There were a few big wins for bubble teams on Saturday, but perhaps none bigger then Gonzaga's victory at Saint Mary's. I have been saying for a few weeks that I thought the Bulldogs would not be able to extend their streak of 24 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances without a win over the Gaels at some point and now they have it.
That gives the Zags some breathing room and I have taken them off the bubble. It would now take a significant upset in the West Coast Conference Tournament to put them back in danger. Gonzaga, along with Saint Mary's, has a bye to the semifinals of the WCC Tournament.
The Bulldogs moved up to an No. 8 seed, which seems like a big move, but Gonzaga filled a big hole in its resume. Also, most of the teams they jumped lost on Saturday.
Other notable results for teams on the bubble Saturday:
- Iowa continues to make a move up the bracket. The Hawkeyes won at injury-plagued Northwestern for their fourth victory in their last five games. They also beat Wisconsin and won at Michigan State in that stretch. There is still work to be done, but Iowa is trending in the right direction.
- Providence took a really tough loss at home to Villanova and now the path for the Friars to get to the NCAA Tournament is pretty rocky. They have dropped to 8-11 vs. the top three quadrants. No at-large team has ever been three games below .500 against that group of teams. Providence still has to play UConn as well.
- In a continuation of its road woes, Wake Forest lost at Virginia Tech. The Demon Deacons are now 3-11 away from home this season with more than half of those losses coming to teams that are not headed for the NCAA Tournament. They are done with road games now, so their next chance to win away from home will be in the ACC Tournament.
- Finally, Michigan State, another team with a long consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance streak, now has a three-game losing streak after falling at Purdue. Obviously that's not a bad loss, and you could argue the Spartans looked like an NCAA Tournament team if you're a devotee of the "eye test". They finish up with Northwester at home and at Indiana. The Spartans may have to win both of those, but certainly at home against the Wildcats, which are not a great road team.
There are only a few bubble games Sunday, but only one gives a team a chance at a huge win..
All times Eastern.
Check out Palm's latest bracket, full field of 68 and Bubble Watch at the Bracketology hub
Bubble teams in action Sunday
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| at UConn, Noon | CBS, CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App (Free) -- Seton Hall does not have to beat UConn to make the NCAA Tournament, but it sure would help. The Pirates have one of those muddling-along resumes. OK schedule, OK results, except for beating the Huskies and Marquette at home. This would arguably be the best win a bubble team could get. | |
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| vs. Rutgers, 6:30 p.m. | Big Ten Network, fuboTV (Try for free) -- Nebraska is on the bubble because it is a big-time home court hero. This is no time for the Cornhuskers to take a loss on their home floor. | |
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| vs. Stanford, 9 p.m. | FS1, fuboTV (Try for free) -- Colorado could really use a meaningful Quad 1 win, but the Buffaloes may not have a chance for that before the Pac-12 Tournament. In the meantime, they have to just keep winning the games in front of them. | |
NCAA Tournament locks
Locks based on resume: 18 | AQ bids secured: 0 | At-large spots remaining: 18
| Conference | Locks | Teams |
|---|---|---|
ACC | 2 | |
Big East | 3 | UConn, Marquette, Creighton |
Big Ten | 3 | Purdue, Illinois, Wisconsin |
Big 12 | 4 | |
Pac-12 | 1 | |
SEC | 3 | |
0 | ||
Others | 2 | San Diego State, Saint Mary's |
Near the cut line
| Last 4 In | Team | Record | NET |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Utah | 18-11 | 46 |
 | New Mexico | 21-8 | 28 |
| Colorado | 19-9 | 30 |
 | St. John's | 17-12 | 39 |
| First 4 Out | Team | Record | NET |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seton Hall | 18-10 | 62 |
 | Iowa | 18-12 | 57 |
 | Villanova | 17-12 | 26 |
 | Wake Forest | 18-11 | 31 |
| Next 4 Out | Team | Record | NET |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Pittsburgh | 19-10 | 44 |
 | Ole Miss | 20-9 | 78 |
 | Oregon | 19-10 | 65 |
 | Memphis | 21-8 | 74 |
Note – all references to NCAA Tournament selection records and trends based on NET rankings excludes the 2021 tournament. Due to shortened schedules and a relatively small number of non-conference games, those rankings are not reliable enough to be considered.
