BRACKETOLOGY: WWBD (What will Butler Do)

The Butler Bulldogs are coasting through the Horizon League right now with an at least an at-large bid sewn up. They're one of the surprise teams in the country this year with wins over Notre Dame, Indiana, Tennessee, Gonzaga and Purdue. Those are five wins versus the RPI top-50 and that's very impressive.

However, the last one of those wins came on December 16. March is a different ball game. What will the Bulldogs do when the pressure for them to validate themselves in the tournament hit them? How are they going to adjust to the stiffer competition once the tournament begins? How are they going to deal with being the favorite in perhaps their first and second round games?

It'll be interesting to see, but I think Butler's bracket buster game against Southern Illinois will be a good barometer. Should be a good one.

While everyone is paying attention to what's going on up in Madison, Wisconsin, with good reason, there's another damn good team down in Milwaukee. Marquette is quietly having a great season. Dominic James is one of the most underrated players in the country and with wins at Pitt and against Duke and Texas Tech in Kansas City, the Golden Eagles will be a team to reckon with come March.

On to the bracket:
Have a lot of defections from the bracket this week. Teams on the bubble have small margin for error and right now, some teams are not helping themselves out. Last year I thought the bubble was weak. This year it's the opposite. With so many teams with quality wins, it's going to a very nervous Championship week for a lot of schools.

Last Four In: Xavier, Georgia, Missouri St, Arkansas
Last Four Out: Villanova, Maryland, Northern Iowa, Georgia Tech

East vs. West/Midwest vs. South

Through games on Sunday, February 4.

East
1.North Carolina16.Jackson St Winston-Salem, NC
8.Vanderbilt9.Illinois
5.Southern Illinois12.Xavier Buffalo, NY
4.Butler13.Davidson
6.Kansas St11.Arkansas Spokane, WA
3.Oregon14.Vermont
7.Virginia Tech10.Michigan St Buffalo, NY
2.Pittsburgh15.Delaware St
West
1.UCLA16.Weber St Sacramento, CA
8.BYU9.Alabama
5.Oklahoma St12.Missouri St Sacramento, CA
4.Nevada13.Oral Roberts
6.Georgetown11.Texas Tech Winston-Salem, NC
3.Memphis14.Holy Cross
7.Florida St10.Arizona Lexington, KY
2.Ohio St15.East Tennessee St
Midwest
1.Wisconsin16.Austin Peay Chicago, IL
8.Texas9.Notre Dame
5.Washington St12.Georgia Lexington, KY
4.Duke13.Winthrop
6.Virginia11.UNLV Columbus, OH
3.Kentucky14.Texas A&M-CC
7.USC10.West Virginia New Orleans, LA
2.Texas A&M15.South Alabama
South
1.Florida16.Loyola (MD)/Central Connecticut New Orleans, LA
8.Gonzaga9.Creighton
5.Boston College12.Virginia Commonwealth Spokane, WA
4.Air Force13.Rhode Island
6.Indiana11.Clemson Columbus, OH
3.Kansas14.Toledo
7.Stanford10.Tennessee Chicago, IL
2.Marquette15.Long Beach St