Jerome Tang responds to Brad Brownell's Big 12 scheduling criticism: 'Throw the NET out and come play us'

Clemson head coach Brad Brownell is frustrated with the Big 12. Considered one of the best conferences in college basketball, their NCAA Tournament representation will show as such. In the latest Bracketology projections from On3’s James Fletcher, nine Big 12 teams are in the field while Cincinnati is one of the first four teams out.

Brownell recently went on a rant about the Big 12 manipulating the NET rankings and Kansas State HC Jerome Tang has responded. He does not believe the Big 12 being great has anything to do with the NET or any kind of numbers. Tang sees the conference as a “grind” every week and if Brownell wants to experience it for himself, Clemson should come play them.

“I know there have been some people out there who have talked about how we’ve tricked the NET or whatever,” Tang said. “Throw the NET out and come play us. Come play in our environment, come play us. This isn’t about the NET. It’s about the coaches and the players that are on the floor and the environments that we have to play in.

“This is a grind. Numbers don’t trick into the Big 12 being the best basketball conference in the country. It’s not about the numbers, it’s about the teams, it’s about the players, it’s about the coaches, it’s about the environments.”

To be fair to Brownell, he did schedule a Big 12 opponent this season. And Clemson came away with a win, beating TCU. However, the game was played at Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto, a neutral site.

Never has Clemson played somebody from the Big 12 on the road. Maybe Brownell would be happy to make something happy in the future, specifically with Tang. After all, his biggest gripe about the Big 12 and NET rankings stems from nonconference scheduling.

“Their nonconference scheduling, they’re playing 300-level teams and winning by 40 and 50 points to increase their offensive and defensive efficiency numbers, which is a big part of the NET tool,” Brownell said Monday on WCCP. “So that’s why you see teams trying to win at the end of games by 30 or 40 points instead of putting in your walk-ons.

“So the Big 12, they’re playing eight nonconference games, seven nonconference games against low-level teams and increasing their NET. Then when they all get into the league, their totals are higher, their NET rankings are higher. And so their teams are perceived to be a little better than they are.”

Clemson is safely in the NCAA Tournament at the moment and is currently ranked No. 23 in the NET Rankings. Brownell’s frustration comes from prior years where the numbers have not always favored his team this time of year.

If he wants to get ahead of the curve with the 2024-2025 scheduling process, Tang is welcoming Brownell to Manhattan. If an agreement cannot be struck, plenty of other Big 12 programs would welcome Clemson with open arms.