Saturday’s Bubble Watch Action: UConn At USF Highlight Of A Busy Day

Many conferences wrap up their regular seasons this weekend, while others have already jumped into tournament play. That means Saturday is a particularly busy day for the teams fighting for the last few spots in the NCAAs.

Team statuses are based on my Saturday morning bracket.

If a team’s name appears as a link, click it to visit that school’s SB Nation blog for more coverage and analysis.

Three of these four are in action, with the Rams and Aztecs visiting opponents they can’t afford to lose to. UAB, meanwhile, would take a huge step back if they were swept by the Miners, considering Memphis already broke out the brooms against the Blazers this week.

Rhode Island at Massachusetts, 4 p.m. ET (Cox Sports New England)

San Diego State at Air Force, 9 p.m. ET (the mtn.): You can read more about this one at our Mountain West Connection blog.

UAB at UTEP, 9 p.m. ET (no TV)

Each team from this group is in action, with the Huskies and Bulls playing what amounts to an elimination game in Tampa.

Connecticut at South Florida, 2 p.m. ET (Big East Network/Full Court): Which UConn team shows up? The one that looked like world beaters against Villanova or West Virginia or the one that struggled mightily Wednesday at Notre Dame?

Mississippi at Arkansas, 4 p.m. ET (SEC Network/Full Court): The Rebels didn’t slip up against LSU Thursday, but they need to finish strong on the road.

Tennessee at Mississippi State, 6 p.m. ET (ESPN): The Bulldogs can grab a win against one of the SEC’s true powers before heading to Nashville for the conference tourney.

All four of these teams are in search for another win to move up the chain.

Tulsa at Memphis, 1 p.m. ET (CBS College Sports): The Tigers look to continue their recent good work in C-USA and potentially sew up the two seed in the league tourney to be held in Tulsa.

UCLA at Arizona State, 4 p.m. ET (CBS): The Sun Devils are another team with a shot to claim second seed for their conference tournament. To do so, they’ll need to avenge a conference opening loss to the Bruins.

St. Louis at Dayton, 7 p.m. ET (WHIO/CSN Philly/CSN Washington+): If the Flyers had won the game in St. Louis, this one may have meant a bit more to them.

Washington at Oregon State, 8 p.m. ET (FSN Northwest): The Huskies have a slim shot at grabbing the Pac-10 two seed, but they have to win at Corvallis to do it. The Huskies won in Seattle during the opening week of the conference slate.

Charlotte at Richmond, 2 p.m. ET (no TV): A win over the Spiders alone won’t put the 49ers back in the conversation, but it can give them some momentum heading into the A-10 Tournament.

Cincinnati at Georgetown, 12 p.m. ET (no TV): It’s likely Austin Freeman won’t play because of his recent diabetes diagnosis. That would give the Bearcats a better chance to grab a late win.

Seton Hall at Providence, 7 p.m. ET (no TV): The Pirates close the regular season against a Friar team that nearly knocked off Pitt Thursday and is ready to play spoiler.

Old Dominion vs. Towson (CAA Quarterfinal), 12 p.m. ET (Comcast Network/CSN New England/Full Court): If the Monarchs can make the CAA Final, they have a great chance at an at-large.

Nebraska at Oklahoma State, 1:30 p.m. ET (Big 12 Network/Full Court): Last Saturday, the Cowboys grabbed a big home win against Kansas. Dropping a home game to a bad Nebraska team would nearly undo all that good work.

Syracuse at Louisville, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN): If the Cardinals complete the sweep of the Orange, they’ll move into the “Lock” category.

Notre Dame at Marquette, 2 p.m. ET (Big East Network/Full Court): The Fighting Irish would be in great position if they could grab a win in Milwaukee.

Northern Iowa vs. Bradley (Missouri Valley Semifinal), 2:30 p.m. ET (FS Midwest/CSN Chicago): With every game the Panthers win, the safer they get.

Virginia Tech at Georgia Tech, 4 p.m. ET (Raycom/Full Court): If you think the Yellow Jackets are a lock, you haven’t been paying attention lately. They’ve dropped three of eight. The Hokies, on the other hand, snapped a three-game losing streak on Wednesday.

Manhattan vs. Siena (MAAC Quarterfinal No. 2), 4:30 p.m. ET (MSG/FCS Atlantic/Full Court): The Saints have to win the auto bid to dance.

California at Stanford, 6 p.m. ET (FSN/Comcast SportsNet): The Golden Bears are in decent shape for an at-large, but the Cardinal would love to end those hopes and make them earn the auto bid.

New Mexico State at Utah State, 9 p.m. ET (CW 30/Aggie Vision/Full Court): The Utah Aggies have already clinched the WAC regular season crown, but a win over their Las Cruces namesakes would help their at-large hopes.