Big East Coaches Want 17 Teams In Tournament
by Sean Keeley on May 25, 2011 11:37 AM EDT
Email
Print
Charles Barkley just read that headline and passed out.
While I'm sure the Big East coaches would be ecstatic to have each of their teams in the NCAA Tournament at the end of the year, right now their goal is simply to have all 17 of their teams, once TCU joins, make the Big East Tournament.
The Big East Conference men's basketball coaches voted Tuesday to allow all 17 teams to compete in the league’s tournament starting in 2012.
With TCU joining the league for the 2012-13 school year, the basketball membership will grow from 16 to 17 teams. There was some thought that the league might opt to only allow the top 12 teams to play in Madison Square Garden for the Big East tournament. That’s how the tournament was restructured from 2006-08 until the league allowed all 16 teams to advance to New York beginning with the 2009 tournament.
The most ovbious way to make this happen would be to just keep the same format but add one more game, a play-in between the 16 and 17 seeds (let's just pencil in TCU and DePaul now). That would mean either adding one more day to the tournament and creating the opportunity that a team could play six-straight days, however unlikely that might be.
In fact, with many Big East teams still playing on the Sunday leading into the tournament, there's a chance a team could play Sunday and then immediately begin the Big East Tournament the next say as part of this play-in game. A team could, in theory, play seven days in a row. We may have an issue here.
We know how Jim Boeheim feels about the current format. He's like to see the double-bye go bye-bye. But for that to happen the league would likely have to drop the number of teams that qualify for the tourney and I just don't see that happening.
Also, just because the coaches voted for it, don't assume this is going to happen. Last year the coaches voted to change the format of the tournament, eliminating the double-bye. The league presidents shot it down as the current system means more days, which means more money (not that they said that, but, c'mon...).
18 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Just Combine Them
Have the last two teams join squads. Either mix them completely, or have each team’s starting 5 play half the game. The only question is if the team would be called the Blue Frogs or the Horned Demons.
Wait, I guess that’s not really a question…
Not a question at all
Horned Demons by a landslide
by Mike Will is DoubleDown on May 25, 2011 1:15 PM EDT up reply actions
Can we
change our mascot to that?
Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician - The Syracuse blog that cares.
Buy my book "How To Grow An Orange"
by Sean Keeley on May 25, 2011 3:39 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Even the NBA only takes the Top 16 teams for the post season.
You have to draw the line somewhere.
exactly
let’s just ban Buttgers from the BET regardless of record and call it a day…
Lets turn the BE into a Euro soccer league
A “Top 9” and a “Bottom 8” division. The teams in the top 9 play in the BET, and the top team from the bottom 8 gets into the BET as well. Also, the top team from the 8 moves up, and the bottom team from the 9 moves down each year.
Much like in soccer, could lead to some interesting late season games, as teams either try to win promotion to the Top 9, or avoid relegation to the Bottom 8.
DePaul and TCU would still suck, though.
by SpartyCuse on May 25, 2011 2:28 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Millwall or Crystal Palace suck?
Born in '87, Orange fan since '86
by StealthTurkey on May 25, 2011 2:36 PM EDT up reply actions
I prefer Homer Simpson's comment on suck
“that team sure did suck last night. They just plain sucked! I’ve seen teams suck before, but they were the suckiest bunch of sucks that ever sucked. "
I think we should keep the 16 team format. This sets up a rousing round of “everyone gets a participation medal, except you, last place team, we hate you”.
'Cuse 2010, Michigan 2012
You can say Depaul.
Their demon magic doesn’t work here.
Born in '87, Orange fan since '86
by StealthTurkey on May 25, 2011 8:04 PM EDT up reply actions
Make them play a doubleheader. Play in game in the morning, 1st rd game last game of the day
They all played AAU ball, they can handle it. And they suck anyway and will lose no matter what so who cares?
Double elimination tournament
Easy solution. A play-in game between the bottom two teams. Eight first round games over two days, teams advancing through winners and losers brackets. That way everyone gets to play and nobody has to wait through the double-bye. In fact, everyone would have to win 5-in-5 in order to claim the BET title. Plus, it would be the only non-single elimination tournament in the country.
"If I ain't gonna be part of the greatest, I gotta be the greatest myself." Busta Rhymes
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
SBNation.com Recent Stories
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
