Wichita just shows how difficult Mid-Major scheduling is. They went out and put together what looked like a really good schedule on paper heading into the year (Memphis, Alabama, Seton Hall, St. Louis, Utah) and too many of those teams underperformed. They also played at Diamond Head and going in should have gotten to play both Colorado and Nebraska, but both of those teams got beat before they got to play them.
So you get to this point of the year and you don't have anything to show for it, even though you put together the best non-conference schedule you could reasonably expect to get.
Here is my problem with the way this plays out...
In the last 2 NCAA Tournaments you have Gonzaga and Wichita State.
2012-2013 Gonzaga.... they finished 30-2, #96 SOS, played 2 RPI top 25 teams all year, and they get a #1 seed. They go to the tournament and nearly get upset by Southern in the 1st Round and then they lose to #9 seed Wichita State in the 2nd Round.
2013-2014 Wichita State.... they finished 34-0, #111 SOS, played 0 RPI top 25 teams all year, and they get a #1 seed. They go to the tournament and lose to #8 seed Kentucky in the 2nd round.
Hmmm... look at a couple mid-majors looking at snagging some pretty lofty seeds with similar numbers... 22-2 UNI with a #146 SOS, played 2 RPI top 25 teams all year.... early tourney exit? History says yes. 20-3 Wichita State with a #107 SOS, played 2 RPI top 25 teams all year... early tourney exit? History says yes.
Then look at Power 5 teams...
An 8 loss UCONN team barely in the RPI top 25, #34 SOS, played 7 games against RPI top 25 teams, gets into the tournament with a #7 seed... they win the national championship.
A 10 loss Kentucky team in the lower half of the RPI top 25, #2 SOS, played 6 games against RPI top 25 teams, gets into the tournament with an #8 seed... they play in the national championship game.
A 7 loss Michigan team in the lower half of the RPI top 25, #68 SOS, played 7 RPI top 25 teams, gets into the tournament as a #4 seed... they play in the national championship game.
A 9 loss Syracuse team in the middle of the RPI top 25, #5 SOS, played 7 RPI top 25 teams, gets into the tournament as a #4 seed... they make the Final Four.
History shows that teams from the Power 5 conferences that play tougher schedules (and have some losses), that play more RPI top 25 games, that don't necessarily have the best records, thrive in March because they are tourney tested. These wannabe mid-majors with inflated records because they played pathetic schedules get sent packing early.