With just two weeks and some change remaining until Selection Sunday, it seems like the right time to check in on the Never Been Kissed (NBK) member schools. ICYMI the NBK is a fake conference we invented to track the progress of some Billiken contemporaries. Full post is here. To refresh:
In order to be eligible for induction into the NBK, member schools have to meet the following criteria:
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Must field a Division I basketball team
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Must have never have made the Sweet Sixteen
Teams ordered by Current Kissability. All data from KenPom.com with the exception of Bracketology from ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.
| NBK Rank (Current) | Team | NBK Rank (Preseason) | KenPom Rank | Conference Standing | ESPN Bracketology | Road to the Sweet Sixteen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SMU | 1 | 23 | 1st (AAC) | 6-seed | LSU Iowa St |
| 2 | Murray State | 11 | 71 | 1st (OVC) | 13-seed | Louisville Baylor |
| 3 | Harvard | 4 | 64 | T-1st (Ivy) | 12-seed | Yale Baylor Louisville |
| 4 | Georgia St | 6 | 77 | T-1st (Sun Belt) | 16-seed | Gonzaga San Diego St |
| 5 | Old Dominion | 13 | 82 | T-4th (CUSA) | ||
| 6 | Montana | 15 | 159 | T-2nd (Big Sky) | ||
| 7 | Nebraska | 3 | 111 | 10th (B1G) | ||
| 8 | Colorado | 2 | 100 | T-9th (P12) | ||
| 9 | Indiana St | 12 | 156 | 3rd (MVC) | ||
| 10 | Creighton | 7 | 114 | 10th (BE) | ||
| 11 | New Mexico | 9 | 120 | T-7th (MWC) | ||
| 12 | Manhattan | 10 | 187 | 4th (MAAC) | ||
| 13 | Fordham | 14 | 202 | T-12th (A10) | ||
| 14 | Saint Louis | 8 | 255 | 14th (A10) | ||
| 15 | Southern Miss | 5 | 318 | 13th (CUSA) | ||
| 16 | Northwestern | 16 | 120 | 12th (B1G) |
SMU
SMU is in the best position at this point. They have a two-game lead on fading Tulsa in the AAC and enough of a resume to grab an at-large bid. Once in the tournament, they are a study in balance with the #36 AdjO and #38 AdjD, and both a solid Mr Inside (6’11” Yanick Moreira) and sterling Mr Outside (5’9″ Nic Moore).
Unless someone drops down to the Play-in round, the Mustangs stand to be the only NBK team that will be favored in an NCAA game this March. Pucker up, Mustang fans.
Murray State
Since starting the season 2-4 and losing to the likes of Houston and Portland, Murray State has ripped off a streak of 20 straight wins, led by PG Cameron Payne (#8 in Assist Rate) and the #26 overall offense. Seth Davis has a Sharpie in his pocket, and is glad to see the Racers.
yup! RT @Parcelman18: @SethDavisHoops says if the #Racers run the table and lose in OVC final, he thinks they get an at large. #Racerlove
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) February 21, 2015
Interesting that Joe Lunardi has Murray State and fellow-NBKer Harvard in the 4v13 / 5v12 pod. These pods have been fertile ground for upsets in tournaments past.
Harvard
Speaking of the Crimson, Harvard was an early media darling but stumbled hard out of the gate losing to #247 Holy Cross in November, and following that up with a 72-27 loss to #2 Virginia. That is not a misprint. That was a palindrome, and also a nightmare if you are a Crimson fan.
But Harvard has steadied the ship of late and is in pretty good shape atop the Ivy, with their remaining Yale game coming at home. They feature a strong defense (#13 in the country) and though their resume is thin — exactly one Top 100 win — Lunardi is forecasting they have enough Tommy Amaker shine to get into the Upset Pod.
Harvard vs Murray State in the second round would be a dream NBK matchup, champagne popping in the end regardless. It would be a study of Harvard’s stout defense vs Murray State’s dynamic offense. (Take the Racers).
Georgia St
The Panthers enter the discussion by moving into a tie in the Sun Belt with Georgia Southern and UL-Monroe. Georgia St plays both their rivals the final week and control their destiny. Once in the tournament, however, a gauntlet awaits. It is hard to envision a scenario where they get in the tournament above a 16-seed.
The Rest
- Nobody has fallen farther faster than Southern Miss, as a promising finish to last season has deteriorated into mounting losses and an NCAA probe. Mounting and probing are always bad when it comes to basketball.
- SLU and Creighton are both on a similar arc, rebuilding with young guys and exploring the depths of their conferences after enjoying a couple of years on top.
- Montana has a decent shot of getting in the tournament, but will also be hard-pressed to climb up beyond a 16-seed
- Indiana St would make a lot of sense as a sleeper NBK team, as the two teams they trail in the MVC are #11 Northern Iowa and #13 Wichita St, both equipped for deep runs this season. But those programs are not lifting the rest of the Valley. With a home loss to SLU and their best win over #71 Illinois St, the Sycamores do not have the resume to get a reasonable seed. Only a five-game tear through Arch Madness would give them a reasonable shot at the Sweet Sixteen.
- Iona was not selected this season, but I can see a scenario where the Gaels get in and draw a defensively-challenged #2 or #3 seed (hello Notre Dame) and rain a hellfire of threes on their bewildered heads in round one, then hang on to win one of those #15 vs #10 bruisers in round two.
- Northwestern has put together a few wins in the B1G and climbed out of its basement. By all rights, they should not be ranked last in the NBK. However, we remind you the Wildcats have never made the NCAA Tournament much less the Sweet Sixteen so the coveted 16th spot in the NBK is theirs for the forseeable future.