Joe Lunardi - ESPN: Lunardi has the Gophers moved up to a six seed in this NCAA Tournament bracket projection after being a seven seed for the last couple weeks. He has them playing the winner of the play-in game between USC and Xavier, who are both 11 seeds. This regional would take place in Greenville, South Carolina. The winner of this game would play the winner of Duke and Winthrop, who would play in a 3/14 matchup. Duke has been red hot as of late and the crowd would be a heavy Duke lean as Greenville is just a few hours south of Durham. The 2 seed in this projection is Baylor and the 1 seed is Villanova in the Gophers region.
Jerry Palm - CBS: The Gophers stand pat in Palm's projection as a five seed, playing the 12 seed UNC Wilmington in Orlando. The winner of this game would play the winner of Florida and Akron, who play in the 4/13 matchup. North Carolina would be the 1 seed in this region and UCLA would be the 2 seed, making this an extremely tough bracket to get to the Final Four.
USA Today: They also still have Minnesota as a five seed. They would take on the winner of the play-in game between Wichita State and USC in a battle of 12 seeds. This game would be played in Buffalo, with the winner of the matchup getting to play the victor of Virginia and Monmouth. The 1 seed in this region is Villanova and the 2 seed is Florida State, with UCLA dropping down to a three seed.
Analysis: Getting a five seed in the NCAA Tournament is an extremely impressive feat for a program that won just 8 games last year. It also gives you a chance to play a team that is definitely beatable in a 5/12 matchup as it will likely be a mid-major team or a bubble high-major team. If Minnesota were to beat Nebraska tonight then lose to Wisconsin and their first game in the Big Ten tournament, it would be surprising to see them slip any lower than a seven seed. If they win their two regular season games remaining then win one or two in the Big Ten tournament, they will probably stay at a five seed or possibly trickle up to that high four seed range.
Their best possible outcome would be to beat Nebraska and Wisconsin to finish 24-7 (12-6) and then win their three Big Ten Tournament games. If they were to do this and win their next five straight games, they could move up to as a high as a three seed as 27-7 with a 12 game winning streak is awfully impressive. It has been a fun ride to this point, Gopher fans, and March has just begun. They just have to keep playing Gopher basketball and improving every day like they have been, and this will be a fun month.
Jerry Palm - CBS: The Gophers stand pat in Palm's projection as a five seed, playing the 12 seed UNC Wilmington in Orlando. The winner of this game would play the winner of Florida and Akron, who play in the 4/13 matchup. North Carolina would be the 1 seed in this region and UCLA would be the 2 seed, making this an extremely tough bracket to get to the Final Four.
USA Today: They also still have Minnesota as a five seed. They would take on the winner of the play-in game between Wichita State and USC in a battle of 12 seeds. This game would be played in Buffalo, with the winner of the matchup getting to play the victor of Virginia and Monmouth. The 1 seed in this region is Villanova and the 2 seed is Florida State, with UCLA dropping down to a three seed.
Analysis: Getting a five seed in the NCAA Tournament is an extremely impressive feat for a program that won just 8 games last year. It also gives you a chance to play a team that is definitely beatable in a 5/12 matchup as it will likely be a mid-major team or a bubble high-major team. If Minnesota were to beat Nebraska tonight then lose to Wisconsin and their first game in the Big Ten tournament, it would be surprising to see them slip any lower than a seven seed. If they win their two regular season games remaining then win one or two in the Big Ten tournament, they will probably stay at a five seed or possibly trickle up to that high four seed range.
Their best possible outcome would be to beat Nebraska and Wisconsin to finish 24-7 (12-6) and then win their three Big Ten Tournament games. If they were to do this and win their next five straight games, they could move up to as a high as a three seed as 27-7 with a 12 game winning streak is awfully impressive. It has been a fun ride to this point, Gopher fans, and March has just begun. They just have to keep playing Gopher basketball and improving every day like they have been, and this will be a fun month.
