by BirdmanBB » January 9th, 2012, 3:08 pm
I think the assumption at this point is that there could be a 3rd team from the valley getting in via the autobid or potentially quality in conference wins. I wonder if Lunardi's projections take into account an added boost from the bracketbuster. I know realtime doesn't even factor that in yet because they aren't scheduled.
Right now, the reality is that we have 8 teams in the top 150 and almost 7 of those teams are top 100. Having almost 4 teams who are top 50, there is potential for at least a 3rd team to come up with a good looking resume. Right now UNI and MSU are contenders for that, but there is still time for a team like Indiana St. to make a move into the top 50 from conference play and have some decent wins outside of the conference to go with it.
Not that we have a chance at an at-large, but It really sucks for us (ISUr), because outside of the loss to SIU (254), we have wins over Norfolk St. (61), UNI (24), @MSU (57). We thought the loss to UNC-W (103) at home was bad, but they are going on a nice streak now in conference play. Rutgers, who we beat in cancun recently got two big wins over ranked teams (Florida, Uconn). It would take a lot for us to get into the conversation, but not out of the question. This week is probably our biggest challenge of the season (@WSU, vs. CU). Again, not that it would happen, but I would think that a split against WSU and CU this year along with a win over a solid Bracketbuster team at home could get us a look. At the end of the day, I would hope that any team who is 3-4 vs. top 50 would get a look.
That scenario is hypothetically speaking, but it has potential to apply for quite a few teams in the valley. This is why 3 teams could be a reality. Again, it's going to take a 3rd team to step up and get those quality in conference wins from a couple of teams who are figured to be in.