Carolina must kick up its heels

Is the NCAA Tournament bubble shrinking? Getting bigger? Staying the same size as every season?

It depends who you play for. After Saturday, the bubble is not being terribly kind to the Atlantic Coast or Pac- 12. There’s time for all these teams – North Carolina and Arizona State, namely – to fix things, but the window of opportunity is closing.

WINNERS Auburn

The best way to get off the bubble is to earn a statement win. The Tigers did exactly that with their 79- 70 upset of No. 14 Tennessee – and they knew what was on the line. “We’re at the point right now where it’s win or go home, so nobody’s worrying about their stats,” said Wendell Green Jr., who led the Tigers with 24 points. “We just lost to Kentucky and Alabama so we knew we had to get a win.”

Southern Cal

A 68- 65 win over fellow bubble team Arizona State strengthens the Trojans’ argument, especially considering they controlled the game for more than 30 minutes ( admittedly, things got a little dicey in the final couple of minutes). The Trojans are about 15 spots ahead of ASU in the NET rankings, too. This means if the Pac- 12 is only destined to get three teams into the Big Dance, USC has a stronger case now; UCLA and Arizona are locks.

Oklahoma State

The best argument the Cowboys have going is that they play in the toughest basketball conference – every Big 12 team could probably win at least one NCAA Tournament game if they all got in. The second- best argument they have after Saturday is that they beat Texas Tech 71- 68. But OSU also needs a solid conference tournament to solidify its postseason plans.

LOSERS UNC

We’re nearing the one- year anniversary of UNC’s national semifinal win over its hated rival, which not only vaulted the Tar Heels to the championship game but ended the Hall of Fame career of Mike Krzyzewski. But that magic was nowhere to be found Saturday against the current Duke team. UNC lost 62- 57 in a game that was gritty but definitely not pretty – and keeps the Tar Heels squarely on the bubble.

Pitt

Poor Pitt. Despite being toward the top of the ACC standings, no one really believes in the Panthers. Miami did pretty much everything it could to lose on its Senior Day, but Pitt couldn’t take advantage, falling 78- 76. Fourteen conference wins seems solid; the problem is the ACC is flat- out bad and that could spell trouble if the Panthers make an early exit in the conference tournament.

Boise State

Losing to a team right next to you in the standings is not the way to the selection committee’s heart, which makes Boise State’s 86- 73 loss to Utah State a negative. The Broncos are likely still fine in terms of getting in but winning the Mountain West Conference Tournament would go a long way. Boise State is the No. 2 seed. Utah State, also a bubble team, is the No. 3 seed, and 19th- ranked San Diego State is the top seed and favorite to win.