Five college basketball bubble teams in need of a big win

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Shane McNichol  |  Last updated 2/26/21

March 1 is right around the corner and plenty of college basketball teams are starting to feel the heat. Despite the strangest season we’ve ever see, with games moved, canceled, and heavily affected by COVID-19, the selection committee will still need to sort through varied resumés to build a 68-team bracket.

This will surely be the most difficult season for the committee to sort out, given the varying number of games played and players available for many teams. It could make the stretch run of the regular season, with recency bias in full affect, the most crucial piece of the season.

With that in mind, here are five teams in need of big wins over the next few weeks before conference tournaments begin.

Duke

As crazy as it may sound to casual basketball fans, the Blue Devils are squarely on the bubble. Former highly-ranked recruit Jalen Johnson has left the program to prepare for the NBA Draft.

Coach K’s team has responded to Johnson’s departure by winning its last four games. The Blue Devil offense has turned a corner, peaking with a dominant 1.36 points per possession performance at Wake Forest. Sophomore Matthew Hurt has risen to the challenge, posting 20.8 points per game and 66.7% 3-point shooting over that four-game stretch.

Duke’s schedule gives them a real chance to climb into the bracket. The Blue Devils have three more games scheduled, all against teams perched on the bubble: Louisville, Georgia Tech and North Carolina. Duke will control its own destiny, in what could be one of the most memorable, pressure-packed stretches of Coach K’s time on the sidelines in Durham.


Jan 6, 2021; Wichita State Shockers head coach Isaac Brown reacts after a play during the second half against the Houston Cougars at Fertitta Center.  Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Wichita State

Late last month, the Shockers were sitting at just 8-4, a far cry from the bubble. They only had one win over a top-100 team — a less-than-impressive Ole Miss squad. Since then, Wichita State has won five straight, and Mississippi stole wins over Missouri (twice) and Tennessee, improving the Shockers’ resumé.

Wichita State’s winning streak culminated in a victory over highly-ranked Houston. It was just the Cougars’ third loss all season and it placed the Shockers as the first team out of the tournament, per Bracket Matrix.

The Shockers schedule, however, does them no favors. Their final two regular season games will come on the road next week at Tulane and Temple. Both are high-risk, low-reward matchups for Wichita State. Neither would be a major resumé aid, but both could be losses.

The Shockers need to sweep both of those games, plus a run in the American Athletic Conference tournament. If they can reach the tourney final against Houston, with wins against fellow bubble teams like Memphis or SMU, that could be enough to earn a bid.


Feb 11, 2021; Stanford Cardinal head coach Jerod Haase reacts during the first half against the Colorado Buffaloes at Maples Pavilion.  Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports

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