State * | 23-10 |
| 12 | UNLV * | 30-2 | |
| 4 | Texas | 25-9 | |
| 13 | James Madison * | 25-7 | |
| Notre Dame, IN | 6 | Oklahoma | 25-6 |
| 11 | |||
| 3 | Notre Dame | 25-5 | |
| 14 | St. Louis * | 17-17 | |
| Palo Alto, CA | 7 | Marquette | 21-10 |
| 10 | Alabama | 20-10 | |
| 2 | Stanford | 28-5 | |
| 15 | Hawaii * | 18-14 | |
| Gardner Webb * | 29-4 | ||
| Storrs, CT | 1 | Connecticut * | 29-5 |
| 16 | Norflolk State * | 25-6 | |
| 8 | South Florida | 26-6 | |
| 9 | Middle Tennessee * | 28-4 | |
| Los Angeles, CA | 5 | Michigan | 22-9 |
| 12 | Portland * | 21-8 | |
| 4 | UCLA | 25-9 | |
| 13 | Sacramento State * | 25-7 | |
| Columbus, OH | 6 | North Carolina | 21-10 |
| 11 | Florida Gulf Coast * | 30-3 | |
| 3 | Ohio State | 25-7 | |
| 14 | Vermont * | 24-6 | |
| Blacksburg, VA | 7 | Baylor | 19-12 |
| 10 | Princeton * | 23-5 | |
| 2 | Virginia Tech * | 27-4 | |
| 15 | Holy Cross * | 23-8 |
| First Four Games | |||
| Columbia, SC | Sacred Heart * | 17-13 | |
| 16 | Southern * | 16-14 | |
| Bloomington, IN | Tennessee Tech * | 20-9 | |
| 16 | Monmouth * | 17-15 | |
| Notre Dame, IN | Michigan State | 16-14 | |
| 11 | Columbia | 23-5 | |
| Salt Lake City, UT | Miami | 19-12 | |
| 11 | West Virginia | 19-11 |
Comments:
UConn is my last #1 seed. I've been reading about Virginia Tech but UConn is the #2 team in the NET with 15 Quad 1 wins, tied with South Carolina for the most. I put Virginia Tech #2 behind UConn in the same region. The top two #1 seeds, South Carolina and Indiana, are assigned to Greenville for the Sweet 16 and the other two, Iowa and Connecticut, to Seattle.
In women's basketball, the key is being in the top 4 seeds because they are the ones that get to host. Iowa State and Texas played the Big 12 final that just ended. I think I would have made Iowa State a #4 seed even had they lost, they had a win over Villanova, also a #4 seed. I was also considering NC State who had a win at Iowa.
I don't know if the women use the same critieria exactly, I went with the NET/Quad 1 wins. Michigan State is certainly a questionable team at just 16-14 but they have a victory over Indiana this year. Another one that I'm guessing most women's basketball fans will find shocking is Columbia. Columbia has five Quad 1 wins, one over Miami, another team in my "First Four".
The highest NET's I left out are Oregon (18) (Corrected from yesterday), Georgia (33) and Mississippi State (39). Georgia doesn't have a single Quad 1 win, Mississippi State has just 2. Nebraska (43) and Arkansas (48) are also not in this tournament among teams in the NET 50. West Virginia has the lowest NET (60) of any team I selected as an at large. They have four Quad 1 wins, including a sweep over Baylor.
Finally, my alma mater Illinois is in this bracket. I hope they are in the real field for the first time since 2003 (20 years ago!)
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