2015 NCAA Tournament: Breaking Down the Bubble as March Madness Nears

As Selection Sunday approaches, conference tournament play put several bubble teams in the spotlight this Thursday as they try to earn their tickets to the 2015 NCAA tournament.

Some teams improved their chances of going to the Big Dance, but most saw their hopes drift further away.

Both the Texas Longhorns and the Ole Miss Rebels suffered heartbreaking losses on the final plays of their games as they looked poised for wins over conference opponents. But they were not the only bubble teams to play. As the carnage is examined, which teams remain standing?

And which teams removed themselves from the conversation?

Texas (20-13 Overall, 8-10 Big 12)

The Longhorns established a 10-point lead over Iowa State with less than four minutes to go, but they failed to close out the game.

Monte Morris sunk an 18-foot jumper to cap off the Cyclones' 12-0 run as they topped Texas 69-67.

Now Iowa State moves on to the semifinals of the Big 12 tournament to face Oklahoma Friday night, while Texas hopes its three RPI top-50 wins are enough to convince the selection committee.

Ole Miss (20-12 Overall, 11-7 SEC)

Ole Miss needed to beat the six-win South Carolina Gamecocks in the SEC tournament Thursday, but it lost 60-58.

The Rebels took a one-point lead over the Gamecocks late in the game when Jarvis Summers completed a four-point play. But Ole Miss fouled South Carolina’s Tyrone Johnson on a last-ditch three-pointer.

Johnson converted the three free throws, and now the Rebels are one step closer to the NIT. South Carolina joins Charleston Southern, TCU and Western Kentucky on the list of bad losses for Ole Miss this season.

Miami (21-12 Overall, 10-8 ACC)

The Hurricanes dug themselves into a hole against Notre Dame, as they trailed by 18 points at halftime against the Fighting Irish.

Miami fought back to cut the lead to only two points in the second half, but Sheldon McClellan hit a corner three to re-establish the lead for Notre Dame.

The Hurricanes' conference tournament performance wasn't a complete failure compared to other bubble teams, as they followed through in their must-win game against Virginia Tech and showed heart in their comeback against Notre Dame.

Come Selection Sunday, Miami’s 16-point win at Duke might be enough to push this bubble team into the NCAA tournament.

Indiana (20-12 Overall, 9-9 Big Ten)

Coming off three straight losses, the Hoosiers needed a strong conference tournament run to convince the selection committee to overlook their finish to the regular season.

Indiana took care of business with a 71-56 win over Northwestern on Thursday behind strong performances from James Blackmon Jr. (25 points) and Yogi Ferrell (17 points). 

The Hoosiers now face Maryland in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament. A win over the Top 10 team Friday night would likely separate the Hoosiers from the rest of the bubble teams.

Indiana matches up well with its next opponent, as the Hoosiers defeated the Terrapins by 19 points in January and lost by only two points in their College Park rematch.

As teams either continue their pushes or fall by the wayside in their respective tournaments, each bubble team’s results could determine the fate of another team.

Come Selection Sunday, not every team can make it to the Big Dance. These final days will determine which ones go to the NCAA tournament, which ones head to the NIT and which ones begin preparing for next year's campaign.