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UK Athletics[/caption]
We are less than 24 hours away from the NCAA Tournament Selection Show, and the BatCats are in a good position to make the field of 64. There have not been many stolen bids across the country as projected at-large teams won their conference tournaments. As we move closer to knowing the fate of UK, take a look at how the Cats' resume compares to other bubble teams.
Kentucky's Resume
Record (Conference): 34-22 (13-18)
RPI and SOS: 32, 25
Record vs Top 25: 8-10
Record vs Top 26-100: 13-10
Record vs 101-200+: 13-2
The one factor that would keep UK out of the NCAA Tournament would be their lack of conference wins. Time will tell if the selection committee gives UK the benefit of the doubt because of their difficult conference schedule. The Cats have five wins against teams in the RPI top ten, including series wins against Georgia and Texas Tech. D1 Baseball's Kendall Rogers said this morning that UK was in, but it will be close thanks to their conference record.
Illinois
Record (Conference): 32-20 (18-12)
RPI and SOS: 47,47
Record vs Top 25: 2-2
Record vs Top 26-100: 11-11
Record vs 101-200+: 19-7
The Illini have several good wins outside of Big Ten play, but they lack that huge win over a highly-ranked opponent. Prior to the Big Ten Tournament, Illinois was one of the last five teams in D1 Baseball's projected field. The Illini did not do too much to help their case as they went 2-2 in the tournament with a pair of wins against Indiana.
Arizona
Record (Conference): 34-22, 14-16
RPI and SOS: 46,46
Record vs Top 25: 5-6
Record vs Top 26-100: 9-9
Record vs 101-200+: 20-7
The 2012 National Champions are on the bubble for 2018. Arizona took two of three from Oregon this weekend to save their season. A pair of series wins this season over Oregon State and UCLA helped to boost Arizona's RPI to what it is today.
Troy
Record (Conference): 41-18 (19-11)
RPI and SOS: 37, 93
Record vs Top 25: 4-7
Record vs Top 26-100: 7-8
Record vs 101-200+: 30-3
The Trojans lost in the Sun Belt Tournament but should be safe in the field of 64. Troy has some good wins and the Sun Belt is a solid conference. I like the Trojans to get into the tournament as a three seed.
Washington
Record (Conference): 30-23 (20-10)
RPI and SOS: 63, 44
Record vs Top 25: 7-6
Record vs Top 26-100: 7-5
Record vs 101-200+: 16-12
If you had asked me last week if the Huskies were in, I probably would have said no. U-Dub took two of three against Stanford this weekend and were one win away from winning the PAC-12 outright. The RPI isn't there, but the rest of their resume stacks up pretty well.
Northeastern
Record (Conference): 36-19 (20-8)
RPI and SOS: 35, 69
Record vs Top 25: 1-7
Record vs Top 26-100: 8-9
Record vs 101-200+: 27-3
Northeastern is in the same boat as UNC Greensboro, Troy, and many other teams that were upset in their conference tournament. Thanks to four losses in five games against UNC Wilmington in the regular season and SOCON tournament, Northeastern is back on the bubble.
Central Florida
Record (Conference): 35-21 (13-10)
RPI and SOS: 43, 36
Record vs Top 25: 6-10
Record vs Top 26-100: 16-9
Record vs 101-200+: 13-2
The Knights should try to claim the 2018 AAC Tournament Title since they didn't actually win that either. UCF went 0-2 in their conference tournament and dropped to the bubble. The RPI and SOS will help UCF, but ten conference losses hurts their resume.
We will know who is in and who is out this time tomorrow. Tune in at noon ET on ESPNU tomorrow for the Selection Show.
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