How Miami of Ohio Made the Babies in the NCAA Major Basketball Conferences Cry
- Fred
- 6 days ago
- 3 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Last season, the Miami (Oh) RedHawks finished their regular season undefeated, 31-0 in college basketball.
Nothing wrong with winning the MAC, the MAC is a very competitive Mid-Major.
But Miami of Ohio didn't win their conference tournament, so they didn't automatically qualify for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.
SEC Honks like Bruce Pearl howled that it wasn't fair that the MAC could potentially have 2 teams going to the tournament, while the 12th best team in the SEC could potentially be left out.
National commentators whined that the field had to be expanded if Miami (Oh) got in....
Everyone was arguing about the 64th through 68th slots in the tournament. Just a reminder:
Has a 12th seed ever made it to the Final Four, let alone won the NCAA Tournament? No.
Has a 13th seed ever made it to the Final Four, let alone won the NCAA Tournament? No.
Has a 14th seed ever made it to the Final Four, let alone won the NCAA Tournament? No.
Has a 15th seed ever made it to the Final Four, let alone won the NCAA Tournament? No.
Has a 16th seed ever made it to the Final Four, let alone won the NCAA Tournament? No.
There was no appetite from fans to expand the tournament, but there was a push from major conferences to get more teams in. Why? Because the conferences get paid, not the specific teams. A strong conference gets more money in a bigger field because they send more teams.
That's why yesterday the NCAA expanded the field to 76 teams. In the new format, the NCAA will put more "weak" automatic qualifiers from small conferences in the play-in games, while putting more average, big conference schools in the first round.
Almost exclusively because of Miami (Oh) and Auburn. Auburn, coached by Bruce Pearl's Son Steven, went on to win the NIT against the 3rd best team in the American Conference, Tulsa. Many teams in big conferences don't want you to know that their average teams are about a good as a top end mid-major. They want you to believe that they're exponentially better than the nation's minnows.
Who did make the Final Four this year? (Regular Season Standings)
Michigan (1st in Big Ten)
UConn (2nd in Big East)
Arizona (1st in Big 12)
Illinois (4th in Big Ten)
The SEC sent 10 teams to the tournament but couldn't get one team to the Final Four, yet bitched and moaned about their 11th and 12th teams not getting in.
And, just a reminder, Miami (Oh) did get in, but was already relegated to the play-in game.
So all of this jibber jabber about expanding the tournament has nothing to do with average teams rising up and winning the NCAA tournament, it's just a way to funnel more money to the big conferences.
In the NIL Era, it's just another cash grab.
Side Note: I am an alum of The Cleveland State University. How did CSU fare in basketball this season? 10th in the 11 team Horizon League. The last time CSU made the NCAA Tournament, then won a game? 2009.
They were runners-up in the College Basketball Invitational in 2025. What's the CBI?
One level below the NIT. The CBI was "abruptly cancelled" this year. It appears the CBI is being replaced by the College Basketball Crown (CBC).
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