FSU basketball continues to rise in latest NCAA Tournament projections

As the season comes to a close, programs across the country are battling for wins in their final games, looking for any chance to bolster their tournament resumes before Selection Sunday. After a less-than-stellar, yet much needed 88-75 victory against Pittsburgh on Sunday, head coach Leonard Hamilton’s team appears to be in good shape heading into its final stretch of play.

In the latest edition of Joe Lunardi’s bracketology, the now No. 25 ranked Seminoles are projected to be a 6-seed in the tournament’s Midwest region. Up from an 8-seed on Monday’s edition, the ESPN analyst has Florida State pitted against 11-seed Middle Tennessee in Dallas for the opening round of play. Pending a victory against the Blue Raiders, the ’Noles would then most likely face 3-seed Wichita State, which would certainly prove a difficult match-up as the Shockers are among TeamRankings.com’s top-10 teams projected to win the tournament.

However, the site deviates from Lunardi’s projections, instead predicting FSU to earn an 8-seed spot in the big dance. The Seminoles are given a 74.9% chance by them to make the tournament, but only a 15.6% chance of making it to the Sweet Sixteen.

BracketMatrix.com gives the Garnet & Gold a more optimistic outlook, where Florida State is averaged as a 7-seed and is included in all 70 brackets surveyed.

With their schedule winding down, the ’Noles will look to continue improving their tournament stock as they head into a road match-up against NC State on Sunday.