The regular season is over in one week, and conference tourneys are up around the bend. We are now two weeks away from selection Sunday. Some conference tournaments start this week, while most start next week. Remember, there are 68 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 37 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, we predict that at this point 57 bids are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 26 at-large bids. This means that there are ELEVEN remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that we have listed below. Out of the 57 that we have found, 26 come from the ''Big-6'' conferences and 31 from minor ones. A lot can change over the two weeks...

Last updated in the morning on 3/9/12.

The regular season is now in the books for the 2011-12 college basketball season, and we now are one week away from selection Sunday. Some conference tournaments have already ended with four teams clinching their bid, while most are just about to start. Remember, there are 68 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 37 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, we predict that at this point 59 bids are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 28 at-large bids. This means that there are NINE remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that we have listed below. Out of the 59 that we have found, 28 come from major conferences and 31 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next week...

This article was originally posted by Sam Mccorkle at www.bourbonmeyer.com.

For the last 5 or 6 years, I’ve been involved in an NCAA Tournament player pool. Basically a fantasy draft for the tournament. From the moment I first heard of it, I was sucked in and it has not disappointed despite my yearly flameouts. I’ve placed second and third a couple of times but our pool is winner take all.

Think you know basketball better than we do? You're probably right, but you'll have to prove it.

Sign up for the GatorsFirst.com Bracket Group at ESPN.com here.

If you already have a bracket on ESPN.com for another group, just join ours as well: search for ''GatorsFirst.com'', I got fairly creative with the group name.

This article was originally posted by Rainman at www.bourbonmeyer.com.

ESPN has turned into the biggest bunch of blowhards in the history of television. They are constantly trying to toe the line between being an informative news agency and somewhere that people can go to hear informed discussions of popular sports topics, but today’s selection coverage has gone completely over the line.

Now that we are approaching the end of the 2010-11 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. Selection Sunday is two days away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are now 68 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 37 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 60 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 29 at-large bids. This means that there are EIGHT remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed below. Out of the 60 that I have found, 30 come from major conferences and 30 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few days...

Editor's Note: GatorsFirst.com is proud to feature SEC Tournament coverage this week courtesy of Jake Sillick, our new basketball correspondent, who traveled to Atlanta for the event. Look for his work all week, whether you're in town for the tournament or watching from elsewhere. You can also follow him on Twitter (@RowdyTownMayor) to get first-hand accounts of his experience at the SEC Tournament.

First up, we've got the overall picture, complete with analysis of the strength of Florida's side of the bracket, the time that each game will be played, and the likelihood that the Gators come home with some hardware. Enjoy.

Now that we are approaching the end of the 2010-11 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. Selection Sunday is six days away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are now 68 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 37 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 59 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 28 at-large bids. This means that there are NINE remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed below. Out of the 59 that I have found, 29 come from major conferences and 30 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few days...

Now that we are approaching the end of the 2010-11 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. Selection Sunday is eight days away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are now 68 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 37 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 59 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 38 at-large bids. This means that there are NINE remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed below. Out of the 59 that I have found, 30 come from major conferences and 29 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few weeks...

Now that we are approaching the end of the 2010-11 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. Selection Sunday is two weeks away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are now 68 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 37 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 58 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 27 at-large bids. This means that there are EIGHT remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed below. Out of the 58 that I have found, 29 come from major conferences and 29 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few weeks...

Now that we are three quarters of the way through the 2010-11 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. Selection Sunday is three weeks away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are now 68 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 37 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 57 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 26 at-large bids. This means that there are ELEVEN remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed below. Out of the 57 that I have found, 29 come from major conferences and 28 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few weeks...

