ESPN.com had a long analysis of Sunday's top 16 seeds. Apparently, a lot of emphasis now on what they called Quadrant 1 teams. Here's what they said about the No. 3 seeds, and in particular, Tech:
3. KEEP AN EYE ON THOSE NO. 3 SEEDS
The four teams that occupy the third seed line—Michigan State, Texas Tech, Clemson and North Carolina—are the ones with the most apparent upward mobility. While your mileage may vary, you could make a case that each of them deserved consideration for a No. 2 seed in the first place: Texas Tech leads the Big 12, is eighth on KenPom, and is 4–3 in Q1 games; Michigan State is 3–2 vs. Q1, sixth on KenPom and subjectively looks as good as anybody; Clemson is fourth in RPI with the same 4–4 Q1 record as Duke; North Carolina is sixth in RPI and 7–5 vs. Q1.
But the good news for these teams is that they could all easily play their way up a seed line, or even two. Five of Texas Tech’s six remaining regular season games are Q1 matchups; Clemson and North Carolina each have four; Michigan State will at least have the Big Ten tournament to serve as a résumé boost. The odds are good that at least two of these teams end up higher a month from now.
3. KEEP AN EYE ON THOSE NO. 3 SEEDS
The four teams that occupy the third seed line—Michigan State, Texas Tech, Clemson and North Carolina—are the ones with the most apparent upward mobility. While your mileage may vary, you could make a case that each of them deserved consideration for a No. 2 seed in the first place: Texas Tech leads the Big 12, is eighth on KenPom, and is 4–3 in Q1 games; Michigan State is 3–2 vs. Q1, sixth on KenPom and subjectively looks as good as anybody; Clemson is fourth in RPI with the same 4–4 Q1 record as Duke; North Carolina is sixth in RPI and 7–5 vs. Q1.
But the good news for these teams is that they could all easily play their way up a seed line, or even two. Five of Texas Tech’s six remaining regular season games are Q1 matchups; Clemson and North Carolina each have four; Michigan State will at least have the Big Ten tournament to serve as a résumé boost. The odds are good that at least two of these teams end up higher a month from now.
