John Calipari and Hubert Davis might be battling for last tourney spot come March

The excitement of March Madness is near and it could very well come down to John Calipari and Hubert Davis to fill out the final spot of the NCAA Tournament. In Joe Lunardi’s latest ESPN Bracketology report, he has both Arkansas and North Carolina as the first four teams out. 

That means if the tournament were to start this week, neither team would be in it. That said, it also means only one of them could get in come Selection Sunday. Which begs the question, which team deserves to be in?

For Arkansas, they’ve strung together some good wins, but Calipari’s first season in Fayetteville has come with its challenges. And for North Carolina, Davis hasn’t had a vintage North Carolina year, which says a lot considering the ACC is down this year. 

Let’s make the case for each team. Why John Calipari has earned a tournament bid in his first year, or how Davis can salvage this season with a late push into the tournament. 

Making the case: Why John Calipari, Arkansas could storm into NCAA Tournament despite being first four out in latest Bracketology

Calipari and his Razorbacks haven’t had a terrible season, but a mid-season lull that saw five-straight losses, three of which to ranked, conference opponents, pretty much put his team in the predicament they’re in now. 

Fortunately, Calipari was able to stun his former team and at the time, No. 12 ranked Kentucky to keep their at-large bid alive. Thanks to a tough closing schedule that features No. 8 Texas A&M, No. 1 Auburn, No. 21 Missouri and No. 22 Mississippi State, they have a chance to bolster their resume. 

The one thing in Arkansas’ favor is aside from a Quad 3 opponent against LSU, they have Quad 1 and 2 games remaining. The Razorbacks currently have a NET ranking of 43.

They made strides with a four-point loss to Alabama this past weekend and proved why they should be in the NCAA Tournament conversation. The question becomes, however, can they stay in it? Based on their tough schedule alone and some quality wins to end the season, there’s no question they should boot North Carolina out. 

Making the case: Hubert Davis, North Carolina have sputtered out of control, but can they regain NCAA Tournament traction?

Things aren’t looking good for Davis’ squad in Chapel Hill. They’ve lost five of the last seven games and none of those wins during that stretch were against teams in the NCAA Tournament conversation, let alone ranked. 

The Tar Heels’ most recent loss was to a 20-point whooping by Clemson, which knocked off both Carolina powerhouses in a matter of days. Davis’ squad hasn’t done themselves any justice at all. 

They have just one Quad 1 win and hoist a 1-10 record against Quad 1 teams. While they’re a perfect 5-0 against Quad 2 teams, only two of those teams have a NET ranking inside the top 50. 

That’s not a good sign for Davis’ squad as they have to find a way to turn things around. They have just one Quad 2 game left and a Quad 1 game against Duke remaining, the rest are Quad 3 and 4 opponents.

This means UNC’s best chance to get into the tourney will be an ACC tournament run because outside of that, an at-large bid seems like a long shot, especially if it comes down between Arkansas and UNC.