NCAA 2010 Final Four - Championship

[1] (South) Duke 61 - [5] (West) Butler 59

What an intense tourney this year. 1-seeds were dropping like flies. [1] (Midwest) Kansas was out 2nd round against [9] UNI: 67-69. [1] (South) Syracuse was beaten 3rd round by [5] Butler: 59-63. [1] (East) Kentucky dropped out 4th round to [2] West Virginia: 73-66. Duke was the only 1-seed able to make it to the Final Four pitted against a 2-seed, West Virginia. All of the close upsets in the West an Midwest brackets led to an unlikely semifinal battle of two 5-seeds Butler and Michigan St. Duke cruised into the final, beating out West Virginia 78-57. Butler was able to pull out a close victory over Michigan St. 52-50, setting up the unlikely championship between the Duke Blue Devils and Butler Bulldogs.

YouTube Video - Last 13.6 Seconds of Championship

This championship will be one to remember for years. A David and Goliath story. Duke came in heavily favored with their great talent, size, and tournament experience led by coach K. But Duke was prepared for a tough game, well aware of Butlers relentless defense, great teamwork and depth on the bench.

A news item getting a lot of attention lately- with the NIT wrapping up and the NCAA Final Four this weekend- is the likelihood of expanding the NCAA Tournament.

Indeed, it is now being called 'likely' that as soon as next year the NCAA Tournament field- which (minus the minor addition of the play-in game in 2000) hasn't really changed since it expanded to 64 teams in 1985.

You've heard all the reasons why some people agree and disagree with this move, but let's talk about some of the implications- for college basketball as a sport, but also for college athletics as a whole.

In what has become a tradition around these parts, I'll explain my 2010 NCAA picks. You can click here to see the 2009 version of this blog and click here to see the 2008 version.

Think I'm an idiot? Join our tournament challenge group here and beat me... you can win a prize from G1!

You also have the advantage of knowing my picks ahead of time...

Thursday begins my favorite two-day stretch of the year. On Thursday and Friday, there will be four tournament games on at a time for 12 hours. Even better than that is the fact that I will have a rooting interest in each and every one of those games! The chances that I get fired from my job are much higher this week than normal...

Saturday and Sunday bring the same level of competition, with two games always on for 12 hours. I think the best part is the fact that as the games are coming to close, there is a good chance that buzzer beaters could be all coming roughly at the same time.

This post will discuss my picks for the Sweet Sixteen through the Finals. I took about a half a day to do some research and I've come up with what I see the best bracket to be. Feel free to make fun of my bracket below in the comments section! Also, take us on in our bracket challenge!

This weekend will mark the first time G1 will be traveling as a group to the NCAA tournament, as the Gators will be playing in Oklahoma City, only a short 3.5 hr drive from the Dallas/Ft Worth metroplex. Feel free to follow our live coverage on our twitter page.

From time to time, G1 seeks the opinion from an enemy blogger to give a preview of an upcoming game. Today we bring in Nathan from HDSportsGuide to give his scouting report of the BYU Cougars for tomorrow game. Enjoy!

Thursday begins my favorite two-day stretch of the year. On Thursday and Friday, there will be four tournament games on at a time for 12 hours. Even better than that is the fact that I will have a rooting interest in each and every one of those games! The chances that I get fired from my job are much higher this week than normal...

March Madness - NCAA Basketball Tournament - Round One
[10] Florida (Gators) vs. [7] Brigham Young University (Cougars)
12:20PM(ET) - Thu, Mar 18 - Oklahoma City, OK - On CBS

Watch it here:
Florida vs. BYU On-Demand

The first set of conference tourneys start on Tuesday, March 2nd. Most of the major conferences don't start until March 9-11. Therefore teams have about 2 or 3 games left to impress the committee before starting conference tournament play, and basketball fans are running short on time for March Madness betting and completing their brackets with friends.

Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (full rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 63 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 32 at-large bids. Out of these 63 teams, 31 come from major conferences and 32 from minor ones. March 14th is approaching rapidly, so teams need to bunker down and play hard to make the field of 65.

This means that there are TWO remaining at-large bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed. If I were to choose from the remaining bubble teams that are listed below, my last two in, in order, would be: Mississippi St and St Mary's. My first four out would be Notre Dame, Arizona State, Charlotte, and Wichita St. And my next four out would be Connecticut, Rhode Island, San Diego St, and Memphis. Mississippi, Cincinnati, Minnesota, Washington, Marshall, Tulsa, Illinois St, New Mexico St, and Louisiana Tech are also on my bubble list (read below).

