It’s been a Murphy’s Law couple of days for teams at the edge of the men’s NCAA tournament field. And it’s made the task of selecting the bracket’s 36 at-large teams all the more difficult.
Washington
Analysis | NCAA tournament bracketology: Selection Sunday has finally arrived
There were the outright bid snatchers, North Carolina State and Oregon. The Wolfpack won its fifth game in five days, dispatching North Carolina for the program’s first ACC tournament title since 1987. Oregon picked off UCLA, Arizona and Colorado in a three-day span to claim the last Pac-12 title.
There was Florida Atlantic, failing to do the rest of the field a favor and falling to Temple in the American Athletic semifinals. Paired with Dayton’s loss in the Atlantic 10 tournament Thursday, there was no help coming from teams that could turn their conferences into one-bid leagues.
Even the borderline tournament team in action couldn’t finish the job. Texas A&M fell to Florida, and the Aggies must wait for the committee’s verdict. That hasn’t been a good thing for Buzz Williams’s team the past two years; in 2022, Texas A&M was left out after a late push. Last year, it was arguably the most underseeded team in the field based on the numbers (though not on its subsequent first-round exit).
Among the other possible losers because of the tumult: Oklahoma and Virginia, two teams that didn’t do much wrong but have limited top-end success; Providence, Seton Hall and St. John’s, a parade of Big East teams with their own résumé limitations; and Indiana State, which last Sunday afternoon was a wild card and might now be an afterthought.
(Or it might not. Indiana State is a hard-to-evaluate variable, because its profile doesn’t look much like the power conference teams it is being compared with).
The one thing all of these teams have in common, whether they receive a reprieve or not, is they could have won more. Virginia could have made free throws. Oklahoma could have beaten someone better than Iowa or Kansas State away from home. Indiana State could have won Arch Madness. Pitt could have played a better nonconference schedule. Texas A&M could have avoided silly losses.
There will be caterwauling Sunday night from many schools, but the confluence of events tightened the field and might lead to a play-in game occupying the No. 10 seed line. It’s anyone’s guess whether the tournament will be a classic, but the week leading up to it already is unusual even by the standards of March.
Sunday’s games to watch
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Ivy League final (New York): No. 2 Yale vs. No. 4 Brown, noon (ESPN2)
Brown (13-17) knocked out top-seeded Princeton in the first of Saturday’s Ivy semifinals, setting off day-long carnage for top seeds. The Bears can earn their first NCAA tournament berth since 1986, and third ever, with a defeat of Yale (21-9), which just lost at home to Brown on March 9.
Bracket impact: One-bid territory, though Yale has a much higher seeding territory than Brown.
SEC final (Nashville): No. 4 Auburn vs. No. 6 Florida, 1 (ESPN)
Auburn (26-7) faces a path to an SEC title that goes through the No. 7 (South Carolina), No. 9 (Mississippi State) and No. 6 (Florida) seeds. Those are three NCAA tournament teams so it isn’t a clear path, but it didn’t include Tennessee or Kentucky, either. The Gators (24-10) ended Texas A&M’s run yesterday and have quietly stitched together a 13-4 mark since Jan. 20.
Bracket impact: Both are safely in the field, so maybe there are some seeding stakes here. Auburn can make a case for a No. 3 seed if it wins, and Florida might have a case to climb as high as the No. 5 line.
Atlantic 10 final (Brooklyn): No. 5 VCU vs. No. 6 Duquesne, 1 (CBS)
VCU (22-12) has hired six coaches this century. If the Rams win today, all of them will have led the program to an NCAA tournament within their first two years, with Ryan Odom doing it with a season to spare. Duquesne (23-11) is aiming for its first NCAA berth since 1977.
Bracket impact: Only one of these two is getting in, and both would be right around the No. 12 line.
American Athletic final (Fort Worth): No. 4 UAB vs. No. 11 Temple, 3:15 (ESPN)
UAB (22-11) bounced top-seeded South Florida in the semifinals, while Temple (16-19) won its fourth game in four days by stunning Florida Atlantic. The Owls had won only four games in the 75 days leading up to the American tournament.
