It's not really a surprise but the bubble is starting to strengthen/expand. A whopping 4 wins yesterday vs. 1.79 expected as Seton Hall and Florida join the party.
Tonight:
Florida Atlantic (51%) at UAB - This is the most loseable game left on FAU's schedule, but as a borderline Q1/Q2 game a loss might not even matter that much. They're still safely in they lose this, but it's worth monitoring.
Washington State at USC (66%) - Washington State is the only sub-.500 team in the top 75 of KenPom. They've won at Arizona already this year so this is no walk in the park for USC.
Oregon (22%) at Arizona - Oregon is on a couple of brackets at the Matrix so I guess they're technically in the picture already, but this win would really vault them up. At a minimum they need to win one game of their desert swing against Arizona and ASU.
Michigan at Northwestern (68%) - Honestly I'm not even considering Michigan as a bubble team at this point, but this is exactly the sort of road win that would get their journey started. Northwestern really needs to cash this win at home because their next two are on the road and then they have Purdue at home.
Wisconsin (24%) at Ohio State (76%) - Whoever loses this game is screwed. Not going to include it in the expected wins calculation because both are in the bubble. Wisconsin right now is the first team out at the Matrix. In the past two days Nevada, Pittsburgh, and Oklahoma State (all in the same range as Wisconsin) have scored Q1 wins. They need to keep up.
Stanford at Utah (78%) - Utah really needs Q1 or Q2 wins as they're just 4-7 in those quadrants. Unfortunately Stanford is a Q3 game, so a win here doesn't help but a loss is a killer.
Oregon State at Arizona State (86%) - Q4 game for the Sun Devils here. Can't lose it.
Charleston (67%) at Drexel - I don't think Charleston's at-large resume can survive another regular season loss (because by definition we're factoring in a conference tournament loss as well). This is by no means a gimme.
Expected wins for bubble teams: 4.38 in 7 games (plus the guaranteed bubble winner in Wisconsin vs. Ohio State)
Recap
A day after a big overperformance for the bubble there were only 2 wins vs. an expected 4.38: USC and Arizona State, plus Wisconsin in a game someone had to win. Neither win is a resume booster but always good to avoid losses. USC entered the day on the 11 line and ASU was the second team out. I don't think yesterday really changes that.
Charleston lost a second game in a row and is almost definitely in need of the autobid to make the tournament. Utah took a bad home loss. They were already close to life support -- listed on just one bracket out of 90 -- so this just about does it for them. They won't feature again in my rundown until February 16 when they face Arizona, and that's assuming they win at home over Cal and Colorado. Oregon was listed on three brackets and missed a shot at a huge win. More on them in the Friday/Saturday rundown.
In the Big Ten Ohio State is way off the bubble at 11-11. Wisconsin's road win over them still counts as a Q1, so the Badgers (who were the first team out) keep pace with the Pittsburghs and Nevadas who also got Q1 wins this week. Michigan has a ton of work to do at 12-10 but they're in the picture. They actually picked up two Q1 wins yesterday, beating Northwestern on the road and having Maryland at home move to Q1. And lastly FAU took a Q1 loss but are still safely in.
Friday/Saturday Bubble Guide
(Friday 9:00 pm) Boise State (39%) at San Diego State - The Broncos are currently listed on the 9 line at Bracket Matrix and a Q1 loss at San Diego State doesn't really alter that. They're 19 in the NET and I don't think they're going to have any issues making it in, but they have a Q4 loss and are a hair away from a Q3 loss: they lost to #99 Charlotte on a neutral, if that slips to 101 then it's Q3. It's low stakes for now but it should be a good game so I'm including it.
(Friday 11:00 pm) Air Force at Nevada (86%) - The Wolfpack just won against San Diego State and are likely in if they take care of business down the stretch. They're playing the landmine game, trying to avoid bad losses instead of notching big wins. They have eight games left and six of them are against non-tournament teams. If they sweep the six I think it probably doesn't matter if they lose at New Mexico and at Utah State.
(12:00 pm) Virginia at Virginia Tech (46%) - Virginia Tech needs this game to get into the First Four Out/Next Four Out picture. They're just 2-5 in Q1 and this is their last Q1 home game of the year so they need it. If they lose then we forget about them unless they win the next four in a row.
(1:00 pm) Georgia Tech at NC State (92%) - Q4 game for NC State. Not gonna waste time thinking about it unless the major upset happens.
(2:00 pm) TCU at Oklahoma State (54%) - The Cowboys are picking up momentum with four wins in their past five games and now they get a prime home spot against a TCU team that's still banged up and might be without Mike Miles and Eddie Lampkin for another game.
