There is no way a team with a 14-19 record should be allowed to participate in the NCAA tournament. But yet, that's exactly the scenario playing out in College Basketball this season.
Cal Poly Tech (14-19), out of the Big West conference, defeated Texas Southern (19-15) out of the SWAC conference. Cal Poly Tech, now a No. 16 seed, will face No. 1 Wichita State in the "second" round of the tournament on Friday.
Click here for highlights of Cal Poly vs. Texas Southern
"Wichita State is a great team. They're a national favorite. They've been undefeated all season," said Chris Eversley, who scored 19 points for Cal Poly Tech in the win on Wednesday. "We're going to get on a plane tonight, get to St. Louis, Mo., and just go start on a scouting report and make sure we're ready for Wichita State -- and go out there keep playing the way we've been playing."
Cal Poly Tech was 6-10 vs. their conference this season. They didn't beat a ranked opponent all season and were ranked outside the top 250 in points per game (63.2) rebounds per game (32.3) assists per game (11.7) and field goal percentage (.410). So how exactly do they get to play in the tournament when other teams, better teams for that matter, aren't in the tournament?
For example, take a look at Southern Methodist University (SMU). SMU finished the season with a 23-9 record and were ranked 25th in the country. They have three wins against top 25 opponents (including two wins against Connecticut, ranked No. 17 and No. 21 at the time of the wins, No. 22 Memphis and No. 7 Cincinnati. It's the first time since the 2004 season (Utah State at 25-3) for a ranked team not to make the big dance. Why should SMU, led under Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown, not be in the tournament? With all due respect to the hard working players and coaches for Cal Poly Tech, the team does not belong in the NCAA tournament. If anything, they don't belong in the NIT Tournament either.
“I said that I didn’t want to see anybody crying or complaining, because I didn’t want to take anything away from the teams that got in,” said Brown. “When I saw that Louisville was selected as a four seed, I figured that they didn’t have a lot of respect for our conference.’’
SMU is ranked #1 in the NIT Tournament, which in the long run means nothing. The NIT (which I refer to as the “Not In Tournament”) is more or less a tournament for teams who were so close to the real thing, but feel short. It's more of a pity tournament if anything. And, here is the pathetic part; not one of the NIT teams have a record below .500. Cal Poly Tech is five games below .500 and in the NCAA tournament.
I'm sorry, but something is absolutely wrong with this picture! The selection committee screwed up this year. I'm not going to sugar coat it and neither should you. Think about it. They ranked Louisville as a fourth seed. Kentucky was given an eighth seed and one Midwest region of the bracket is completely overwhelmed with insane competition. While life isn't always fair, this selection process is a travesty. Did the selection committee take their time with the bracket? Or did they just rush the process?
It's obvious something went wrong because if selection committee had an ounce of knowledge about College Basketball, then the bracket wouldn't look like this. It's a shame that students who worked their butts off and deserved an NCAA selection have to deal with the incompetence of the committee.
Again, no disrespect is intended for Cal Poly Tech. I wish their players and coaches the best of luck in the NCAA tournament. However the facts are the facts. Cal Poly Tech should not be in the NCAA tournament. The section committee screwed up and should be ashamed of their actions. It's as simple as that.
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