Bracket impact: Only one of these two gets in. UAB has the profile of a No. 13 or No. 14 seed, while Temple would be a genuinely difficult team to evaluate. Here’s guessing the Owls would be a No. 15 seed if they complete the five-wins-in-five-days marathon.
Big Ten final (Minneapolis): No. 2 Illinois vs. No. 5 Wisconsin, approx. 3:30 (CBS)
The traditional final game before the selection show pits the Fighting Illini (25-8) and the Badgers (22-12) in a matchup of two teams already in the field.
Bracket impact: It’s always fair to wonder whether the Big Ten final impacts the field unless a bid snatcher is involved. Illinois is going to be a No. 3 or No. 4 seed, while Wisconsin is going to land right around a No. 5 seed.
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Last four included: Florida Atlantic, Michigan State, Texas A&M, Virginia
First four on the outside: Oklahoma, Providence, Pitt, St. John’s
Next four on the outside: Indiana State, Seton Hall, Wake Forest, Ohio State
Moving in: Long Beach State, N.C. State, Saint Peter’s, Oregon, Yale
Moving out: Fairfield, Oklahoma, Princeton, Providence, UC Davis
Conference call: Big 12 (8), Southeastern (8), Big Ten (6), Mountain West (6), Atlantic Coast (5), Pac-12 (4), Big East (3), American Athletic (2), Atlantic 10 (2), West Coast (2)
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(1) BIG EAST/Connecticut vs. (16) SWAC/Grambling-NORTHEAST/Wagner winner
(8) Texas vs. (9) Colorado State
(5) Wisconsin vs. (12) AMERICAN ATHLETIC/UAB
(4) Alabama vs. (13) SOUTHERN/Samford
(3) Baylor vs. (14) OHIO VALLEY/Morehead State
(6) San Diego State vs. (11) ACC/N.C. State
(7) Washington State vs. (10) Texas Christian
(2) Tennessee vs. (15) BIG SOUTH/Longwood
Connecticut with the top overall seed? It would be easy to give the Huskies that nod over Purdue because they won their conference tournament and no one else on the top line did. But Purdue’s set of victories away from home remains impressive. Those two will be the top two seeds, in some order. … Grambling will make the first NCAA tournament appearance in program history after beating Texas Southern in Saturday’s SWAC title game. …
When Virginia Tech won the ACC tournament as a No. 7 seed two years ago, it got a No. 11 seed. N.C. State will probably receive similar treatment, but in a year with less tumult, the Wolfpack would have been a line lower. … Texas Christian’s profile isn’t fabulous, but it does own a victory at Baylor. It also took both games it played from Oklahoma, which suddenly finds itself in a tenuous situation.
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(1) North Carolina vs. (16) MID-EASTERN ATHLETIC/Howard-BIG SKY/Montana State
(8) MOUNTAIN WEST/New Mexico vs. (9) Nebraska
(5) Texas Tech vs. (12) ATLANTIC 10/Virginia Commonwealth
(4) SEC/Auburn vs. (13) AMERICA EAST/Vermont
(3) BIG TEN/Illinois vs. (14) HORIZON/Oakland
(6) Brigham Young vs. (11) SUN BELT/James Madison
(7) Gonzaga vs. (10) MISSOURI VALLEY/Drake
(2) Arizona vs. (15) BIG WEST/Long Beach State
New Mexico has never made it out of the opening weekend of the tournament in 12 tries since the field expanded to 64 in 1985. Nebraska has never even won a game in seven appearances. … Will the committee bump Auburn up to the No. 3 line if it beats Florida? That’s a hard sell for a team that would own three Quadrant 1 victories (it has two entering the day). …
James Madison could be one of the winners from all the upsets Friday and Saturday. The Dukes are comfortably on the No. 11 line in this projection. … Long Beach State fired Coach Dan Monson on Monday, effective the end of the season. Five days later, he led the 49ers to their first NCAA berth since 2012. …
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(1) Purdue vs. (16) METRO ATLANTIC/Saint Peter’s
(8) Nevada vs. (9) Colorado
(5) Florida vs. (12) WESTERN ATHLETIC/Grand Canyon
(4) Kansas vs. (13) COASTAL/College of Charleston
(3) Creighton vs. (14) MID-AMERICAN/Akron
(6) Utah State vs. (11) Florida Atlantic/Virginia winner
