Boston College traveled to Blacksburg, Va., Tuesday night for a meeting with Virginia Tech, and what was essentially a must-win game for the Eagles. And not only did they win, but they cruised past Tech, 76-61, improving to 18-11 overall, and 8-7 in the ACC. So how important was the win? In a word: very.
In the newest Bubble Watch over at SB Nation, the win was enough for Chris Dobbertean to replace the Baylor Bears with BC as one of the Last Four In.
The Eagles very much look like a team that peaked before Christmas, as they went 10-2 before the holiday (with a loss to Yale their worst of all) and 8-9 since. Plus, the shine of the Eagles' win over Texas A&M in Orlando, their only victory over a team in the RPI Top 50, has worn off slightly, thanks to the Aggies' up-and-down performance in the Big 12. In the ACC, the Eagles have been less "up-and-down" and more flat out mediocre. Sweeps of Maryland and Virginia Tech, are helpful, but losses at Clemson and Florida State, along with a sweep at the hands of Miami are problematic.
A win over Wake Forest Demon Deacons on Sunday won't do much to help the Eagles' tournament chance, so they'll have to boost their resume and secure their spot in the big dance in next week's ACC Tournament in Greensboro.
The guys over at BC Interruption are predicting an ACC Tournament semi-finals appearance:
Four teams finish 9-7 in the final ACC standings, and based on the tiebreakers, BC earns the 4 seed, Clemson the 5 seed, Virginia Tech the 6 seed and Maryland the 7. Clemson, Virginia Tech and Maryland get through to the ACC Quarterfinals, setting up a BC-Clemson rematch. Sparked by their recent inspired play and some good shooting, the Eagles beat the Tigers to get to the ACC Semifinals, but fall short to Duke.
That'd leave the Eagles at 20-12 on the year (including a win over Wake) -- is that enough to get in? We'll find out March 13.