Another analyst disputes UNC's inclusion into NCAA Tournament

North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis looks on during the First Four Practice at UD Arena. Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Another analyst disputes North Carolina's inclusion into NCAA Tournament

By Austen Bundy | Last updated Mar 18, 2025 5:03 PM ET

Selection Sunday has come and gone, and the 68 teams that will compete for the men's college basketball national championship have been revealed.

One of those teams was a source of major controversy when its name was revealed.

North Carolina (22-13), the final team selected for the tournament, boasts a sub-par resume that includes a 1-12 record against Quad 1 teams and an early season loss to a Quad 3 team (Stanford).

West Virginia (19-13) and Indiana (19-13) were the first two teams left out despite both faring better against Quad 1 teams.

The NCAA Selection Committee noted the Tar Heels' non-conference strength of schedule (fourth in the nation) and their run to the ACC semifinals pushed them over the edge.

Analysts, like CBS Sports' Gary Parrish, however, aren't buying that explanation.

"I don't care if they go to the Final Four, it'll never change what their resume looked like on Selection Sunday and on Selection Sunday their resume should not have been good enough to be in this bracket."@GaryParrishCBS on North Carolina getting into the Tournament. pic.twitter.com/ffzT1jKVgr
— CBS Sports College Basketball (@CBSSportsCBB) March 18, 2025

North Carolina's Quad 1 record this season is the worst to earn an at-large bid in the NET rankings era (2018-19), per CBS Sports. Xavier (1-9 this year) is the second-worst to make it.

Only one of the five worst teams to qualify based on that metric has advanced past the first round. Syracuse reached the Sweet 16 in 2021 with a 1-7 record against Quad 1 foes.

But the Tar Heels could benefit from a historical boost. In 12 of the last 13 seasons, at least one team participating in the First Four play-in games in Dayton, Ohio has made it to at least the Round of 32 (13 teams total in that span).

"If North Carolina [beats San Diego State], a lot of North Carolina fans ... will use it as evidence that it proves something that it does not prove," Parrish refuted, noting tournament performance has no bearing on a team's deservingness to participate.

The Tar Heels and Aztecs are set to tip off Tuesday at 9:10 p.m. ET on TruTV.

Austen Bundy

Austen Bundy is a journalist and sports junkie from the Washington, D. C. area

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