Miami (OH) basketball sparked quite the March Madness debate this season. The RedHawks are the nation's remaining undefeated team left at an astonishing 30-0 overall. Yet still drew out critics like Bruce Pearl before the NCAA Tournament.
The RedHawks' strength of schedule is why Pearl called them out.
Miami (OH) has the nation's 196th hardest schedule per Team Rankings; fueling the harsh critique from the former Auburn and Tennessee head coach. They also play in the Mid-American Conference (MAC), which annually sends only its tournament champion into the Big Dance.
The RedHawks rise as a bubble team for these reasons.
Miami (OH)'s current March Madness odds
Miami (OH) still needs to win out to solidify its spot into the 68-team field. There's little chance of an at-large bid here.
The RedHawks currently hold a 31.1% chance to make the tourney per Team Rankings, which includes the at-large percentage. That gives them higher odds compared to most other bubble teams like USC. But again, Miami's stack of victories still may not do the RedHawks any justice if they fall in the MAC Tournament.
Team Rankings plugged Miami (OH) as a potential contender for an 11th seed. CBS Sports bracketology, however, places Miami (OH) slightly lower: Projecting them to land the No. 12 seed in the South regional with Tennessee as the opponent.
But again, the path to the NCAA Tournament isn't easy for this undefeated crew.
Path to the Big Dance
If only the RedHawks played in the Big Ten or any other power conference, the college basketball world wouldn't have this conversation. Miami (OH) playing in the Mountain West or the West Coast Conference would've helped its March chances too with both sending multiple teams annually.
But here we are with the MAC leader creating the biggest debate among mid-majors for tournament placement.
Miami (OH) has one more regular season hurdle left on Thursday against rival Ohio University. The Bobcats have lost two in a row and stand at 15-15 overall.
Ohio winning on Friday does little damage to Miami (OH), though. It's only damaging for the RedHawks if this loss occurred in the MAC Tournament.
The nation's last unbeaten will need to breeze past two other aspiring March Madness contenders once its conference tourney time. Akron at 25-5 overall has won six straight and would love to break into the Field of 68 again. Kent State isn't far behind with its 22-8 mark ahead of the conference tournament.
Miami (OH) looks like it'll tangle with the Zips or Golden Flashes for the MAC Championship. You could be looking at the most watched MAC basketball title game ever if Miami is undefeated and needing one more win to punch its ticket.
