Fansided

Bracketology 2022: 6 most likely bid thieves heading into conference tournaments

By Mike Phillips

CHESTNUT HILL, MASSACHUSETTS - JANUARY 22: Storm Murphy #5 of the Virginia Cavaliers drives to the basket during a game against the Boston College Eagles at Conte Forum on January 22, 2022 in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Getty Images)
CHESTNUT HILL, MASSACHUSETTS - JANUARY 22: Storm Murphy #5 of the Virginia Cavaliers drives to the basket during a game against the Boston College Eagles at Conte Forum on January 22, 2022 in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next
WICHITA, KS – FEBRUARY 05: Marcus Weathers #50 of the Southern Methodist Mustangs dribbles the ball up court during the second half against the Wichita State Shockers at Charles Koch Arena on February 5, 2022, in Wichita, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images)
WICHITA, KS – FEBRUARY 05: Marcus Weathers #50 of the Southern Methodist Mustangs dribbles the ball up court during the second half against the Wichita State Shockers at Charles Koch Arena on February 5, 2022, in Wichita, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images) /

5. Potential March Madness bid thieves – SMU Mustangs

The next team to watch on the bid thief front is SMU, which is firmly on the bubble out of the American Athletic Conference. The Mustangs have taken some bad losses in a down AAC this year but they have also demonstrated an ability to beat good competition.

SMU is currently second in the American standings, which would allow them to avoid Houston until the final if seeding held to form. The current No. 3 seed is Memphis, which is a better overall team than SMU but one that the Mustangs swept during the regular season.

The auto bid comes into play if SMU tops the Tigers and gets to the final against Houston, which has been ranked in the Top 25 all season long but isn’t the same team after losing Tramon Mark and Marcus Sasser to season-ending injuries. The Cougars split their season series with SMU with each team winning on its own floor, giving the Mustangs confidence that they can win again on a neutral site.

Most bracketologists see SMU as either one of the first teams out of the field or one of the last teams in. Winning the American would definitely get SMU in the field, costing someone else on the bubble a slot.

Home/Bracketology