The Michigan Wolverines (16-4, 8-0 Big Ten) cruised to their 10th straight victory Thursday night, holding off Purdue to win 75-66 in the Crisler Center. After eight straight Big Ten wins, Michigan knows it will be in the big dance this March, but where will the defending runner-up land?
Quality wins
The first ranked opponent to fall to Michigan was Wisconsin, which came into the game at 16-1 and a slightly-elevated No. 3 in the country. Michigan manhandled the Badgers, leading by double digits for 
most of the game before winning in the Kohl Center for the first time in 11 tries.
The surprising Wolverines backed that first victory by shutting down Iowa's top-10 offense in Ann Arbor and earning its sixth straight Big Ten victory. The 67-point effort from the Hawkeyes marked their lowest output in a loss on the season, and proved that Beilein's offensively-efficient teams can play on both ends of the court.
Just three days after the win over Iowa, Michigan capped off the streak by upsetting Michigan State in what potentially stands as the best win for any team in the country this season. On that night, the Wolverines won the battle of undefeated conference teams and established themselves as the team to beat in the Big Ten.
Michigan's stretch of three straight top-10 victories strengthened a resume that already featured some underrated opponents. Wins over RPI top-50 teams like Minnesota (23), Florida State (32) and Stanford (49) compliment the elite wins perfectly and give Michigan's resume the depth necessary to grab a top seed during March Madness.
Road success
Unlike many other teams around the Big Ten, Michigan 
wins on the road. Victories in hostile atmospheres like the Breslin Center, the Kohl Center and the Barn prepare teams for the grind away from home during the postseason.
Wisconsin was 13-0 at home before losing to the Wolverines; Minnesota is 12-1 in the Barn on the season; and Nebraska has won every single game in the new Pinnacle Bank Arena besides the one-point loss to the Maize and Blue.
In fact, Minnesota, Nebraska, Wisconsin and Michigan State are a combined 40-6 at home this season, and Michigan accounts for four of those six losses.
Passing the eye test
Whether the eye test is officially part of the seeding formula for the NCAA Tournament or not, the committee can't help but include what it observes during the regular season with the naked eye. Raw numbers often aren't enough to earn a top seed; teams must satisfy the fan-side of the committee members as well.
Michigan's run to the Final Four in 2013 works greatly in this team's favor. Despite the losses of Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway, Jr. to the NBA draft, Michigan gained credibility as a program, and the selection committee won't be hesitant to reward the Maize and Blue this March.
Nik Stauskas's rise to fame also boosts Michigan's tournament appeal, by adding star power to the mix.
Nearly every highly-seeded team in the NCAA Tournament features at least one household name that people can't wait to watch. For example, in the 2013 bracket, Russ Smith (Louisville), Ben McLemore (Kansas), Victor Oladipo (Indiana) and Kelly Olynyk (Gonzaga) helped their teams earn No. 1 seeds by making names for themselves throughout the season.
2014's confident, dominant Stauskas flourishes on the big stage. Outputs like the four-point performance at Duke early in the season evaporated, and now the sophomore leader loves taking the big shot.
His 68 points during the three-game streak of top-10 opponents earned him Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week honors, while moments like the step-back three-pointer that buried Wisconsin and the kiss to the fans at the Breslin Center cemented him as a fan favorite.
If Michigan contends for a high seed in March, Stauskas acts as the perfect poster boy.
Examining the losses
When it comes to finalizing the field in March, great wins propel teams into the dance; but bad losses can be just as critical in knocking teams out.
Michigan lost close games to Iowa State, Duke and Arizona, but the strength of those teams eases the sting and does little to damage its tournament resume. All three schools are in the RPI top-12, and Michigan hung in each game.
The loss that may haunt the Wolverines, should they have aspirations for a No. 1 seed, is the 63-61 slip-up to Charlotte in Puerto Rico.
Michigan dropped a huge opportunity to win the Puerto Rico Classic and lost to the current seventh-place team in Conference USA in the process. Charlotte has only one other RPI top-50 victory (Kansas State, also in Puerto Rico), and many terrible losses. Though Michigan raced back into the top-15 in RPI with its recent surge, that blemish stands out on this resume when compared to those of fellow four-loss teams like Kansas and Oklahoma State.
Current prediction:
Clearly, unbeaten Arizona, Syracuse and Wichita State remain ahead of the hot Wolverines on the seeding list; and despite playing in the much weaker Mountain West, San Diego State has just one loss and sits ahead of Michigan, as well. Two-loss Florida and Villanova round out the teams standing firmly ahead of Michigan through January.
After those six teams, the pecking order becomes less clear. Kansas has enough strong wins to stay above Michigan; but Oklahoma State lacks an RPI top-20 victory and looks more like a No. 3 or 4 seed.
The two teams currently battling for the coveted eighth spot, and final No. 2 seed, appear to be Michigan and Michigan State. Though the Spartans have only two losses, they have no RPI top-10 wins and lost the first in-state rivalry match-up at home. Assuming the tournament is starting with the current standings in place, the edge goes to the conference leader in this tossup.
Michigan: 8th overall team, No. 2 seed
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