Robbery

Theft is a good word to describe what is happening to the at-large hopes of some bubble teams in college basketball tonight. Upsets are happening in conference tournaments all over the country, taking bids away from teams that would otherwise be headed for the NCAA tournament.

The WAC will have an extra team in the tournament, as Nevada was upset tonight by Utah State, 79-77. There is a really good chance the Utah Aggies will have to play the New Mexico Aggies in the final, as the tournament is being held on New Mexico State's homecourt.

The Atlantic 10 tournament is always unpredictable. That is to be expected from a league which really has 14 teams, and extends to Ohio and Missouri. This year is no exception. Tonight, regular season champion Xavier was knocked off by Rhode Island, 79-71. Rhode Island will play the St. Louis-George Washington winner for a trip to the Big Dance.

Weird things are happening in the SEC, also. Mississippi State and Arkansas are set to play in one semifinal. Overwhelming favorite Florida will take on the winner of LSU-Ole Miss in the other. There are a lot of bubble teams out there rooting for Florida this weekend.

If I were connected with Drexel, Old Dominion, Stanford, West Virginia, Missouri State, or Air Force, I would be sweating bullets this weekend.

Stay tuned for more blogging on Championship Week. This is my favorite basketball week of the year!