(7) Clemson vs. (10) Northwestern
(2) Iowa State vs. (15) SUMMIT/South Dakota State
Maybe the committee avoids the rematch of Purdue’s Sweet 16 loss to Saint Peter’s. But heavens knows that game will be referenced no matter who the Boilermakers’ opponent is given their recent run of losses against double-digit seeds. … Grand Canyon makes its third NCAA trip in four years, and at 29-4, this is the Antelopes’ best chance to do some damage in the postseason since moving up to Division I in 2013. …
Florida Atlantic, with a pair of Quad 4 losses (Bryant and Florida Gulf Coast) and Saturday’s setback against Temple, may have played its way to Dayton. It’s definitely unlikely the Owls exceed the No. 9 seed they had last year during their Final Four run. … Northwestern has a profile that’s sneaky underwhelming — a terrible nonconference schedule, a Quad 4 loss to Chicago State and not a truly noteworthy win away from home. Still, the Wildcats beat five projected tournament teams (Purdue, Illinois, Dayton, Michigan State and Nebraska), and that counts for something.
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(1) Houston vs. (16) ATLANTIC SUN/Stetson
(8) Dayton vs. (9) Mississippi State
(5) WEST COAST/Saint Mary’s vs. (12) SOUTHLAND/McNeese State
(4) Kentucky vs. (13) IVY/Yale
(3) Duke vs. (14) PATRIOT/Colgate
(6) South Carolina vs. (11) PAC-12/Oregon
(7) Boise State vs. (10) Michigan State/Texas A&M winner
(2) Marquette vs. (15) CONFERENCE USA/Western Kentucky
Even with a clunker in the Big 12 title game, Houston is ranked No. 1 in three of the team sheet metrics and No. 2 in the other two. The Cougars should anchor the South. … Oregon has used surprising Pac-12 tournament title runs to land a double-digit seed twice before (2013 and 2019) under Dana Altman, and both times the Ducks made the Sweet 16. Something to monitor. …
Who you beat should probably matter a little more than who you lost to. Texas A&M has seven Quad 1 victories, including five over teams projected to land a No. 5 seed or better. That should offset the four Quad 3 losses. … Western Kentucky Coach Steve Lutz is now 7-0 in conference tournaments. He led Texas A&M Corpus Christi to Southland titles the past two years, and now has the Hilltoppers back in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2013. That ends the program’s longest NCAA drought since 1940-60.
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This week, the team brings you stories about how communities including Filipino immigrants, Sephardic Jews and Somalis arrived in the Pacific Northwest
Each week on The Newsfeed, host Paris Jackson and a team of veteran journalists dive deep into one topic and provide impactful reporting, interviews and community insights from sources you can trust. Each day this week, this post will be updated with a new story from the team.
Group hopes to boost recognition for Seattle’s Filipinotown
By Venice Buhain
The group Filipinotown Seattle hopes to make sure that the legacy of Filipino Americans in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District isn’t forgotten.
One of the group’s current projects is pushing for a Filipinotown placemarking sign in the CID.
“Filipino Americans have had a presence here for over 100 years in Seattle,” said Filipinotown Seattle Executive Director Devin Israel Cabanilla.
He said that the signage is important to remind people that “the International District is not just Chinatown. Japantown. Filipinotown is here as well.”
The group held a poll on what signage might look like and where it might be located. It would be similar to the Chinatown sign on South Jackson Street and Fifth Avenue South, or the Wing Luke Museum
In the early 20th century, the area now known as the CID was a hub full of businesses, entertainment, social groups and housing that served Seattle’s growing immigrant population from Asia and elsewhere. The communities all intermingled throughout the CID.
“This area was a central place for Asian Pacific immigrants simply because of segregation,” Cabanilla said.
