KU is one of nine teams that meets my basic final 4 criteria

NOTE: All of the stats used in my analysis were pre-NCAA tournament. The RPI and road/neutral records were at the end of the regular season including the conference tournaments.

The long and short of my post: KU MEETS ALL THE CRITERIA OF THE MOST FINAL 4 TEAMS SINCE 2011.

The criteria for most of the final 4 teams since 2011 are:

-Rank in top 25 RPI by the end of the conference tournaments
-Have 9 or more road/neutral wins by the end of the conference tournaments
-Have 7 or fewer road/neutral losses by the end of the conference tournaments.

Here is what I found:
-17 of the last 20 final 4 teams were ranked in the top 25 RPI by the end of the regular season
-16 of the last 20 final 4 teams had 9 or more road/neutral wins by the end of the regular season
-18 of the last 20 final 4 teams had 7 or fewer road/neutral losses by the end of the regular season
-2011 Kentucky is the only final 4 team since 2011 that had a losing road/neutral record. They were 6-8 leading up to the NCAA tournament. Talk about getting hot at the right time.


The 9 teams right now that meet the criteria of most final four teams since 2011 are:

• Villanova: RPI: 2, 12-3 road/neutral record
• Xavier: RPI: 6, 11-3 road/neutral record
• Michigan State: RPI: 13, 11-3 road/neutral record
• Dayton: RPI: 21, 10-3 road/neutral record
• Kansas: RPI: 1, 9-4 road/neutral record
• West Virginia: RPI: 14, 10-5 road/neutral record
• Oklahoma: RPI: 5, 9-5 road/neutral record
• North Carolina: RPI: 9, 9-5 road/neutral record
• Virginia: RPI: 3, 9-6 road/neutral record

Teams who almost make the list:

• Saint Joseph's: RPI: 26, 12-2 road/neutral record
• Miami (FL): RPI: 7, 8-4 road/neutral record
• Maryland: RPI: 10, 8-5 road/neutral record
• Utah: RPI: 8, 8-6 road/neutral record
• Indiana: RPI: 22, 8-6 road/neutral record
• Baylor: RPI 23: 6-5 road/neutral record
• Duke: RPI: 15, 7-6 road/neutral record
• Purdue: RPI: 18, 7-6 road/neutral record
• Texas A&M: RPI: 20, 7-6 road/neutral record
• Arizona: RPI: 30, 7-6 road/neutral record
• Iowa State: RPI: 19, 7-7 road/neutral record
• Iowa: RPI: 28, 7-7 road/neutral record
• Oregon: RPI: 4, 5-6 road/neutral record
• Kentucky: RPI 11, 6-8 road/neutral record

Final 4 Team RPI Stats since 2011
-RPI Range: 1-53
-RPI Average: 15.45

Final 4 Road/Neutral Win Stats since 2011
-Road/Neutral Wins Range: 6-16
-Road/Neutral Wins Average: 11.05

Final 4 Road/Neutral Loss Stats since 2011
-Road/Neutral Losses Range: 2-5
-Road/Neutral Losses Average Range: 4.85

I REALLY THINK THE TEAMS WHO CAN WIN IT ALL THIS YEAR ARE:

KANSAS, MICHIGAN STATE, NORTH CAROLINA, OR WEST VIRGINIA.

The criteria for all championship teams since 2011 are:

-Rank in top 25 RPI by the end of the conference tournaments
-Have 9 or more road/neutral wins by the end of the conference tournaments
-Have 7 or fewer road/neutral losses by the end of the conference tournaments.
-2011 Uconn is the only champion since 2011 that had less than 9 road/neutral wins.
-No championship team since 2011 has had more than 5 road/neutral losses.

The 5 teams right now that meet the criteria of most championship teams since 2011 and could win it all are:

-Villanova: RPI: 2, 12-3 road/neutral record
-Xavier: RPI: 6, 11-3 road/neutral record
-Michigan State: RPI: 13, 11-3 road/neutral record
-Kansas only needs one more road/neutral win in the Big 12 tournament to get to 10 for the season.
-Miami (FL) needs two more road/neutral wins in the ACC tournament to get 10 for the season.

Teams who can still make the list of previous champions:
-West Virginia: RPI: 14, 10-5 road/neutral record, would need to win every game in the big 12 tournament to keep their road/neutral losses at 5.
-Oklahoma: RPI: 5, 9-5 road/neutral record, would need to win every game in the big 12 tournament to keep their road/neutral losses at 5.
-North Carolina: RPI: 9, 9-5 road/neutral record, would need to win every game in the ACC tournament to keep their road/neutral losses at 5.
-Baylor: RPI 23: 6-5 road/neutral record, would need to win every game in the big 12 tournament to keep their road/neutral losses at 5.