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Butler Basketball: 3 reasons why the Bulldogs can still make the NCAA Tournament

By Lukas Harkins

PHILADELPHIA, PA - FEBRUARY 10: Butler's Wideman, Baldwin, Thompson, and Martin.
PHILADELPHIA, PA - FEBRUARY 10: Butler's Wideman, Baldwin, Thompson, and Martin. /
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NEW YORK, NY – MARCH 8: (L to R) Tom Holmoe, director of athletics at Brigham Young University, works as the NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Committee meets on Wednesday afternoon, March 8, 2017 in New York City. The committee is gathered in New York to begin the five-day process of selecting and seeding the field of 68 teams for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. The final bracket will be released on Sunday evening following the completion of conference tournaments. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY – MARCH 8: (L to R) Tom Holmoe, director of athletics at Brigham Young University, works as the NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Committee meets on Wednesday afternoon, March 8, 2017 in New York City. The committee is gathered in New York to begin the five-day process of selecting and seeding the field of 68 teams for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. The final bracket will be released on Sunday evening following the completion of conference tournaments. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) /

3. Committee changes will help the Bulldogs

One of the major changes that the NCAA Tournament selection committee has made this season is a heavier reliance on quality rankings. These include KenPom, BPI, and Sagarin ratings. As of now, these ratings paint Butler in a fairly good light.

Most notably, KenPom, one of the most well-known of these rankings, place the Bulldogs at the No. 20 spot in the nation. Their BPI spot of No. 28 is also indicative of Butler being a better team than their record. The Sagarin ratings are the only ones that seem to dislike Butler’s chances. This ranking system places the Bulldogs far lower than the rest (No. 37).

Even though Butler’s RPI ranking (No. 41) is lower than fans might like, there is plenty of room to move ahead. They have played an outstanding strength of schedule and there are big games coming up that are definitely winnable.

Down the stretch of this season, Butler has (at least) three more opportunities for Group 1 wins. Their home matchup with Providence (RPI 43) will likely end as a Group 2 game but their matchups with Creighton (RPI 23 at home), St. John’s (RPI 66 on the road), and Seton Hall (RPI 24 on the road) could go a long way. If Butler manages to go 3-1 in this stretch, they would definitely find their position much more solid in the field.

Even after Butler’s loss to Georgetown, they would still be in the tournament field if Selection Sunday was this weekend. This was clearly the worst loss for the Bulldogs’ resume but they still have three Group 1 wins. This is more than several other bubble teams and there are still opportunities to add to that number.

The Bulldogs already have wins over Villanova (home) and Ohio State (neutral). Very few teams in the country can stake a claim on victories as good as those two. The committee showed during the Bracket Preview that having high-quality wins can go a long way.

Of the 11 Group 1 games that Butler has played so far this season, eight of them have come against teams ranked in the RPI top-25. This clearly shows that Butler’s toughest games have truly come against the best of the best. This is also represented by the fact that Butler’s strength of schedule rates extremely well. Their overall SOS is No. 19 in the nation and KenPom ranks the Bulldogs’ adjusted SOS at No. 12.

Next: Most recent Bracketology field (Feb. 13)

In summary, Butler’s loss to Georgetown does not doom their chances of reaching the NCAA Tournament. It certainly did its harm but Butler has a solid enough resume built around it to deserve an at-large bid. This three-game winning streak has been tough to handle but there is plenty of time left to get back on track. If LaVall Jordan’s team figures things out down the stretch, they will be a very dangerous tournament team.

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