Bubble, bubble, bubble, baby! I hear that word everywhere I go these days! I was sitting at my favorite breakfast place, the Broken Egg, and 10 people must have asked me about their team being on the bubble!
So many teams are on the bubble, making this week's conference tournaments so, so vital. I really feel that the NCAA tournament selection committee, led by chairman Tom O'Connor (the George Mason athletic director), has its most difficult assignment in all of my 29 years at ESPN.
I will tell you one team that has taken itself off the bubble and played its way into the big dance and that's Ohio State. Thad Matta's kids did a great job by beating a pair of ranked teams, Purdue and Michigan State. With 19 wins and a 10-8 league record, I say the Buckeyes are in, baby!
I am tired of hearing people say that Kentucky is not getting in. Yes, you can point to the earlier losses to Gardner-Webb and San Diego, and the 6-7 record in non-conference play. What about the way this team regrouped to finish 12-4 in the SEC. I know there are some detractors that say that league is down this season. Still, it is one of the top six conferences in America. The VBDI (Vitale Bald Dome Index) says big blue fans should relax as five wins (Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Mississippi and Florida) help them.
My friends, the Wildcats will go to the big dance. I know Bruce Pearl has done a phenomenal job at Tennessee, but the way Billy Gillispie has rallied Kentucky, he would be my choice for SEC Coach of the Year.
Speaking of the bubble, Virginia Commonwealth was upset by William and Mary in the Colonial Athletic Association semifinals. Anthony Grant's team belongs in the tournament because it won 24 games this season, as well as the league's regular-season title. The Rams went 9-2 in their final 11 games, and they have wins over a couple of other bubble teams, Houston and Maryland. Unfortunately VCU will be sweating this one out.
The committee will have some interesting decisions in mid-major conferences. Does the Sun Belt deserve two bids with South Alabama and Western Kentucky have good resumes? You know a lot of schools are rooting for favorites like Butler, Gonzaga and Davidson to win their conference tournaments because they will be in the big dance. If they lose, bubble teams will fall away.
Some other big names are sweating. Arizona's streak of 23 straight years in the tourney is on the line. The Wildcats played one of the toughest schedules in America. At 8-10 in the Pac-10, which I feel was the best conference in America this season, plus a sweep of Washington State, gives Kevin O'Neill's team a shot to make it.
Maryland has played its way into a precarious position with its loss at Virginia. The Terps, 8-8 in the ACC, still have a shot to dance but it will take wins over Boston College and Clemson in the ACC tournament.
I believe Kansas State and Michael Beasley played its way into the tournament by winning its last two games. Frank Martin's team could meet Texas A&M in the Big 12 quarterfinals in an interesting matchup.
Syracuse got a raw deal last season after going 10-6 in Big East play. The Orange are legitimately on the bubble after a great win over Marquette. Jim Boeheim's team can help its cause in the Big East tournament first round battle against Villanova. The Wildcats are trying to claw their way into the field too. Maybe there will be payback for what happened last year. Syracuse went 9-9 in the Big East, one of the toughest conferences in America.
Wow, it is a wacky time of the year. There is excitement galore, baby!
Dick Vitale coached the Pistons and the University of Detroit before broadcasting ESPN's first college basketball game in December 1979. Send him a question for possible use on ESPNEWS.
