NCAA Tournament Bubble Watch: 5 Teams That Need Help

Gonzaga Bulldogs

Another top flight team that just happens to be in a mid-major conference, Gonzaga hasn’t been as strong as they have in the last few years. While they’re still a good team, they don’t have the marquee non-conference wins that would put them over the top for an at-large bid.

Lunardi had the Zags as an 8-seed before Saturday’s loss at SMU. CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm had them as a 12-seed (some disparity there, no?) and that was a drop down for the Bulldogs.

History is on Gonzaga’s side, and while they’ll never admit it, the tournament selection committee does tend to favor teams with a strong history.

The numbers, however, do not favor the Zags.

ESPN’s RPI rankings has Gonzaga at 61. That’s just ninth among all mid-majors (one bid conferences). The West Coast Conference is technically — according to my tiers of conferences — not a mid-major, but since they’re likely to get just one team in the field this year, they’re on par with the other mid-majors.

Much like Wichita State, the WCC’s RPI isn’t going to do them any favors as it is ranked 14th, or seventh among just mid-major conferences.

For the Zags, they’ll need some teams right with them on the seed line to drop down. Looking at Lunardi’s bracket, that means Colorado, Connecticut and Pittsburgh would all need to stumble. Pitt’s loss at North Carolina on Sunday helps, but it’s a road loss against a better team, so it won’t help too much.

Next: LSU