If Penn State coach Ed DeChellis is seen sweating out Thursday’s preliminary-round game of the Big Ten tournament against Indiana, well, he has only himself to blame.
“On Monday, the time came to nail down Ed DeChellis about what he was thinking when he rubber-stamped the nonconference schedule that could keep his Penn State Nittany Lions out of the NCAA tournament.
“The schedule is so notably weak that everyone from former coaches like ESPN’s Tom Brennan to bracketing geeks like Jerry Palm and Joe Lunardi is mentioning it when they appraise Penn State’s chances.
“With not a little irony, DeChellis was named Monday night by Big Ten reporters as their coach of the year. I didn’t have a vote. But if I did, Ed would be atop my ballot.
“Here’s the thing: A team that has played so hard for him and because of him and probably outreached its logical potential by two or three conference wins could easily be relegated to the NIT. This, with a Big Ten record that historically has landed an NCAA bid more than two-thirds of the time.
“That could happen on Sunday because he either dismissed as unimportant or flat-out misunderstood what the selection committee does and how it judges at-large candidates.
“One thing NCAA committee advisors Greg Shaheen and Dave Worlock emphatically tell the 10 committee members every year: the number of games a team wins is immaterial. It does not matter in the slightest. …”