CINCINNATI — While the Xavier Musketeers did not make the NCAA Tournament, a webpage on CBSSports.com says they did.
XU has been on the bubble for the last several weeks, so it's understandable that, like this news outlet, CBS Sports would have prepared something that was ready to go should the committee decide to give them an at-large bid.
But the Muskies did not make the cut of the final 68 teams, and it became painfully obvious that it wasn't going to be in the cards as conference tournaments played out last week with XU collapsing against Butler in the first round of the Big East Tournament while other bubble teams like Indiana, Rutgers and Virginia Tech all took care of wins in their respective conference postseasons.
The final reveal on Selection Sunday, which aired on CBS, only confirmed the inevitable.
The webpage, which is still up on CBSSports.com as of Monday afternoon, has a timestamp of March 12th at 5:08 p.m., suggesting that it was published prior to the Selection Sunday show that aired at 6 p.m. the next day. Some fans thought there was inside info that leaked out in the day before the official word was given, but it only proved to be false hope.
The website details the team's "tournament resume," remarking that it "Turns out, Travis Steele's team had enough to break through, and now there's a new beginning of sorts for a squad that has been bumpy in recent weeks." We wish.
The passage on the page goes on to say "This is Steele's first trip as a head coach."
It's not. Steele has missed the tournament every year that one has been held since he took over in 2018 (COVID canceled the 2020 tournament).
Fans won't be happy with this being out there, given that it's a sting in an already touchy situation, just like fans haven't been happy with Steele as the season, and his tenure, have gone on.
Xavier will instead host Cleveland State in the first round of the NIT (National Invitational Tournament) on Tuesday at 9 p.m. as a consolation prize for a great start to the season, but a fall from Number 17 in the country at one point has them left out of college basketball's best this year.
