Big West unlikely to get at-large NCAA bid
Since its glory days in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Big West Conference hasn’t exactly sparked fear in the college basketball world.
After winning 19 straight games last season – the nation’s longest winning streak at the time – many people were talking about the possibility of the Aggies being a 10th, ninth, maybe even an eighth seed heading into the NCAA tournament. Instead, USU was rewarded with a 12th seed and a matchup against the defending national champion University of Connecticut in the first round.
So, what’s it going to take for the Aggies, and the Big West Conference as a whole, to garner some national respect?
For starters, an NCAA Tournament victory would speak volumes. The last time a BWC team won an NCAA Tournament game was in 1993 when New Mexico State University – now a member of the Sun Belt Conference – toppled the University of Nebraska, 93-79.
“I think whoever goes to the NCAA Tournament (from the BWC), if they make a little bit of a run and have a good showing, I think everybody looks around and says, ‘Hey, that conference must be pretty good’,” said USU assistant coach Randy Rahe.
The problem of national recognition is not unique to the Big West. Any conference that if classified a mid-major conference has the same problem.
A few years ago the College of Charleston, a member of the Southern Conference, finished the regular season 28-2. The team was rewarded with a ninth seed in the tourney. The University of Gonzaga, member of the West Coast Conference, is a good example of a team that has earned respect for its conference largely because of its success in March. The Zags made it to the Sweet 16 last year and the Elite Eight in 1999.
Also, thanks in large part to Gonzaga, the WCC received an at-large bid, in addition to the automatic bid given to the conference champion at last year’s tourney.
The last time the Big West had two teams participate in March Madness was in 1993, when both New Mexico State and Long Beach State University represented the BWC.
Come tournament time, the tournament selection committee, among other things, considers a team’s Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) to help determine seeding and who receives at-large bids.
Some of the factors used in determining RPI include strength of schedule, opponents’ strength of schedule and winning percentage against Division I teams.
As of Jan. 27, the Aggies are ranked 51 out of 319 schools in the RPI. The University of California at Irvine is the next highest rated team in the BWC with an RPI rating of 102.
At the end of last season, USU’s RPI was 28. Despite that high RPI rating, however, the Aggies may have been forced to settle for participating in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) if they had lost in Reno.
“I know that you can’t rely on [the RPI],” said senior forward Curtis Bobb. “Last year we had a great run, but we weren’t really sure if we would have gotten an at-large bid.”
Despite the high emphasis on the RPI, increasing it proves to be difficult for the Aggies.
One thing they can do is schedule tougher preseason games. The problem is, nobody wants to play a team like Utah State, Rahe said.
“It’s very difficult [to schedule games against top-notch teams],” Rahe said. “We had the same problem at Colorado State. Those nationally-renowned, top-20 teams do not leave their home court during the preseason to play a Utah State.”
Rahe said USU is constantly trying to convince bigger-named teams to schedule a home-and-home scenario where the Aggies would play at the opposing team’s arena one year if that same team travels to the Spectrum the following year. But, the Spectrum is a difficult place to play so “why come?” he said.
“For those teams to come in and play us, it’s a no-win situation for them because they’re supposed to win,” he said. “If they don’t win then it’s considered a huge upset.”
Neither Rahe or Bobb are worrying about the dilemma. They both said it’s much more important to worry about improving as a team and not taking anyone lightly than getting caught up in the hype.
“The NCAA Tournament is the farthest thing from my mind right now,” Rahe said.
According to Rahe and Bobb, the best way the Aggies can prepare for March is to continue to improve defensively and work on their rebounding.
“We went from first in the league to third in the league in rebounding, and that’s something we really have to shore up,” Rahe said.