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Like it or not, retaining Miles the right move for Nebraska

The debate over whether Tim Miles should be brought back for a sixth season as Nebraska’s head men’s basketball coach had been raging on for months leading up to Wednesday’s Big Ten Tournament game vs. Penn State.

Many viewed the tournament as Miles’ last and only chance to save his job for another year, and when the Huskers fell in overtime 76-67 to put an end to their 2016-17 season, many immediately assumed Miles had coached his final game with the program.

A matter of minutes after the final buzzer, however, NU athletic director Shawn Eichorst put any speculation regarding Miles’ future to bed.

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The numbers certainly aren’t on Miles’ side as for why he should be back in 2017-18.

During his five seasons in Lincoln, Miles has an overall record of just 75-86 and has finished in the top 10 of the conference standings just one time.

This year was one of the worst yet, as the Huskers’ 12-19 finish marked their lowest win total under Miles and tied the school record for the most losses in a season.

But Eichorst’s decision wasn’t about what happened this year or in any of the previous four, including when Miles led NU to its first NCAA Tournament in 16 years back in 2013-14.

What it came down to was Eichorst’s belief in what next season could hold for Nebraska.

Looking at the roster, the Huskers will boast eight players who were ranked in the Rivals150 coming out of high school, and that number could reach nine assuming 2017 signee Nana Akenten is added to the rankings (which is expected to be a sure thing).

Also, Nebraska likely won’t be facing the most difficult schedule in all of Division I again, which it did this season with the No. 1 strength of schedule in the country.

With more talent and depth on paper than an NU roster has seen since the Danny Nee era and a more manageable schedule, all excuses will be off the table next season.

If Miles can’t lead Nebraska back to the NCAA Tournament - or at the absolute very least be firmly on the bubble at this point a year from now - then Eichorst’s decision becomes a no-brainer that no one would argue.

That said, the Huskers lose just one senior from a roster full of young players who played significant minutes. They also add three more pieces in Akenten and transfers Isaac Copeland and James Palmer.

There’s a good portion of the fan base that will definitely disagree with Eichorst’s decision and the belief that Miles can suddenly turn around a program that in all honestly looked downright bad many times during his tenure.

Even so, the reasoning behind it was almost certainly based on the potential of what next year could be. Miles has spent the past five years assembling the 2017-18 roster, and Nebraska decided it was only fair that he get the chance to coach it.

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