With less than one week to go until Selection Sunday, things are looking very promising for both Michigan State and Michigan. Both teams earned a share of the Big Ten's regular-season title, and with a strong showing in Indianapolis this weekend, a one or two seed could be within reach for the Spartans and Wolverines.
In all likelihood, Michigan State will be a No. 2 seed and Michigan will be a No. 3 seed. That is the case in SB Nation's latest bracketology article. The Spartans are projected to be the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region and play Valparaiso, the projected champion of the Horizon League and the former team of Michigan State's Brandon Wood. (That'd be a very interesting matchup.) The Wolverines are projected to be the East Region's three seed, matching them up against Akron.
As far as location goes for the second and third rounds, Michigan State appears to be a lock for Columbus. Since those games will be played in Ohio State's home city, the Buckeyes aren't eligible to play there. With MSU set to snag a two seed, it's likely that the selection committee will put the Spartans in Columbus, which is the closest site to East Lansing.
Ann Arbor is even closer to Columbus than East Lansing, but Michigan is projected to play in in Nashville. Because Marquette is considered a higher rated three seed, it gets Columbus over Michigan. Michigan isn't all that far from Pittsburgh, but Georgetown, another three seed, is given the edge for that site, which also is set to host Syracuse, one of the No. 1 seeds. Basically, if Michigan wants to play relatively close to home, it is going to have to make a run in the Big Ten tournament and pass a team like Marquette on the S-Curve.
For more on the Michigan State Spartans, go to The Only Colors. For more on the Michigan Wolverines, go to Maize n Brew. You can also head over to SB Nation's main NCAA Basketball hub at SBNation.com/NCAA-Basketball.