So much for the geographic advantage of the entire tournament being played in the heart of Big Ten Country. Oral Roberts hadn’t won an NCAA Tournament game since 1974. Sending them home were teams from the Pac-12 (twice), Big 12, SEC, American Athletic, Conference USA, Missouri Valley and Summit. And while Big Ten defenders — what few remain — might point out the Big 12 and the ACC had just three teams left out of a combined 14 bids, there’s no denying the embarrassing nature of the Big Ten’s opening weekend at this year’s Big Dance. “The toughest conference in all of college basketball,” CBS analyst Grant Hill intoned on-air during the Big Ten Tournament.

Source: Forbes March 23, 2021 03:00 UTC