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Bracketology Losers: Indiana, Texas, and Texas Tech struggle on Champ Week

By Tristan Freeman

BLOOMINGTON, IN - JANUARY 14: Romeo Langford #0 of the Indiana Hoosiers walks down the court after a turnover in the 66-51 loss to the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Assembly Hall on January 14, 2019 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, IN - JANUARY 14: Romeo Langford #0 of the Indiana Hoosiers walks down the court after a turnover in the 66-51 loss to the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Assembly Hall on January 14, 2019 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – MARCH 13: Clyde Trapp #0 of the Clemson Tigers reacts after a play against the NC State WOlfpack during their game in the second round of the 2019 Men’s ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 13, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – MARCH 13: Clyde Trapp #0 of the Clemson Tigers reacts after a play against the NC State WOlfpack during their game in the second round of the 2019 Men’s ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 13, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

Champ Week can be good for some – but not for others. Here are five teams who suffered in terms of Bracketology before Selection Sunday.

At no point in the season does Bracketology becomes more important than Championship Week. It’s an opportunity for teams to get those last chance signature victories for some, while the season ends for others after unexpected losses.

This past week was no different, with some teams on the bubble having a better time than others. And considering that there were bid stealers from the Pac-12, A-10 and WCC, that means that three bubble teams were essentially sent to the NIT as a result. That goes the same for those fighting for the top seeds, as early exits potentially have them in a tough situation when their respective seeds are announced.

There were plenty of teams who didn’t have a great past week. Teams such as Temple, Arizona State, Gonzaga, Purdue and others who left earlier then they’d hoped. But here are five in particular whose losses may come back to haunt them in different ways.

*Projections of seeds come from out latest Bracketology postings

Clemson Tigers

In what was advertised as a potential elimination bubble game, Clemson took on NC State in an 8-9 matchup in the ACC Tournament. It looked like the Tigers were going to advance after 25 minutes, leading by nearly 20 points.

But the team suffered a devastating drought in the last half of the game, scoring just 16 points total in the final 20 minutes. The Wolfpack were able to come back and steal the game at the very end, sending the Tigers home.

Now at 19-13 (9-9), Clemson has to pray that the new NET ranking will be heavily factored into their decisions on the bubble. They’re at 35 entering Sunday, which is around 20 points better than fellow bubble teams TCU, Temple, Ohio State and 28 points better than Arizona State. Their lack of Quad-3 or 4 losses also goes favorably to their resume.

However, Clemson is an awful 1-10 against Quad-1 opponents, with just a win over Virginia Tech to represent anything of a signature win. Lipscomb and Syracuse are the team’s next best wins. Although the metrics look like, neither the eye-test or the collective resume warrants a bid for the ACC, which is why they’re project “OUT” by us. Had they just beaten one of the of four teams in the ACC (Duke, UNC, UVA and FSU), the Tigers would have a much more compelling case.

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