Busting Brackets
Fansided

Bracketology Bubble Watch: Alabama, Syracuse rising into consideration

By Lukas Harkins

SYRACUSE, NY - NOVEMBER 06: Elijah Hughes #33 of the Syracuse Orange shoots the ball as Casey Morsell #13 of the Virginia Cavaliers defends during the second half at the Carrier Dome on November 6, 2019 in Syracuse, New York. Virginia defeated Syracuse 48-34. (Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images)
SYRACUSE, NY - NOVEMBER 06: Elijah Hughes #33 of the Syracuse Orange shoots the ball as Casey Morsell #13 of the Virginia Cavaliers defends during the second half at the Carrier Dome on November 6, 2019 in Syracuse, New York. Virginia defeated Syracuse 48-34. (Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
6 of 11
Next
PHILADELPHIA, PA – JANUARY 11: Coach Ewing of Georgetown reacts. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – JANUARY 11: Coach Ewing of Georgetown reacts. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Lead-Pipe Locks: Seton Hall, Villanova, Butler, Creighton.

Safely in the field: Marquette

Some perspiration: None.

Double the deodorant: Georgetown, Xavier, St. John’s, DePaul

Marquette Golden Eagles (14-6, 4-4 BE)

NET: 26 | KPI: 31 | SOR: 28 | BPI: 29 | KP: 31 | Sag: 25

Q1: 3-5 | Q2: 5-0 | Q3: 1-1 | Q4: 5-0

Marquette is creeping closer and closer to the “lock” status. Although its resume might not be the most impressive in the country, Marquette is so far ahead of teams firmly entrenched in the bubble conversation that it’s hard to imagine the team dropping that far. This is especially true considering there is no such thing as a bad loss in the Big East this season. The Golden Eagles have played a difficult schedule so far this season and should be destined for a single-digit seed when the brackets are announced in a couple of months. I am being a bit precautionary with leaving Marquette “safely in” right now, but they could move up within the next couple of weeks. All of the Golden Eagles metrics are rock-solid and they are 8-5 in Q1+2. Current Bracketology Placement: No. 6 seed.

Georgetown Hoyas (12-9, 2-6 BE)

NET: 52 | KPI: 52 | SOR: 66 | BPI: 59 | KP: 54 | Sag: 63 

Q1: 2-7 | Q2: 4-2 | Q3: 1-0 | Q4: 5-0

Georgetown missed a massive opportunity during its last game as it blew an 11-point halftime lead at home to Butler. A victory against the Dawgs would have really boosted the Hoyas’ resume but that just wasn’t meant to be. Georgetown is now 2-6 in conference play and while that record means nothing for NCAAT consideration, it shows that the team is struggling to finish off games as of late. The Hoyas are definitely still in the bubble conversation but they need to find a way to win with more consistency. They’ve now dropped three straight games and that includes two at home. Their next three games will be vitally important as they play St. John’s (away), Seton Hall (home), and DePaul (home). Winning two would be huge. Current Bracketology Placement: First Four Out.

Xavier Musketeers (13-7, 2-5 BE)

NET: 61 | KPI: 45 | SOR: 53 | BPI: 62 | KP: 59 | Sag: 53

Q1: 1-6 | Q2: 4-1 | Q3: 4-0 | Q4: 4-0

Xavier has lost four of its last five games and is sliding in a hurry. While their home win over Georgetown was solid, they have otherwise looked lost in other games. The Musketeers remain quite solid on the defensively but have even slipped on that end of the floor. When that happens, their offense (No. 120 in AdjO) is not good enough to make up for it and win games. Xavier currently ranks ninth in both offensive and defensive efficiency in the Big East during conference play (out of 10 teams) as it is struggling mightily. the Musketeers are still a bubble team but need to turn the ship around in a hurry. Current Bracketology Status: Next Five Out. 

St. John’s Red Storm (13-9, 2-7 BE)

NET: 72 | KPI: 75 | SOR: 80 | BPI: 92 | KP: 81 | Sag: 71 

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

St. John’s is 2-7 in conference play with its only victories coming over DePaul. Considering its inability to win consistently in the Big East season, it seems unlikely that the Red Storm will be able to continue contending for an at-large bid. Thankfully, though, their non-conference home win over West Virginia is aging better than just about anyone in the country could have predicted. That is anchoring their resume as a potential tournament team and Arizona remains quite highly ranked in the NET as well. St. John’s will play three of its next four games at home and this is the stretch that will define it the team can remain on the bubble or fall out of contention. Current Bracketology Placement: OUT.

DePaul Blue Demons (13-7, 1-6 BE)

NET: 64 | KPI: 63 | SOR: 76 | BPI: 95 | KP: 69 | Sag: 87 

Q1: 3-4 | Q2: 1-1 | Q3: 2-2 | Q4: 6-0

DePaul has posted one extremely strong performance in conference play thus far and it was able to defend its home-court against Butler for a monster win as a result. Aside from that, though, the Blue Demons have struggled mightily while dropping in bracketology projections. DePaul once looked like a potential single-digit seed after finishing non-conference play at 12-1 with wins over Iowa, Minnesota, and Texas Tech but is now stumbling greatly. Due to those high-quality wins earlier in the year, though, DePaul still has a shot if it is able to win some games. The issue is that the Blue Demons will play four of their next five games on the road and they will be hard-pressed to secure many victories. Current Bracketology Placement: OUT.

Lots of work to do: Providence.

Home/Bracketology