Iowa State has put itself into position for a trip to the NCAA Tournament for a third straight season under coach T.J. Otzelberger.
With five regular season games remaining, the Cyclones sit in a spot to
potentially move up to a 2-seed or down to no worse than a 5-seed come
Selection Sunday.
Along with the Cyclones, nine Big 12 teams are projected to make the tournament field.
Houston, Kansas, Baylor, Texas Tech, TCU, Oklahoma, BYU, and Texas are all
consensus teams in the field of 68, with Cincinnati being a bubble team in the First Four Out category, according to most.
ESPN, CBS Sports, and FOX Sports each project Iowa State as a 3-seed in the
tournament. All three outlets have the Cyclones playing in Pittsburgh as part of the East Region.
ESPN’s Joe Lunardi projects Iowa State to play against No. 14 Vermont with No. 6 Colorado State and No. 11 Seton Hall/Ole Miss playing on the top side of the bracket.
CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm projects the Cyclones will face No. 14 Charleston with No. 6 Dayton and No. 11 Ole Miss/Utah on the top side of the bracket.
FOX Sports’ Mike DeCourcy has Iowa State playing No. 14 Akron in the Round of 64 with a chance for either team to play No. 6 South Carolina or No. 11 Seton Hall for a chance at a Sweet 16 birth.
Iowa State takes on West Virginia in its next game, set for Saturday at Hilton Coliseum (1 p.m., ESPN2).
