The bubble is weak. Historically weak even. But it has to have an exterior tough enough to prevent Clemson from penetrating it and bumbling into the NCAA Tournament.
The Tigers blew a 16-point halftime advantage over North Carolina State in the second round of the ACC Tournament. It should be the final death nail for Big Dance hopes.
Clemson, an 11-seed in our latest bracketology, now has the unfortunate distinction of going 1-10 against Quad 1 opponents. Add that to a 4-6 true road record and a non-conference SOS of 117 and you have a rather large woof.
The Tigers sat 34th in the latest NET rankings. My guess is they’ll be moved to either “last four in” or “first four out” in the serious bracket projectors’ important projections. They have hope, as long as precious few bids are stolen this week.
But just on a gut level, what kind of message does it send to put a team incapable of beating top teams into a tournament of top teams? Like, we know they can’t do it. Ten of eleven proves it. Should there really be a reward for such failure?
And, yes, this is an oversimplification. But it’s tough not to wonder if looking the other way, and giving Clemson additional chances when it matters, is the definition of insanity.
So go ahead, print this out. Surely the Tigers will sneak in and make an Elite 8 run. Classic March Madness right there, embracing the insanity and finally yielding different results.
