Bracket Racket 3/12: Calm Before the Storm

With every conference beginning tournament play by this afternoon, this will be the final "quiet" Bracket Racket of the season. Once the bubble teams from the ACC, Big Ten and Big 12 begin knocking each other out this afternoon, we should have our first real clear picture of the bracket. And while Texas A&M will probably survive last night's opening round loss to Texas Tech, how about some love for Tech's Mike Singletary, who scored 29 consecutive points to help the Red Raiders rally from 22 down at the half. That's 21 more than St. John's could score in the second half.Congrats are also in order for Robert Morris and Portland State for joining the dance party. Both teams got it done in dramatic fashion: RMU winning when little-used forward Dallas Green scooped up a loose ball and drilled a jumper with 2.5 seconds left and Portland State winning on a Julius Thomas dunk with 3.5 seconds left. Bracket Racket 3/12Bold Teams have already secured a bidThe Autos (31): North Carolina (ACC), Xavier (A-10), Binghamton (AE), East Tennessee State (A-Sun), Kansas (B12), Louisville (BE), Portland State (Sky), Radford (BS), Michigan State (B10), Cal-State Northridge (BW), VCU (CAA), Memphis (CUSA), Cleveland State (Horizon), Cornell (Ivy), Morgan State (MEAC), Siena (MAAC), Bowling Green Fightin' Sussmans (MAC), Northern Iowa (Valley), Utah (Mtn.), Robert Morris (NE), Morehead State (OVC), Washington (PAC-10), American (Patriot), LSU (SEC), Chattanooga (SoCon), Stephen F. Austin (SL), North Dakota State (Badlands), Western Kentucky (Sun Belt), Alabama State (SWAC), Gonzaga (WCC), Utah State (WAC).Solid Ground (25): Pittsburgh, Duke, UConn, Wake Forest, Villanova, Clemson, Oklahoma, Missouri, Marquette, Illinois, Purdue, Arizona State, UCLA, Florida State, Butler, Syracuse, West Virginia, Dayton, Ohio State, Cal, Tennessee, Texas, Oklahoma State, Wisconsin, BYU.Shaky But Stable Ground (4): South Carolina, Michigan, Minnesota, Texas A&MLast Five In:Providence - Arizona - 19-12 RPI 52New Mexico - 21-10, RPI 57Penn State - 21-10 RPI 61Florida - 22-9 RPI 47Last Five Out:Saint Mary's - 24-6 RPI 45San Diego State - 21-8, RPI 44UNLV - 21-9, RPI 55Miami (FL) - 18-11, RPI 51Creighton - 26-7, RPI 39Also Considered: Virginia Tech, Kentucky, Auburn, Rhode Island, Temple, Northwestern, Niagara.For Whom the Bell Tolls: The slight shimmer of hope that Notre Dame might have had was squished by West Virginia in MSG last night.