High Point Coach Addresses Mid-Major Scheduling After NCAA Tournament Upset

High Point's head coach, Flynn Clayman, utilized a national television platform following his team's 83-82 upset victory over No. 5 seed Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament's first round. Clayman expressed his views on the perceived lack of opportunities for mid-major programs in non-conference scheduling.

High Point, a 12th-seeded team, achieved a 30-4 regular season record but had the third-weakest schedule nationally, according to the NCAA's NET rankings. The team had not played a high-major opponent in the regular season since December 16, 2023. Clayman stated:

"Looks pretty obvious to me that high-majors need to play mid-majors early in the season. Because they said we didn’t play nobody. We played somebody now."

Parallels with Miami (Ohio)

Clayman's comments echoed those of Miami (Ohio) coach Travis Steele, who had previously attempted to schedule high-major programs to strengthen his team's resume. Miami (Ohio) was the only undefeated Division I program in the regular season (31-0) but lost in the MAC tournament quarterfinals, leading to uncertainty regarding their NCAA tournament bid. Their schedule was ranked 339th out of 365 teams in the NET rankings.

Steele had commented:

"Listen, we’ve got a really good team. Don’t penalize us for people (who) aren’t willing to play us."

Miami (Ohio) later secured an 89-79 win over SMU in the First Four.

Call for Non-Conference Scheduling Changes

Clayman highlighted a broader issue, stating, "It’s pretty obvious to me that something needs to be done about this non-conference scheduling." "High Point and Miami (Ohio) are 2-0 in quad one games. We couldn’t get games. They couldn’t get games." He positioned High Point's victory over Wisconsin, a Big Ten team, as evidence that mid-majors deserve more early-season opportunities against high-major opponents.

"Nobody would play us. Just like they wouldn’t play Miami (Ohio). But they have to play us in this tournament."

He expressed pride in his team and their ambition to reach the Sweet 16. Clayman added:

"If we can get games like this on neutral courts and some home games, I think we’d know who’s really the best teams."