ESPN breaks down NCAA Tournament Top 16 teams, 16 on the bubble ahead of Sunday slate

ESPN’s Joe Lunardi released his latest NCAA Tournament Top 16 projections for March Madness and the teams on the bubble.

It’s another loaded Sunday slate so there’s plenty to watch this weekend. But first, who’s in and who’s out?

Let’s dive into the latest bracketology breakdown from Lunardi, including the top 16 and bubble teams.

Top 16

1. Purdue
2. UConn
3. Houston
4. Arizona
5. North Carolina
6. Tennessee
7. Marquette
8. Kansas
9. Alabama
10. Creighton
11. Iowa State
12. Duke
13. Auburn
14. Baylor
15. San Diego State
16. Illinois

The top four teams in the country and the ones that have been at the top for quite a bit now. It seems unlikely that they’ll change at this point, although Arizona could be passed by North Carolina soon.

Last Four Byes

Nebraska
New Mexico
Nevada
Virginia

After dropping two in a row, the Huskers have won two in a row and have a very winnable schedule with four games remaining. This looks like a team bound for NCAAs. Virginia already has 20 wins on the season and with three games left, including a ranked matchup with Duke, there’s more opportunity.

Last Four In

Seton Hall
Providence
Wake Forest
Gonzaga

It looked very shaky early on for Seton Hall, but the Pirates rebounded in a big way. They have ranked matchups with Creighton and UConn the rest of the way and winnable games against Villanova and DePaul. They could wrap up a spot. Providence is essentially in the same situation and need to finish strong.

Wake Forest got a big boost with an upset win over Duke. And by the way, isn’t it surprising to see Gonzaga much lower in bracketology?

First Four Out

Texas A&M
Utah
Villanova
Colorado

The bubble really stinks for these four teams. The Aggies had a brutal loss to Tennessee on Saturday. What’s also interesting is Colorado is below Utah on the bubble but the Buffaloes just beat the Utes by 24. Villanova has a manageable schedule. If the Wildcats can win out over Georgetown, Providence, Seton Hall and Creighton, they might leapfrog way up into the field.

Next Four Out

Butler
Ole Miss
Drake 
Cincinnati

Butler just dropped one to Seton Hall and it looks like the BUlldogs’ chances are dwindling. But they’re still ahead of the next three on the list. Ole Miss had its chance to upset South Carolina and it really needed a win. At 19 wins, the Rebels might have a better shot than most, but they really have to boost the resume and finish strong.

Multi-Bid Conferences

Big 12 (9)
SEC (7)
Big Ten (6)
Mountain West (6)
Big East (5)
ACC (5)
Atlantic 10 (2)
Pac-12 (2)
AAC (2)
WCC (2)

The Big 12 runs the world once again. At this moment, the conference is close to double digit bids but might not get there exactly. The SEC and Big Ten are neck and neck for the second place spot.

The calendar is almost in March and boy we can’t wait for tournament basketball.