Now that the Tigers are ranked No. 1 in both college basketball polls, I suspect we’ll see a cluster of national stories over the next few weeks about whether Memphis, coming out of Conference USA, will be “tested” enough to win the NCAA Tournament. You’ll see it talked about on message boards, you’ll hear it on talk radio, and the Tigers will be asked about it every day until March.

Look, I can come up with plenty of reasons why Memphis won’t win the national title. But to say it’s because the Tigers won’t be “tested” is an intellectually lazy position taken by intellectually lazy people.

Here’s the thing about the NCAA Tournament. Only one team can win it. It takes great talent, coaching, and frankly, luck. But whether a team is “tested” has nothing to do with it. When people say “tested” in this context, what they mean is whether Memphis will have enough experience in close games against high-level opponents to know how to react in the NCAA Tournament.

But there is really no evidence to suggest that matters at all.

I have to believe that North Carolina was “tested” last season time and again in the ACC. That didn’t prevent the Tar Heels from choking away an Elite Eight game against Georgetown.

Conversely, was Memphis any more “tested” last season than they will be this season? No. Yet in one of the most intense games of the tournament, in what amounted to a road game in the Sweet Sixteen, Memphis beat a Texas A&M team that clearly was more “tested” in its league. And when the Tigers finally did lose, was it because they weren’t tested? Or was it because they ran up against an Ohio State team with the best college center in a generation and three first-round draft picks?

So my advice to Memphis fans would be this: When you hear this stuff — and believe me, it’s coming — just take it for what it is. Utter garbage.