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NCAA Bracketology 2013: Colorado State, Colorado tourney bound, safer after tournament wins

Colorado and Colorado State each won their first games in their respective conference tournaments, meaning both teams are solidly in the NCAA Tournament.

By Rodger Sherman
Jeff Gross

Two teams from Colorado are pretty much guaranteed to be in the NCAA Tournament, and after both squads won their first conference tournament games, they just made themselves even safer.

The Rams survived a feisty performance by Fresno State, moving on to the second round of the Mountain West Tournament by winning 67-61 in Las Vegas. The Buffaloes opened up a six-point lead over Oregon State at halftime in their first Pac-12 game, and kept it as they won 74-68.

Here's a peek a how each team looks, with projections by Joe Lunardi of ESPN, Jerry Palm of CBS, and SB Nation's own Chris Dobbertean. Although those projections don't include the Colorado teams' first performances, the bracketologists responsible likely assumed both teams would win their matchups, as they were favored to do.

Colorado State (24-7, 11-5)

Lunardi: No. 8 seed vs. Minnesota
Palm: No. 6 seed vs. Wichita State
Dobbertean: No. 7 seed vs. Minnesota

Larry Eustachy's team could move up with a strong performance in the MWC Tournament - there's five tourney teams in the MWC, so a long run there could impress. A win in the second round against UNLV should keep them from dropping out of the top half of brackets.

Colorado (21-10, 10-8)

Lunardi: No. 10 seed vs. Notre Dame
Palm: No. 10 seed vs. Wisconsin
Dobbertean: No. 9 seed vs. SDSU

With a win in the first round of their conference tournament, the Buffaloes probably don't have to worry about not hearing their name in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. From here on out, they could be set. Arizona's a tough team for anybody to beat, and bracketologists won't fault them for dropping their quarterfinal game against the Wildcats. If they win though, this team could move up to an 8-seed or higher.

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• Full coverage of the Big Ten Tournament