Bubble guru Andy Glockner says Notre Dame’s win over UConn yesterday gives the Irish some much-needed “wiggle room” — and means UConn is in “a lot of trouble”:
Notre Dame (20-10, 9-8, RPI: 61, SOS: 54): The Irish’s unexpected push without Luke Harangody continued on Wednesday with a so-ugly-it’s-beautiful home win over bubble rival UConn. Now even if the Irish can’t get it done at Marquette in the finale, they have guaranteed a .500 league finish and have a shot to pick up a couple more wins (and KO some bubble contenders) in New York next week. …
Connecticut (17-13, 7-10, RPI: 49, SOS: 2): The Huskies have beaten three top-10 teams (yes, Texas has faded badly), but also have 13 losses and a 7-10 Big East record after losing at Notre Dame on Wednesday. Winning at USF on Saturday is now mandatory, but how many more in a row will be needed in the Big East tournament? Feels like three.
ESPN’s Mark Schlabach points out that UConn played the country’s second-toughest schedule, while Notre Dame’s non-conference slate is ranked #224, so that explains why the 17-13, 7-10 Huskies are only a hair behind the 20-10, 9-8 Irish in the pecking order, and that only because of a head-to-head result yesterday.
Anyway, with USC out of contention due to Mayo-gate, and Notre Dame left for dead at midwinter, I had figured Gonzaga was the only one of “my” top three teams — Trojans, Zags, Irish — with a realistic tourney shot this year. Suddenly, it looks like I might get two out of three. Now I just have to hope they aren’t matched up in the first round: currently, Lunardi has Gonzaga as a #5 seed, Notre Dame as a #11. If either team slips a seed line, it could be Brendan Loy First-Round Armageddon.