USU's Sunday bubble watch

There were a few more bubbles popped Sunday that kept Utah State’s intact.

There were six games of primary interest around the bubble and of those Utah State got mostly good news from four.

While a Wichita State win over Northern Iowa would have made USU’s victory over the Shockers look better, the Aggies didn’t want the Panthers on the bubble. Good news, UNI won and is an automatic invitee to the Big Dance, creating happy faces for all bubble dwellers.

For some reason, Florida (RPI 53) was still getting some bubble love. The Gators fell to Kentucky, though, likely ending their at-large dreams.

Likewise, Wisconsin beat Illinois (72) eliminating virtually every claim the 18-13 Illini had for an at-large berth.

Old Dominion (37) beating Virginia Commonwealth (62) might not have truly helped the Aggies out, but at this point, Utah State wants favorites to win. B’bye Rams, that tiny little edge of bubble you had is gone.

USU would have preferred to see Clemson (24) beat Wake Forest (34) to knock the Deacons farther down the at-large list. Still, there may be something good from the Tigers’ loss — USU might get a few more votes in the Top 25 polls as a result.

And lastly, USU wants Saint Mary’s (45) to beat Portland (79) in tonight’s WCC semifinal. Losing to the Gaels hurt the Aggies. But if SMC climbs the RPI a little more it makes the loss look more acceptable. But Utah State wants Gonzaga (35) to beat the Gaels on Monday in that conference tourney finale.

And, as we’ll always mention, the best thing for Utah State to do is simply win. That will take care of all speculation.