Illinois State coach Dan Muller seeks non-conference foes on Twitter
The Illinois State Redbirds did not make the NCAA Tournament this year, and their coach is clearly not too pleased.
Illinois State has won a school-record 27 games this season, including 17 wins in the Missouri Valley Conference. A second loss to Wichita State this season came in the conference tournament final, and the Redbirds were firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble without earning that automatic bid.
Despite a very good RPI of 33, a lack of quality wins left Illinois State out of the Big Dance and with a No. 1 seed in the NIT. Failing to get an at-large bid was clearly a disappointment for all involved, and Illinois State head coach Dan Muller surely led the way in frustration level with the selection committee.
On Monday morning, Muller took to Twitter with a plea to Power-5 conference schools to schedule his team in non-conference play. It also had a hint of advertisement to it.
ACC BIG 10 BIG 12 SEC PAC 12 BIG EAST. It's me again. Looking 4 home & home next year. Pls call me 4 chance 4 QUALITY road win, top 33 RPI pic.twitter.com/zYAZpR3kJn
— Dan Muller (@DanMuller) March 13, 2017
Muller got a response from Ole Miss athletic director Ross Bjork, who spoke for himself as well as Rebels’ head coach Andy Kennedy.
.Hey @DanMuller I'm here with Coach Kennedy & since he doesn't do Twitter, he said to give us a call. We'd love to match up. https://t.co/eLrdBp0UIn
— Ross Bjork (@RossBjorkAD) March 13, 2017
Muller later tweeted that a matchup between Illinois State and Ole Miss is on the way, as long as the future dates can be settled on.
Talked to AK (Hope it was him & not Randy). Need to figure out dates but it's a done deal if we do. AK said it's the TWARD invitational. pic.twitter.com/NCOiWexjW3
— Dan Muller (@DanMuller) March 13, 2017
Related Story: NCAA Tournament: Who got snubbed?
Other than generally having players that aren’t as highly recruited and stay in school longer, mid-majors like Illinois State can absolutely compete with the bigger schools on the floor. Fear of taking an avoidable loss in non-conference play surely keeps those bigger schools from scheduling tougher teams from the smaller conferences, but hopefully Ole Miss can start to set a new template here.