PROVO — The message was shouted from the NCAA Selection Committee: schedule better in non-conference play, especially for mid-majors.

The BYU basketball team heard it, loud and clear, after most of the angst seemed directed at Saint Mary's — the 20th-ranked team in the final AP Top 25 of the regular season that finished No. 40 in the RPI ratings.

"Obviously what qualifies to be in the top 25 is not what qualifies you for the tournament. We've all learned a pretty big lesson there," said BYU coach Dave Rose, whose team will open its third-straight NIT at 8 p.m. MDT Wednesday at Stanford. "It's about who you beat, and how many teams you beat as far as the weekly poll is concerned. The tournament is about who you play. I think that sends a pretty strong message to everybody."

While the Cougars played non-conference games against Princeton, Alabama and Illinois State (last year's team that found itself in a Saint Mary's-like scenario), the Gaels' schedule was rife with scheduling concerns. A non-conference slate that never left the state of California and neutral-court losses to Washington State and Georgia led to a strength-of-schedule that ranked 165th out of 351 Division I basketball teams, with wins that included New Mexico State, Dayton and Harvard.

That led to the Gaels' omission as an at-large selection, especially after losing to BYU in the the WCC Tournament semifinals, selection chairman Bruce Rasmussen said during the TBS announcement.

"They didn't play a very challenging schedule, even non-conference," Rasmussen said. "Of their 28 wins, all but four were against teams in the last two quadrants."

It's not always easy to schedule tough non-conference games. But it's becoming a necessity for mid-majors, even if it means taking "one-off" or "2-for-1" deals with Power-5 programs or setting up agreements with the top mid-majors in the country. A report by CBSsports.com indicated Saint Mary's and head coach Randy Bennett turned down home-and-home contracts with Atlantic 10 regular-season champion Rhode Island and Mountain West champion Nevada — while also buying out a return game to the Western Athletic Conference's Grand Canyon (RPI No. 156) after the Lopes' played in Moraga, California, a year ago.

"No one said it's going to be easy. But I think we need to change our scheduling pillars," Rose said. "We've always been a team that has expected a return game. We have a great home crowd and a great product to sell … but we may have to adjust that a little bit to try to get the opponents that we need to get.

"There are some adjustments that probably need to be made."

As for this year, the Cougars turn their attention to Stanford in the opening round of the NIT. The third-seeded Cardinal (18-15) finished tied for third in the Pac-12 with an 11-7 record and will make their first NIT appearance since winning the tournament title in 2015.

Travis Reid averages 19.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game to lead Stanford, and Dorian Pickens is another double-digit scorer at 15.2 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.

"We’re very lucky to have another game," BYU forward Yoeli Childs said. "We're a group of guys who are excited to play together one last time and try to make a run at this thing.

"Everyone wants us to be in the NCAA Tournament. We wanted to be in, too. But being mad about it or wishing you were in the tournament isn’t going to do anything for you. I think we just need to be focused, locked in and be excited to play another game together."

Rose was struck by the depth of this year's NIT, and put increased emphasis on the Cougars' first game.

"When I think of the five tournaments that we’ve been in, I think it's the best field, as far as quality of teams and also name recognition of teams," Rose said. "There are a lot of really good teams that have had great teams over the last couple of years.

"There are a handful of teams that I think are quality that didn’t even make the NIT. It’s not like having a .500 record, so you get to go to a bowl. This is a little bit different."

Mountain West Zags

Rose publicly responded to a report in the San Diego Union-Tribune that has picked up steam over the past week indicating Gonzaga could be on its way to the Mountain West Conference, and several other schools — including BYU — may join them.

Rose said losing the Zags would "hurt our league, that's a no-brainer." But he also tried to paint the picture from the vantage of Mark Few and Gonzaga.

"I think they are in a good place right now," he said. "They’ve got a one-seed from this league (in the conference tournament); they just got a four-seed (to the NCAA Tournament). They've got some issues they are trying to work out right now.

"I think they would like to see those things approved in their favor."

The Cougars will be fine, though, Rose said.

"BYU has got a great tradition, a strong tradition," he added. "What we bring to the fan base is pretty unique.

"If you don’t believe that, a schmuck like me just won a national contest for $100,000. This is a real brand; Cougar Nation has got real power to it. We'll be fine. We’ll have to make adjustments, but we’ll be fine."

New 3-point line

Among the new rules that will be implemented in the NIT this year are a move to four 10-minute quarters in lieu of two 20-minute halves, with team foul resets at each quarter break, and a 3-point line that stretches to FIBA standards of 22 feet 1.75 inches, which could impact shooters like BYU's TJ Haws.

"It was fun to try out today in practice," Haws said. "There are a lot of new rules for this tournament, and I think it will be a good challenge to adapt to those."

Related topics