March 5
ESPN.com's Championship Week coverage

Everybody out there is filling out their brackets, trying to figure out the seeds. It's time to get ready for Selection Sunday, baby!

This is going to be the wackiest tournament of them all! It used to be easy to chart the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds -- you would fill in the teams, and while you might be wrong geographically, you knew which clubs would fit in.

My adrenaline is flowing and I have goose bumps thinking about how exciting this year's tourney will be.

But this year, after Kansas, Maryland and Duke, who is the fourth No. 1 seed? My pick right now is Oklahoma, with Cincinnati as the next choice and a likely No. 2 if the Sooners stay at a No. 1. But it's tough to figure out the next three teams in that No. 2 slot. One could be Gonzaga, a team that stands at 29-3, sporting a 14-game win streak.

Immediately people will scream out and question how many big-time teams the Zags have beat. But Gonzaga doesn't face many powerhouse teams because the big boys don't want to face the school that used to be known as Cinderella. This program is for real, baby -- there is no more Cinderella in Spokane!

Coach Mark Few's team beat Texas, St. John's, St. Joseph's, Fresno State and Pepperdine (two out of three over the Waves). The losses came against tough opponents -- at Illinois, vs. Marquette in the Great Alaska Shootout and the Pepperdine.

Could Alabama be a No. 2 seed? Don't forget -- the Tide just got blown out by Mississippi last weekend. You get the picture -- this is going to be wacky.

When you think about a No. 2 seed and a No. 7 seed, where will a team like Mississippi be ranked? Coach Rod Barnes' Rebels could be a No. 5, 6 or 7. They have a pretty good resumé, so if they are seeded that low, is there that big a difference between a No. 2 and a No. 7? Just ask Florida and Alabama -- the Rebels didn't just beat them, they pummeled them!

The balance is going to be unreal. A No. 2 could be right there with a No. 7, setting up great matchups.

Then look at the heavyweights. All of us scream out that Kansas, Maryland and Duke separate themselves from everyone else. But they are vulnerable as well -- just ask Florida State about the Blue Devils. You also saw what happened when Duke went down to Virginia last week; the Cavaliers had lost seven of nine going into that contest.

The Jayhawks had to go to the wire against Nebraska and Missouri. Maryland struggled for a while with Clemson and had to go to the last seconds at home against Wake Forest.

My adrenaline is flowing and I have goose bumps thinking about how exciting this year's tourney will be. Atlanta could become Shock City for the Final Four. I give an edge to Kansas, Maryland and Duke -- with the Jayhawks and Terps right now ahead of the Blue Devils. The Williams' teams, Roy and Gary, have more depth and inside ability. Each has a dynamic duo inside -- Drew Gooden and Nick Collison for Kansas, Lonny Baxter and Chris Wilcox for Maryland.

Duke offsets that interior power when its Big Three -- Jason Williams, Mike Dunleavy and Carlos Boozer -- are on their "A" game. But if they have a bad night, Duke won't beat the other heavyweights.

As Mitch Albom, renowned author and radio/TV personality, said to me recently, "We are all assuming those teams are going to play." Mitch said he's still going with the Dukies because of that awesome trio. He may be right again, because that threesome can be effective on a given day.

The other thing that's clear is that this week's conference tournaments have even more meaning. I can't wait to be in the studio Wednesday and Thursday, analyzing and charting resumés, following all the potential teams.

There is so much important basketball to be played. I don't want to hear that the conference tournaments are meaningless! They will have a direct hand in determining which teams are invited to the Big Dance come Sunday night. If you don't believe me, call up Jimmy Boeheim at Syracuse. He has a battle on his hands. Think Virginia coach Peter Gillen is concerned going against an N.C. State team that beat his Cavaliers twice during the regular season?

Utah coach Rick Majerus is telling his kids they have to win the Mountain West tournament to lock up a bid. Utah was the second seed in the conference tournament and a 20-game winner, but Majerus doesn't want to have to sweat on Selection Sunday.

This should be awesome with a capital A, baby!