Quote Originally Posted by smootness View Post
We just have to understand that the OOC schedule matters. We can look only at conference games if we want, but if you're looking for the reason they'll be in and we'll be out, it comes down to the OOC schedule. Period.

In the OOC, they played the following RPIs:
18 - L
28 - W
31 - W
33 - W
79 - W
87 - W
111 - W
114 - W

And they only played 3 teams 200 or worse, only 4 worse than 114. We, on the other hand, played the following:
7 - L
129 - W
146 - W
148 - W

And those are the only teams better than 200 that we even played. That is a massive difference in quality of OOC schedule. We can dismiss that all we want, but if we do, we're going to continue to be confused as to why they're in and we're out. Because that is the reason.

Heck, even in conference, they beat Auburn and Kentucky, and our best win is them.
And I actually think that should matter. Basketball isn't like football, where you get beat up by playing good opponents, so it would be crazy for a team in a good conference to schedule a tough OOC. So if you want to dance, you should go out and schedule good OOC.

However, I do think it's relevant that our team was so young this year. If a team is winning and scheduling crap OOC just to pad their win total, screw em. If a team that is struggling uses OOC to build confidence and then proves themselves in a good conference, they shoudln't be penalized as much. That said, I am fine with us being out right now. We proved we are a bubble team in conference play. Had we beaten UT and LSU, we should have been a lock. With the way we ended up, I think we are a tournament quality team with the way we are playing, but if we get left out in favor of a team that has a better resume for the season, I don't think that's unreasonable or unfair.