Who's on the Bubble in College Basketball
Atssportsline.com
In betting, it's important to know which college basketball teams are fighting for at-large bids, which ones are a lock and which teams will have to win their conference tournaments to get in. Let's take a look at where the bubble teams stand as of Wednesday, Feb. 6, with emphasis on strength of schedule and RPI. The RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) is a tool that the selection committee will look at before they select their NCAA Tournament picks.
Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC)
Who's in?: Duke, Miami, Fla.,
Who is on the right track:none.
Who needs help? NC State (16-6, 5-4 ACC, RPI: 19, SOS: 13) looked like they were on track but losses to Wake Forest and Virginia were troubling. They need to get back on track.... North Carolina (14-6, 5-3 ACC, RPI: 32, SOS: 37) avoided another costly loss to a sub-100 RPI opponent. They have a tough week coming up with road games at Miami-Fla. and Duke..... Florida State (12-9, 4-4 ACC, RPI: 57, SOS: 12) needed a last-second shot to beat Maryland for a second time. They need more quality wins and have chances with NC State twice and Miami at home. They aren’t far away but will have to continue to win...... Maryland (16-6, 4-5 ACC; RPI: 73, SOS: 109). The Terps had a devastating loss at Florida State last week. A win over Wake Forest at home isn’t enough. It may come down to Feb. 16 at home against Duke. They could easily win 20 games and not sniff the NCAA Tournament. A win over Duke would change things.....Virginia (15-6, 5-3 ACC, RPI: 109, SOS: 205) is starting to sniff the tournament with wins over NC State, Wisconsin and North Carolina. They also have bad loss against Delaware, Old Dominion and at Wake Forest.
Atlantic Ten Conference:
Who's in? none.
Who is on the right track: Butler (17-4, 5-2 A10, RPI: 14, SOS: 35) had a damaging loss to St. Louis but wins over Gonzaga, St. Joe’s, Indiana and North Carolina should be enough assuming they win over 20 games. Who needs help?: La Salle (15-6, 5-3 A10, RPI: 27, SOS: 38) put themselves in the mix with a season-changing win over Butler. Then they went out and beat VCU on the road. They also beat Villanova, who just defeated Syracuse and Villanova. A one point loss to UMass was tough. A bad loss against Central Connecticut State may come back to haunt them.....VCU (18-5, 6-2 A10, RPI: 50, SOS: 93) This is a team that needs to force turnovers to win. They also need more quality wins. A win over Memphis and Belmont isn’t enough. They’ll need to win about 22+ wins to get in.....Temple (14-7, 3-4 A10, RPI: 55, SOS: 61). Temple is in trouble. A win over Syracuse can only get them so far. They need to start winning in conference. A one-point loss to St. Joe’s was tough.....St. Louis (16-5, 5-2 A10, RPI: 56, SOS: 88) has road wins at Duquesne and St. Bonaventure, but a bad home loss to Rhode Island. A win over Butler was huge and Dayton helped. They are very close to getting in......Charlotte (17-4, 5-2 A10, RPI: 53, SOS: 148) beat Xavier at home but were crushed at George Washington. The next five are at Temple, at home against VCU, Butler at home, at St. Louis and Temple. WOW..
Big East Conference
Who's In? Louisville, Syracuse
Who is on the right track? Georgetown (16-4, 6-3 BE, RPI: 28, SOS: 67) continues to play well even without Greg Whittington. Trips to Cincinnati, Syracuse and Connecticut will be tough so they are not in just yet......Marquette (15-5, 6-2, RPI: 16, SOS: 16) continues to play well with wins over UConn, Pitt and Georgetown. But Louisville crushed them on Sunday. They could use a few more quality wins to enhance their chances....Pittsburgh (19-5, 7-4 BE, RPI: 35, SOS: 70) has good wins at Georgetown and against ineligible Connecticut. But they have to build their resume’. A win over Syracuse by 10 was impressive but have several tough road games coming up......Cincinnati (18-4, 6-3 BE, RPI: 20, SOS: 29) has good wins over Marquette, Pitt and Oregon, but they need more. They beat Rutgers and won at Seton Hall. A three-game homestand against Pitt, Villanova and Georgetown will be tough. They have some quality wins....Who needs help?: Notre Dame (18-5, 6-4 BE, RPI: 43, SOS: 78. Notre Dame lost to Syracuse by 16 after going 2-0. They have trips left to Syracuse, Pitt, Marquette and Louisville. They have to start winning some big games.......Villanova (12-9, 4-5 BE, RPI: 67, SOS: 42) fell lost at Notre Dame and then had a terrible home loss against Providence. Time is running out.....
Big Ten Conference
Who's In? Michigan, Indiana, Michigan State
Who’s on the right track: Minnesota (17-5, 5-4 B10, RPI: 9, SOS: 3) has a great RPI and strength of schedule. They have struggled defensively against good teams, which is a concern. They need to start playing better no matter who good their numbers are......Ohio State (17-4, 7-2 B10, RPI: 24, SOS: 38) is very close to getting in. They could use more balanced scoring but if Deshaun Thomas can carry them by himself, they will make it.....Who needs help? Wisconsin (15-7, 6-3 Big 10; RPI: 41, SOS: 30) lost to Michigan State but then edged Minnesota in another under 50 point affair. They fell at Ohio State and still needs to continue to add to their resume’.....Illinois (14-8, 2-7 Big 10, RPI: 40, SOS:10) is in trouble. They have lost eight of their last 11. They have trips to Michigan and Ohio State.
