Busting Brackets
Fansided

Bracketology Bubble Watch: Where do fringe tournament teams stand?

By Lukas Harkins

PITTSBURGH, PA - MARCH 15: A general view of the court with March Madness signage is seen prior to the start of the game between the OklahomaSooners and the Rhode Island Rams in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at PPG PAINTS Arena on March 15, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - MARCH 15: A general view of the court with March Madness signage is seen prior to the start of the game between the OklahomaSooners and the Rhode Island Rams in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at PPG PAINTS Arena on March 15, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
6 of 10
Next
PISCATAWAY, NJ – JANUARY 09: Wesson of the Ohio State Buckeyes gets up. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PISCATAWAY, NJ – JANUARY 09: Wesson of the Ohio State Buckeyes gets up. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Big Ten Conference

Lead-pipe lock: Michigan (2), Michigan State (1), Purdue (4)

Firmly in the field: Maryland (6), Wisconsin (5), Iowa (6)

Some perspiration: Nebraska (9)

Double the deodorant: Indiana (11), Ohio State (11), Minnesota (9).

Maryland Terrapins (17-5, 8-3 B10)

NET: 22 | KPI: 20 | SOR: 22 | BPI: 25 | KP: 20 | Sag: 23

Q1: 4-3 | Q2: 4-1 | Q3: 4-1 | Q4: 5-0

Maryland split their matchups during this past week but definitely dropped some spots in the seed list. This was due to their loss to Illinois, one of the weakest teams in the Big Ten. On the whole, the Terps are still very safe in the projected NCAA Tournament field but it would have been better to see them avoid that loss. This is especially true when you consider that Maryland is projected to lose each of the next five games according to KenPom. They have a murderous stretch approaching.

Iowa Hawkeyes (16-5, 5-5 B10)

NET: 27 | KPI: 42 | SOR: 21 | BPI: 31 | KP: 30 | Sag: 34

Q1: 3-5 | Q2: 5-0 | Q3: 2-0 | Q4: 6-0

Iowa lost their only game recently, which came on the road against Minnesota. To be fair, there is nothing all that wrong with that performance, especially when you consider that it was a close game. Iowa has been impressive throughout this season as their loss to Minnesota was their first of the season to a team rated outside of the KenPom top-10. Yes…the top-10. The Hawkeyes should be a lock for the Big Dance soon given their overall resume and lack of bad losses. They are also still in the hunt for a protected seed.

Nebraska Cornhuskers (13-8, 3-7 B10)

NET: 28 | KPI: 54 | SOR: 49 | BPI: 22 | KP: 23 | Sag: 22

Q1: 2-6 | Q2: 3-2 | Q3: 3-0 | Q4: 4-0 

You have to feel for Nebraska. One of the better “feel good” stories from the power conferences this year due to their lack of recent program history, the Cornhuskers were expected to make a rare tournament appearance this season. Now, though, Isaac Copeland is out for the season and Nebraska’s weak depth will be tested even more. The Cornhuskers have lost four consecutive games and they are in big trouble. There is still plenty of room between Nebraska and the cutline but they also have a tough schedule remaining and it may be difficult to stay in the field.

Wisconsin Badgers (15-6, 7-3 B10)

NET: 15 | KPI: 24 | SOR: 25 | BPI: 11 | KP: 10 | Sag: 13

Q1: 5-4 | Q2: 2-2 | Q3: 2-0 | Q4: 4-0 

One of the few teams in the country playing strong basketball night in and night out right now, Wisconsin enters this bubble watch as winners of four straight. The Badgers are playing at a very high level at the moment thanks to the play of Ethan Happ’s supporting cast. This Wisconsin team has its weaknesses but, at the same time, they will be a team that nobody will want to see in March. Despite still having matchups with Michigan and Michigan State left on the schedule, Wisconsin has a favorable closing schedule and should compete for a protected seed.

Indiana Hoosiers (12-9, 3-7 B10)

NET: 48 | KPI: 58 | SOR: 47 | BPI: 45 | KP: 47 | Sag: 38

Q1: 2-8 | Q2: 3-1 | Q3: 1-0 | Q4: 6-0 

When is it time to lose hope in Indiana? Despite holding a fair amount of talent on the roster, the Hoosiers just do not have the size nor the shooting to compete in the Big Ten this season and that has been clear as of late. IU has dropped its last seven games and it is hard to imagine that not extending to eight with a road matchup against Michigan State up next. The Hoosiers have plummetted over the course of January and find themselves right on the NCAA Tournament cutline while trending downward in a big, big way.

Ohio State Buckeyes (13-7, 3-6 B10)

NET: 38 | KPI: 38 | SOR: 37 | BPI: 32 | KP: 34 | Sag: 33

Q1: 3-5 | Q2: 2-2 | Q3: 2-0 | Q4: 6-0 

Another team on a downward spiral, Ohio State also has just one win since the turn of the New Year. Thankfully, though, that came during this past week as the Buckeyes went on the road to secure a much-needed win over Nebraska. They have still lost six of their last seven games but it is possible that Ohio State has stabilized a bit. With a very favorable four-game stretch approaching, they could quickly get back to a strong NCAA Tournament position by going 3-1 or 4-0.

Minnesota Golden Gophers (16-5, 6-4 B10)

NET: 50 | KPI: 35 | SOR: 30 | BPI: 65 | KP: 52 | Sag: 50

Q1: 4-3 | Q2: 1-2 | Q3: 5-0 | Q4: 6-0

Unlike Indiana and Ohio State, Minnesota has been consistently rising over the past few weeks. After back-to-back home wins over Iowa and Illinois during this past week, the Golden Gophers are now above .500 in the best conference in America and are rising in projected fields. Now a single-digit seed by many metrics, it seems as though the Gophers are overcoming a relatively weak non-conference schedule to land a bid.

Home/Bracketology