March Madness in Illinois

By: George Summerfield

Didn’t I just turn off the Super Bowl? Anyway, believe it or not, March Madness, the debutantes’ ball of collegiate athletics, is upon us.Various conference tournaments begin in just a few days. The NCAA Tournament gets underway in a little over two weeks. As we Illinoisans prepare to fill out our sheets for the tournament pool, it is worth taking a look at how the in-state schools may fare in the Big Dance.

University of Illinois - The Illini may be peeking at just the right time. With a win yesterday over Northwestern, Illinois remains a half-game back of Big Ten-leading Michigan State. Illinois is also the first team to reach the 20-win mark this season. Having won their last eight games, this is not the same team that lost back-to-back games against Northwestern and Purdue in January. Assuming they can close out the season with wins against Purdue and Ohio State, and can make a good showing at the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis, the Illini should get a fourth seed or higher. Then, look for Illinois in the Sweet Sixteen.

Southern llinois University - The Salukis are always fun to watch. This season, SIU has had three one-point victories, including its most recent win against Bradley, to maintain a perfect record in Missouri Valley Conference play going into Monday’s regular season finale against Northern Iowa. The Salukis bring a 24-2 record and a number 16 national ranking into Waterloo, Iowa for Monday’s contest. Should SIU prevail, going undefeated in MVC regular season play, they would be the odds-on favorite to win the conference tournament. However, given the strength of schedule considerations, it is unlikely that, even if SIU closes out the season without another loss, they would receive higher than a No. 8 seed. Although stranger things have happened, it is unlikely that SIU will repeat its 2002 Sweet Sixteen performance.

DePaul University - Another team that appears to be posting a strong finish to the regular season is DePaul, having won seven-of-eight in the last month. With games remaining against Cincinnati at home and at the University of South Florida before heading into the Conference USA tournament, a 20+ win season and the Blue Demons’ first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2000 are both within reach. The question, of course, is whether DePaul would get an at-large bid without winning the Conference tournament. As four teams in the top 25 currently have as many losses as DePaul, it is not out of the question, although a seeding higher than number 14 would be unlikely. Winning even one game in the NCAA Tournament will be tough for the Blue Demons under those circumstances.

University of Illinois - Chicago - After starting out Horizon League play at 3-4, the Flames have now won 10 straight to secure byes through the first two rounds of the League Tournament. The Flames will host a semifinal game at the UIC Pavilion, and will likely advance to play regular season champion University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee for the title. Although the byes are undoubtedly welcome, should UIC fail to win the tournament, it would finish with a 23-8 record, which, given strength of schedule considerations, would put the team on the bubble. The Flames’ last NCAA Tournament appearance in 2002 came by virtue of their Horizon League Tournament championship.

Their 20-13 overall record that year earned the Flames only a 15th seed. A tournament championship and a 24-7 record would probably earn the Flames a comparable seeding in this year’s Big Dance. In the event of a loss in either the semifinal or championship games of the Horizon League Tournament, look for the Flames in the NIT.

Northwestern University - Northwestern makes this last not because it will make the NCAA Tournament - unless it wins the Big 10 Tournament, it will not. However, at 7-7 in the Big Ten regular season, and with home games remaining against Iowa and Michigan, both comparable squads, the Wildcats have a chance to finish with a winning record in the Big Ten for the first time since the 1967-68 season. This is a marked improvement over the Wildcats’ 3-13 record in the Big Ten from just a year ago.

More importantly, however, with Michigan State, Illinois, Wisconsin and Purdue likely headed for the Big Dance, and assuming a winning record in Big Ten play, Northwestern would be a likely candidate among the remaining conference teams to receive a bid to the NIT. Should Northwestern appear in the post-season this year, it would do so for only the fourth time in school history, with the last such appearance coming in the 1999 NIT. With wins this year against Illinois and Wisconsin, Northwestern could do some damage to the usually unpredictable field in the NIT.

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