Indiana Men’s Basketball Bracketology: Mediocre Bubble Keeping Hoosiers Alive

Despite losing eight of its last 10 games, Indiana is still on the NCAA Tournament bubble.

Indiana Hoosiers forward Malik Reneau (5) consoles forward Mackenzie Mgbako (21) after a missed shot at the end of the second half against the UCLA Bruins at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – One of the tropes in adventure films and TV shows is the person-hanging-from-cliff bit.

Famous characters from Indiana Jones to Wile E. Coyote have achieved fame from hanging-from-cliff scenes.

If you include variants like hanging-from-plane or hanging-off-building, you would be hard pressed to find a James Bond film where this brush with death isn’t included as part of the adventure.

Movies turn to this well-worn bit of derring do because it’s dramatic, even if the hero almost always gets saved and the villains almost always fall.

Indiana basketball is neither hero nor villain, but this is its existence as far as the NCAA Tournament is concerned. The Hoosiers are hanging from a cliff.

While it has lost eight of their last 10 games, Indiana is somehow not out of NCAA Tournament consideration.

Indiana’s case is not strong. In his Tuesday bracketology update, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has Indiana at the top of his next four out. Jerry Palm of CBS Sports had Indiana as one of his first four teams out.

Indiana’s continued appearances on the bubble demonstrate the softness of the teams at the bottom of the bracket. Indiana still has a chance to make the tournament even though the Hoosiers are 57th in the NCAA’s NET rankings and 2-11 in Quad 1 games.

That’s because some of their fellow bubble schools have similarly unimpressive resumes. Georgia is 2-10 in Quad 1 games. Wake Forest is 2-6, North Carolina is 1-10, Xavier is 1-8, Villanova is 1-5 and SMU is 0-4. The inability of any of the bubble teams to break out is keeping Indiana alive.

Indiana did some of its own positive work, too. The 71-67 win at No. 11 Michigan State last Tuesday was the best win of the season for the Hoosiers by a large margin.

It was timely, too. Penn State’s plunge to the bottom of the Big Ten finally dropped the Nittany Lions out of the NET top 75. Because Indiana’s 77-71 win at Penn State on Jan. 2 was considered a true road win – even though it was played at the Palestra in Philadelphia – that had been Indiana’s only Quad 1 win for a long time.

Given the level of mediocrity on the bubble, Indiana is still in position to put itself on the right side of the bubble if it can garner some key wins. A home win against Purdue on Sunday and/or a road win at Oregon on March 4 would greatly improve Indiana’s resume.

Indiana’s coaches haven’t lost sight of reaching the NCAA Tournament.

“Our goal is still to make it to the NCAA tournament,” Indiana assistant coach Kenya Hunter said on Monday’s Inside Indiana Basketball radio show.

“If coach (Mike) Woodson would have been to the tournament three out of the four years here in Indiana. When is the last time that has been done?” Hunter asked.

“Last year, we had injuries throughout that hampered us (and) it still was very close to making a tournament. That's a hell of an accomplishment for (Woodson) and that's the way we would like to send them out.”

Hunter is in a position where he has to hope Indiana victories represent a life-saving rope. The alternative is for the twig to snap and send Indiana to postseason oblivion.

Related stories on Indiana basketball

• SCOTT DREW PROFILE: He turned Baylor into a national power, but would he come to Indiana? CLICK HERE.

• THE CASE FOR NATE OATS: Alabama coach Nate Oats has the chops, but Alabama has made it very expensive to get Oats. CLICK HERE.

• MID-MAJOR COACHES: There are success stories and cautionary tales alike when schools like Indiana have pursued this route. CLICK HERE

• STEVENS WON'T COACH INDIANA: Brad Stevens is content to stay in Boston and continue to lead the Celtics organization. CLICK HERE.

• MICK CRONIN COACHING PROFILE: UCLA coach Mick Cronin has an impressive resume and would cultivate toughness within the Indiana basketball program. Is a hefty buyout at a historic program enough to keep him in Los Angeles? CLICK HERE

• BRUCE PEARL COACHING PROFILE: The Auburn coach has the No. 1 team in the nation and once coached in the state of Indiana. Pearl's winning ways make him attractive. CLICK HERE

• DUSTY MAY NEW CONTRACT? Michigan is reportedly working on keeping basketball coach Dusty May in Ann Arbor to counter interest from Indiana, his alma mater. CLICK HERE