March Madness 2015: Five biggest snubs from Selection Sunday

Mar 14, 2015; Hartford, CT, USA; Southern Methodist Mustangs forward Markus Kennedy (5) reacts after defeating the Temple Owls in the second half during the semifinal round of the American Conference Tournament at XL Center. SMU defeated Temple 69-56. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports /

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Jan 15, 2015; Norfolk, VA, USA; Old Dominion Monarchs center Jonathan Arledge (35) shoots the ball against Rice Owls center Andrew Drone (54) during the second half at Constant Convocation Center. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports /

Old Dominion

Old Dominion beat LSU and VCU—both NCAA Tournament teams—and ended the season with 24 wins. None of that was enough, any more than ending up second in Conference USA was enough to make the NCAAs.

As it turns out, Conference USA only got one bid, so as a wise man once said “If you ain’t first, you’re last.” It makes as much sense as a Will Ferrell movie, since plenty of teams looked much worse than Old Dominion but got their invite anyway.

At the end of the day, losses to Western Kentucky, UAB and UTSA did the Monarchs in, though they remained in the top 50 in RPI.

Again, this is the plight of the mid-major—you have almost no ways to get into the tournament and an at-large bid is rare since you don’t have the draw of other teams from major conferences. The selection committee won’t say it, but the cold truth is that Norfolk, Virginia doesn’t draw like Los Angeles or like anything from a conference like the Big 10.

So Old Dominion gets left out, despite the number of wins, win percentage, RPI or any of the things that get pointed to only when someone is making an argument for a Power-5 conference.

Old Dominion is only the first team on this list, and not the most egregious slight either, but it’s an oversight anyway.

Next: Iona

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