COUNTDOWN TO MARCH MADNESS--WOMEN--WEEK ENDING 02/26/2005

The final weekend of the regular season is near, and it's time to do some "Bracketology" for the NCAA Division II basketball tournament. Here's how D-II South Sports sees the brackets for both the South and South Atlantic regions. But first, here's a quick recap of this week's regional rankings. The top eight teams in each of the eight regions nationwide will advance to the NCAA Division II tournament.

NOTE: Teams in conferences covered by D-II South Sports are listed in BOLD type.

SOUTH REGION:

1. Central Arkansas

2. Tuskegee

3. Henderson State

4. Valdosta State

5. Fort Valley State

6. Paine

7. West Georgia

8. West Florida

9. Florida Southern

10. Tampa

ANALYSIS: Here's a quick breakdown on each of the three South region conferences, with the projected number of bids in parentheses.

Gulf South (4): By far, this is the toughest of all of the conferences in the region, with Central Arkansas and Henderson State leading the way in the GSC West, while Valdosta State and West Florida will square off for the title in the GSC East this Saturday. A team that no one will want to play in next week's Gulf South Conference tournament is West Georgia, which has won six straight games to earn trip to Tupelo, Miss.

SIAC (3): This league has been surprisingly strong this season, with three teams all ranked in the top eight in this week's poll. Fort Valley State, Paine, and Tuskegee have been locked in a tight race for the regular season title, as all three teams had at least three losses in SIAC play heading into the final week of the regular season.

Sunshine State (1): It appears that only one team will advance to the NCAA tourney from the SSC this season, which will likely be the winner of the Sunshine State Conference tournament. Florida Southern and Tampa seem the most likely candidates to earn an automatic bid.

SOUTH ATLANTIC REGION

1. Shaw

2. Clayton State

3. Carson-Newman

4. Columbus State

5. Wingate

6. USC Aiken

7. GC&SU

8. Fayetteville State

9. Johnson C. Smith

10. Newberry

ANALYSIS: Now let's take a look at the South Atlantic region.

CIAA (2): Shaw seems to be a lock to reach its third straight NCAA tournament. Meanwhile, Fayetteville State and Johnson C. Smith look to vie for a potential second bid for the CIAA.

Peach Belt (4): The recent forfeiture of 17 wins by Armstrong Atlantic State is a big blow to the PBC, which had its sights on sending on five teams to postseason play for the second year in a row. Clayton State has been one of the big surprises of the season thus far, while Columbus State hasn't been much of a slouch, either. USC Aiken and GC&SU have work to do to solidify its hopes of reaching postseason play.

South Atlantic (2): Carson-Newman plays host to Wingate in a winner-take-all battle for the regular season title. Newberry is ranked 10th in this week's regional poll, but will likely need to win the SAC tournament to reach the NCAA's.