The Rutgers Scarlet Knights were a solid NCAA Tournament team one month ago, but they have now lost six of their last eight games, one of them being to a Minnesota Golden Gopher team which is 2-17 in the Big Ten this season. Rutgers would probably still be fine for the Big Dance if it had not blown a 10-point lead at Minnesota in the final 75 seconds last week. The Scarlet Knights really needed to beat Northwestern on Sunday to secure a bid.
Rutgers now moves to the Big Ten Tournament later this week. Early on Thursday — midday in the East, mid-morning in the West — the Scarlet Knights will play Michigan in a classic Championship Week bubble game. This is more of a “loser out” game than a “winner in” game, but if one team has a better chance of making the NCAA Tournament with a win, it’s Rutgers. Michigan really needs to beat Purdue in the quarterfinals to get in. Rutgers might be okay with a win over Michigan. It could lock up a bid by beating Purdue for a second time this season.
Rutgers is out with a loss. The Scarlet Knights absolutely have to win this game to make the field. USC is several notches ahead of Rutgers on the bubble. Only if Rutgers beats Purdue (after beating Michigan) would it have any chance of passing USC on the seed list.
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