Editor’s note: This article is part of the Bracket Central series, an inside look at the run-up to the men’s and women’s NCAA Tournaments, along with analysis and picks during the tournaments.
As February continues, the bracket and seeding possibilities whittle away. The meat of conference play provides some of the very best basketball and most impactful games that we get throughout the entire season.
None of the top seeds are fully locked in, and there are some incredibly important games before the weekend for determining what the No. 1 and No. 2 seed lines look like. And, hey, we’ll also get the first selection committee Top 16 seed reveal on Sunday, giving some key insight into how the decision-makers view the upper crust of the field.
On Thursday, Kentucky hosts Texas in a massive game. Considering that the SEC currently has a three-way tie for first, and Kentucky sits a game back of the top three, this game could have sizable ramifications for March, similarly to South Carolina and Texas this past weekend.
Following that game comes our first crosstown showdown between UCLA and USC as Big Ten members. I’m still not used to the Big Ten commercial’s map including California, and I might not get to that point until the next sizable conference realignment. Do the…
