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For a bubble team, the only thing more frustrating this time of year than the NCAA selection process is the NIT seeding process. C.M. Newton, chairman of the 8-man NIT selection committee, describes their process this way: "We're just a bunch of old, retired basketball coaches. We seed the teams based on this question: 'Who would you least like to play?'" Translation (in terms of how an old basketball coach looks at it): "Who would you be the most embarrassed to lose to?" And you put all those teams on the road. Which explains why the likes of ORU, Middle Tennessee and Drexel are seeded so low, and Tennessee, Stanford and the like are seeded so high. That, and the fact the last thing the NIT wants in MSG is a championship game featuring Oral Roberts vs. Middle Tennessee. The bracket has been crafted to put Power Six and East Coast teams in the bast position to make it to New York. Which, of course, is nothing new. It's the way the tournament has been bracketed for decades. So much for the "new look" NIT: The more it changes, the more it stays the same...

Caleb Green was named to the Mid-Major all-decade team by CollegeInsider.com. Well deserved accolade for Caleb.

OK, now that it appears that we were MUCH more highly-regarded by the committee than probably any of us ever imagined, a couple of observations: 1. How much did social media play a part in raising the awareness of ORU's resume with the committee, via the media who picked up on it? 2. How incredibly STUPID do certain cynics who said ORU had no chance of ever getting in now look, as they went out of their way to say the social media effort was a complete waste of time? We'll never about No. 1 (and, I already know the answer to No. 2: "Very".) But, suffice it to say that the committee apparently thought enough of ORU that they were prepared to withstand the inevitable firestorm that would have ensued had they picked the Golden Eagles over the likes of Drexel, Seton Hall, Miami, etc. The vitriol - and the accompanying first-round expectations on a national scale that would have come from it - might have crushed this team. As it is now, they enter NIT play with a chip on their shoulder and the confidence that comes with having their name bandied about for the past week with the likes of Big East, ACC and SEC teams. Hopefully, that ego boost will pay off on Wednesday night.

I think we are in a good bracket to make some noise. Having this game at home will help and if we advance to the next round I think we would have a legitimate shot at Arizona. I dont know if you guys saw this but the Summit has 5 teams in post season tourneys. Oakland is in the College Insider Tournament and NDSU and Western Illinois are both in the CBI. I just thought that was cool.

Good luck Eagles, beat the WolfPack!

Good luck in the NIT, I'll be pulling for you guys.

Yes they definitely setup some games for better TV ratings. I totally understand that. But when the NCAA selection committee releases the first four out and those teams aren't seeded in the NIT based anywhere near that, I guess it makes me appreciate the objectivity? of the NCAA selection committee.

ORUMOM I'm sure you are right and I am glad to have a home game. That gives us a real opportunity to advance. But I am still recovering from realizing that if Xavier brings its A game today ORU would have made the dance. That's really cool but also a hard pill to swallow especially when we were up by 8 points against WIU with about 7 minutes to go. I'll be ready to roll come game time.

Nice inteview with Coach Sutton.....that's some serious publicity on ESPNU that money cannot buy!.....

A 4 seed is really us getting hosed again....but yeah, we can beat Nevada at home and get an ESPN2 game at Arizona.....that would be interesting.....this ORU team can win a few games if they are motivated to play....sure would be nice to get at least 5-6,000 at Mabee for a late tip off on Wednesday night.....time for Dr. Rutland to do a serious commercial for the game in chapel on Wedesday morning.....

The Strength of Schedule is really a problem for us. We are going to have a hard time getting our SOS higher playing in the Southland. I think our presence in the Southland will eventually get the other schools to start scheduling better, but it is going to take 3-5 years to get to a respectable level.

Although DBH has shown up in some games since mid-December (i.e., Akron to name one), he has not been consistent in being "in the game". I think he is a better player than what he has displayed in the recent past. I don't know if he is physically hurt, but that doesn't appear to be the problem.

I'm not sure we realize how big all this bubble talk has actually been. We were 1 team away from an AT-LARGE bid---that's pretty big in my book friends. Our program is rising and I predict very bright years ahead of us.