The Teams That Can Burst Your Bubble - Brendan Darr's Blog

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Brendan Darr's Blog

The Teams That Can Burst Your Bubble Stuck

Posted on March 15, 2013 at 06:58 PM.

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Oh, Virginia. You just couldn't make it easy on yourself on Friday afternoon losing to North Carolina State. Now you join the likes of Middle Tennessee State and Baylor in a grueling 48 hour process in which you won't sleep.

It's like Spring Break in Cancun, but you're held in a Mexican prison for 48 hours. Essentially, the bubble is hell.

SATURDAY MORNING UPDATE: Well, 3 of the 4 survived Friday night, so those of you on the bubble will have to pay extra attention to Southern Miss vs. Memphis today at 11:30 am. Alabama vs. Florida is at 1 and Maryland faces off against North Carolina State at 3.

SATURDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: Southern Miss put up a hell of a fight against Memphis in double overtime, but didn't have enough in the end. Alabama fell to Florida in their SEC semifinal. Maryland and UNC should tip-off around 3:50-4:00 today now.

Without further ado, here are the four teams that will could keep you from hearing your name called on Sunday during the selection show.

1) Maryland

21-11 overall, 8-10 in the ACC. RPI: 77

Signature Wins: Duke (H), NC State (H)

Damning Losses: Georgia Tech (A), Boston College (A)

Why they can burst your bubble: They have a top-five pick in Alex Len and a dynamic wing in Dez Wells. They also have a deadly shooter in Logan Aronhalt off the bench. They know they can beat Duke, but can they put enough impressive performances together to win the ACC Tournament?

2) Iowa -- Eliminated by Michigan State

21-11 overall, 9-9 in the Big Ten. RPI: 72

Signature Wins: Wisconsin (H), Iowa State (H)

Damning Losses: Virginia Tech (A), Nebraska (A), Purdue (A)

Why they could burst your bubble: Unlike Maryland, they don't necessarily have to win the Big Ten tournament to make it in. The Hawkeyes, while soft on signature wins, could find themselves on the right side of the bubble with a win over Michigan State in the Quarterfinals and a win over (likely) Ohio State in the Semifinals.

3) Alabama -- Eliminated by Florida

20-11 Overall, 12-6 in the SEC. RPI: 61

Signature Wins: Kentucky (With Nerlens Noel at home), Villanova (N)

Damning Losses: Dayton (H), Mercer (H), Tulane (H), Auburn (A)

Why they can burst your bubble: Really, the only chance they have is winning the SEC. However, with how unpredictable and wide-open the SEC is, they have a shot. After beating Tennessee today, Anthony Grant's team is in a position to steal a bid with a victory over Florida on Saturday and a win on Sunday to burst someone's bubble.

4) Southern Miss -- Eliminated by Memphis in Double Overtime

24-8 overall, 12-4 in CUSA. RPI: 35

Signature Wins: None

Damning Losses: Marshall (A)

Why they can burst your bubble: They don't even have to win their tournament to be considered for a spot. In reality, all they have to do is play a close game against Memphis in the CUSA Championship and they could still be an outside contender for a spot. They have a high RPI, only one embarrassing loss, and they'll have 26 wins.

It's going to be a long 48 hours for some of these teams, and if any of these four can pull off what looks to be a long-shot, the likes of Virginia, MTSU and Baylor are going to be sweating even harder.

For more, follow Brendan Darr on Twitter and leave your comment below if you think any of these teams can burst your bubble!