Wait a second... is that I'm a Believer on the radio...Is it the Monkees version... what about Smash Mouth...What do you mean who is Smash Mouth... where are we 1966?
Yeah, I know the former Texas Western is a 26-6 team. So what if the Miners went 15-1 in the Jon Calipari Commemorative Conference. Who wouldn't be impressed by their 1-3 record against AP Top 25. The 3-4 against other teams in the tournament (including 1-2 against C-USA Tourney Champs Houston) is the stuff of legend.
That Out of Conference schedule was ridiculous. I mean who would have thought to play New Mexico St. in a home and home series. I can't blame them for scheduling Arkansas Pine-Bluff, heck they are one of only 17 teams that will go 1-1 in this year's tournament. Not even the Big XII coaches knew that Oklahoma was going to be terrible this year, apparently Blake Griffin was that good. And who can fault them for playing Norfolk State and North Carolina A&T a couple of teams with huge potential to finish in the Top 10 of a historically great mid-major like the MEAC. Ever since that 60 point win against the worst league-affiliated D1 program in the country this year, Alcorn St., these guys have been a lock to get to the Sweet Sixteen even if they lost in the finals of the conference tourney.
Their first round competition is some overrated mid-major from a joke conference that only has a .472 winning percentage in the NCAA tournament.
Yeah, I know the former North Western Christian University is a 28-4 team. So what, the Bulldogs went 18-0 in the Todd Lickliter Memorial League. Nobody is impressed with their 1-3 against the AP Top 25. The 3-3 against other teams in the tourney (including 1-2 against teams seeded 7 or better) is far from legendary.
That Out of Conference schedule was a cakewalk. I mean who schedules an early season Midwest tour against Northwestern and Evansville and follows it up with Minnesota. You have to blame them for not playing any potential play-in game winners, it just shows a lack of RPI knowledge. Not even the Pac-10 coaches knew that UCLA was going to be terrible, it's not like Jrue Holliday and Darren Collison were that good. You have to fault the Athletic Office and Coach for putting teams that barely had Top 10 potential in historically terrible mid-majors like the Missouri Valley and the MAC. Ever since that one-point loss to Clemson, I crossed this team off the list as an at-large, they are lucky then won the conference tourney.
Luckily for the Miners, we didn't go back 11 years earlier, these games aren't going to be played at Historic Hinkle Fieldhouse, because the hoops may be 10 feet tall there, but apparently they are taller in San Jose.