Because the Philippines was a U.S. territory from 1898 to 1946, Filipino immigrants were unaffected by laws in the 1920s that restricted immigration from Japan or China. Many Filipinos came to study at the University of Washington or to work in burgeoning industries, like lumber, farming, canneries and factories.
While the physical Filipino presence in terms of buildings and storefronts in the CID dwindled in the later 20th century with redevelopment, Seattle Filipinos and Filipino Americans continued to make impacts locally, regionally and nationally.
“It may not have been in terms of storefronts, but our presence has always existed in terms of politics, culture as well,” Cabanilla said.
The Seattle Department of Transportation said it is aware that the group is working on its signage request, but the Department of Neighborhoods has not yet received a formal request. They are also working to develop a clearer process for this and other similar neighborhood signage proposals.
Filipinotown Seattle said it hopes that the sign helps remind Seattle of the CID’s unique designation as a neighborhood shaped by many immigrants and migrants to Seattle.
“Is it Chinatown? Is it Japantown? Is it Little Saigon? It’s all those things. And I think re cultivating that this is a multicultural district, Filipinotown is helping establish: Yes, it’s more than one thing,” Cabanilla said.
Venice Buhain is a multimedia journalist at Cascade PBS. She previously was the Cascade PBS’s associate news editor and education reporter. Venice has also worked for KING 5, The Seattle Globalist and TVW News.
Venice Buhain is a multimedia journalist at Cascade PBS. She previously was the Cascade PBS’s associate news editor and education reporter. Venice has also worked for KING 5, The Seattle Globalist and TVW News.
The state of Washington is getting a seventh temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The Marysville Washington Temple was announced Sunday night during a devotional in the Marysville Washington Stake by Elder Hugo E. Martinez, a General Authority Seventy in the church’s United States West Area Presidency.
“We are pleased to announce the construction of a temple in Marysville, Washington,” the First Presidency said in a statement. “The specific location and timing of the construction will be announced later. This is a reason for all of us to rejoice and express gratitude for such a significant blessing — one that will allow more frequent access to the ordinances, covenants and power that can only be found in the house of the Lord.”
The other temples in Washington are the Columbia River, Moses Lake, Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma and Vancouver temples.
The church has 214 temples in operation. Plans for another 170 temples have been announced; many of those temples are in various stages of planning and construction.
Sunday’s temple announcement follows the new practice of the church’s First Presidency, which determines where temples will be built — and when and how they will be announced.
The First Presidency directed a General Authority Seventy to announce the first temple in Maine at a fireside there in December.
In January, church President Dallin H. Oaks said the Maine announcement set the pattern for future temple announcements.
“The best place to announce a temple is in that temple district,” he told the Deseret News.
The First Presidency will continue to decide where future temples will be built. It then will “assign someone else to make the announcement in the place where the temple will be built,” he said.
This pattern came to him as a strong impression after he assumed leadership of the church in October, following the death of his friend, President Russell M. Nelson.
This came as a strong impression to him shortly after he assumed the leadership of the church, President Oaks said.
The church remains in the midst of an aggressive temple-building era. President Nelson announced 200 new temples from 2018 to 2025. All but one were announced at general conference.
Five dozen temples are now under construction.
President Oaks now has overseen the announcement of two temples, neither at a general conference.
At the October conference he said that “with the large number of temples now in the very earliest phases of planning and construction, it is appropriate that we slow down the announcement of new temples.”
Ten new temples are scheduled to be dedicated in the next six months.
- May 3: Davao Philippines Temple.
- May 3: Lindon Utah Temple.
- May 31: Bacolod Philippines Temple.
- June 7: Yorba Linda California Temple.
- June 7: Willamette Valley Oregon Temple.
- Aug. 16: Belo Horizonte Brazil Temple.
- Aug. 16: Cleveland Ohio Temple.
- Aug. 30: Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple.
- Oct. 11: Miraflores Guatemala City Guatemala Temple.
- Oct. 18: Managua Nicaragua Temple.
Two-thirds of the 170 temples still to be built are outside the United States.
