NCAA Tournament 2015: Top Bubble Teams to Watch with 1 Week to Selection Sunday

Although March Madness technically hasn't really begun yet, college basketball fans won't be lacking for captivating television over the next week as many conference tournaments get underway.

As is the case every year, plenty of NCAA tournament bids remain up for grabs, and this is the perfect time to impress the selection committee. Plenty of teams are sitting on the proverbial bubble, and their results between now and March 15 will determine their postseason fate.

The four teams below are all on the bubble to one extent or another. Some have one foot in the door for the NCAA tournament, while others have a bit more work on their hands.

Purdue Boilermakers

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At the very least, the Big Ten should send in five teams: Wisconsin, Maryland, Ohio State, Iowa and Michigan State. That number could be six depending on what Purdue does in the conference tournament.

The Boilermakers' 12-6 conference record looks impressive. You'd think that would be enough by itself to get Purdue into the Big Dance. But then you notice the nonconference losses to North Florida and Gardner-Webb; defeats to Kansas State and Vanderbilt won't be as deleterious, but they won't help, either.

It's worth noting how much the team has progressed from last year to now:

Purdue will be seeded fourth in the Big Ten tournament, which is a major boost:

The Boilermakers are automatically through to the quarterfinals, which means they should avoid the kind of bad defeat that might sour the selection committee. They have a high enough RPI (56) and sit 48th on KenPom.com.

That combination should be enough to put Purdue through as long as it doesn't completely fall apart in the conference tourney.

BYU Cougars

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A little over a week ago, BYU's hopes of getting into the NCAA tournament looked to be on life support. Then, the Cougars upset the third-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs. That win alone doesn't vault BYU into the Big Dance, but it puts them in a great position to get there.

In his most recent edition of Bracketology, ESPN.com's Joe Lunardi has the Cougars facing off with Texas in the play-in game for the 12th seed in the West Region. Sports Illustrated's Seth Davis isn't as bullish, putting BYU just on the outside:

What's working for BYU is the West Coast Conference tournament. The Cougars are already through the semifinal and have a favorable matchup with Portland ahead:

"

BYU’s path to the WCC finals and a Gonzaga rematch is about to get easier. Portland about to defeat Saint Mary’s.

— Sam Vecenie (@Sam_Vecenie) March 7, 2015"

As long as they can reach the conference title game, the selection committee should have them in the field of 68.

Texas A&M Aggies

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The SEC is one of the more exciting conferences to watch in terms of the bubble. Beyond Kentucky, Arkansas and maybe Georgia, it's pretty much a crapshoot for NCAA tournament bids.

One team that can't afford to fail in the conference tournament is Texas A&M. Although the Aggies are ranked 46th on KenPom.com, they're listed among the "First Four Out" by Lunardi in his Bracketology.

A&M really gets dinged because of its lack of major nonconference wins. It ranks 226th in nonconference strength of schedule and finished the regular season 0-3 against the RPI top 25 and 2-6 against the top 50.

The best thing you can say about Texas A&M is that it didn't lose the gimmes—12-0 against RPI 150 and below.

The Aggies can bolster their credentials in the SEC tournament. As the fifth seed, they're through the second round. If they can beat LSU for a third time in the quarterfinals, they might punch their ticket for the Big Dance.

Boise State Broncos

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Boise State is a somewhat weird case. The Broncos won the regular-season Mountain West title and beat San Diego State twice. Yet, the Aztecs are generally considered the one true lock for the tournament.

CBSSports.com's Jerry Palm put Boise State "on the fence," writing that the Broncos might help themselves much in the MWC tournament without a victory in the final:

"

The Broncos beat Fresno State to clinch the top seed in the Mountain West tournament. That's both good and bad. It's good because they won the league, but it's bad because they can only beat either San Diego State or Colorado State to help their resume. Such a win would be in the championship game.

"

Head coach Leon Rice knows that his players can't afford to go into the Mountain West tourney thinking the job's done.

"I know one thing: the hungriest dog's going to win that tournament. As of this moment, we're not the hungriest dog, because we just won," he said after the Broncos won the regular-season championship, per Dave Southorn of the Idaho Statesman. "We're going to have to fix that, and we will. They want to keep playing."

Boise State did well to win its conference, but that might only amount to a trip to the National Invitation Tournament if the Broncos slip up in the next week.