NC State AD Yow upset the Wolfpack was passed over by NCAA

March 18 (UPI) -- While teams all over the country are getting ready for the NCAA men's basketball tournament, NC State is not one of them -- and one person involved with the program is speaking out about it.

NC State athletic director Debbie Yow released a statement after the Wolfpack was not selected as one of the field of 68 on Sunday, stating that she was "disappointed" that NC State's "total body of work was not rewarded."

It is easy to see why Yow would be upset with the committee, as the Wolfpack had the highest NET ranking of any team that failed to make the tournament.

NET ranking (NCAA Evaluation Tool) was introduced this season by the NCAA to replace RPI, and touts it as more of an analytical system that uses such elements as game results, strength of schedule, game location, scoring margin and net efficiency to determine a ranking.

NC State's NET ranking is a 33, and 13 other teams that made the tournament had a lower ranking.

"NC State is ranked No. 33 in the NET, 32 in the KenPom, 26 in the BPI and 24 in the Sagarin," Yow wrote Sunday.

"Our Strength of Schedule is 179 and only the Kevin Pauga ranking is higher than No. 33 at 66.

"We finished 8-9 versus quad 1 and 2 programs [in NET rankings], with five of those games outside of our home arena, while playing 14 games against teams in the Top 50 of the NET rankings and having only two losses outside of the Top 22 in the NET. This included a win against the SEC Champions, Auburn University and five games against the field's No. 1 seeds.

"Based on the metrics [cited] above that the NCAA indicated they would use to evaluate team performance, we are disappointed for our athletes, coaches and fans that our total body of work was not rewarded with selection to the NCAA Tournament."

NC State finished the season at 22-11, and now instead of playing in the tournament will have to settle for playing in the NIT, where they will host Hofstra on Tuesday at Reynolds Coliseum.