Bracketology: Updated Bubble Watch and the sudden rise of Tennessee

With each week that passes, the bubble gets smaller on the Bracketology front.

Welcome to another edition of the Bubble Watch and our mailbag!

In our mailbag, I took to Twitter looking for questions regarding Bracketology, the bubble, or just the general college basketball world. Below, I answer the questions I received prior to getting into the Bubble Watch for this week.

If you still have questions about any of these topics, we’ll be back soon for another edition. Well, without further ado, let’s get started.

Could Tennessee be on the bubble if they continue to win? (asked by @KollinPfeifer25)

Absolutely. It might not be a pretty bubble this year, but that just opens up opportunities for teams that usually wouldn’t be involved. The Volunteers have three wins over the RPI top-50 (Kentucky, Kansas State, Vanderbilt), although only two of those teams will likely make the tournament. Tennessee can tout one of the top strengths of schedule in the country due to their very difficult non-conference slate.

As for right now, Tennessee was my fifth team out of the tournament on Monday. With how much the bubble has shifted in recent weeks and with as much time as there is left, it would be easy for Tennessee to join the bracket. In addition to my Bracketology here, the Bracket Matrix has qualified the Volunteers as the fourth team out. For those who do not know, the Bracket Matrix averages seeds from Bracketologists across the country (myself included) to figure out a consensus bracket.

Tennessee is currently in the tournament in 32.5 percent (29/89) of the projected brackets, so their bubble hopes are very much alive.

Can Cincinnati get a 2-seed still? (asked by @DanLafferty6)

It is possible that the Bearcats could snag a two seed, even if it unlikely. Cincinnati is currently on a great streak of games, but they will need some help (the teams in front of them losing) to navigate up the bracket. When Selection Sunday comes, a three or four seed seems like the most likely situation, but should they finish the year as a two or three loss team, it would be hard to leave them off the two line.

That concludes our mailbag for this week, so let’s get into the Bubble Watch. Once again, here is a brief look at how the system works.

Categories for the Bubble Watch:

Lead-Pipe Lock: These are teams that are guaranteed to make the tournament and there is such a small likelihood that they miss the tournament that they are categorized as “locks.” This is the second week that this section is active.

Some Perspiration: These are teams that should make the tournament. They are likely already in the Bracketology prior to this Bubble Watch and are usually in with room to spare.

Better double up on the deodorant: These teams are very much on the fence. They could be in the tournament at the time, but there is very little room between them being in and them being out. Most of these teams are out of the tournament looking for wins to play their way in.

Also, if there is a team not mentioned in this edition of the Bubble Watch that should be, don’t worry. There is plenty of time left for teams to work their way up onto the bubble and potentially into the tournament.

For any questions or comments on this Bubble Watch, tweet your thoughts at @BustingBrackets or @hardwiredsports (that’s me!).