NCAA Tournament March Madness

#91 Northern Iowa

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Projection: likely out

Northern Iowa is on the outside looking in because its resume is built around convincing wins over mid‑major opponents but lacks a signature victory to balance a neutral‑site loss to Tulsa, and the committee will notice that the best results came at home or against lesser league foes. The Panthers have shown they can defend and win tight road games, as evidenced by a gritty trip to UC Irvine and a clear neutral win over Loyola Chicago, yet those positives are muted by the absence of a scalp from a recognized high‑end opponent. The remaining slate offers meaningful chances to change the narrative with a tough road trip to St Mary’s and meaningful home tests against Belmont and Wichita State, so unless Northern Iowa seizes one of those momentous opportunities the profile looks like that of a team hovering outside the field.

Date Opponent Ranking Outcome
11/6CS Northridge240W86-57
11/9S Dakota St163W65-58
11/14Furman155W70-54
11/18N Illinois321W70-57
11/22@UC Irvine125W70-69
11/25(N)Loyola-Chicago288W72-51
11/26(N)Tulsa84L63-60
12/6Wichita St9963%
12/13Oakland14477%
12/17@IL Chicago19968%
12/22@St Mary's CA3518%
12/29Valparaiso19685%
1/1Indiana St20286%
1/4@Evansville29583%
1/7Belmont8559%
1/10@Bradley12951%
1/13IL Chicago19985%
1/17@Valparaiso19668%
1/21@Illinois St11646%
1/24Murray St11467%
1/28@S Illinois13352%
1/31Evansville29593%
2/6Bradley12973%
2/9@Murray St11446%
2/12@Belmont8537%
2/15Drake12171%
2/18@Indiana St20269%
2/21S Illinois13373%
2/25Illinois St11668%
3/1@Drake12150%