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Dawgs fall off bubble after 0-2 road trip

This will be the biggest week of the season for the Washington Huskies men's basketball team as they face the Bay Area schools this week at Alaska Airlines Arena.

By dilletaunt
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

With two losses in the Rockies this past week, the Huskies head home to play Cal and Stanford at  Alaska Airlines Arena. The Dawgs, on a 3-game losing streak, are now on the wrong side of the bubble for the NCAA Tournament.

The Huskies, 15-10 overall and 7-6 in the Pac-12, seem to be fading with just 5 games left in the Pac-12 season.  The Huskies' RPI has dropped to 61.  Oregon leads the Pac-12 with an RPI of 4 followed by Utah with an RPI of 18.

Notably, Cal, the team the Huskies play this Thursday, beat the Ducks at home last week and are on a 3-game win streak.  Both the Bears and Dawgs were two of the teams teetering on the NCAA bubble. Now, Cal is a definite in while the Huskies have work to do.

Due to the losing streak, the Huskies now find themselves one of the "First Four Out" per Joe Lunardi while Cal is an 8-seed in the West (paired against Gonzaga in Lunardi’s Bracket).  Lunardi has 6 teams in the Pac-12.

SB Nation has the Huskies as the 71st team (out of 68 in the field), leaving them just out of the tournament. Notably, SB Nation has Arizona, Oregon, USC, Utah, Cal, Colorado, and Oregon State in the field.

Similarly, CBS Sports has the Dawgs on the outside looking in as one of the first four out.  The aforementioned 7 Pac-12 teams are on the list while the Dawgs are right behind George Washington, Seton Hall, and Tulsa.

Oregon State gets the nod over the Huskies despite having a losing record in the Pac-12.  The Beavers have a higher RPI than the Dawgs and have beaten Oregon, Cal, USC, and Utah.

Obviously, the losing streak has bumped the Huskies off of the bubble while Oregon State and Cal have leapfrogged UW and are currently in the tournament.  The good news is that the Huskies have a shot at the Bears this Thursday and Oregon State next week.

The pressure is on the Huskies to win at home this week as they face a very tough road trip to Oregon next week.  It feels as though the Huskies will need both wins against Cal and Stanford to keep afloat in a very competitive Pac-12.

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