Wisconsin Basketball: Badgers robbed by NCAA Tournament committee

The Wisconsin Badgers earned a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

To be fair, the Wisconsin Badgers do not have the most glamorous or impressive resume, but there is a sense of disappointment looming over the basketball team after learning their NCAA Tournament fate on Sunday.

Despite finishing second in the Big Ten regular season and conference tournament, the Badgers received a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will play the No. 9 seeded Virginia Tech Hokies.

While the seeding initially came as a shock, what came next was a bigger surprise.

Conference rivals Minnesota and Maryland were later announced that they would receive a No. 5 and No. 6 seed respectively. The Badgers went 3-0 versus those two teams this season.

The Badgers finished the season 6-7 against NCAA Tournament teams, while the Golden Gophers finished an even 7-7. Maryland finished 5-4.

To add insult to injury, the Badgers will have the defending champion looming in a  possible second round matchup as the Villanova Wildcats secured the top and number one overall seed. Villanova plays the winner of Mount Saint Mary’s and New Orleans.

In addition to the shock that the Badgers earned a No. 8 seed, the Northwestern Wildcats also earned a No. 8 honor- after finishing sixth in the conference and getting bounced by the Badgers in the Big Ten semifinals. Also, at 19-14, the Michigan State Spartans grabbed a No. 9 seed.

The downside of the Badgers’ resume this year is the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), which has the Badgers ranked fifth in the Big Ten Conference. An outdated metric that does not account for margin of victory and strength of record, to name a few, the RPI is what the NCAA Tournament committee focuses solely on- a reflection of their picks.

The Badgers and Hokies’ tip-off time has not been announced. Wisconsin will face a familiar foe as Virginia Tech’s head coach Buzz Williams used to coach at Marquette.