Oregon Scores Big, Conferences Enter Season End

A few bubble teams scored good victories over the weekend, but the best win may have been Oregon's victory over Utah. That win puts the Ducks as the last team in today's bracket, joining North Carolina State, Purdue and a suddenly free-falling Texas team that lost to Iowa State to put them at 1-9 against the top 50. And with an RPI ranking dipping below 40, the Longhorns have played their way into a very precarious position. This could be a very telling week for Rick Barnes' team, as they have two road games against West Virginia and Kansas. One win should help. Lose both, and all of a sudden, you're looking at a 1-11 (possibly 1-12 depending on Stanford) record against the top 50.

This week also marks the final regular season week for some of the smaller conferences. A number of teams have clinched either the outright title or at least a share of the title and the top seed in the tournament. Those teams are: Iona (MAAC), North Carolina Central (MEAC), St. Francis (NY) (Northeast), Murray State (Ohio Valley), Gonzaga (West Coast) and New Mexico State (WAC). Gonzaga is obviously a lock for the NCAA Tournament, but the others have at least clinched an NIT berth, at worst, if they don't win their respective conference tournaments.

Now a look at the bracket and notable games this week, with just 20 days until Selection Sunday.

Last Four Byes: Texas A&M, LSU, St. John's, Stanford
Last Four In: North Carolina State, Texas, Purdue, Oregon
First Four Out: Tulsa, Miami (FL), UCLA, Boise State
Next Four Out: Davidson, Pittsburgh, Old Dominion, Massachusetts

Conference Rundown

Big Ten - 8
Big 12 - 7
ACC - 6
Big East - 6
SEC - 6
Pac 12 - 4
American Athletic - 3
Atlantic 10 - 2
Missouri Valley - 2
Mountain West - 2
One-bid leagues - 22

Notable Games

Monday

Louisville at Georgia Tech, 7:00, ESPN
Xavier at St. John's, 8:00, FOX Sports 1
Lamar at Stephen F. Austin, 8:00
Mississippi Valley State at Texas Southern, 8:30
Kansas at Kansas State, 9:00, ESPN

Tuesday

Wisconsin at Maryland, 7:00, ESPN
Providence at Villanova, 7:00, FOX Sports 1
Texas at West Virginia, 7:00, ESPN2
Kent State at Miami (OH), 7:00
Northern Illinois at Toledo, 7:00, ESPN
Central Michigan at Eastern Michigan, 7:00
LSU at Auburn, 7:00, ESPNU
Syracuse at Notre Dame, 8:00, ESPN3
North Carolina State at North Carolina, 8:00, ESPN3
Texas A&M at Arkansas, 9:00, ESPN
Boston College at Pittsburgh, 9:00, ESPNU
New Mexico at Boise State, 11:00, ESPNU

Wednesday

Kentucky at Mississippi State, 7:00, SEC Network
Virginia at Wake Forest, 7:00, ESPN3
VCU at Richmond, 7:00, ESPN2
Bucknell at Lehigh, 7:00
Colgate at Lafayette, 7:00
North Florida at Florida Gulf Coast, 7:00, ESPN3
George Mason at Dayton, 7:00
Davidson at Rhode Island, 7:00
Indiana at Northwestern, 7:00, Big Ten Network
Albany at UMBC, 7:00
Valparaiso at Detroit, 7:00, ESPN3
James Madison at UNC Wilmington, 7:00
Towson at William & Mary, 7:00
St. Joseph's at Massachusetts, 7:00
Wichita State at Indiana State, 7:05, ESPN3
UCF at Cincinnati, 7:30, CBS Sports Network
Marquette at Butler, 8:00, FOX Sports 1
Tulane at Tulsa, 8:00, ESPNEWS
Duke at Virginia Tech, 9:00, ESPN2
Evansville at Northern Iowa, 9:00
Baylor at Iowa State, 9:00, ESPNU
Florida State at Miami (FL), 9:00, ESPN3
San Jose State at Colorado State, 9:00
Illinois at Iowa, 9:00, Big Ten Network
Georgia at Ole Miss, 9:00, SEC Network
Washington at UCLA, 11:00, ESPN2
Oregon at California, 11:00, ESPNU

Thursday

Nebraska at Ohio State, 7:00, ESPN
Houston at Temple, 7:00, CBS Sports Network
Wofford at Mercer, 7:00, ESPN3
Charleston Southern at Gardner-Webb, 7:00
High Point at UNC Asheville, 7:00, ESPNU
St. Francis (NY) at LIU Brooklyn, 7:00
Minnesota at Michigan State, 7:00, Big Ten Network
Georgia Southern at Appalachian State, 7:30
North Dakota State at Oral Roberts, 8:00, ESPN3
UTEP at Louisiana Tech, 8:00
Old Dominion at Rice, 8:00
Eastern Illinois at Murray State, 8:00
Louisiana-Monroe at South Alabama, 8:05
Georgia State at Arkansas-Little Rock, 8:30
Arizona at Colorado, 9:00, ESPN
SMU at Memphis, 9:00, ESPN2
Rutgers at Purdue, 9:00, ESPNU
Montana State at Eastern Washington, 9:05
Montana at Idaho, 10:00
UC Davis at UC Santa Barbara, 10:00
Arizona State at Utah, 10:30, FOX Sports 1
San Diego at Gonzaga, 11:00, ESPN2
Oregon State at Stanford, 11:00, Pac 12 Network