Hoosiers on bubble for tournament

It's out of their hands.\nAfter 29 games, the Indiana women's basketball team rested its case for a NCAA tournament spot Friday with a loss to Iowa in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament.\nThe Hoosiers (19-10, 9-7 Big Ten) can now only wait and see if they are one of the 34 lucky teams chosen to fill the field Sunday.\nBut Friday's 81-76 loss to Iowa -- after holding a 19-point second half lead -- makes the Hoosiers anxious for Sunday's decision.\n"I really don't know," coach Kathi Bennett said about her team's NCAA chances. "I wish we would have taken care of business (against Iowa) and probably the Illinois game at our place. With those two wins, I'd feel pretty good. \n"We're a very good basketball team, and I think we proved that. Of course I'm going to say we deserve to get in … The Big Ten is tough. But did we do enough, I don't know."\nThe NCAA tournament features 64 teams vying in a single-elimination format for the Division-I national championship. Thirty teams are guaranteed a spot in the field based on conference championships. The other 34 teams are chosen by a 10-member selection committee.\nThe Hoosiers, who continue to practice this week, hope their resume impresses the panel that fills out the NCAA brackets.\nIf an NCAA bid alludes them, the Hoosiers would be eligible for the Women's National Invitation Tournament, a 32-team single-elimination tournament.\nBut the 'Big Dance' is the goal.\n"We have a really good chance of getting in," junior guard Heather Cassady said. "We just have to keep on getting better and get ready this week in practice."\nOne of the key factors for determining the 34 at-large bids is the Ratings Percentage Index, a mathematical consortium that ranks Division-I teams on a number of elements. The RPI, which has been used previously to aid the men's tournament selection process, was used for the first time last season to help fill the women's field.\nIn the RPI's first try, it correctly predicted 31 of the 34 at-large entries.\nWith one week to go, the Hoosiers are holding on to what appears to be the last at-large slot, according to the RPI. IU is ranked 50th in the index and is projected as an 11th seed in the NCAA tournament. It is the lowest-ranked at-large team in the RPI's 64-team field.\nBut even that doesn't assure the Hoosiers of anything.\nLast season, Wisconsin was ranked 51st in the season-ending RPI poll after a tough schedule and a .500 Big Ten record. Despite the prediction of an NCAA bid from the RPI, the Badgers were left out of the field and settled for a spot in the WNIT -- which they went on to win.\nPenn State coach Rene Portland believes the Big Ten's bottom four teams are bringing down the conference's nationwide stature and costing the Big Ten NCAA tournament teams.\n"I talk about it a lot, but I'm very concerned about the strength of our conference," Portland said. "The bottom four teams are scheduling for comfort, not competition. They're not helping this league."\nPortland said she thinks Ohio State, Northwestern, Michigan State and Minnesota's non-conference schedules are to blame for the Big Ten's fourth-place ranking among conferences by the RPI. That ranking will haunt the Lady Lions for seeding and other Big Ten hopefuls -- like IU -- for a NCAA berth, she said.\nOhio State coach Beth Burns defended her team's schedule, rated 130th in the nation by the RPI. \n"Everybody has to do what they feels is best for their team," Burns said. "We thought it would be important to build some confidence." \nBurns also said she scheduled UCLA -- riddled with problems this season -- but a team that went to the Sweet 16 last year. The Buckeyes started the year with 10 consecutive wins, eight coming against teams with RPI ratings above 165. \nOne of OSU's wins was a 94-32 romp against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, who ranks 305 out of 316 Division-I schools, according to the RPI. \nIt's a sore subject for Portland. \n"We talk about it at every coaches meeting, but they don't seem to get the message," she said.\nMeanwhile, IU must put aside Friday's loss and the untimely dismissal of senior Rachael Honegger, and work this week like they're a tournament team.\n"We're just going to practice," McGinnis said. "And hope for the best"