NCAA Basketball: Butler, Gonzaga among teams under most pressure to win this week

We're fewer than 20 days away from Selection Sunday, and even fewer before the start of NCAA Basketball conference tournaments. At most, teams have four games left in the regular-season to improve their Bracketology resumes.

Looking at this week, there are a number of programs with big opportunities that could define the direction of the rest of the 2023-24 season. Here's a list of 10 programs to keep a close eye on in the coming days.

Butler Bulldogs - 16-12 (7-10 Big East)

The past two weeks have been rough for Butler, losing four straight games. Two of them were at home against ranked teams (Creighton and Marquette), with the last two coming on the road against fellow bubble Big East teams. But now, the Bulldogs are in a rough spot, now firmly on the bubble and now 9th in the conference standings.

The next two games for Butler are absoulte "must wins" for them. One is on the road at DePaul, who after losing to Georgetown, is all but guaranteed to finish winless in Big East play. However, upsets happen, including a year ago, when Louisville defeated the Clemson Tigers in ACC play, which effecitively knocked them out of the tournament.

Before that is a home game against St. John's, a team coming off an upset home win over Creighton. The Red Storm has gotten itself onto the bubble with that win, making this a potential "elimination" bubble game of sorts for whoever loses. That game is on Wednesday at home for Butler.