CaribouJim
01-10-2017, 04:47 PM
http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2017/01/10/2017-ncaa-tournament-bubble-watch-acc-big-12-pac-12
Big East
From a bubble standpoint, this might be the most boring power conference. Villanova (15–1, 3–1), Butler (14–2, 3–1), Creighton (15–1, 3–1) and Xavier (13–2, 3–0) are all going to the Dance. DePaul (7–9, 0–3) and St. John’s (8–10, 2–3) don’t have any hope for at-large bids. That leaves four teams in the middle of the conference, with two already headed in the wrong direction.
Georgetown (9–8, 1–4) owns a great nonconference win over Oregon on a neutral floor. But their only Big East win is against St. John’s, and they’ve fallen to Marquette (10–5, 1–2), Xavier, Providence (11–6, 1–3; the other at-large contender that is already in trouble) and Butler. They also dropped nonconference games to Maryland, Wisconsin and Oklahoma State. The Friars have been run off the floor by three of the four powerhouse teams in the Big East, and lost nonconference games to Ohio State, Virginia and Boston College. Wins over Rhode Island, Memphis and Georgetown, their three best to date, aren’t going to get them into the field. They’re going to need to take down a few of the conference’s big boys, and they’ve already whiffed on three of their eight chances.
The Golden Eagles of Marquette don’t have a bad loss on their résumé, with their five reversals coming against Michigan, Pittsburgh, Wisconsin, Seton Hall (12–3, 2–1) and Villanova. Two of those teams (Wisconsin and Villanova) are going dancing, and the other three are in good shape. Still, the committee hasn’t shown a huge appetite recently for granting at-large bids on the “no bad losses” basis. At some point, Marquette is going to need to get an eye-opening win. It’ll get a couple of opportunities next week, when it hits the road for games with Butler and Creighton. Seton Hall is in the best shape of the Big East’s true bubble teams, and could play its way off the bubble by time this discussion heats up later in the season. The Pirates own nonconference wins over South Carolina and California and have already banked one win over Marquette, which could end up as a pseudo tiebreaker. A .500 record in the conference with a win or two over the top four Big East teams would likely be an at-large formula for the Pirates.
Big East
From a bubble standpoint, this might be the most boring power conference. Villanova (15–1, 3–1), Butler (14–2, 3–1), Creighton (15–1, 3–1) and Xavier (13–2, 3–0) are all going to the Dance. DePaul (7–9, 0–3) and St. John’s (8–10, 2–3) don’t have any hope for at-large bids. That leaves four teams in the middle of the conference, with two already headed in the wrong direction.
Georgetown (9–8, 1–4) owns a great nonconference win over Oregon on a neutral floor. But their only Big East win is against St. John’s, and they’ve fallen to Marquette (10–5, 1–2), Xavier, Providence (11–6, 1–3; the other at-large contender that is already in trouble) and Butler. They also dropped nonconference games to Maryland, Wisconsin and Oklahoma State. The Friars have been run off the floor by three of the four powerhouse teams in the Big East, and lost nonconference games to Ohio State, Virginia and Boston College. Wins over Rhode Island, Memphis and Georgetown, their three best to date, aren’t going to get them into the field. They’re going to need to take down a few of the conference’s big boys, and they’ve already whiffed on three of their eight chances.
The Golden Eagles of Marquette don’t have a bad loss on their résumé, with their five reversals coming against Michigan, Pittsburgh, Wisconsin, Seton Hall (12–3, 2–1) and Villanova. Two of those teams (Wisconsin and Villanova) are going dancing, and the other three are in good shape. Still, the committee hasn’t shown a huge appetite recently for granting at-large bids on the “no bad losses” basis. At some point, Marquette is going to need to get an eye-opening win. It’ll get a couple of opportunities next week, when it hits the road for games with Butler and Creighton. Seton Hall is in the best shape of the Big East’s true bubble teams, and could play its way off the bubble by time this discussion heats up later in the season. The Pirates own nonconference wins over South Carolina and California and have already banked one win over Marquette, which could end up as a pseudo tiebreaker. A .500 record in the conference with a win or two over the top four Big East teams would likely be an at-large formula for the Pirates.