Bracketology: Indiana's Decline Continues; Big Ten, Big 12 Tied With Nine Teams

In the latest ESPN Bracketology by Joe Lunardi, Indiana basketball fell to a No. 8 seed after losses to Iowa and Northwestern last week. The Big Ten and Big 12 conferences are battling for the most teams in the NCAA Tournament, each with nine in this week's bracket.

Indiana dropped out of the Associated Press top-25 poll this week, and the Hoosiers are trending in the wrong direction for the NCAA Tournament, too.

ESPN's Joe Lunardi released his latest Bracketology on Tuesday, and Indiana dropped from a No. 6 seed to a No. 8 seed after losses to Iowa and Northwestern last week. 

In this projection, Indiana landed in the West region, setting up a highly-anticipated matchup with the No. 9 seed Kentucky Wildcats. Indiana and Kentucky last played each other in the 2016 NCAA Tournament when the No. 5 seed Hoosiers defeated No. 4 seed Kentucky 73-67 to advance to the Sweet 16.

This path also includes a possible matchup against former Indiana coach Kelvin Sampson in the Round of 32. Sampson now coaches the Houston Cougars, who regained the No. 1 ranking in this week's AP top-25 poll, as well as a No. 1 seed in Lunardi's Bracketology.

Here's the full West region.

Indiana is a No. 8 seed in the West region in Joe Lunardi's latest Bracketology on ESPN, setting up possible matchups with Kentucky and Houston, led by former Indiana coach Kelvin Sampson. 

As for Indiana's past opponents this season, the Kansas Jayhawks hold the No. 1 overall seed, and Arizona dropped to a No. 2 seed after a 13-point home loss to a 7-10 Washington State team. Xavier's rise continues, coming in as a No. 3 seed with a possible matchup against No. 6 seed North Carolina, another Indiana opponent, in the Round of 32. 

In the Big Ten, Purdue held onto a No. 1 seed after a busy week. The Boilermakers lost by one point at home against Rutgers, but responded with road wins over Ohio State and Penn State. Other Big Ten teams in this bracket include No. 6 seed Ohio State, No. 7 seeds Wisconsin and Rutgers, No. 8 seeds Indiana and Michigan State, No. 9 seed Maryland and No. 10 seeds Northwestern and Illinois. Iowa was included in the "first four out" category, and Penn State is in the "next four out."

Related stories on Indiana basketball

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• JACKSON-DAVIS MOVES UP SCORING LIST: Trayce Jackson-Davis was already No. 15 on Indiana's all-time scoring list before he decided to come back for his senior year. Now he's on the move up the scoring list again in 2022-23, and we'll update the scoring list after every game. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA SCHEDULE: The 2022-2023 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball schedule is set. Here is the full schedule, with dates, gametimes and TV information, plus links to the stories on the games already played. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA DEPTH HAS TO STEP UP: Indiana point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week after scoring a combined 54 points, 12 assists and six rebounds in losses to Iowa and Northwestern. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA OUT OF AP POLL: Indiana basketball is not featured in Monday's Associated Press top-25 poll for the first time in the 2022-23 season. The Hoosiers suffered two ugly losses this week, at Iowa and on their home court against Northwestern. Only two Big Ten teams made this week's ranking, No. 3 Purdue and No. 18 Wisconsin. Here's the complete AP Top-25 poll. CLICK HERE