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WADE PAYNE / AP
Tennessee senior guard Chris Lofton, shooting against Kentucky in a game earlier this month, leads a talented Volunteers team. Tennessee is a No. 2 seed that might have what it takes to win it all.
It’s all about the Hack-a-tology now, an exhaustive, ranting look at the NCAA tournament. Now that the field of 65 has been set, let’s rank the teams according to how likely they are to win the national title, based on both the team’s ability and its draw.
(WARNING: If you choose to treat the following as advice and wind up getting creamed in your tournament pool, I will deny I ever made these predictions.)
65. Coppin State. The MEAC champs are the first 20-loss team ever to make the tournament. They won’t get past Mount St. Mary’s in the play-in game.
64. Mount St. Mary’s. The Mountaineers will get past the play-in game, but then North Carolina awaits.
63. Texas-Arlington. The Mavericks won the Southland tournament after finishing seventh in the regular season. They are a great shooting team (47.9 percent, 23rd best in the nation), which might keep them in the game for a half, but Memphis will overwhelm them.
62. Mississippi Valley State. The Delta Devils, who won the SWAC, lost 71-26 to Washington State earlier this season. Now they get UCLA, so I’m predicting a 57-6 final score.
61. American. NCAA tournament newbies, the Eagles won the Patriot League to get here, and their reward is a shootout with Tennessee. Combined, the teams chuck up about 43 three-pointers a game. Tennessee might want to stay away from a shooting contest with American, however. The Eagles ranked third in Division I in three-point percentage at 40.9.
60. UMBC. The University of Maryland-Baltimore County, is a first-timer at the Big Dance. Which means the Retrievers will stand against the wall and watch Georgetown thrill the crowd.

seattletimes.nwsource.com

INDIANAPOLIS - IUPUI coach Ron Hunter was shocked that his team didn’t get a National Invitation Tournament bid Sunday night.
The Jaguars entered Selection Sunday with a school-record 26 wins and a Rating Percentage Index of 69 after losing to Oral Roberts in the Summit League championship game last week. Hunter didn’t expect an NCAA tournament bid, but he felt IUPUI at least belonged in the 32-team NIT field.
“I’m kind of struggling right now,” he said after his team had an NIT selection-show party at a downtown Indianapolis restaurant.
The RPI is the formula based on record and schedule strength that helps postseason tournament organizers determine which teams to invite. Hunter didn’t understand why Akron (23-10, 76 RPI) and San Diego State (20-12, 82 RPI) were picked over his team. IUPUI had seven losses, including to Oral Roberts in the Summit League conference final game.
“I think we were discouraged by the fact that there were seven or eight teams that got picked that we had a better record and a better RPI than.”
IUPUI also was left out of the 16-team field of the first College Basketball Invitational. However, Valparaiso (21-13) will play in it, facing Washington Wednesday night.

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The last time Virginia Commonwealth University found itself in the NCAA-NIT debate, Jamal Shuler was a freshman.
That was 2005. The Rams went 19-12 and hoped that was good enough to make the NCAA tournament. They were sent instead to National Invitation Tournament, and Shuler said there was a letdown. The Rams were drummed 77-62 by Davidson in the first round.
Bypassed by the NCAA selection committee yesterday, VCU set its sights on the 32-team NIT and a first-round home game against Alabama-Birmingham on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Siegel Center. The game will be televised by ESPN2.
Shuler, a senior guard, doesn’t want a repeat of 2005.
"Whatever tournament we get in, we’re in it to win it," he said Saturday.
VCU coach Anthony Grant echoed that last night while acknowledging his club was disappointed.
"Any time you have a chance to play in the postseason, you need to be excited," he said. "There’s only a select few teams that participate in the postseason. To be one of those teams, we’re extremely fortunate."
VCU (24-7) was seeded fourth in its bracket. UAB (22-10) was seeded fifth. The winner will meet the winner of top-seeded Virginia Tech and No. 8 Morgan State in the second round.

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If you’re a Dayton Flyers fan, you may need to consider some kind of help. Whether it is anger management, depression, or choking (like your fellow team) counseling is available.
The Dayton Flyers started off the 2007-2008 campaign with a bang. After winning 14 of their first 15 games Dayton seemed to be destined for great things. With wins over No. 11 Louisville, No. 6 Pittsburgh, and No. 20 Rhode Island, Dayton was for sure thinking NCAA's, no doubt.
With the easiest part of its schedule coming up and a ranking of 14, Dayton controlled its own destiny. Then reality set in. With an injury to stud freshman Chris Wright (10.4 ppg 6.0 rpg), the Flyers began to fizzle.
Since the hot start, the Flyers have gone 3-7 in their last 10 games. While Bracketology is still looking at the Flyers as a possible tournament team, I would begin to look for the cheapest available NIT tickets you can find.
With losses to LaSalle, Richmond, and Duquesne, the Flyers seem to have lost all hope of a tournament birth. To make things worse, if the Flyers are counting on making a late run, they can think again. With games remaining against No. 12 Xavier and St. Josephs, Dayton will need to win the Atlantic 10 Tournament to get a bid.

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