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Entering Friday, Stanford was in the first four out of a number of bracket projections, including being the first team out in Lunardi’s. It was a fairly sparse schedule of games on Friday, so that more than likely didn’t change.
Stanford Wins Necessary: 3
As I’ve said before, the magic number for Stanford is 3 more wins, including Vegas. If they do that, they’ll have a strong chance at being in the field. But bid stealers are always a thing, so any help they can get could go a long way.
Quadrant Straddlers
UCLA is 76th in the NET. If they move to 75th, Stanford picks up another Quad 1 win
Oklahoma is 49th. They need to stay top 50 to be a Quad 1 win
Washington is 68th after their loss to WSU last night. They need to stay top 75 for the win in Seattle to be Quad 1
Oregon State is 71st. Stanford will have a Quad 1 opportunity next week in Corvallis, if they can stay top 75.
Cal is 137th. If they move to 135th, Stanford’s lone Quad 3 loss becomes a Quad 2 loss
Bubble Competitors
In alphabetic order:
Alabama, Arkansas, Cincinnati, East Tennessee State, Georgetown, Indiana, Liberty, Memphis, Mississippi State, NC State, Northern Iowa, Oklahoma, Providence, Purdue, Rhode Island, Richmond, Rutgers, South Carolina, UCLA, USC, Utah State, Wichita State, Xavier
There is room for roughly 10-12 of these 24 (including Stanford)
2/29 Rooting Guide
Root for the bolded teams
Providence vs Villanova
Providence has had a late surge to put themselves on the bubble. They’re in a similar position to Stanford, where every game is enormous.
Arizona State vs USC
At this point, ASU would have to nosedive to miss the field of 68. USC, on the other hand, is very vulnerable. A USC loss and a Stanford win would likely see the two teams flip flop in bracket projections.
Arizona vs UCLA
This one is confusing. UCLA is direct bubble competition for Stanford, so them winning could take a spot. But the numbers give a slight edge to a Bruin win, presumably because it would give Stanford an additional Q1 victory.
Oklahoma vs West Virginia
This is similarly confusing. Oklahoma losing could drop them below Stanford, but them winning would preserve one of the Cardinal’s Q1 wins. The numbers say this is roughly a tossup, but Oklahoma winning helps slightly more.
Texas A&M vs LSU
LSU is probably safely in, but their NET sits at 33, so what they do the rest of the way has a major bearing on the resumes of other teams. If they make the top 30, Alabama and others would have an extra Q1 win
Utah State vs New Mexico
The Aggies don’t have much margin for error. A loss here might move them to the wrong side of the bubble, and if not, certainly a second one would.
Drake vs Northern Iowa
Northern Iowa doesn’t show up on the bubble because they’re expected to win the Missouri Valley. But if they don’t win their tourney, the MVC could suddenly become a two bid league, which steals a spot from the bubble. Another UNI loss or two could change that, and turn it into a one-bid league regardless of who wins Arch Madness.
Western Carolina vs East Tennessee State
ETSU isn’t on the bubble, since they’re the presumed SoCon champ. Just like UNI, they need to lose a game or two to prevent the SoCon from having a shot at a bid stealer come tourney time
The Citadel vs Furman
This seems out there, but Furman is the second best team in the SoCon, and a road loss against them counts as a Quad 1 for bubble team ETSU. A loss to 338th ranked The Citadel might change that.
Lipscomb vs Liberty
Liberty has slim bubble hopes, but their gaudy record makes it possible. A loss to Lipscomb would end all that.
South Carolina vs Alabama
Both teams are bubble teams, but a road win would help South Carolina more than a home win would help Alabama (Q1 vs Q2).
Lamar vs Stephen F Austin
The Lumberjacks of SFA likely have no bubble hopes, but they’ve only lost 3 games this year and have a win at Cameron Indoor. A regular season loss to Lamar would destroy that sliver of slivers.
UMass vs Richmond
The Spiders are hanging on by a thread, so to speak. They’re a fellow member of the First Four Out
Pittsburgh vs NC State
NC State leapfrogged Stanford after they beat Duke, but a loss to Pitt would drop them back behind the Cardinal
Florida vs Tennessee
Florida might move to NET top 30 with a win, which would make a home game against them Q1. With multiple SEC teams on the bubble, a Vols win is better for Stanford
Utah vs Cal
If Cal wins today, they’ll likely convert Stanford’s lone Q3 loss into a Q2 loss, which would optically be huge.
Elon vs William & Mary
Marcus Sheffield plays for Elon, but Stanford would rather the Tribe win. W&M is 162nd, which puts them 2 spots away from jumping from a Q4 win to a Q3 win for Stanford.
San Francisco vs Loyola Marymount
This would help Stanford’s NET ever so slightly
Kansas vs Kansas State
Likewise, this has little bearing, but a KU win is slightly preferable
Saint Mary’s vs Gonzaga
SMC isn’t 100% safely in yet, but a win over Gonzaga would change that.
Memphis vs Tulane
The bubble may have already burst for the Tigers, but this would end it once and for all
Kentucky vs Auburn
Auburn sits at 27th in the NET, which makes a home game against them Q1. If they drop 4 spots, the SEC bubble teams take a hit
San Diego State vs Nevada
A Nevada win has a chance to move them into the top 75, which would be beneficial for teams who played them in Reno, including USC.
UNC Greensboro vs Chattanooga
A loss by UNCG would erase one of the two East Tennessee State Quad 1 wins