Updated NCAA tournament predictions: San Diego State headed to Dayton for first four game
The San Diego State men's basketball team (15-5, 8-3) has nine games remaining in its regular season.
The Aztecs will start a two-game road trip with a matchup against Colorado State in Fort Collins before heading to San Jose State on Tuesday. Games against New Mexico, Utah State and Boise State await the Aztecs and may provide additional chances for San Diego State to acquire an important Quad 1 victory.
A Quad 1 game is a home matchup against a top 30 team, a neutral site matchup against a top 50 team or a road game against a top 75 team in the NCAA NET Rankings. San Diego State currently has a 4-3 record against Quad 1 teams, the most of any team in the Mountain West Conference.
The NET Rankings replaced RPI prior to the 2018-19 college basketball season. They are a tool used by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee for selection and seeding for the NCAA tournament.
San Diego State’s Latest NCAA Tournament Prediction
Currently, San Diego State is projected to be a No. 11 seed in the South Region in ESPN’s latest Bracketology update.
San Diego State is slotted to play Nebraska in a First Four matchup. ESPN projects the winner of that game to play St. John’s in the second round.
The South Region features several teams with which the Aztecs are familiar. ESPN projects Gonzaga and Creighton to play each other in a second-round matchup between eight and nine seeds. San Diego State lost to Gonzaga at home in November before beating Creighton in Las Vegas during the Players Era Festival.
Also projected by ESPN to be in the South Region are Houston and Utah State. San Diego State closed out their appearance in the Players Era Festival by beating Houston in overtime for one of their four Quad 1 victories on the season. The Cougars currently sit at 10-1 in the Big 12, tied with Arizona for the league lead. ESPN currently projects Houston as the No. 2 seed in the region, taking on No. 15 Norfolk State.
Utah State has been one of the nation’s biggest surprises this season. The Aggies are 20-3 with eight regular season games to go and are No. 40 in the latest NCAA NET rankings. In December, Utah State erased a 40-22 deficit at Viejas Arena, beating San Diego State 67-66. ESPN projects Utah State as the No. 10 seed in the south, taking on No. 7 Oklahoma.
San Diego State still has five road games left to play during the regular season beginning with a trip to Colorado State on Saturday. They’ll make the trip to Logan, Utah to take on Utah State on Feb. 22. A home game against Boise State before then looms as one of several big opportunities for San Diego State to improve their resume before March Madness.
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-770033d1c5c4820fdbde4ecf2452e810.jpg "Bodie De Silva")
Bodie DeSilva has been covering sports in San Diego for more than a decade. He previously covered San Diego State athletics for Scout/Fox Sports.