Crystal Basketball

NCAA Tournament Crystal Ball

by Dan Hauptman and Michael Protos

Jan. 19, 2007

Since we last looked into the Crystal Basketball, much has changed. In the past week in the Atlantic Coast Conference alone, the No. 1 team in the country — North Carolina — lost to an unheralded team — Virginia Tech — that just a week earlier had beaten Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The only undefeated team in the country – Clemson — received two defeats at the hands of conference foes, while the top and only undefeated team in ACC play — Boston College — suffered by far the biggest loss when the team dismissed shot-blocking beast Sean Williams and reserve Akida McLain after off-court rules violations.

Many more changes are sure to come until all tournament decisions are final March 11, and Hoopville is the best place to track all the latest college basketball moves and news. Every Friday, exclusively on Hoopville, Dan Hauptman and Michael Protos gaze into their Crystal Basketballs and report on their latest findings.

This week, Hauptman and Protos continue to see similar images at the top of the field. Hauptman has replaced the Tar Heels at the top with Florida, while Protos likes UCLA to be the lead No. 1 seed. The top four teams remain the same, however: Florida, North Carolina, UCLA and Wisconsin. Although Hauptman and Protos agree that Kansas, Ohio State, Oregon and Pittsburgh are nipping at those No. 1 spots, the top four are playing like the most solid teams in the land.

Beyond the top lines, however, Hauptman and Protos see different visions in the Crystal Basketball. The biggest difference in seeding of a single team is Syracuse. For Protos, the Orange are the last team in the field. But Hauptman has Syracuse sneaking all the way up to a No. 5 seed. Hauptman likes the Orange’s impressive road victory at Marquette and home win vs. Villanova in conference play. But Protos isn’t sold on the Orange yet because they have the look of a glorified NIT team about as frequently as they play like a bona fide NCAA contender.

In addition to differing on Syracuse’s seed in the NCAA Tournament, Hauptman and Protos disagree on the selection of three teams. Hauptman likes the Bradley, BYU and Georgia combo, but Protos prefers the Arkansas, Northern Iowa and Purdue trifecta. And now let’s take a look at Hauptman’s and Protos’ complete visions.

Hauptman’s Hoops Horoscope	Protos’ Prognostications
Florida UCLA North Carolina Wisconsin	UCLA Florida North Carolina Wisconsin
Kansas Ohio State Pittsburgh Oregon	Ohio State Kansas Oregon Pittsburgh
Oklahoma State Arizona Texas A&M Memphis	Texas A&M Nevada Arizona Memphis
Air Force Missouri State Nevada Kentucky	Duke Butler Air Force Oklahoma State
Butler Clemson Duke Syracuse	Kentucky Virginia Tech Clemson Indiana
Southern Illinois Texas Marquette UNLV	LSU Texas Washington State USC
Indiana Tennessee Notre Dame Washington State	Alabama Notre Dame Southern Illinois Tennessee
Alabama Virginia Tech West Virginia Creighton	Georgia Tech Arkansas Texas Tech Florida State
USC Boston College Texas Tech Villanova	Missouri State Marquette UNLV Boston College
Gonzaga Georgia Tech LSU Florida State	Creighton Gonzaga Michigan State Georgetown
Drexel Bradley Xavier Georgetown	Villanova West Virginia Northern Iowa Davidson
BYU Michigan State Georgia Maryland	Xavier Maryland Purdue VCU
Ohio Davidson Oral Roberts Western Kentucky	Syracuse Western Kentucky Winthrop Holy Cross
Winthrop Holy Cross Cal St. Fullerton Penn	Oral Roberts Toledo Penn Vermont
Vermont Austin Peay Marist Idaho State	Marist Idaho State Delaware State Cal St. Fullerton
Texas A&M – Corpus Christi Sacred Heart Belmont Delaware State Jackson State	Stephen F. Austin Austin Peay Sacred Heart East Tennessee St. Jackson State
Last 4 In: BYU Michigan State Georgia Maryland	Last 4 In: Northern Iowa Maryland Purdue Syracuse
Last 4 Out: California Michigan Connecticut Arkansas	Last 4 Out: Virginia Providence Illinois Connecticut
Shooting Stars: Oregon Kentucky Oklahoma State Virginia Tech	Shooting Stars: Oklahoma State Kentucky Virginia Tech Creighton
Sinking Ships: Maryland Gonzaga Tennessee Boston College	Sinking Ships: Wichita State Providence Arkansas Tennessee
Conference Breakdown: ACC: 8 Big East: 7 SEC: 6 Pac-10: 5 Big 12: 5 Big Ten: 4 Missouri Valley: 4 Mountain West: 3 23 one-bid conferences	Conference Breakdown: ACC: 8 Big East: 7 SEC: 6 Pac-10: 5 Big 12: 5 Big Ten: 5 Missouri Valley: 4 Mountain West: 2 23 one-bid conferences

Whose field looks more accurate to you? Or are both Hauptman and Protos off target? E-mail us your comments on the Crystal Basketball or give us your own NCAA Tournament prognostications. Then check back throughout the next two months, as Hauptman’s and Protos’ visions for the Big Dance become clearer as the days until Selection Sunday count down. The calendar reads January. This journey just began.