Clemson (20-8) (NET: 38)
4-5 (Q1), 6-2 (Q2), 3-1 (Q3), 7-0 (Q4)
Brad Brownell has quietly done some marvelous work building Clemson’s basketball program into solid shape over the last 16 years, especially with that recent success. His Tigers again have been phenomenal this season and had we done this post two weeks ago wouldn’t have even been considered on the bubble.
Clemson beat Georgia during the Charleston Classic and picked up two more Quad 1 wins on the road at Stanford and California earlier this month. Their home win over SMU is currently Quad 1 as well, while there’s a boatload of Quad 2 wins thrusting their resume into pretty good shape.
However, the season took a turn once back home from that trip out west, as the Tigers have since dropped four straight games. This current streak includes Quad 2 home losses to Virginia Tech and Florida State as they’ve plummeted from a conference leader to 10-5 in the ACC.
The jury is far from out on the Tigers even during this downward trend. They can really turn things around with a strong showing against Louisville this weekend and have a second upcoming Quad 1 game in their rematch at North Carolina. On the contrary, a six-game losing streak heading into March would be dire for their chances.
Georgia (19-9) (NET: 33)
4-7 (Q1), 6-1 (Q2), 0-1 (Q3), 9-0 (Q4)
This was another season where Georgia got off to a remarkable start, building a 12-1 record through nonconference play. They’ve come back down to earth during the difficulties of SEC but have at least helped their resume with some of these performances.
That great run early didn’t feature many big chances, but the Bulldogs have added these Quad 1 wins against SEC foes. They scored an important double-digit win over Arkansas in the middle of January and have also won at Missouri, LSU, and most recently Kentucky.
It’s pretty odd that they’ve lost their only Quad 3 game, falling in a tough home clash against Ole Miss right before that Arkansas win. The Bulldogs recently lost five of six games before getting back on track recently and it’s more a question of where they’ll land on the seed line with these recent struggles.
They can’t help their cause against South Carolina this weekend, but the Bulldogs have a big opportunity against Alabama in their final home game next week. One last Quad 1 win likely secures their spot and puts them back into national attention, but will it be enough?