The NCAA does a terrific job in picking the teams and they put an extraordinary amount of time and effort into it. A school's record over its last 10 games is something that I think the committee looks at with a great deal of interest. Road wins are also very important because they give a true indication of a team's strength and resolve. The ability to win a big game away from home reveals a lot about a school. Remember, The Tournament will be played in basketball arenas away from each university's campus.
Strength of schedule is vital toward helping the members determine a team's true worthiness.
Obviously, this strength of schedule is probably more weighted toward a team's non-conference slate because that's a part of the schedule that teams and coaches have a little more control over rather than their conference schedule. These are three of the more important ingredients that will help separate schools that tend to look an awful lot alike in terms of number of wins or similarity in conference strength. Akin to selecting an All-America team of great college players, each year one can make a legitimate case for selecting a particular team for The Tournament. So many schools may deserve to get in and a number of programs are left out, despite having comparable achievements. One of the attractions that helps make The Tournament so special and unique is the fact that only 65 schools get in.