Conference USA is currently 17-1 collectively across the Big Dance March Madness, the NIT (Champion), and the CBI (Champion).
As it stands, Conference USA will be facing off in the Finals of the NIT so something's gotta give UAB vs North Texas for a 4th time this season, so Conference USA will be the champion of the NIT in some capacity.
Now Florida Atlantic has a chance to make the Finals of the NCAA Tournament this weekend and win the whole thing.
This begs the question if this is the best display of Conference domination in the modern era and even if you disagree out of pure disrespect for the NIT and CBI you are going to have no choice but to reconcile with my next point which is the OVERALL point of the entire landscape of College Basketball now and going forward ---->
The reason this is remotely pertinent is that with the new transfer rules in place, we are now witnessing more upsets than ever in all Tournaments and it isn't because the top team's players don't care. It is because the coaching is cocky and not preparing their teams properly. March Madness has become a Transfer Portal Mid Major Showcase Tournament.
The Mid Majors and "non-Power 5's, that are actually stronger than Power 5's top to bottom" are HUNGRY to showcase their talents so they can get PAID to transfer out and upgrade their NIL/Contracts. It comes down to who has something to play for. I won't be shocked to soon see top players opting out of March Madness and I won't even be shocked if some players opt out before Conference Play after showcasing vs OOC slates.
This season we saw Nick Smith of Arkansas pull a reverse of this and essentially sit out almost all of Conference play "injured" while just training with Klutch Sports out in LA and then showed back up for the SEC Conference Tournament and the NCAA Tournament. Eric Mussleman allowed it and I don't blame him. They paid for his services for 1 year, so they might as well use him.
So in essence, this is a memo to Tommy Lloyd to stop fucking around when you have 1 and 2 seeds because competition is only going to get more and more stiff with Arizona's regression and if you face teams who are playing for their Livelihoods and Families in the Tournament, you are going to continue to get embarrassed.
Johnell Davis of FAU says it best after every game, "I'm doing this for my family, we're gonna be good. I got us".
This goes to show that mid-majors have the proper model for success. They groom upperclassmen to gain the desire to win, work hard and establish chemistry with teammates.
Without 5* recruits, the atmosphere in the locker room allows players to cohesively win. I can't wait to see how Arizona grows as a program without a roster full of McDonald's All Americans within the next 4+ years.
And yes, props to Conference USA for their nice postseason run. Despite losing some big programs over the past decade (Memphis, Houston, etc.), their basketball teams have held up nicely.
Quote from: KansasCityCats on March 29, 2023, 07:25:19 AM
This goes to show that mid-majors have the proper model for success. They groom upperclassmen to gain the desire to win, work hard and establish chemistry with teammates.
Without 5* recruits, the atmosphere in the locker room allows players to cohesively win. I can't wait to see how Arizona grows as a program without a roster full of McDonald's All Americans within the next 4+ years.
And yes, props to Conference USA for their nice postseason run. Despite losing some big programs over the past decade (Memphis, Houston, etc.), their basketball teams have held up nicely.
This is where I find you to be incorrect in your opinion of this subject. Conference USA is not a true Mid Major conference. Not in 2023 in the Portal Era.
This is where people don't understand the phrase Mid Major anymore. I find it disrespectful to be frank. There is a big difference between All the teams in Conference USA + Big East and all the teams in the Mountain West and West Coast Conference. 2 completely different levels/echelons of talent.
We need to be the change and recognize the "Power 5" is an archaic term. If anything it is closer to a Power 7 now or we must downgrade the Pac12 out of the Power 5. Something has to give if we are to accurate and fairly assess the landscape of College Basketball.
These players are showcasing their talents so they can get paid. Once this tournament is over we will see these types of players upgrade to bigger programs and players from bigger programs without a role go to these Conference USA type programs where they can be part of the main core and lead + showcase themselves. It will not be surprising to see kids transfer to a new school 3 or 4 times over a 4 or 5 year College Career if the money is right.
The current top 25 is mostly chalk full of well paid players who aren't prioritizing this 6 game tournament. I really am emphasizing that I expect a lot of blue chip players to showcase their abilities in OOC play, skip Conference Play and show up for the Tournaments or the Inverse, build their draft stock up then opt out asap.
I agree with most of your post but the Power 5 phrase still holds up because the facilities, donors and tv contracts are typically on a different level.
There are obviously exceptions but Conference USA doesn't have consistent basketball programs that will sustain this success in the future, especially with the way the NIL will ruin the hierarchy.