Ohio Bobcats Seeking NCAA Tournament At-Large Birth

By Joseph Nardone
Eric P. Mull-USA TODAY Sports

Most of the attention coming from the MAC has stemmed from the Akron Zips (22-4, 12-0 MAC) having the longest active winning streak in the nation. However, there is another member of the conference who has had almost as much success – the Ohio Bobcats (20-7, 11-1 MAC).

While the Bobcats don’t feature a future NBA player like the Zips do, they have already accumulated 20 overall wins and are about to partake in a match-up against Akron.

Since both teams play in the MAC, the odds of either getting an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament are rather slim. Many feel Akron, the bigger “name” school of the two, could possibly do so by winning out and losing in the MAC Tournament Finale. For Ohio, well, popular belief is that they need to win the conference tournament. At-large births are not generally given to the smallest of mid-majors.

But that doesn’t mean either team is completely out of the race. Theoretically, one team could win out while the other wins the conference tournament. If that were the case, Ohio would have to be the team winning the conference tourney and leaving Akron in a win-out-until-that-game scenario.

However, for the Bobcats, their best case scenario is to win the rest of the way. It starts tonight with their game against the Zips. Playing at this low of a level provides them with an opportunity to rack up wins. However, those “wins”  that don’t mean as much to the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. Although, a win against Akron will surely help bolster their fairly weak resume.

But realistically, both these teams will need to win their conference tournament as I don’t see either of these teams being awarded an at-large bid.

Joe is a Senior Writer for Rant Sports. Follow Joe on Twitter @JosephNardone

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