Northwestern
Last season, Northwestern made what remains just their second ever trip to the NCAA Tournament, with each trip coming under current coach Chris Collins. These Wildcats might just have what it takes to make a third trip, navigating through a tricky Big Ten and sitting near the top of the standings, but nothing has been determined.
Their NET sits at 55 and it could be in much better shape, considering they have Quad 1 home wins over Purdue, Illinois, and Michigan State. The mind-boggling loss at home to Chicago State back in mid-December will remain a Quad 4 defeat and an anchor on this resume. You could call it one bad game, but it’s the kind of loss that nobody else on the bubble has endured.
The Wildcats will watch many bubble teams do battle on Saturday before hosting Penn State on Sunday. They got back on track earlier this week with a key home win over Nebraska but need to hold serve. That mistake against Chicago State remains Northwestern’s only home loss of the season, but they cannot allow mistakes to multiply; Northwestern keeps their resume tenable by finishing a sweep of the Nittany Lions.