Temples are distinct from the meetinghouses where Latter-day Saints worship Jesus Christ each Sunday. Temples are closed on Sundays, but they open during the week as sanctuaries where church members go to find peace, make covenants with God and perform proxy ordinances for deceased relatives.
On a perfect day in Seattle for football, Washington took the field inside Husky Stadium for its first scrimmage of spring practice, and ahead of his third season at the helm, Jedd Fisch seemed pleased with the results.
“Guys played and competed their ass off,” he said after the Huskies ran 120 plays. “That’s the type of day we want to have…We have a lot to work on, but we’re excited that today gave us this opportunity.”
The 120 plays had a little bit of everything, but the biggest thing the Huskies showed during the day was that, despite the inexperience that Fisch’s coaching staff is looking to lean on at several positions, there’s plenty of talent littering the roster. The best example of that is sophomore safety Paul Mencke Jr., who had his best practice in a Husky uniform after Fisch announced on Saturday that senior CJ Christian is out for the year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon during Tuesday’s practice at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.
“Paul’s done a great job of competing and being physical and playing fast, and you could see over these three years, he’s really grown into understanding now the system, and what’s asked of him as a safety,” Fisch said. “I think there’s a lot of in him that he wants to be like (safeties coach Taylor) Mays. He sees himself as a tall, linear, big hitter. So when you have your coach that is known for that type of play, I think Paul has done a great job.”
Mencke was all over the field. Not only did he lay some big hits, just like his safeties coach did during his time at USC, but the former four-star recruit also tallied a pair of pass breakups, an interception in a 7-on-7 period, and multiple strong tackles to hold ball carriers to limited yards.
While the defense did a good job getting pressure throughout the day and making the quarterbacks hold the ball with different looks on the back end, with safety Alex McLaughlin, linebacker Donovan Robinson, and edge rusher Logan George all among the players credited for a sack, quarterback Demond Williams Jr. got an opportunity to show off how he’s improved ahead of his junior year.
Early on, he showed off his well-known speed and athleticism, making the correct decision on a read option, pulling the ball and scampering for a 25-yard gain before displaying his touch. Throughout the day, his favorite target was junior receiver Rashid Williams, whom he found on several layered throws of 15-plus yards in the various scrimmage periods of practice.
On a day when every able-bodied member of the team was able to get several reps of live action, here are some of the other noteworthy plays from the day.
Spring practice notebook
- Freshman cornerback Jeron Jones was unable to participate in the scrimmage and was spotted working off to the side with the rest of the players rehabbing their injuries.
- The running backs delivered a pair of big blows on the day. First, cornerback Emmanuel Karnley was on the receiving end of a big hit from redshirt freshman Quaid Carr before the former three-star recruit ripped off a 13-yard touchdown run on the next play. Later on, every player on offense had a lot of fun cheering on freshman Ansu Sanoe after he leveled Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, letting the sophomore linebacker hear all about it when the play was whistled dead.
- Sophomore wide receiver Justice Williams put together a strong day with several contested catches, showing off his strong hands and 6-foot-4 frame, including a 25-yard catch and run off a drag route from backup quarterback Elijah Brown.
- Of all the tackles for a loss the Huskies were able to rack up throughout the day, two stood out. First, junior defensive tackle Elinneus Davis burst through the middle of the line to wrap up freshman running back Brian Bonner. Later on, freshman outside linebacker Ramzak Fruean wasn’t even touched as he shot through a gap in the offensive line to track down a play from behind, letting the entire offensive sideline know about the play on his way back to his own bench.
- The Huskies experimented with several defensive line combinations on Saturday, and for the first time this spring, it felt like freshman Derek Colman-Brusa took the majority of his reps alongside someone other than Davis, who he said has taken on an older brother role to help mentor the top-ranked in-state prospect in the 2026 class.
“Elinneus is a phenomenal guy. Great work ethic. He’s kind of taken on that older brother mentor for me. He’s been a great help just to learn plays and learn the scheme. Can’t say enough good things about the guy.”
- Ball State transfer Darin Conley took a handful of reps with the first team, while rotating with Colman-Brusa, who got a lot of work in alongside Sacramento State transfer DeSean Watts.
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