Even with unique COVID-19 scheduling this semester, we still completed a Circle of Suck! This is not a completely full circle, as 10 out of 357 teams did not play a game. Additionally, 5 other teams (American Univ, Bucknell, Chicago St, Howard, and Maine) did not play 13 games against other D1 teams, rendering them ineligible for the NCAA tournament. 13 games was the threshold to be included in the circle, so some teams that prematurely ended their seasons, such as Jacksonville St, ARE included in this circle, while other teams, such as Bucknell, "completed" the season, but did not play enough games.
A new feature this year is that the circle is optimized for maximum total margin of victory. This circle has the maximum combined margin of victory possible among all valid circles, about 18.2 points per game. Without further ado, here it is!
Baylor def. Gonzaga 86-70, 2021-04-03
Gonzaga def. Pacific 95-49, 2021-01-23
Pacific def. Loy Marymount 58-49, 2021-01-16
Loy Marymount def. UC Santa Barbara 81-76, 2020-12-12
UC Santa Barbara def. UC San Diego 84-53, 2021-01-16
UC San Diego def. UC Davis 89-69, 2021-01-22
UC Davis def. CS Bakersfield 58-56, 2021-03-11
CS Bakersfield def. Pepperdine 79-51, 2020-12-23
Pepperdine def. Coastal Car 84-61, 2021-03-24
Coastal Car def. Georgia St 81-69, 2021-01-01
Georgia St def. Georgia Tech 123-120, 2020-11-25
Georgia Tech def. Kentucky 79-62, 2020-12-06
Kentucky def. Florida 76-58, 2021-01-09
Florida def. Tennessee 75-49, 2021-01-19
Tennessee def. Tennessee Tech 103-49, 2020-12-18
Tennessee Tech def. SE Missouri St 72-63, 2020-12-30
SE Missouri St def. E Illinois 75-44, 2021-01-30
E Illinois def. Tennessee St 86-72, 2021-02-06
Tennessee St def. TN Martin 74-62, 2021-01-07
TN Martin def. Evansville 93-87, 2020-12-02
Evansville def. Missouri St 72-63, 2021-02-27
Missouri St def. Bradley 80-58, 2021-02-13
Bradley def. Toledo 61-59, 2020-11-25
Toledo def. W Michigan 91-44, 2021-02-27
W Michigan def. Bowling Green 76-70, 2021-02-03
Bowling Green def. Buffalo 86-78, 2020-12-06
Buffalo def. Miami OH 90-62, 2020-12-15
Miami OH def. C Michigan 96-54, 2021-02-23
C Michigan def. E Michigan 87-60, 2020-12-29
E Michigan def. N Illinois 91-57, 2021-02-27
N Illinois def. Akron 67-65, 2021-01-12
Akron def. Ball St 74-42, 2021-01-30
Ball St def. Kent 90-71, 2021-02-24
Kent def. Ohio 89-79, 2021-01-16
Ohio def. Cleveland St 101-46, 2020-12-06
Cleveland St def. Detroit 71-64, 2021-02-13
Detroit def. Robert
... keep reading on reddit ➡#Jacksonville v American
Kickoff: 6:00 p.m. ET
Location: Spry Stadium • Winston-Salem, NC
TV: TBA
###Match Events
| Min | Event | Team | Score |
|---|
#Milwaukee v St. Francis Brooklyn
Kickoff: 6:00 p.m. ET • 5:00 p.m. CT
Location: UNCW Soccer Stadium • Wilmington, NC
TV: TBA
###Match Events
| Min | Event | Team | Score |
|---|
#Omaha v UNCG
Kickoff: 6:00 p.m. ET • 5:00 p.m. CT
Location: UNCG Soccer Stadium • Greensboro, NC
TV: TBA
###Match Events
| Min | Event | Team | Score |
|---|
#Bowling Green v Monmouth
Kickoff: 6:00 p.m. ET • 5:00 p.m. CT
Location: Bryan Park • Greensboro, NC
TV: TBA
###Match Events
| Min | Event | Team | Score |
|---|
Santa Clara topped Florida State 4-1 in penalties after the match finished 1-1 and neither team could find the goal in overtime.
Santa Clara only played seven matches in the previous year before this tournament kicked off, in comparison Florida State had 11 matches in the fall (winning all of them) and scrimmaged against professional teams and male teams during the spring.
Santa Clara as a #11 ranked team beat many top sides to get this win: ACC's #1 (Florida State), #2 (North Carolina), #4 (Clemson), Big Ten's #2 (Ohio State), and SEC's #1 (Arkansas). Source
#NWSL Ties
- Two of Santa Clara's players were selected in the 2021 NWSL draft, #18 overall Kelsey Turnbow (Chicago) and #36 overall Alex Loera (Kansas City).
(It remains to see if they will play in NWSL this season or opt for another season in NCAA which I think players have been allowed due to COVID cancelling/postponing seasons for most athletes)
#Fun Facts
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This is Santa Clara's second ever tournament win, the first coming in 2001. Also their first appearance since 2002 in which they lost the 2002 final in overtime to Portland.
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Speaking of Portland, Santa Clara, a member of the WCC, are the first team since Portland (WCC) in 2005 to win the championship while not part of one of the "Power 5" conferences: The ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, and SEC.
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Bay Area colleges won in back to back seasons, with Stanford having beaten UNC for the 2019 Championship.
(Stanford didn't quality for the tournament this season, potentially victims of the field being shrunk from 64 teams to 48)
- 4 of the last 5 NCAA championships have been won by California colleges: USC (2016), Stanford (2017, 2019), Santa Clara (2020). Florida State beat UNC in 2018 in the middle of this sequence
#(UNc)Fun fact
- UNC has lost in the last 3 tournaments to the eventual winners. Lost in the finals to Florida State (2018) and Stanford (2019) and this year in the semi-finals to Santa Clara
And in a few months...it all starts again! As you may notice from the title this was the end to the 2020 season. The NCAA championships usually takes place in December (as the main soccer season is from the fall) but it had to be pushed back to the Spring due to COVID.
