Here is version 2 of my bracketology. A lot has changed in the 10 days since my last bracket with elite teams starting to differentiate themselves from the herd while others fall back into the depths of the bubble.
Also check out my co-writer's bracketology here. That's right! Dueling bracketology!
The bracket as it stands right now (games ended 1/24/2016):
And here is the full S-curve:
Last Four IN: Ohio State, LSU, Seton Hall, Syracuse
First Four OUT: Texas Tech, VCU, Stanford, Arizona State
Next Four OUT: Alabama, George Washington, Florida State, Washington
Highlights:
The 1-seed line introduces North Carolina, as they replace Michigan State after Sparty's conference mini-collapse. Oklahoma overtakes the number one overall seed from KU, though really any of the top four seeds could make a case for that honor. Iowa looks ridiculous right now, if they keep winning these tough Big Ten games, it's going to be very hard to deny them a top seed for very much longer.
Kentucky suffers a big fall landing on the 5-seed line after sitting comfortably at a 3. The Wildcats lost to Auburn... Conversely, Texas A&M gets rewarded for their winning ways, vaulting up from the 5 line to the 3 line after continuing their winning ways.
Oregon is the only holdover on the 4 line as Providence moves up following their enormous win over Villanova, Duke free falls to a 5-seed (and looks to be headed further down the line), and USC falls two seed-lines after a tough 10 days.
Indiana and Texas both improve to 6-seeds; both teams look great right now. The Butler Bulldogs on the other hand looks like dog-doo as they continue to struggle against the RPI Top 50.
Watch out for the Shockers of Wichita State - I doubt they lose another game all season, so expect their stock to continue to rise. A possible 5 or 6 seed could be in their future, especially if the committee is kind to their losses without star point guard Van Vleet.
Clemson enters the field after yet another impressive win. I'm sure Dan Dakich would be gloating at me if he knew who I was or cared at all (see version 1 post). Seton Hall also joins the field - but again I do not expect them to last long. Syracuse is also in as of now, though admittedly, this isn't that strong of a pick - they're pretty interchangeable with the next 5 or 6 teams.
Stanford, Alabama, and Texas Tech all fall out. Stanford's resume isn't bad actually, but it's not quite good enough to hang on to a play-in game. Tech is going to keep falling - I guarantee it. Alabama will as well. I like the prospects of VCU getting in the mix soon.
Early upset specials: watch Hawaii, Chattanooga, and Akron, all three of those teams could make waves in the postseason.