A week from now we'll know who all 125 NCAA Tournament teams are and where they'll be playing. But before then, we've got a lot of business to attend to. Here's what's coming in this most crucial week of the Division III basketball regular season, with all but two tournament bids still up for grabs.
If you're not already following D3hoops on Twitter, you should be. That may be your quickest source for conference tournament upsets that change the face of the NCAA Tournament. And if you missed it, Sunday night's Hoopsville broadcast discussed all sorts of things leading up to the NCAA Tournament, including Pat Coleman's list of tournament locks near the end of the show.
Wednesday: The NCAA releases the final regional rankings prior to the tournament.
&&g-boxr&&Those are through games of Sunday, Feb. 21.
Thursday: Hoopsville takes a look at the first wave of conference upsets -- you know there will be one -- and talks to coaches of teams on the bubble and still in control of their own destiny.
Friday: The NJAC women play for their title, as we start handing out tournament bids in earnest. The ASC and SCAC begin their three-day, eight-team events, while many other conferences play their semifinals.
Saturday: Automatic bids fly left and right. there will be live broadcasts from conference title games, plus links to any others we can find, audio or video.
Sunday, Feb. 28: Bright and early in the morning we'll have our first NCAA Tournament bracket projection, based on the games already played. That afternoon the final handful of bids will be awarded, including the NESCAC, SCAC, ASC, NEWMAC and others. We'll update our bracket projections, if necessary. That evening, Hoopsville airs after all the dust has settled. And you'll hear many cliches about madness, I'm sure.
Monday, March 1: The bracket announcements, which will be streamed on live video by the NCAA , are scheduled for 10 a.m. ET (men) and 12:30 ET (women).
And for those of you new to the D-III tournament selection process, it's probably worth checking out our NCAA Tournament FAQ.