Bubble, Bubble ... Is the Wolfpack in Trouble?

Five weeks until Selection Sunday, NC State still has a lot of work to do to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament's field of 68

Selection Sunday is exactly five weeks from today.

There's still a lot of basketball to be played between now and March 15 and because of that, NC State continues to hold its destiny in its own hands. The best way for the Wolfpack to take the guesswork out of the equation is by continuing to win, as it did in Miami last Wednesday. 

This Tuesday's game at Syracuse is an especially important one, because -- at least for now -- the Orange qualifies as a Quadrant 1 opponent. According to the latest NET rankings, State also has upcoming Quad 1 opportunities against Duke (twice) and Florida State, along with a Quad 2 game at North Carolina.

Among the factors used to determine the NET (an acronym for NCAA Evaluation Tool) rankings are game results, strength of schedule, game location, scoring margin and net efficiency at both ends of the court.

The value of wins and losses are weighted by quadrants.

Quadrant 1 includes teams ranked in the top 30 for games played at home, the top 50 for neutral site games and the top 75 on the road. Quadrant 2 includes teams ranked from 31-75 at home, 51-100 at neutral sites and 76-135 on the road. Quadrant 3 includes teams ranked from 76-160 at home, 101-200 at neutral sites and 135-240 on the road while Quadrant 4 includes all other games.

State's 15-8 record includes a 2-2 mark against Quad 1 opponents (with the wins coming against Virginia and UNC Greensboro), 4-4 against Quad 2, 3-2 against Quad 3 and 6-0 against Quad 4.

With a current NET ranking of 62, coach Kevin Keatts has work to do in order to avoid ending up on the wrong side of the NCAA bubble for the second straight season.

In addition to winning as many of its remaining Quad 1-2 games as possible, along with not losing any of the three Quad 3 games it has left -- At Boston College and home against Pittsburgh and Wake Forest -- the Wolfpack can use all the help it can get from teams it has already played.

Here's who State should be pulling for from here on out:

◼ Wisconsin: The Badgers are 13-10 and have a NET ranking of 37. As things stand now, State's win in the ACC/Big 10 Challenge qualifies as a Quad 2 win. Should Wisconsin finish strong and improve into the top 30, that victory would be elevated to Quad 1, strengthening the Wolfpack's resume immensely.

◼ Memphis: The loss to the Tigers in Brooklyn on Thanksgiving Day was previously considered a Quad 1 result, but a 3-3 record in its past six games -- including a home loss to No. 117 South Florida -- had knocked their NET ranking down from 47 to 60. State needs Memphis to get back into the top 50 to restore it back to Quad 1 status.

◼ Pittsburgh: Other than their game against the Panthers at PNC Arena on Feb. 25, the Wolfpack will he hoping coach Jeff Capel's team wins as many of its other remaining games as possible, since at No. 78 in the latestest NET rankings, Pitt would improve to Quad 2 if it can crack the top 75. 

◼ Virginia Tech: The Hokies are currently one spot behind Pitt at No. 79, but are reeling with five straight losses. They do, however, have opportunities to make a significant jump in the rankings if they can turn things around, with Quad 1 games against Duke, Louisville and Virginia left to play.

◼ Florida International: The Panthers are 17-8 and ranked No. 168. An improvement of eight spots between now and the end of the season would elevate State's win from Quad 4 to Quad 3. Although it won't make a significant difference, every little bit helps when it comes to the selection committee's decision.

◼ Appalachian State: The Mountaineers are in a similar situation as FIU, at No. 169.

Here is the Wolfpack's record by quadrants, according to the current rankings:

Quad 1 -- 2-2 (Wins: at UNCG, at UVA; Losses: at Auburn, Louisville)

Quad 2 -- 4-4 (Wins: Wisconsin, at Wake Forest, Notre Dame, at Miami; Losses: Memphis in Brooklyn, at Clemson, at Virginia Tech, at Georgia Tech)

Quad 3 -- 3-2 (Wins: Little Rock, Miami, Clemson; Losses: UNC, Georgia Tech)

Quad 4 -- 6-0 (Wins: Detroit Mercy, FIU, St. Francis, Alcorn State, The Citadel, Appalachian State)