Now that we are a little more than half way through the 2009-10 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. March madness is seven weeks away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 64 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 33 at-large bids. This means that there is ONE remaining bid that will go to one of the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed. Out of the 64 that I have found, 30 come from major conferences and 34 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few weeks, as you've already seen since last week.

Now that we are a little more than half way through the 2009-10 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. March madness is seven weeks away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 61 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 30 at-large bids. This means that there are FOUR remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed. Out of the 61 that I have found, 27 come from major conferences and 34 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few weeks, as you've already seen since last week.

Now that we are a little more than half way through the 2009-10 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. March madness is seven weeks away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are from current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 63 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 32 at-large bids. This means that there are four remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed. Out of the 63 that I have found, 28 come from major conferences and 35 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few weeks, as you've already seen since last week.

Now that we are a little more than half way through the 2009-10 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. March madness is six weeks away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 61 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 30 at-large bids. This means that there are four remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed. Out of the 61 that I have found, 28 come from major conferences and 33 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few weeks, as you've already seen since last week.

Now that we are a little more than half way through the 2009-10 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. March madness is seven weeks away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 58 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 27 at-large bids. This means that there are seven remaining bids that will go to the ''bubble'' teams that I have listed. Out of the 58 that I have found, 31 come from major conferences and 27 from minor ones. A lot can change over the next few weeks, as you've already seen since last week.

Now that we are a little more than half way through the 2009-10 college basketball season, we look at where we are right now, as teams are knee deep in their conference schedules. March madness is exactly two months away, and teams have a ton to play for. Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (rankings are current AP poll)...

Tomorrow begins my favorite two-day stretch of the year. On Thursday and Friday, there will be four tournament game on at a time for 12 hours. Even better than that is the fact that I will have a rooting interest in each and every one of those games! The chances that I get fired from my new job are much higher this week than normal...

Saturday and Sunday bring the same level of competition, with two games always on for 12 hours. I think the best part is the fact that as the games are coming to close, there is a good chance that buzzer beaters could be all coming roughly at the same time. What excitement!

I took about a half a day to do some research and I've come up with what I see the best bracket to be. Feel free to make fun of my bracket below in the comments section! Also, take us on in our bracket challenge! Or, if you're just concerned with Gator Basketball, follow the NIT here. Anyways, here are my picks…
 

The last weekend of the season is upon us as the conference tournaments are coming to a close. The selection committee is watching closely, as they will make their decision late Sunday afternoon.

Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I

From the results that follow, I predict that at this point 58 teams are safe, which includes 31 auto-bids and 27 at-large bids. Out of thees 58 teams, 30 come from major conferences and 28 from minor ones.

This means that there are SEVEN remaining at-large bids that will go to the 20 "bubble" teams that I have listed...
 

The last weekend of the regular season was thrilling. Along with the great bubble matchups, many teams have already punched their ticket to the big dance by winning their conference tournaments.

The first set of conference tourneys started this past Tuesday. Cornell, East Tennessee State, Morehead State, Northern Iowa, and Radford are guaranteed a spot in the tourney. The major conferences start their tournaments Tuesday-Thursday, culminating in the tournament selection on Sunday afternoon. This week will be the last chance to impress the selection committee.

Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (full rankings are current AP poll)...
 

The weekdays slot of games during March 2-5 were fantastic. Some bubble teams got the big wins they needed, while most faltered.

The first set of conference tourneys started this Tuesday, March 3rd. Most of the major conferences don't start theirs until March 10-12. Heading into the weekend, most teams have only one game left to impress the committee before starting conference tournament play.

Remember, there are 65 spots available, comprised of 31 automatic bids to conference champions and 34 at-large bids. Here is a comprehensive look at the major leagues in Division-I (full rankings are current AP poll)...