Wright State Joins March Madness

Wright State defeated Butler in the Horizon League Championship game, giving the Horizon two entrants to the NCAA Tournament and hurting others' chances.

So, Wright State is heading to the NCAA Tournament and March Madness. Butler, which lost to Wright State in the Horizon League Tournament Championship game, will also be invited as an at-large team. This means plenty of trouble for major college basketball conference "bubble teams."

The last thing teams like Michigan of the Big Ten and Clemson of the ACC wanted to see was a win by Wright State.

If Butler had won, the Horizon League would have likely sent just one team, as Wright State would most certainly have been eliminated. Now, Wright State wins the right to college basketball's Big Dance, and Butler has to be in, based on its great season and top 20 NCAA ranking.

This takes a spot that a major college basketball conference team might have earned, even with a marginal season.

Usually teams like Michigan, Clemson and Illinois make the NCAA Tournament. In conferences like the Big Ten, the Big 12 and the ACC, 20 wins overall and 8 or 9 conference victories is usually enough for an at-large bid and a March Madness ticket.

Each time a team like Wright State upsets an NCAA shoo-in like Butler, big conference "bubble" teams cringe.

So, if you're a fan of one of the middle-tier major conference teams, you're likely hating Wright State today, and you'll be holding your breath on NCAA Tournament selection Sunday.