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5 March Madness bid thieves that could hurt UNC, Michigan on the bubble

By Mike Phillips

F Daniel Batcho, Texas Tech Red Raiders. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
F Daniel Batcho, Texas Tech Red Raiders. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) /
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Eric Dixon, Villanova Wildcats
G Eric Dixon, Villanova Wildcats. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

3. Potential March Madness Bid Thieves – Villanova Wildcats

Another potential bid stealer in a power conference, Villanova was left for dead after a brutal start to the season. Head coach Kyle Neptune took a bit to figure things out as the immediate successor to Jay Wright and some inconsistent performances early led to a big hole for the Wildcats to dig out of.

Villanova is playing much better of late, however, thanks to the return of star Justin Moore from an ACL injury. Moore missed the first half of the season after injuring his knee in the 2022 Elite Eight but his comeback has helped provide leadership to a young team in need of it.

The biggest reason to like Villanova’s chances in the Big East Tournament is that they ended up on the softer side of the bracket. Assuming the Wildcats get past Georgetown without incident, Villanova would face an inconsistent Creighton team in the quarterfinals before potentially getting a shot at slumping Xavier in the semifinals.

It isn’t inconceivable that the Wildcats could find themselves in the final on Saturday night with a ton of momentum on their side. The overall body of work isn’t enough for Villanova to earn an at-large bid but they are more than capable of making bubble teams across the nation sweat profusely this week.