It would be awesome for these teams to make the tournament. I think it comes down to a few different views on which teams should be in the tournament:
1) Guess which at-large teams are the best 37, and include them all
2) Figure out which teams will get the most viewership and have at least a somewhat arguable case for being in the tournament, and include them
3) Ensure that every team which could conceivably be among the top ~20 teams are all there, and let things play out from there
The teams from smaller conferences *might* be less likely to make the final four than a .500-in-conference power conference team, and most of them probably have smaller fanbases, but I think we can say with very high confidence that Indiana, Ohio State, Arkansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (all on the 11-seed line in the bracket matrix) are not among the top 10 teams in the country, since they have played against enough other good teams to prove that they consistently aren't that good. But even if UCSD is right in the same realm on KenPom, I would bet there is a lot more upside to their potential tournament performance than a random 18-12 power conference team. Sadly, I don't think the committee thinks that way.
Rodger as a ucsd alum this one strikes close to home for me. And one other important point not mentioned in the article is that This is our first year of postseason eligibility because of our 4(? I think it was 4) year postseason ban after moving from D2 to D1. This meant I never had a chance while I was at school to see the Tritons even in the big west. The ban never made any sense to me (why do incumbent teams need to avoid competition with teams recently out of D2 that’ll probably suck anyway) but with the ban over we’re all extremely hopeful for our first taste of postseason hoops.
It would be awesome for these teams to make the tournament. I think it comes down to a few different views on which teams should be in the tournament:
1) Guess which at-large teams are the best 37, and include them all
2) Figure out which teams will get the most viewership and have at least a somewhat arguable case for being in the tournament, and include them
3) Ensure that every team which could conceivably be among the top ~20 teams are all there, and let things play out from there
The teams from smaller conferences *might* be less likely to make the final four than a .500-in-conference power conference team, and most of them probably have smaller fanbases, but I think we can say with very high confidence that Indiana, Ohio State, Arkansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma (all on the 11-seed line in the bracket matrix) are not among the top 10 teams in the country, since they have played against enough other good teams to prove that they consistently aren't that good. But even if UCSD is right in the same realm on KenPom, I would bet there is a lot more upside to their potential tournament performance than a random 18-12 power conference team. Sadly, I don't think the committee thinks that way.
Rodger as a ucsd alum this one strikes close to home for me. And one other important point not mentioned in the article is that This is our first year of postseason eligibility because of our 4(? I think it was 4) year postseason ban after moving from D2 to D1. This meant I never had a chance while I was at school to see the Tritons even in the big west. The ban never made any sense to me (why do incumbent teams need to avoid competition with teams recently out of D2 that’ll probably suck anyway) but with the ban over we’re all extremely hopeful for our first taste of postseason hoops.
The ban is the bane of my existence. St. Thomas looking like it might win the Summit and not be allowed in this year
All 3 should be in regardless of conference tourney outcomes. I will cry with you if any one of them is left out
so glad the Crying Squad is growing