Miami (OH) head coach Travis Steele is speaking out against NCAA Tournament expansion, arguing it solely benefits power conferences. Despite leading the RedHawks to a historic undefeated regular season, his squad faces a potential March Madness snub. Steele firmly insists expanding the tournament won’t help mid-major basketball, but will instead reward mediocre high-major programs over smaller schools.
Travis Steele Blasts NCAA Tournament Expansion Debate After UMass Upset
Steele recently shared his thoughts on the expansion of the NCAA Basketball tournament. The RedHawks, who had been mostly undefeated throughout the season, were finally defeated by a significant margin of 83-87 to UMass in the first loss of the season.
In a post-match press conference, the RedHawks coach nonchalantly stated,
“Yeah, if they ever expanded, I mean, it’s not going to help mid major basketball at all. Everything’s slanted to thing only. Let’s make one thing crystal clear. All the numbers are slanted that way. Scheduling slanted that way. Everything is slanted that way. But listen, it could be big and I could care less about Mac getting a multi bid, just to be quite frank.”
READ MORE : College Basketball World Reacts As Miami (OH)’s Undefeated Season Ends: ‘THE MADNESS OF MARCH IS HERE’
With the lone exception of this loss, the RedHawks have been mostly undefeated throughout the season. Steele also pointed out the flaw in his postgame press conference. In his words,
“But listen, it could be big and I could care less about Mac getting a multi bid, just to be quite frank. I know the Mac probably wanted that, but I could care less. You know, it’s more about you know, just putting ourselves in the best position, which I think we’ve done. Our guys have earned the right, in my opinion, to play in the NCAA tournament.”
Before this loss, the Miami Redhawks had a near-perfect season. Frank Martin and UMass, aka the University of Massachusetts, stunned the Miami Redhawks by 24-41. The Redhawks had previously won all their matches, taking their score to 31-0. However, with this loss, their chance of making it to March Madness could be jeopardized. College basketball expert John Rothstein reported,
“We will have a BID STEALER out of the MAC! Frank Martin and UMass stun Miami (OH) in Cleveland. Redhawks are now 31-1 and could be headed to Dayton. The Minutemen are just TWO WINS away from the NCAA Tournament. This is ******* March!”
With the loss of Miami Redhawks, it would be interesting to see if they make it to the final four. Seth Davis posted on his X account,
“For me, the only suspense is whether Miami Ohio ends up in the First Four, which is now very possible. So interesting that the exact same thing happened to St. Joseph’s in 2004 when it went undefeated in the regular season. Lost first game in the A10 tourney by 20 to Xavier.”
Today’s loss *could* send Miami (Ohio) to the First Four. RedHawks going 31-0 in the regular season should obviously be enough to get them in the tournament — and their resume metrics, particularly their WAB and SOR, are very good. But just two games vs. Q1+2. Now a Q4 loss.
