5 Reasons Villanova Deserves a March Madness Bid After Beating Georgetown

The Villanova Wildcats pulled off their fourth victory over ranked opposition at home on Wednesday night as they defeated the Big East leading Georgetown Hoyas.

Jay Wright's team moved to 19-12 overall but more importantly they brought their conference record to 10-8. 

The win also boosted the Wildcats off of the bubble and into an at-large position in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. 

Here are five reasons why the Wildcats are now off of the bubble and into the field of  68. 

4 Wins over Ranked Opposition

The Villanova Wildcats have quite the impressive resume at the moment.

The win over Georgetown gave Jay Wright's team their fourth win over ranked opposition in Big East play.

Previous victims of the Wildcats include Louisville and Syracuse, whom Villanova defeated in the same week.

The Wildcats also defeated Marquette on February 23 at The Pavilion. 

Of those four wins, three of them came against three teams that were ranked in the top five in the AP poll at the time of the upset. 

10 Big East Wins

The win over Georgetown not only helped the Wildcats' resume, it sent their record in the Big East to 10-8.

Reaching the 10-win mark in a difficult conference like the Big East is crucial for teams to qualify for the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.

This season, there are six other teams in the Big East that have won over 10 conference games and all of them are currently ranked. 

While the Wildcats may not end up in the AP Top 25 anytime soon, winning 10 games in the Big East is a great accomplishment. 

The Wildcats Have a Strong Record in Stretch Run

Since their February 16 win over UConn in Hartford, Villanova has won four of their last six games to end the regular season. 

While the victory over UConn may not seem like a big result on their resume, it was a big result to the mental state of the team.

Going into the UConn game, the Wildcats lost by 18 to Cincinnati and they were showing all the signs of choking towards the end of the season.

After they defeated UConn, the Wildcats were able to defeat Rutgers and Marquette to solidify their bubble status.

Despite losing to Seton Hall and Pittsburgh last week, the Wildcats were able to defeat Georgetown and end the regular season on a high note. 

The record that the Wildcats posted in the stretch run was 4-2, which this season is good enough to boost them into the final field of 68. 

Villanova's Key Players Can Make Free Throws

A crucial component of any team making a run into the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament is their ability to make free throws. 

The five players who get the most playing time for the Wildcats all shoot over 70 percent from the free throw line.

The best free throw shooter on the team is freshman guard Ryan Arcidiacono, who shot 83.2 percent from the free-throw stripe in the regular season.

As a team, the Wildcats shot 71.7 percent from the free-throw line and if they can continue their strong free-throw shooting, they have a chance of making a run in March. 

Every Other Bubble Team Has Failed to Win Big Games Down the Stretch

Villanova were one of the best teams on the bubble going into their game with Georgetown and their ability to win against ranked opponents has separated them from the rest of the so-called bubble teams.

In the Big East, both St. John's and Providence have failed to impress during the stretch run while four SEC bubble teams all lost over the weekend. 

In addition to those six teams, Baylor, Arizona State and Southern Miss all have failed to help their own causes in the past week. 

With almost every team on the bubble losing multiple games in the past week, Villanova's win over Georgetown sticks out even more than it usually would. 

Follow me on Twitter, @JTansey90.