LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Crankiness remains on the rise in college basketball. I fear it will only get worse.
The North Carolina basketball program was forced to Twitter with a plea to schedule a game this week.
Only teams willing to play in Chapel Hill need apply.
The Tar Heels, who host the University of Louisville on Saturday, have played just six home games this season, and none since Jan. 23. They’re bouncing around the NCAA Tournament bubble.
Apparently they had no interest in flying to South Bend, Indiana, to play Notre Dame, even though Notre Dame made a spur of the moment trip to Chapel Hill on Jan. 2.
So UNC settled for a Wednesday night visit by Northeastern, the second-place team from the Colonial Athletic Association.
Duke lost Jalen Johnson, a 5-star recruit who opted out, and nobody seemed shocked. Miami had six guys play all but three minutes in a loss to Notre Dame on Sunday. Hurricanes coach Jim Larranaga sounded weary.
Odds are the 15 Atlantic Coast Conference schools won’t finish the season with an equal number of conference games. That will add another layer of fun (and crankiness) for members of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee.
Crankiness rules.
As I looked over the next 26 days until Selection Sunday (March 14), I decided to replace my Misery Index with a Happiness Index.
Remember: Last year, we lost the NCAA Tournament. This season, all systems remain on track to play all 67 games in the Indianapolis area.
After I crafted this column, my fingers returned to the crossed position.
Louisville (11-4), No. 30 in Ken Pomeroy
- Happiness Index: 7.7 on a 10-point scale.
- Comforting Thought: At 6-3 in league play, the Cards are a single-game behind Virginia and Florida State in the loss column. They’ve lost two fewer ACC games than North Carolina, Clemson and Syracuse.
- Best Case: The Cards increase their edge over the Orange and Tar Heels with wins this week. Syracuse is merely 2-5 on the road, while UNC is unbeaten at the Smith Center.
- Worst Case: The Cards lose to Syracuse and North Carolina and still face road games with Duke and Virginia Tech. This is a Happiness Index. I won’t consider the possibility of playing Virginia twice.
- Flashing Light: The Cards are last in ACC league games in 3-point shooting, making barely 31% of their attempts.
- Player to Watch: Samuell Williamson. The Cards certainly could use the guy who dominated Georgia Tech.
- Week Ahead: Syracuse here, 6:30 p.m. Wednesday; at UNC, 6 p.m. Saturday.
- Bracket Racket: Both the BracketMatix.com and ESPN’s Joe Lunardi give Louisville a No. 8 NCAA Tournament seed, which means if the Cards win their NCAA opener, they’re likely to play a No. 1 seed (Gonzaga, Baylor, Michigan or Ohio State) in the second round. Gulp.
- Most Likely Scenario: Louisville splits its final six scheduled games and earns an 8 or 9 seed.
Kentucky 6-13 (No. 62 Pomeroy)
- Happiness Index: .0625
- Comforting Thought: The Wildcats have defeated Louisiana State and Florida, two Southeastern Conferences teams likely to make the NCAA Tournament. When coach John Calipari says Kentucky can beat or lose to anybody in the league, he’s not spinning.
- Best Case: UK wins four of its last five (say Vandy, Texas A&M, Florida and Ole Miss) and posts a 9-8 SEC record.
- Worst Case: The Wildcats flop at improving Vandy, which has split its last four and played UK tough at Rupp Arena.
- Flashing Light: Kentucky ranks last in the SEC in 2-point field goal percentage at 43.9% and 13th in effective field goal percentage.
- Player to Watch: B.J. Boston has made nine of his last 13 as well as 11 of his last 18 shots from distance.
- Week Ahead: at Vanderbilt 7 p.m. Wednesday and at Tennessee 1 p.m. Saturday.
- Bracket Racket: No racket available.
- Most Likely Scenario: The Wildcats win three of their last five and head to the SEC Tournament in Nashville needing to win four games to extend their string of NCAA Tournament appearances. If you put the Wildcats at 50/50 in every game, their chances of succeeding four times are 6.25%.
Indiana 11-9 (No. 29 in Pomeroy)
- Happiness Index: 4.61
- Comforting Thought: The Hoosiers have banked a pair of wins over No. 11 Iowa and took three Top-25 teams (Illinois, Florida State, Wisconsin) into overtime before losing.
- Best Case: Indiana beats Minnesota and Michigan State at home this week and steals a road win at Rutgers or Purdue.
- Worst Case: Indiana loses to the Gophers, a miserable road team that already has the credentials to grab one of the NCAA at-large bids the Hoosiers are chasing.
- Flashing Light: The Hoosiers rank last in Big Ten-only games in defending the 3-point shot, allowing better than 37%. IU also cannot make free throws, converting less than 66% in Big Ten play.
- Player to Watch: Rob Phinisee, Khristian Lander (tie). Archie Miller needs somebody to play like a winning point guard.
- Week Ahead: home games with Minnesota at 9 p.m. Wednesday and Michigan State at noon Saturday.
- Bracket Racket: Bracket Matrix gives Indiana a No. 11 seed, ahead of five other at-large teams in the field. Lunardi has IU a 10-seed with a six-team cushion.
- Most Likely Scenario: IU wins two of its five remaining scheduled games, and the Hoosiers will need at least one Big Ten Tournament win to make the NCAA Tournament.
Stay happy.
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