Certainly, this is how most people filled out the semifinals portion of their Big 12 tournament bracket: No. 9 Baylor will meet No. 5 Texas, and No. 7 Oklahoma State will face No. 3 Missouri.

What in the name of Oklahoma City is going on here?

No Kansas. No Oklahoma. Perhaps the Jayhawks and Sooners can benefit from some down time before the NCAA Tournament. But this scenario is far from what I envisioned.

Much like last night’s blog entry, I have some thoughts following day two that I will attempt to organize in another numbered list:

1. Does the Big 12 receive six or seven bids to the NCAA Tournament?

The following teams are locks: Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas and Oklahoma State. Texas A&M is most likely in with its RPI of 29 before Wednesday’s second-half collapse. K-State (No. 75 RPI) is on the bubble after its loss to Texas on Thursday. The Big 12 has never had seven teams make the NCAA Tournament.

Of course, Baylor could crash the dance with an automatic bid by winning the Big 12 tournament.

2. NCAA seeding implications:

Oklahoma could have lost its chance at a No. 1 seed with the loss to Oklahoma State. I’m guessing the Sooners will land a No. 2 with an outside chance at still receiving a No. 1.

Kansas lost some ground and could be looking at a No. 3 or 4 seed, but not much lower than that.

It gets interesting with Missouri. If the Tigers win the Big 12 tournament, how far up the NCAA seeding chart would they rise? I’d think it’s possible for MU to receive as high as a No. 2 seed if it wins this weekend in Oklahoma City.

What are everyone’s predictions?

3. North with poor showing:

Teams from the Big 12 North are 1-5 against teams from the Big 12 South in the Big 12 tournament. Three of the four semifinals teams are from the South. Coming into the tournament, the North had three of the four top seeds.

4. Player of the day: Dexter Pittman, Texas:

It’s fair to say Pittman has asserted himself as a dominating force in the Big 12 tournament. The 6-foot-10, 300-pounder scored 19 points and grabbed 20 boards against Kansas State on Thursday. He’s averaging 22.5 points and 15 boards in UT’s two tournament victories.

With so much attention paid to A.J. Abrams along the perimeter, Pittman has made a living inside the paint. It’s amazing to think he averaged only 9.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in the regular season. I was somewhat skeptical about his stamina in playing consecutive days, but he logged 34 minutes on Thursday, after playing 28 on Wednesday.

5. Not Big 12-related, but how insane was that six-overtime game between Connecticut and Syracuse in the Big East tournament?

In case you missed it:

That should be all for now, friends. As always, discuss.