Punch the ticket
If Florida State isn't an NCAA lock, then nobody is.
Sure, the Seminoles played a Cupcake City nonconference schedule - ranked 313th out of the 334 teams in Division I.
But you can't argue with the results that they posted when it mattered - and a 9-7 ACC record that includes a win at home over Duke and an overtime loss by a single point at Cameron 'taint bad.
Throw in a season sweep of Virginia, which until recently was on the NCAA bubble itself, and a heartbreaking 81-80 loss at home to North Carolina that started the Heels on the 11-2 run that could get them a two seed on Selection Sunday, and you're looking at a team that is probably a strong seven seed in next week's regionals.
Maryland, on the other hand, is a different story entirely. At 8-8 in the conference and 18-11 overall, the Terrapins would appear to be on solid footing - but the 4-7 stumble down the stretch isn't helping matters at all.
Neither is the fact that Maryland lacks that defining win that FSU has with its 77-72 triumph over Duke last week.
The Terps kept hope alive with their heartstopping 71-70 win in Charlottesville on Sunday in the last regular-season game in University Hall, but a win or two in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament this week might be necessary to get them their dance card.
- Chris Graham