Mid-Major Madness

1 week ago | midmajormadness.com | Matt Modderno

Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images American University won a share of the Patriot League regular season championship and won the Patriot League Tournament. George Mason won a share of the Atlantic 10 regular season and made the finals of the A10 Tournament. George Washington made it to the A10 Tournament Quarterfinals despite being picked 13th in the preseason and losing an All-Conference-caliber player before the season.

2 weeks ago | midmajormadness.com | Riley Frain

In 2009, Mike Magpayo was living in Southern California and working as CEO of a multi-million dollar real estate firm that he helped start after graduating from UC Santa Barbara. He became a prominent JV high school basketball coach within the region during his spare time but as the real estate market plunged between 2007-08, Magpayo knew his company needed to adapt. So, in 2010, he decided to pursue a master’s degree on the other side of the country.

2 weeks ago | midmajormadness.com | Matt Modderno

Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images With player movement at an all-time high due to the ability to transfer an unlimited number of times, player retention has never been harder at the mid-major level. You’ll hear lots of coaches talk about the benefit of “getting old and staying old” when building out a team, but there’s extra benefit to being able to have a young core grow together. And that’s exactly what George Washington will be able to do next season.

2 weeks ago | midmajormadness.com | Sam Federman

Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images The confetti has cleared from the court. One Shining Moment has been played, and the season is officially over. Here’s one sentence to encapsulate each of the 67 games from this year’s tournament. First FourThe Hail Mary never works, until it did for Alabama State’s Amarr Knox to defeat Saint Francis in the First Four.

2 weeks ago | midmajormadness.com | Isaac Bourne

Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images In the words of Ian Eagle, basketball fans were granted “all chalk on the River Walk” for the Final Four this season. While initial reactions for us at Mid-Major Madness were negative to say the least, especially after the final mid-major, Colorado State, decided to go out on the most tense of notes, it started to become easier to accept what became one of the most memorable Final Fours in recent history.