The Big 12 men’s basketball tournament in Kansas City is its own mini-season, a chance for a fresh start and a clean slate.
In the ways that matter most, it’s just a continuation of what happened during the 18-game marathon endurance contest that marked the Big 12 regular season. Now, can the nation’s best men’s basketball league by all the metrics and the eye test produce the best conference tournament?
“A lot of good teams. It’s a gauntlet. The tournament is more of the same,” TCU coach Jamie Dixon said.
For the top six seeds – No. 1 Kansas, No. 2 Texas, No. 3 Kansas State, No. 4 Baylor, No. 5 Iowa State and No. 6 TCU – the tournament is pretty much about NCAA seeding, possibly solidifying or moving up a spot with a couple of Quad 1 wins.
While No. 7 West Virginia looks to be solidly in the tournament, it could use a win. No. 8 Oklahoma State might need a couple of victories to feel good about itself on Selection Sunday.
Here’s a breakdown of where things stand going into Wednesday’s opening games at the T-Mobile Center.
Résumé time for Rodney Terry
Everyone pretty much knows the fate of the interim Texas coach will be decided in March, more correctly during the NCAA Tournament.
A decent run in Kansas City can help sway the Texas administration. The Longhorns (23-8) came within one game of winning the regular-season title and have one of the most experienced teams in college basketball.
A third meeting with Kansas is not out of the realm of possibility.
Baylor faces a hard road
The Bears (22-9) are flirting with a No. 2 seed in a lot of bracket projections. An early exit in Kansas City could drop the Bears down to a 3 seed or even a 4 depending on the peculiarities of the selection committee.
It won’t be easy, especially with standout freshman Keyonte George nursing an injured ankle. No. 4 Baylor opens Thursday against No. 5 Iowa State, which has beaten the Bears twice by 15 points apiece. The second Baylor loss came Saturday at the Ferrell Center.
If Baylor survives, there is a good chance it will face top-seeded Kansas in its home away from home.
Opportunity to move up
That would be TCU (20-11). Not that long ago, the Horned Frogs were looking at a potential top four seed. That’s changed with the skid following the Mike Miles injury.
Now the Horned Frogs have one chance to reset the narrative before Selection Sunday. They’ll have the opportunity as a No. 6 seed opening with No. 3 Kansas State, followed by potential meetings with No. 2 Texas and No. 1 Kansas. How does that sound for three Quad 1 wins?
Who needs a win (or two or three)?
That would be West Virginia (18-13) and Oklahoma State (17-14).
The Mountaineers are projected as a No. 9 seed by ESPN and have one of the nation’s toughest schedules, as coach Bob Huggins keeps reminding the selection committee. West Virginia is probably in regardless but a victory against Texas Tech wouldn’t hurt.
Oklahoma State is currently projected as the first team out by ESPN bracketology Joe Lunardi, so there’s basically no room for error.
How will Texas Tech react?
A disappointing season took an ugly turn with the suspension of coach Mark Adams for “use of an inappropriate, unacceptable, and racially insensitive comment last week.”
Now Corey Williams will serve as interim coach for the tournament as Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt pursues an internal investigation. Short of a run to the Big 12 tournament championship, Tech (16-15) has no NCAA hopes.
So what kind of effort do they put on the floor against West Virginia?
The betting line: Here’s what the oddsmakers think about the chances to cut down the nets Saturday (via BetOnline.ag): Kansas 3/1, Texas 15/4, TCU 9/2, Baylor 19/4, Kansas State 7/1, Iowa State 15/2, West Virginia 14/1, Oklahoma 33/1, Oklahoma State 33/1, Texas Tech 40/1.
