“The National Corrupt Athletic Association”. That’s how West Virginia governor Patrick Morrisey described things when they revealed the NCAA Tournament bracket. North Carolina was the surprise inclusion for the last-seeded at-large team, stunning the college basketball world in the process. It was more than just a shocking inclusion — it was an insinuation of foul play on multiple counts. With just one Quadrant 1 win and lacking any kind of notable record against a marquee opponent, Hubert Davis’s UNC as the last team in feels scandalous, particularly since it came at the expense of West Virginia’s bid. The Mountaineers had a far superior resume to the Tar Heels but will not be in the Field of 68.

Now, Hubert Davis’s team is preparing for the First Four game with San Diego State; while they’re also taking the burden of being the primary characters of this storm. No, it’s not them. They’re just playing basketball. It’s decision-makers caught up in a mess now.

Gov. of West Virginia Patrick Morrisey said, “West Virginia deserved to be in the NCAA tournament. This was a miscarriage of justice and robbery at the highest levels, and who was the last team to get into the tournament ahead of the Mountaineers? That would be the University of North Carolina,” without mincing words after their team was left out.

He wasn’t done. Pointing to a side-by-side comparison of the resumes of the two teams, Morrisey highlighted West Virginia having six Quad 1 wins and three top-10 wins, dwarfing Hubert Davis’s team and its lone Quad 1 win. However, his biggest gripe was the influence of UNC athletic director Bubba Cunningham, who also serves as the chair of the NCAA selection committee.

Cunningham said he “recused himself,” whenever they discussed his team in the room, but Morrisey wasn’t buying it. “I’ve asked [West Virginia] attorney general [JB] McCuskey to launch an investigation into the NCAA Tournament selection committee to determine if any backroom deals, corruption, bribes, or any nefarious activity occurred during the selection process. I know that the attorney general and I are going to leave no stone unturned during this process. We need to get to the bottom of it,” Morrisey said.

Cunningham’s defense didn’t win over his critics. “Doesn’t pass the smell test,” Morrisey said. Controversy only grew when it came to light that Cunningham would stand to make a bonus from Hubert Davis’s performance in the NCAA Tournament. Cunningham’s contract includes a financial incentive — $67,905.67 — if the men’s basketball team makes the NCAA Tournament and could grow to almost $104,000.

Was Hubert Davis’s UNC spot justified?

The committee could have easily defended UNC’s pick. Based on the Tar Heels’ top-40 ranking, strength of schedule, and losses to top-seeded teams. Instead, Cunningham pointed to Tucker DeVries’ injury in December as the main reason for excluding the Mountaineers. Cunningham noted, “Player availability was something we talked about quite a bit.” However, not everyone is buying it.

Dan Dakich, on the OutKick podcast, wondered about the truancy of it all. “How big a conflict is this? Bubba Cunningham is the athletic director at North Carolina, and he is the head of the selection committee. Now, they have all these rules in place where you’re not allowed to be in the room when they talk about your team, blah blah blah. Great! But you know what? They still go to dinner, they still have drinks, as Fran Fraschilla said. They still hang at the dessert cart that gets brought to their pampered a–. Once they tuck themselves into bed, they still do all of those things. And you’re going to tell me they don’t talk?”

The NCAA Tournament’s credibility is under the increasing spotlight amid the ongoing controversy. Favoritism, financial stakes, questionable calls, and politics remain rampant discussions with no end in sight. Was Hubert Davis’s UNC worth the nod? Or was it part of the deeper, darker rather disturbing reality behind the scenes? One can only speculate, but one thing is for sure–the drama is not going to end here.