Big Dance could have some new participants

WASHINGTON, D.C. - This is a club with 306 members, from Air Force to Yale. There are more just dying to get in, from Bethune-Cookman to Youngstown State.  It's the Big Dance Club, and there is only one simple entry rule: Qualify for the NCAA basketball tournament. Just once is all you need, and then you're in the same record book with UCLA and Kentucky.

While 306 schools have done it, new enchanted faces show up every year -- is there any time more magical than the first time? -- with more likely in March.

The top candidates for 2012? Glad you asked.

Savannah State never has made it. But the Tigers lead the MEAC at the moment, although they were picked to finish 11th in the preseason poll. They have won 11 of 12, and hardened themselves with a nonconference march that included Georgetown, Indiana, Wisconsin, Arkansas and Georgia Tech.

READ MORE