NCAA tournament bubble Watch: OSU-Indiana threatens to do big, UNC faces in the victory and in-game

The learning of the 68-team field in the NCAA tournament only separate us for 10 days. The Bracket season is just around the corner and the madness is in full swing, with several bladder results taking place this week and this weekend a mammoth games of games on the docket. The headliner is the North Carolina Tar Heels, which has a victory-and-in game against No. 2 duke on Saturday in Dean Dome.

Coach Hubert Davis is trying to avoid a second missed journey to a big dance in the past three years. While his job is certain after he was reported that he signed a two -year contract extension in December 2024 to take over by 2030. However, Opportunity knocks on Saturday when a duchy team that has only lost once since November 6th comes to Chapel Hill.

This feels like a real hard struggle for UNC, but not many teams get the luxury of a victory and at the year there is no question that a victory over a duke squad that lies in the net, Kenpom and Torvik would win a place for the TAR sales. Your resume? There is not enough quality because UNC has a 1-10 record against Quadrant 1 team and that a quality victory (a neutral location against UCLA) is negated by a quad 3 defeat against Stanford. The Net of UNC is 38, a solid ranking compared to others in the bladder and one that is better than Arkansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Xavier. The “profits via Bubble” by UNC is located in 44th place in the country (+1.0), while the KPI, which ranks the victories and losses of each team on a positive to negative scale, lies him outside the top 50.

The point? The Tar Heels will sweat strongly on Sunday when they lose against Duke and do not steal a bid in the ACC tournament. What are the keys so that UNC has a shot? The Tar Heels have to defend better and have to make a decision on the defense of Cooper Flagg – only a goal scorer or just make it a moderator, because if he goes well, they are a long night. RJ Davis has to play like an all-American of the first team, while Ian Jackson and Seth Trimble have to deliver if they free with perimeter look.

On Saturday there is a huge Bubble Bowl in Bloomington, Indiana, when Indiana organizes the state of Ohio. The Hoosiers, who fell in Oregon at the beginning of this week, seem to be in a solid place to get an offer for the NCAA tournament and can almost officially lock up a place with a win over the Buckeyes. Indiana has four quad 1 victories and no defeats outside the first quarter. This is usually quite valuable for the selection committee, as is the fact that Indiana only played four quad -4 games. One of the four Quad 1 victories of the Hoosiers came in the state of Ohio on January 17, when Luke Goode hit a game sealing block 3 in the last seconds to seal a victory. Indiana has a 73-64 defeat in Oregon, in which Myles Rice and Mackenzie Mgbako were held from the field for a combined 3-against-17 shootout, but the Hoosiers are 13-4 in contrast to 5-8 from the Assembly Hall. The win on Saturday would help that Indiana will not sweat in the selection on Sunday, but the state of Ohio has after a 116-114 victory against Bubble team Nebraska to Bloomington. Bruce Thornton led the Buckeyes with 29 points and nine templates.

I agree with the Fox Sports College Basketball Bracket Prognostic Mike Decourcy that the goatyes should be a win at Purdue due to a victory on a neutral floor via Kentucky in the 68 team field. The state of Ohio has six Quad 1 victories, and although a 3-3 quad 2 record is not great, this team has no backbreaking defeat and its resume is quite solid. The difference between the goateyes and another bubble team like Nebraska is the fact that the Huskers have two quad -3 losses. The Huskers organize Iowa on Sunday in a must-win game.

Let's rate other bladder winners and losers!

The Razorbacks looked out on Saturday with a defeat against South Carolina, but John Calipari's team jumped back with a 90-77 victory in Vanderbilt. Johnell Davis had 21 points in victory and showed why he was such a good portal pickup for Calipari. A home with a team from Mississippi State, which is TOP 35 online, is another great chance for Arkansas to do a case. If the razbacks win on Saturday and are not the automatic BID of the SEC tournament, I could see them in Dayton as one of the first four teams in the TV networks.

Oklahoma (Bladder winner)

If you are firmly in the bladder at this point and have to move the needle with a victory, you have to take it. The Sooners did exactly that and shot 57% with a dominant victory against a Missouri team that is on 15 online. Jeremiah fears that the part of an NBA draft pick will look the same in the first round and scored 31 points from the ground with 9-of-13 shootout while delivering five templates. He has sensational advantages, but at the moment he keeps Oklahoma alive to get an offer.

The criminal offense of the Bearcats was simply not good enough. They went 2 out of 18 in a loss against Kansa's State and have no real alpha goal shooters. With just one quad 1 win and a combined 11-13 record compared to the other three quadrants, I don't think there is enough meat on the bone. I would say Cincinnati is out.

Xavier (Bladder winner)

The musketers won 11 of their last 14 competitions and led Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse, 91-78, in a potential trap game. Coach Sean Miller told me that Zach Freemantles play level and his attitude that corresponds to the professionals and that he is a senior in college basketball. We see this when Freemantle and Ryan Conwell really turn it on every day.

The tensions rose in Washington, DC, on the route on Tuesday evening. Coach Ed Cooley wanted to quads his Big East win Count, while Kyle Neptune tried to save his job. However, the cats lost two games with a total of three points to Georgetown. With two quad -3 losses and another in Quad 4, the cats simply have too many mistakes to overcome them.

What one last one and a half weeks on deck in college basketball. Blowers are planned for some. You don't have to worry about others on the selection Sunday. Then there are these medium -sized bubble teams who try to find a way. There will be no shortage of these teams in the mix on the route. Let's see what happens. It is the best time of the year for a certain reason!

John Fanta is a national college basketball broadcaster and writer for Fox Sports. It covers the sport in a variety of functions, from the number to FS1 to the leading host in the Big East Digital Network to the comment in the area of ​​68 Media Network. Follow him @John_fanta.

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