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Two weeks ago, Central Connecticut State held onto its spot in the Watch by a slim 23 votes. This week, the Blue Devils couldn't hold on despite continuing the nation's longest winning streak.
But take heart Nutmeg State fans, the Watch has noticed something special happening in your neck of the woods. Connecticut could send as many as four teams into the NCAA -- three of whom could become this year's Cinderella. You already know all about Central Connecticut State, and the Huskies of UConn are no Cinderella. But a certain Ivy League school from New Haven is making history, while the state's capital is home to another up-and-comer -- the Hawks of Hartford.
Yale joins the Watch, taking the place of Central Connecticut, and not just because it's from Connecticut. The Elis are poised to end Princeton's and Penn's run of Ivy titles, and play both over the next 48 hours for what is shaping up as two days to decide the Ivy League's spot in the NCAA Tournament. Hartford, meanwhile, is the sleeper in America East with a sub-.500 overall record, but 10-4 mark in conference play.
The other change on the Watch involves two teams who've come and gone and come again. Southern Illinois replaced Butler, which lost at Loyola-Chicago. I was willing to give the Bulldogs the benefit of the doubt, but losing this late to a team like Loyola-Chicago is a red flag. Especially after beating the Ramblers by 30 at home last month. This time, Butler didn't get on the scoreboard until five minutes into the game and never recovered. And, combined with last week's narrow win at Green Bay, the Bulldogs are clearly not playing their best when it matters most.
It's also clear we should be keeping a closer look at UW-Milwaukee, which after all, now stands even with the Bulldogs in the loss column with two regular-season games to play. Remember, the Panthers were 5-7 heading into Horizon play, but have now won 10 of 14 conference games and three of those losses have come by a combined six points, including a one-point setback at Butler. All this adds up to a dangerous team in the Horizon tournament.
To view last week's vote results and read e-mails sent in last week in support of teams not on the Watch this week, click here. For those still new to the Watch, where have you been? But, here is how it works: ESPN.com picks eight teams each week leading up to the NCAA Tournament. Teams can move off the Watch for three reasons:
1. Promotion: The team moves from being a Cinderella story to a favorite. Call it the "Gonzaga Rule."
2. Demotion: The team plays so poorly its status of making the tourney is in jeopardy. You can't be a Cinderella if you don't go to the dance.
3. The poll: In the spirit of democracy, the lowest vote-getter each week is removed from the Watch, no questions asked.
But be sure to follow along each week, these lists tend to change quite frequently. And, as always, we want your thoughts, compliments or gripes about this week's Watch. Click here to submit an e-mail. We'll post the best user responses with each week's Cinderella Watch.
Here is this week's list of teams we're watching. The RPI rankings are from Feb. 22 and team records are through Feb. 21 games.
"This one means more than anyone of the others." That's what Hawaii head coach head coach Riley Wallace said after the Warriors' win over Tulsa on Thursday night in the Stan Sheriff Center. Well, he may change his mind if the Warriors continue their current path toward the NCAA Tournament. The scene was unique to say the least on the island. And a sell-out crowd of 10,300, dressed in white and waving good luck ti leaves saw quite a game. The game featured 11 ties and 16 lead changes as no team took more than a seven-point lead throughout the night. Hawaii now leads Tulsa by a game in the WAC, and both teams are solid at-large candidates no matter how things turn out next month in Tulsa at the WAC tournament.
Belive it or not, the Golden Flashes did something they've never done since joining the MAC for the 1951-52 season -- win a regular-season championship. Kent's 116-76 rout of Marshall, combined with Ball State's loss at Western Michigan, clinched the title for the Golden Flashes, who have won two of the past three MAC tournament titles. And that's what Kent certainly wants to do again this season, taking any at-large decision out of the committee's hands. Still, its fourth straight 20-win campaign would be tough for the committee to ignore should Kent become the latest No. 1 seed to lose in the MAC madness. Three games remain for Kent, which should enter the postseason on a 15-game run if all things go according to plan.
