si.com:
Bemoaning the Bubble: The NCAA should favor mid-majors, not mediocre big names
... A peek at the undistinguished crop of teams hovering on the fringes of the NCAA tournament this year should be viewed with a clothespin clasped on one’s nose. There’s a middling TCU (17–12) team with a 6–10 league record, a California (19–9) team that didn’t play a true road game in the non-conference part of the season and herd of uninspiring SEC teams—Ole Miss (18–11), Alabama (16–12), Vanderbilt (16–13) and Georgia (17–12)—that are as unimpressive are they are unaccomplished. Until the past few days, some bracket experts included Clemson (4–12 in the ACC) on the outskirts of the tournament conversation. This crop of teams has ended up there by default more than accomplishment....
...Have we forgotten that the Final Four runs of George Mason (2006) and VCU (2011)—both No. 11 seeds from the Colonial Athletic Association—came thanks to at-large bids that were deemed controversial at the time? These teams should be the reminders that a season of accomplishment should yield an opportunity for March magic.
The way things are trending, those star-kissed ones from Mason and VCU likely wouldn’t get in. Look at the top of the Missouri Valley, which is in danger of not receiving an at-large bid despite strong teams in Wichita State (27–4) and Illinois State (25–5). There’s a host of other juggernaut small-conference teams that need to win their league tournaments to make the NCAA tournament. Vermont (26–5, 16–0 America East) has the longest win streak in the country at 18 games. Middle Tennessee (24–4, 14–1) throttled No. 2 seed Michigan State in the NCAA tournament last year. Monmouth has put together another dominant season in the MAAC (25–5, 17–2). Princeton heads into the first-ever Ivy League tournament with white knuckles, despite a 19–6 record and 12–0 league mark. There are countless other examples—UT-Arlington, UNC-Wilmington, Belmont and Valparaiso.....
Bemoaning the Bubble: The NCAA should favor mid-majors, not mediocre big names
... A peek at the undistinguished crop of teams hovering on the fringes of the NCAA tournament this year should be viewed with a clothespin clasped on one’s nose. There’s a middling TCU (17–12) team with a 6–10 league record, a California (19–9) team that didn’t play a true road game in the non-conference part of the season and herd of uninspiring SEC teams—Ole Miss (18–11), Alabama (16–12), Vanderbilt (16–13) and Georgia (17–12)—that are as unimpressive are they are unaccomplished. Until the past few days, some bracket experts included Clemson (4–12 in the ACC) on the outskirts of the tournament conversation. This crop of teams has ended up there by default more than accomplishment....
...Have we forgotten that the Final Four runs of George Mason (2006) and VCU (2011)—both No. 11 seeds from the Colonial Athletic Association—came thanks to at-large bids that were deemed controversial at the time? These teams should be the reminders that a season of accomplishment should yield an opportunity for March magic.
The way things are trending, those star-kissed ones from Mason and VCU likely wouldn’t get in. Look at the top of the Missouri Valley, which is in danger of not receiving an at-large bid despite strong teams in Wichita State (27–4) and Illinois State (25–5). There’s a host of other juggernaut small-conference teams that need to win their league tournaments to make the NCAA tournament. Vermont (26–5, 16–0 America East) has the longest win streak in the country at 18 games. Middle Tennessee (24–4, 14–1) throttled No. 2 seed Michigan State in the NCAA tournament last year. Monmouth has put together another dominant season in the MAAC (25–5, 17–2). Princeton heads into the first-ever Ivy League tournament with white knuckles, despite a 19–6 record and 12–0 league mark. There are countless other examples—UT-Arlington, UNC-Wilmington, Belmont and Valparaiso.....
