Saturday games to keep an eye on:
Cincinnati 20-8 (10-5) @ East Carolina 11-17 (3-12): Everything about Cincy's resume is mediocre. RPI is 60. They do have a sweep of fellow conference bubbler UConn up their sleeve, though. A loss to ECU would result in a bubble pop. A win won't do anything, but it will keep the Bearcats alive. Lunardi has Cincy in his "Last Four In", while Palm has them "First Four Out".
Butler 18-9 (7-8) @ Georgetown 14-14 (7-8): RPI 65. Butler is Lunardi's last team in. Palm has them as a 10 (seems too high). Butler's remaining schedule is comprised of games like this one: opponents good enough to beat them, but not good enough to result in any major changes to their resume.
Temple 17-10 (11-4) vs UCF 11-15 (5-10): RPI 57. Temple stands a good chance of being the 1 seed in the AAC Tournament (SMU ineligible). The Owls are currently seen as an 11 seed. Remaining schedule is UCF, Memphis, and Tulane. Can't drop any of those.
VCU 20-8 (12-3) @ George Washington 21-7 (10-5): RPI: GW 48, VCU 63. Double bubble. VCU is coming off a disastrous loss to George Mason which has likely knocked them out of the field for the time being (Palm has VCU "First Four Out"). George Washington also has a collection of puzzling losses to go with solid wins, also placing them as "First Four Out" in both Lunardi and Palm's brackets. Both sides desperately need this one.
Syracuse 18-10 (8-7) vs NC State 14-14 (4-11): RPI: 59. Currently seen as holding one of the final byes. Case's remaining schedule is tricky: @ UNC, @ FSU. A 1-2 finish to the regular season is likely. A loss to NCSU would be a disaster, but as long as Cuse can get another win or two between now and the selection, they'll be in.
Providence 19-9 (7-8) vs DePaul 9-18 (3-12): RPI 42. The Friars are just 2-6 since their win at Villanova. They'll fallen quite a ways from the team that cracked the top 10 in January. As long as they don't do anything stupid, they'll be fine. Remaining games are DePaul, Creighton, St. John's. They'll be in as long as they can avoid anymore horrendous losses (easier said than done for a team that has already managed to lose to DePaul this season).
St. Bonaventure 19-7 (11-4) vs UMass 12-15 (5-10): RPI 36. Palm's last team in, Lunardi's "First Four Out". It's going to come down to the wire for the Bonnies, but if they finish the regular season 3-0 (UMass, St. Joseph's, St. Louis) and have a decent A10 Tournament, they'll be in. Anything less than that and it gets extremely dicey.
Vanderbilt 17-11 (9-6) vs #16 Kentucky 21-7 (11-4): RPI 56. Vandy won at Florida to keep their hopes alive. Lunardi has Vandy "Last Four In", Palm "First Four Out". This may well be the game that determines Vandy's fate. The SEC only offers so many chances for decent wins.
Alabama 16-11 (7-8) vs Auburn 11-16 (5-10): RPI 52. The Tide need to win their remaining 3 (Auburn, Arkansas, Georgia) and have a strong SEC Tournament
Gonzaga 22-7 (14-3) vs BYU 22-8 (13-4): RPI 69. The Zags have wins over UConn and Washington to their name, and that's about it. Everything about their resume is mediocre. Gonzaga should be planning to take the auto-bid route, even with a win at BYU.
Florida 17-11 (8-7) @ LSU 16-12 (9-6): RPI 44. Gators are likely still in the field as of now, but they've dropped 3/4. LSU, Kentucky, and Missouri remain. They'd be wise to pick up a win against LSU or Kentucky and not do anything stupid against Mizzou. And I know at least one person is reading this going "BUT WAT ABOUT LSU AND BEN SIMMONS". LSU's RPI is 91. No.
St. Mary's 23-4 (14-3) @ San Francisco 15-13 (8-9): RPI 55. If St. Mary's wins, they're the regular season WCC champ. The resume is such that it gets dicey if they don't get the auto-bid. OOC they've got a win over Stanford to their name, and that's it. They've swept Gonzaga, but that doesn't carry anything close to the weight it usually does (Gonzaga's RPI is 69). St. Mary's will be right on the fence if they lose in the WCC Tournament