There's about six weeks to go in the 2011-12 NCAA men's basketball regular season, and there's a lot of SB Nation New York Bracket Busters that are fighting tough battles in their conference to earn the 2012 NCAA Tournament invite. It has been a week since I looked at where they all stand, so without further delay here's the status of our Bracket Buster schools when it pertains to March Madness.
(NCAA Tournament dates for the first and second round will be March 13-18. The dates for the NCAA Final Four will March 31 and April 2 with the location being New Orleans, LA. )
Iona Gaels -- 15-5 Overall; Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference 7-2
The Gaels remain the best ranked team of the SB Nation New York Bracket Busters, however, the new Bracketology rankings all came out before they lost to the Siena Saints Monday, 65-62. The loss dropped Iona into a three-way tie for first place in the league standings with Manhattan Jaspers and Loyola, Md. Greyhounds.
There's still nine conference games to be played, and a match-ups with the Manhattan, Feb. 4, and Loyola, Feb. 10.
Bracketology status:
SB Nation's Dobbertean (Jan. 23): No. 14 seed vs. No. 3 Michigan St. Spartans
ESPN's Joe Lunardi (Jan. 23): No. 13 vs. No. 4 Creighton Bluejays
CBSSports.com's Andy Glockner (Jan. 17): No. 14 Vs. No. 3 Georgetown Hoyas
Stony Brook Seawolves -- 11-7 Overall; 6-1 America East
A Jan. 14 loss to the Boston U. Terriers has put the Seawolves in a tough spot but very solid spot in the America East. Currently, BU (7-1 AE) leads Stony Brook (6-1) by a half game in the win column but still holds the head-to-head tiebreaker.
If Stony Brook can just beat the Hartford Hawks Wednesday night and then down BU on Friday, then the Seawolves will be in solid position to earn the conference title and its automatic qualifying spot into the NCAA Tournament.
Bracketology status:
SB Nation's Dobbertean (Jan. 23): No. 16 seed vs. No. 16 Miss Valley St Delta Devils (first round)
ESPN's Joe Lunardi (Jan. 23): OUT
CBSSports.com's Andy Glockner (Jan. 24): OUT
Long Island Blackbirds -- 14-6 Overall; 8-0 Northeast Conference
With a pair of victories last week -- Mount St. Mary's, Md. Mountaineers and Wagner Seahawks, respectively -- has put the Blackbirds in commanding position in the Northeast Conference. Currently, Long Island has a two-game lead on four other schools.
Long Island has 10 more games to go, so a lot can still happen.
Bracketology status:
SB Nation's Dobbertean (Jan. 23): No. 16 seed vs. No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats
ESPN's Joe Lunardi (Jan. 23): No. 16 vs. No. 16 Miss Valley St Delta Devils (first round)
CBSSports.com's Andy Glockner (Jan. 24): No. 16 Vs. Kentucky Wildcats
Honorable Mention
Manhattan Jaspers: After two victories that pushed he Jaspers (14-7, 7-2 MAAC) winning streak to five straight games, they still got a shot at the MAAC title. However, ahead of them is Iona and Loyla, which Manhattan still plays once more each.
St. Francis: The Terriers are currently below .500 overall (9-10), but their 6-2 Northeast Conference record puts them in a good spot to get the programs first NCAA Tournament bid.
For more on Bracketology, be sure to check out the SB Nation blog Blogging The Bracket. Want to track the Mid-Major teams? Visit Mid-Major Madness.