Does any bubble team in the Pac-12 want an NCAA Tournament bid? It’s hard to find any takers at the moment. All four Pac-12 bubble teams are failing to get the job done, and the odds of a two-bid Pac-12 are rising by the day.
UCLA and Arizona are the only Pac-12 teams which have taken care of business this season. The conference, which badly needs revenue right now, needs more NCAA Tournament teams, but no one is stepping up to the plate.
The Oregon Ducks might have sealed their NIT fate on Wednesday night.
In a game delayed by 40 minutes due to net and scoreboard malfunctions in Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle, Oregon — leading 50-42 midway through the second half — fell apart down the stretch and lost to Washington in overtime, 72-71. The Ducks — who lost in Seattle last winter under very similar circumstances — could not afford to lose to an inferior team and eat a resume-damaging result. Yet, what did they do? They lost.
Oregon might not be 100-percent done in the hunt for an NCAA bid, since the bubble seems to be failing at every turn, but this much is certain: Oregon has to win each of its next six games to have a realistic chance of getting an at-large bid, and if it doesn’t do that, it’s hello to the NIT again for Dana Altman.
Ducks Wire wrote the following:
“The Ducks were close to pulling away from Washington midway through the second half, up 50-42 at one point, but they managed to hit only 1 of their next 9 shots, giving the Huskies a path to get back into the game and force overtime, From there, Washington was able to battle and pull out a hard-fought victory.”
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