One thing people tend to forget as conference tournaments progress and bubble teams get knocked out is that the NCAA Tournament selection committee still has to take 68 teams. After every bubble team loses its final game, people will say that team is out — but they can’t all be out.
Of course, some will be out. Here are a few that are probably not going to make it after losses on Thursday:
- Michigan, which is 17-15 after getting bounced by Rutgers in the Big Ten Tournament.
- North Carolina, which is 1-9 vs Quad 1 opposition with only two wins over teams likely to make the field, both at home.
- Oklahoma State, which is 18-15 overall and 13-15 vs. the top three quadrants (including a Quad 3 loss).
It was not all bad news for bubble teams. For example, Penn State beat Illinois for a third time this season, and now the Nittany Lions should hear their name called on selection Sunday.
Outside of the bubble, Kansas picked up its 16th Quad 1 win of the season over West Virginia and has moved up to the overall No. 1 seed in the projected bracket. That position is unassailable. Alabama, Houston and Purdue round out the top line of the bracket for now. The Cougars and Boilermakers take the court for the first time in their respective conference tournaments on Friday.
NCAA Tournament locks
Locks based on résumé: 28 | Automatic bids secured: 14 of 32 | At-large spots up-for-grabs: 8
|
ACC |
3 |
|
|
Big East |
4 |
|
|
Big Ten |
5 |
Indiana, Purdue, Michigan State, Iowa, Northwestern |
|
Big 12 |
6 |
Baylor, Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Iowa State, TCU |
|
Pac-12 |
2 |
|
|
SEC |
5 |
|
|
American |
1 |
|
|
Others |
2 |
On the cutline
| Last Four In | Record | NET |
|---|---|---|
| Mississippi State | 21-11 | 46 |
| Utah State | 25-7 | 22 |
| Nevada | 22-10 | 36 |
| Rutgers | 19-13 | 43 |
| First Four Out | Record | NET |
| Arizona State | 22-11 | 65 |
| Oklahoma State | 18-15 | 41 |
| North Carolina | 20-13 | 44 |
| Clemson | 23-9 | 61 |
| Next Four Out | Record | NET |
| Oregon | 19-13 | 47 |
| Vanderbilt | 19-13 | 82 |
| Wisconsin | 17-14 | 81 |
| Michigan | 17-15 | 54 |
Check out all the teams on Palm’s Bubble Watch, the field of the 68 and the entire bracket on the Bracketology hub
Friday’s “Double Bubble” Game
Utah State vs. Boise State
12 a.m. | CBS Sports network (Channel finder | CBSSports.com | CBS Sports App)
Bubble teams in action Friday
All references to NCAA Tournament selection records and trends refer only to tournaments going back to 1994 with the exception of 2021. Due to shortened schedules and a relatively small number of nonconference games in 2021, those rankings were not reliable enough to be considered.
