Joe Lunardi: Colorado can’t afford Pac-12 quarterfinal loss
Overall, ESPN college men’s basketball bracketologist Joe Lunardi hasn’t given much respect in his NCAA Tournament projections.
Lunardi has occasionally put the Buffs below weaker teams such as Utah, and despite owning 22 regular season wins, Colorado remains on his bubble.
In Lunardi’s latest March Madness projection, he featured a championship week guide for “the most impactful games.” There, Lunardi shared his opinion that the Buffs will be out of the NCAA Tournament picture if they lose Thursday’s Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinal matchup against either Utah or Arizona State.
While that would certainly qualify as a crushing loss, Colorado’s current NET ranking of No. 27 suggests that the Buffs will be just fine come Selection Sunday. Utah stands at No. 52 (Quadrant 2 matchup for the Buffs) and Arizona State is No. 125 (Quad 3), meaning a loss to the Utes would be less harmful.
USA TODAY Sports also released an updated bracketology on Tuesday and Colorado was a projected No. 10 seed.
Colorado will face the winner of Utah-Arizona State on Thursday at 9:30 p.m. MT (FS1).
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