In the ever-competitive world of college basketball scheduling, the recent comments from Miami (OH)'s Travis Steele and High Point's Flynn Clayman have stirred up quite the conversation. Their remarks about the difficulty of getting power conference teams to schedule games with them caught the attention of Alabama's head coach, Nate Oats. Known for his bold "anyone, anywhere, anytime" scheduling approach, Oats was bound to weigh in on the matter.
Oats, with his roots in mid-major coaching, has made a name for himself by crafting one of the toughest out-of-conference schedules in the country. Under his leadership, Alabama isn't shy about facing quality mid-major teams. The Crimson Tide has taken on NCAA Tournament teams like USF and Kennesaw State, and they’ve also squared off against Yale, a regular in March Madness.
Oats wasn't entirely convinced by the narrative that Steele and Clayman struggled to find games. "The only mid-major schools we turned down are ones that aren’t good enough," Oats stated, emphasizing the importance of playing strong opponents.
"I don’t want to be playing Quad 4 games. To me, I want to play really good ones."
He pointed out that some mid-major schools, claiming scheduling difficulties, ended up playing multiple non-Division I games. This raises questions about the effort put into securing higher-caliber matchups. Miami (OH) and High Point, for instance, each played three non-Division I teams this past season.
Scheduling isn't a walk in the park for mid-major teams, especially when it comes to securing home games. Many power conference teams hesitate to travel for road games against mid-majors, yet Alabama has shown a willingness to do so, even playing a road game at North Dakota last season.
High Point has consistently performed well, while Miami (OH) surprised many with their strong season, despite a less impressive record two years ago. It's understandable that power conference teams might not have been intimidated by Miami (OH) this season.
Crafting a balanced schedule is undeniably challenging, but both Miami (OH) and High Point have proven their mettle by making it to this year's tournament. Their accomplishments are commendable, and they’ve shown they belong in the conversation.