(2:00 pm) Tulane at Memphis (78%) - Memphis has won five straight but being in the AAC means that none of those wins were that impactful. This one isn't either since Tulane is only Q3 but the Wave knocked off the Tigers in New Orleans.
(2:30 pm) Illinois at Iowa (58%) - Iowa is very close to being above the danger zone but I'll throw them in there. These are the two hottest teams in the Big Ten (other than Purdue) so I'm expecting a good game. Iowa has to go on the road to West Lafayette next so if they drop this one they might be 14-10 heading into next weekend would put them in the 10 seed range.
(3:00 pm) Miami at Clemson (50%) - The Tigers have taken care of business at home so far with wins over Penn State, Wake Forest, NC State, and Duke. If they win this then they don't have much to worry about, but if they lose this they're looking a three game losing streak because their next one is at North Carolina.
(3:30 pm) Arkansas (90%) at South Carolina - Q4 game for Arkansas. Not gonna waste time thinking about it unless the major upset happens.
(4:00 pm) Florida Atlantic (61%) at Charlotte - This is a tight turnaround for the Owls after losing at UAB yesterday. Even with another Q2 road loss I think they'd be okay but a loss here brings them to "better not take another one in the regular season" status.
(6:00 pm) Missouri at Mississippi State (62%) - The Bulldogs are listed on only one bracket but they're just four behind Missouri in the NET. Their big issue is a 3-8 Q1/Q2 record, and this game will be Q2 for them. They've played a really hard SEC schedule so far (four of their nine games were against Alabama and Tennessee) so I don't think they should be written off just yet. Missouri is on the 8 line but a road loss here doesn't sting too badly.
(6:30 pm) North Carolina (36%) at Duke - bac talked about UNC more extensively if you scroll up. They're on the 7 line at Bracket Matrix but a lot of the fresher ones that include their home loss to Pitt have them in the 8-10 range, so I'll throw them on here. Obviously a road loss to Duke doesn't torpedo them but it makes their next game, a road tilt at Wake Forest, more interesting.
(8:00 pm) Oklahoma at West Virginia (71%) - Not quite a double bubble special. Both of these teams are on the 11 line right now but Oklahoma's most recent loss hasn't been fully accounted for. I think other bubble teams would rather see both of these teams at 13-10 than WVU at 14-9 and OU at 12-11 so I'm giving the percentage to West Virginia for the calculation. You can just about stick a fork in the Sooners if they lose because their remaining schedule is tough even by Big 12 standards.
(7:30 pm) Villanova at Creighton (83%) - The Blue Jays have righted the ship and if they win this game then I won't be featuring them anymore. But if they lose it then they'll be 14-9 and their next three are at Seton Hall who desperately needs another big win, home for UConn, and then at Providence.
(8:00 pm) Utah State (65%) at Colorado State - The Aggies are hovering around the Next Four Out, still with the anchor of two Q4 losses. They need to stack wins to offset that, while this is only a Q3 game and not a resume enhancer, they need to win it.
(8:30 pm) Florida at Kentucky - Double bubble special. Not assigning a percentage because other bubble teams don't really benefit either way. Kentucky is in the field but close to the cut line. Florida is well off the bracket right now but this would give them a third Q1 win and at least pull them closer.
(8:30 pm) Georgia at Texas A&M (81%) - The Aggies are right near the cut line but out at the moment. Bracket Matrix has them as the third out, Lunardi has them first out. This is the one they can't overlook before a Tuesday home game against Auburn which is where they can score a win that will actually move them up.
(9:00 pm) Maryland (80%) at Minnesota - I think Minnesota is going to get one more win this year. Do not be the team that gives it to them. Ask Ohio State how that's working out.
(9:30 pm) Washington at USC (82%) - The Trojans are the third Pac-12 team in and they've been taking care of their business lately with a road win at ASU and then beating UCLA and Washington State at home. Their next one after this is at a potentially desperate Oregon team. So don't take a Q3 loss here.
(10:00 pm) Oregon at Arizona State - Double bubble special. No percentage, although a win by Arizona State puts Oregon on life support (they'd be 13-11) while a win by the Ducks means that both teams would be in that First/Next Four Out range.
Summary
2 games with bubble implications tonight: 1.25 expected wins
18 games with bubble implications tomorrow. Two of them are zero-sum matchups where other bubble teams don't really have a rooting interest. In the remaining 16 games: 10.89 wins. Most of the bubble teams are favored so it's all about holding your ground. Clemson, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Florida, Kentucky, Oregon, and Arizona State the are the ones in position to get a big win that would really help, but everyone else is mostly playing defense against a bad loss.