Bracket Thoughts: Kentucky has legit chance to secure No. 1 seed

The calendar has turned to February, and the college basketball season is just one month from madness. Conference races are heating up, and NCAA Tournament speculation is something everyone is digesting each week.

At KSR, we’re on top of everything from NET team sheets to every new bracketology that is dropped as Kentucky appears to be turning into one of the hottest teams in college basketball. Now all eyes are set on resume season.

With the season moving fast, KSR is here to dig into all the bracket talk and take a look at some developments that will be worth following in the coming weeks.

Kentucky can get to top seed line

On Feb. 1, Kentucky is 17-4 (6-2) and ranked No. 5 in the AP Top 25. The Wildcats are 4-4 in Quad 1 games but are all the way up to No. 2 in KenPom, No. 7 in NET, and No. 19 in RPI.

The Wildcats have a clear shot at a No. 1 seed come Selection Sunday.

Kentucky has 10 games remaining in the regular season, and 60 percent of those are currently Quadrant 1 opportunities. Starting on Feb. 15 and running through Feb. 26, UK will play four consecutive Quadrant 1 games.

Take care of business in all of the Quadrant 2/Quadrant 3 games and finish with a winning mark in Quadrant 1 contests, and Kentucky should be in the running for a No. 1 seed entering the SEC Tournament.

SEC could be 8-deep in the NCAA Tournament

On Saturday, the SEC locked up a win in the challenge against the Big 12 further strengthening the case that this is the top conference in college basketball this season.

Investment into facilities and hiring good coaches have had a huge impact on the league. That is now playing out in arenas throughout the SEC footprint. Don’t be surprised to see the conference well represented in the NCAA Tournament.

Currently, Auburn, Kentucky, LSU, and Tennessee all feel like locks to earn bids. Alabama should get in, but the Tide is finding ways to lose bad games.

Elsewhere, four other teams are still in the hunt.

Florida is in ok shape and should only need one or two Quadrant 1 wins to lock up a bid down the stretch. Arkansas has quietly won six in a row and has huge home opportunities against Auburn, Tennessee, and Kentucky in February. Both Mississippi State and Texas A&M need some big wins to get off the bubble.

The league is in great shape and due to the depth, multiple teams will have great opportunities to bolster their resume down the stretch with quality wins. It just means more on the hardwood in 2022.

ACC is unbelievably bad

There likely aren’t 10 teams better than Duke this season. The Blue Devils feel like a safe bet to make it to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament despite having legitimate point guard issues.

However, the big, bad ACC isn’t challenging Mike Krzyzewski’s final team.

Miami feels like a safe bet to be in the field of 68 only due to a win at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Wake Forest is in due to a 14-0 mark in Quadrant 3/Quadrant 4 games but that could change if the Deacons drop a bad one down the stretch. North Carolina is firmly on the bubble thanks to zero Quadrant 1 wins.

Florida State and Notre Dame both have a case but each needs another big win or two. The league is a few bad losses to close the season away from getting just one team into the big dance if Duke wins the ACC Tournament in Brooklyn.

Not a great year for a very basketball proud conference.

Pac-12 is sneaky good

In recent years, the Pac-12 has been putting a bad product on the floor for the most part. There is a team or two that can get hot in March, but for the most part, the conference isn’t worth paying attention to.

That is not the case this season.

Both Arizona and UCLA are legit top-10 teams that are battling for conference supremacy. On Thursday, the Bruins and Wildcats will meet for the second time. Out in Las Vegas, the programs could give us an excellent championship game at the Pac-12 Tournament.

Meanwhile, there is some depth in the league.

Dana Altman always has Oregon ready to ride in March despite regular season struggles. USC seems to be a top-35 team and should earn an at-large bid. The bottom of the conference is bad, but the top could give us some fun matchups come conference tournament weekend.