jayschool

Bottom line: We were done on Jan. 1 unless we could have done three things: 1) Finish the B1G regular season at 15-3 or better, with one of those wins would have been at Purdue or at Ohio State, as well as beating both PSU and Illinois on the road. 2) Finish the B1G regular season tied with MSU for first place at 16-2, meaning we would have had to go 15-1 over the final two months (we went 12-4). 3) Win the B1G tournament by beating Michigan, MSU and Purdue on three consecutive days. Tall order there.

MSU 76 NU 72 Uh, zero.

Yes.

I hope the Big 12 goes 0-7. I know that's not realistic, but I wouldn't be surprised if KU is the only team standing after the first weekend.

I know, right? Poor KU fan. So tired of the spectacle of playing several games a year in the Dance.

I broke my brain.

Last year, the road teams in the NIT went 8-7 in the first round of the tournament. Houston lost its game as the designated home team, but the game was played on a neutral court. Road teams went 5-3 in the second round, and they went 2-2 in the quarterfinals. So, in 27 games played on one team's home court, the visiting team won 15 and lost 12. Last year, Georgia Tech made it to New York as a No. 6 seed. In the first round, No. 3 seed Indiana declined to host an NIT game because it would "devalue" Assembly Hall, so Georgia Tech beat the Hoosiers in Atlanta. GT hosted the second round as well because No. 7 seed Belmont opened by winning at Georgia. Tech finally went on the road for the third round, beating No. 5 seed Mississippi, who had won two road games before succumbing in the third road game. TCU made it to New York as a No. 4 seed, winning two games at home and one on the road. UCF made it as a No. 4 seed, winning two games at home and one on the road. And Bakersfield made it to New York as a No. 8 seed, winning three straight road games at No. 1, No. 4 and No. 6. Let's go to New York.

None. Those teams' stock will drop like a rock with a home loss to a loser program like Nebraska.

He's already in the Dance. Next stop: G-League.

Actually, the third road game would likely be Louisville, the No. 2 seed, not MTSU, the No. 3 seed. Home records for the teams we'll likely have to beat to get to NYC: MSU 18-2 Baylor 14-4 Louisville 14-5

Based on this year's conference finishes, NU (the No. 4 seed in the conference tournament), could play a road game in the B1G/ACC challenge against UNC, Miami or NC State. Based on perception, we'll probably be headed to Pitt.

It would mean something to win five straight games in these projected matchups: at Mississippi State (SEC, genuflect, please) at Baylor (Big XII, genuflect, but keep your eye them; they're not to be trusted) at Middle Tennessee (hey, it's not Outer Tennessee) vs. Notre Dame in NYC (an ACC team in front of the Subway Alumni) vs. Southern Cal in NYC That is probably as difficult as KU's path to the NCAA Title game.

Of the 12 teams seeded below Nebraska in the 32-team NIT, 11 had to be invited because they won their regular season conference championship: Wagner won the NEC regular season but lost in the tournament; Hampton won the MEAC but lost in the tournament; SE Louisiana won the Southland; UNC Asheville won the Big South; Northern Kentucky won the Horizon; Florida Gulf Coast won the Atlantic Sun; Harvard won the Ivy; UC-Davis won the Big West; Louisiana won the Sun Belt; Vermont won the America East; and Rider won the MAAC. BYU DID NOT win the WCC, so they are the only team seeded below Nebraska not to earn an auto bid into the NIT. So we were definitely on the NIT bubble.

The moral of the story is you can lose a lot of games as long as you win a couple against "Quadrant One" teams. PSU did that. Or just crush November, as Oklahoma did.

If JPJ doesn't drain that last-second three against Illinois, we're in the CBI or sitting at home. Let that sink in.

We'll likely have to win three road games, PSU two. Not much chance at all.

I bitched on Facebook. Got this response from a friend at KU with whom I used to work.

According to the NIT, these teams had better seasons than the Big Ten's No. 4 seed, which finished 22-10 and 13-5 in the conference: Notre Dame 20-14 Penn State 21-13 Oregon 22-12 Marquette 19-13 Baylor 18-14 Mississippi State 22-11 Middle Tennessee 24-7 Louisville 20-13 USC 23-11 Western Kentucky 24-10 Stanford 18-15 Oklahoma State 19-14 St. Mary's 28-5 Boise State 23-8 LSU 17-14 Utah 19-11 These are our peers: 1. Temple 17-15 2. Boston College 19-13 3. Washington 20-12 The 6, 7, and 8 seeds are all from mid-majors and low-majors. In other words, we're the worst of the worst from the power conferences, having finished tied for fourth in the Big Ten. I have been living a delusion, doctor. Please increase my dose.

So 27-5 and 15-3 in the conference gets us to Dayton? Have we switched to the Mountain West?

How do you recruit to this shit? "Hey, son. Come to Nebraska, have our best season in a generation, and we'll get to go to God-forsaken Mississippi to play a first-round road game in the NIT."

Bullfuckingshit.

5 seed at Miss State

A no. 3 seed is guaranteed only one home game if the No. 2 seed also wins its first game. Oy.

You are right. But the very idea that Nebraska, at 22-10 and 13-5 in a power conference, probably had to go 26-8 and 14-4 just to sniff the bubble. That just sounds crazy, though, as you noted, it's probably true.

That and the cheating. Just think. Both Sean Miller and Kelvin Sampson are getting teams ready for the dance.