UCF's impressive Big 12 run positions them for March Madness. Dominant wins and few slip-ups fuel their ascent, aiming for a favorable tournament seed.
Thanks to a strong start to Big 12 play, UCF (17-5, 6-4 Big 12) is poised to return to March Madness for the first time since 2019.
Currently, according to Joe Lunardi's Bracketology, UCF has at least an 85% chance to make it to the Big Dance. The Knights are currently listed as a nine-seed and would be in line for a postseason rematch against Villanova.
Last season, the Knights took down the Wildcats 104-98 in the College Basketball Crown en route to a runner-up finish.
UCF has had multiple quad-1 wins this season, including big-time victories over Kansas, Texas Tech and Texas A&M. Almost as important, the Knights haven't suffered any poor losses, taking care of business against all quad-3 and quad-4 opponents.
The Knights have at least one more opportunity to stack another quad-1` win when they travel to Provo, UT, to take on BYU. But, they have multiple high-level quad-2 opportunities against Cincinnati, TCU and the finale - a road trip to take on West Virginia.
UCF has been firmly within the bracketology predictions pretty consistently, but the projected seeding has shot up to as high as six and as low as ten. Winning these games down the stretch will go a huge way for improving UCF's seeding and escaping the dreaded 8/9 game.
It will also have large implications in UCF's seeding for the Big 12 tournament, which also could be big for helping UCF rise in the bracket.
According to CBS, the Knights are slotted in that 8/9 game, posted to take on SMU. If UCF could move up to a 7/10 matchup, which is statistically much easier than the 8/9. Historically, the 8/9 is a 50/50 choice, with nine seeds winning about 52% of the time.
When the 7/10 matchup takes place, the higher seed's chances of winning jumps up to over 60%.
Back in 2019, UCF was a nine seed, taking down VCU in the first round matchup. The Knights' next round was against the top-seeded Duke Blue Devils, where they fell just short, falling 77-76.
Head coach Johnny Dawkins has UCF in line for a second tournament appearance during his tenure, but the job is not finished. The Knights will need a strong finish to the back-end of conference play to ensure a bid to the Big Dance and improve on seeding for a better first-round matcup.
The Knights are back to work Sunday at 2:00 p.m. on the road against Cincinnati.