Big 12 Conference
Who's In? Kansas
Who’s on the right track?: Kansas State (16-4, 6-2 Big 12, RPI: 24, SOS: 63) has a nice win over Florida and that’s it. A road win over Oklahoma and home win over Texas was nice. Next Monday at Kansas will be big but won’t decide the season if they lose.Who needs help?: Oklahoma (14-7, 5-4 B12, RPI: 23, SOS: 6) Oklahoma has wins in the 51-100 range but needs a stronger win then the Baylor road win.....Baylor (13-7, 5-3 B12, RPI: 46, SOS: 20) has two strong wins over BYU and Kentucky on the road. A win over Oklahoma State on the road would be tough....Oklahoma State (16-6, 6-3 B12, RPI: 29 , SOS: 55) lost at dismal Texas Tech, but bounced back with a win over Kansas State and then shocked Kansas on the road last week. That could be enough to get them in if the season ended today. ....Iowa State (16-6, 6-3 B12, RPI: 37, SOS: 60) lost a tough one at Oklahoma State. A win over Kansas State on the road would really help.
Missouri Valley Conference:
Who’s In? Creighton, Wichita State.
Who needs help? Indiana State (13-8, 7-4 MVC, RPI: 52, SOS: 54). Wins over Ole Miss and Miami-Fla. are huge, but they need more wins and a better conference record. A win over Wichita State was great but then they lost to Drake on the road. Have to be more consistent.
Mountain West Conference
Who's In? New Mexico
Who’s on the right track? San Diego State (14-5, 4-3 MWC, RPI: 30, SOS: 48) has a quality win over UCLA and New Mexico. Injuries have hurt the offense but the numbers are still solid. ....UNLV (16-5, 4-3 MWC, RPI: 18, SOS: 23) is great at home and has a nice road win at San Diego State. A loss at Boise State hurts. At least they don’t have bad loss......Colorado State (16-4, 5-2 MWC, RPI: 15, SOS: 45) couldn’t beat New Mexico on the road but does have a nice win against UNLV. They can make a run at the league title with a very good rebounding team. A win at home against San Diego State would be enormous....Who needs help?: Boise State (13-6, 3-4 MWC, RPI: 51, SOS: 84) had a tough loss at Nevada and injuries are damaging their hopes. But a win over UNLV kept their hopes alive despite going 1-3 on the road in league play.
Pac-12 Conference
Who's In? Arizona.
Who’s on the right track? Oregon (18-4, 7-2 P12, RPI: 26, SOS: 96) has a quality number right now and three strong wins. They are close but have to keep winning.......UCLA (16-6, 6-2 P12, RPI: 45, SOS: 31) lost to USC at home, which was awful. They should still get in but they have to play better. Who needs help?: Colorado (14-7, 4-5 P12, RPI: 25, SOS: 19) has a chance due to wins over Baylor and Murray State at a neutral place. Will have chances to win with games at home against Arizona and at Oregon.......Arizona State (17-5 6-3 P12, RPI: 64, SOS: 112) has a good win over UCLA, but they need more quality wins. A split in Washington hurts their chances. They have road games against Colorado, UCLA at Arizona down the stretch.
Southeastern Conference
Who's In? Florida
Who’s on the right track? Mississippi (17-4, 6-2 SEC, RPI: 44, SOS: 111) has one quality win over Missouri. A loss at home to Kentucky doesn’t help. They have some softies coming back and need to take care of business... ...Missouri (17-4, 6-2 SEC, RPI: 33, SOS: 71) has two decent wins on neutral courts to VCU and Illinois but that’s not enough. Laurence Bowers is back Wednesday so that should help. A home win against Florida would help.....Who needs help?: Kentucky (15-6, 6-2 SEC, RPI: 47, SOS: 63) will find a way to get in. A loss at Florida wouldn't crush them but a win would put them in.
Other teams: (Gonzaga is in)
Belmont (17-4, 10-0 OVC, RPI: 21, SOS: 72) has just one decent win over Middle Tennessee State. They’ll probably win the Ohio Valley but if they don’t, the BracketBuster could put them over the top but they have Ohio.......BYU (17-6, 8-2 WCC, RPI: 36, SOS: 69) They are 0-6 with five blowouts against RIP top 25. Not good.... Bucknell (18-4, 6-1 PL, RPI: 61, SOS: 191) beat La Salle, which looks better now. This is a legit mid-major team that nobody wants to face in the NCAA Tournament....Memphis (18-3, 7-0 CUSA, RPI: 42, SOS: 114) beat Tennessee on the road. That’s about it, so they’ll need to keep winning in the mediocre C-USA to get in as an at-large.....Middle Tennessee State (20-4, 12-1SB, RPI; 33, SOS: 127) has a strong win over Ole Miss. Just need to keep winning......Louisiana Tech (19-3, 10-0 WAC, RPI: 48, SOS: 203) has a win over another bubble team in Southern Miss. They got it done at Utah State but the league’s only hope for two bids is LTech.....Southern Miss (17-4, 7-0 C-USA, RPI: 39, SOS: 140) will take on Memphis at home, which would be their only quality win. ...St. Mary’s (18-4, 8-1 WCC. RPI: 62, SOS: 182) beat BYU on the road and Utah State on the road. They play Creighton in the BracketBusters. That’s big.