Pepperdine ran into a Kennel of rabid fans, not to mention a pretty decent club, and saw its 13-game winning streak snapped at Gonzaga. Time to start a new one. The Waves won't be penalized for losing to the No. 8 team in the country, and should get another shot at the Zags in the WCC tournament if both take care of business in San Diego. Speaking of San Diego, the Toreros are a potential spoiler in the postseason tournament, but come into Malibu on Friday night. Think the Waves will be ready?
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SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
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 Record
22-6 Overall
12-4 MVC
RPI
No. 54
Marquee Win
Indiana, 72-60
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The Salukis have proven they can beat Creighton. Now, they have to prove they belong in the NCAAs. It may take the MVC's automatic bid to get there, which may mean a third victory over the Bluejays. The ironic scenario, however, is Creighton could still beat the Salukis in the MVC tournament title game and receive the only bid to the dance, despite two losses to the SIU. But, first things first, and that's giving the Salukis credit for gutting out another tight win over Creighton. Kent Williams' clutch 3-point shooting down the stretch allowed the Salukis to escape with their 12th straight win at home after trailing by 11 at halftime. Creighton still leads the conference by a game and should still claim the regular-season title. Without that title, SIU needs the committee to recognize its impressive non-conference performances if the automatic bid goes elsewhere.
I thought Thursday night's WAC clash would remove one team from the Watch. Well, I was wrong. Tulsa still deserves this spot. The Hurricane, however, finish the season on the road and a stumble at San Jose or Rice would be tough to look past here or on Selection Sunday. It shouldn't happen, but tell that to the Spartans, who knocked off Hawaii already in Northern California. If Tulsa can get back to the Reynolds Center unscathed, it will be tough to beat in the WAC tournament. Tulsa finished 11-2 at home with an average winning margin of over 20 points. Hawaii got one of those wins on the 'Cane's court, while Arkansas won by four in Tulsa's third game of the season.
Not much new to say about the Aggies, who beat UC Riverside at home in their only action of the week. It was win No. 20 in the record books, but only No. 19 in the eyes of the committee. Still, the Aggies are in good shape to get back to the dance. Technically a half-game behind the Anteaters in the Big West, the Aggies and Zots split their regular-season meetings (each winning on the other's home court) and both have three conference losses. Utah State has three games it should win remaining until the postseason tournament, where UC Irvine awaits in a likely final showdown for the automatic bid. Utah State's RPI remains high, despite playing in one of the lower RPI conferences in the country. But, the Aggies can't afford to count on an at-large bid, so winning its third straight Big West tournament is a good idea.
Was it something I said? Last week, I mentioned Chris Marcus' sub-par numbers in a couple wins. Well, hellow Mr. Marcus! All the big fella did last week was score 32 points and grab 15 rebounds in a 100-point effort by the Hilltoppers against Kentucky State. OK, so State is a Division II school. But still, it's nice to see Marcus getting his feet back under him. The nine-point outing three days earlier against North Texas could still be cause for concern, but I'm being picky. The Hilltoppers are poised to take quite a streak into the NCAA Tournament. WKU has won a nation's best 14 straight games and after some new math, could be riding an 18-gamer when it matches up with its first potential "victim".
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YALE
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Record
17-7 Overall
9-1 Ivy
RPI
No. 115
Marquee Win
Clemson, 68-65
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The next two nights could decide the Ivy League championship, and look who controls things -- the Elis. A surprise to be where they are to say the least, Yale travels to perennial Ivy powers Princeton and Penn on Friday and Saturday looking to not only sweep both, but also earn its first NCAA Tournament berth in 40 years. Ah, but no Ivy team has swept Penn and Princeton on the road since Yale did it 15 years ago. Still, the Bulldogs are on a seven-game winning streak -- the school's longest in 20 years -- and certainly control their own NCAA destiny. Princeton is a game back, while Penn sits two games off the pace. The Ivy is the only Division I conference without a postseason tournament, so its clear the next 48 hours will go a long way toward determining the Ivy's bid. With two wins, Yale clinches at least a tie for the league championship with games at home against Harvard and Dartmouth to end the season. Penn and Princeton clash in the season finale. Two losses doesn't end Yale's chances, just brings a possible playoff to determine who receives the league's automatic NCAA bid into the picture.
Ron Buck is the college basketball editor at ESPN.com.
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