Bracket Watch: Northwestern is poised to make its first tourney ever

Published Jan. 24, 2017 12:09 p.m. ET

Stewart Mandel

Last weekend, Northwestern won at Ohio State for the first time since 1977. With that, the 16-4 Wildcats — now tied for second place in the Big Ten — are serious contenders to earn their first NCAA tournament berth since ... well, ever.

If the season ended today, Northwestern would not even be a bubble team; it’d be squarely in. Chris Collins’ team is currently my first No. 8 seed, or No. 29 overall. While the Wildcats lack a truly high-end win, they’ve beaten two RPI Top 50 foes (Dayton and Wake Forest) and gone a decent 5-4 against RPI Top 100 teams.

The Wildcats need to do some work down the stretch to feel safe. They’re currently 5-2 in the Big Ten; they’ll want to finish at least 10-8. And their resume will look that much better if they win at least two of their four remaining scheduled games against Top 50 foes (two against Purdue, at Wisconsin and vs. Maryland).

Selection Sunday is March 12, and the tourney begins March 14. The Final Four is April 1-3 in Phoenix.

* — Denotes projected conference champion, automatic berth

This edition's bracket is East vs. West champions and Midwest vs. South champions in the national semifinals, based on the order of the No. 1 seeds.

BRACKET WATCH

EAST REGION (NEW YORK)
Seed	Team	Location
1	Villanova*	at Buffalo
16	Mount St. Mary's/Morgan State
8	Dayton*
9	Clemson
4	West Virginia	at Buffalo
13	Princeton*
5	Florida
12	Vermont*
6	Wisconsin*	at Sacramento
11	Pittsburgh/Kansas State
3	UCLA
14	Bucknell*
7	Maryland	at Greenville, SC
10	Texas Tech
2	North Carolina*
15	Winthrop*

WEST REGION (SAN JOSE)
Seed	Team	Location
1	Kentucky*	at Indianapolis
16	UC Irvine*
8	Michigan State
9	TCU
4	Oregon	at Sacramento
13	Akron*
5	Cincinnati*
12	Nevada*
6	Saint Mary's	at Orlando
11	Michigan
3	Notre Dame
14	New Mexico State*
7	Virginia Tech	at Salt Lake City
10	Arkansas
2	Gonzaga*
15	North Dakota State*

MIDWEST REGION (KANSAS CITY)
Seed	Team	Location
1	Kansas*	at Tulsa
16	Texas Southern/New Orleans
8	Northwestern
9	Marquette
4	Virginia	at Greenville, SC
13	Valparaiso*
5	Minnesota
12	Illinois State*
6	Purdue	at Milwaukee
11	Wake Forest/Georgia
3	Butler
14	Belmont*
7	South Carolina	at Orlando
10	Iowa State
2	Florida State
15	UNC Greensboro*

SOUTH REGION (MEMPHIS)
Seed	Team	Location
1	Baylor	at Tulsa
16	Weber State*
8	Indiana
9	USC
4	Creighton	at Milwaukee
13	Monmouth*
5	Duke
12	Middle Tennessee*
6	Xavier	at Salt Lake City
11	UNC Wilmington*
3	Arizona*
14	Florida Gulf Coast*
7	SMU	at Indianapolis
10	Seton Hall
2	Louisville
15	Georgia Southern*

LAST FOUR IN: Pittsburgh, Wake Forest, Kansas State, Georgia

FIRST FOUR OUT: Illinois, Miami, Providence, VCU

NEXT FOUR OUT: Rhode Island, Oklahoma State, NC State, Cal

MULTIPLE BID CONFERENCES: ACC (10), Big Ten (8), Big 12 (7), Big East (6), SEC (5), Pac-12 (4), American (2), WCC (2)