College Basketball Betting: College Basketball Power Rankings

The college basketball season has entered the week of conference tournaments, with the selection of teams for the NCAA Tournament being this upcoming Sunday, March 13. Let’s rank the top 10 teams and point out what they need to get specific seeds in March Madness.

1 – Gonzaga Bulldogs

The Zags are still in the top position entering Tuesday’s West Coast Conference Tournament championship game against the Saint Mary’s Gaels. If Gonzaga wins, it will be the No. 1 overall seed for the NCAA Tournament. If it loses, then things get interesting. Gonzaga is probably the No. 1 seed in the West Region even if it loses to Saint Mary’s, but if Arizona, Baylor, Auburn or Kentucky, and Kansas all do well in their conference tournaments, Gonzaga might get pushed out of the West … but if Gonzaga beats Saint Mary’s, the top seed in the West is a lock.

2 – Baylor Bears

This is the other team which seems certain to be a number one seed. Baylor has a lot of high-level, high-value wins on its resume. The Bears shared the Big 12 championship with Kansas despite a lot of injuries which affected their performance to varying degrees over the course of the season. Baylor should be fine for a No. 1 seed as long as it wins one game (a quarterfinal against a much lower seed) at the Big 12 Tournament. If Baylor wins the Big 12 Tournament championship, the Bears could be the No. 1 seed in the South Region, which would give them the ability to play the Sweet 16 and the Elite Eight in San Antonio, the preferred spot for the Bears. That would be significant if Baylor gets that prize.

3 – Auburn Tigers

The Tigers are also in line for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They must win one game at the SEC Tournament, however, and they might even need two wins. If Auburn does get two wins, it will be a lock to get a No. 1 seed. If Auburn loses in the SEC Tournament championship game to Kentucky, the Tigers would still be a top seed, but Kentucky might join Auburn on the one-seed line on Selection Sunday.

4 – Arizona Wildcats

The Arizona Wildcats will be the huge favorite to win the Pac-12 Tournament. If they do win the tournament, they will be a No. 1 seed. Arizona winning the Pac-12 Tournament and Kentucky winning the SEC Tournament would create a situation in which Arizona would be the weakest No. 1 seed and Kentucky would be the strongest No. 2 seed. Arizona and Kentucky would both go to the same region, very probably the East Region in Philadelphia for the Sweet 16. Arizona was in line to go to the South Region and San Antonio, but it lost that preferred position when it got blown out by Colorado in a huge late-February surprise.

5 – Kentucky Wildcats

The Wildcats, if they win the SEC Tournament, will have a chance at a No. 1 seed. Kentucky could move up to a top seed if it wins the SEC Tournament while two other things happen: Arizona and Kansas fail to win their respective conference tournaments. Arizona should be ahead of Kentucky if it wins the Pac-12 Tournament. Kansas is more of an open question, especially since Kentucky crushed Kansas head to head, but Kentucky would be safe as a No. 1 seed if Kansas doesn’t win the Big 12 Tournament championship. UK will root against Arizona and Kansas this week.

6 – Kansas Jayhawks

The Jayhawks need to win the Big 12 Tournament and get an early-round SEC Tournament loss from Kentucky, plus a loss by Arizona in the Pac-12 Tournament, in order to grab a No. 1 seed. If Kentucky is rooting against Arizona and Kansas, then the Jayhawks are rooting against Kentucky and Arizona. That is a simple way to understand the battle for the fourth and final No. 1 seed in the 2022 NCAA Tournament. Only the top six teams are alive in the chase for a No. 1 seed. No one outside the top six has a chance.

7 – Tennessee Volunteers

The Vols have worked their way into the No. 2 seed position due to a lot of events from the past week: Duke lost at home to North Carolina. Wisconsin lost at home to Nebraska. Purdue lost one week ago to Wisconsin. Tennessee beat Arkansas this past weekend after beating Georgia a few days earlier. The Vols finished just behind Auburn in the SEC standings, earning the No. 2 seed at the SEC Tournament. If the Vols make the SEC Tournament championship game, they should safely be a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. An early loss at the SEC Tournament could knock the Vols down to a No. 3 seed for March Madness.

8 – Purdue Boilermakers

The Boilermakers are a No. 2 seed because Duke lost to North Carolina and Wisconsin lost to Nebraska. Those results help Purdue go to the two-seed line. Purdue needs at least two wins at the Big Ten Tournament to hold onto its No. 2 seed position. If Purdue gets only one win, it would need help from Duke’s opponents and other teams playing against the contenders for high seeding slots.

9 – Duke Blue Devils

The loss at home to North Carolina ended Duke’s hopes of a No. 1 seed. The Blue Devils need to win the ACC Tournament and get at least some help (Tennessee and Purdue losing in their conference tournaments) to move back up to a No. 2 seed (among the top eight teams).

10 – Providence Friars

The Friars benefited from Wisconsin and Texas Tech both losing over the past weekend. If Providence wins two games at the Big East Tournament, it should maintain a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. If Providence loses early, it could fall to a No. 4 seed in March Madness. If Providence wins the Big East Tournament championship, it might be able to sneak into the No. 2 seeding slot.