Life on NCAA tourney bubble getting tougher for the little guys: ‘The opportunity is disappearing’
This March, optimism has taken a precipitous dive in Murfreesboro, twinning with a larger trend outside of college basketball’s top conferences. The NCAA tournament committee has felt more like a cartel the past three seasons, as just three at-large teams have been selected for the NCAA tournament from outside the top seven conferences – ACC, AAC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC – in each of the last three seasons. The nine at-large bids from smaller leagues over the past three years is a stark comparison to the 28 at-large bids for teams outside the top leagues in a three-year span from 2012 to 2014.