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Post by Pounce Needs Pals on Mar 25, 2019 14:24:33 GMT -6
Did we forgot about Sister Jean.
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Post by ghostofdylan on Mar 25, 2019 14:30:24 GMT -6
Did we forgot about Sister Jean. Not at all. I'm talking about a team with a viable chance of taking the title.
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Post by Cactus Panther on Mar 25, 2019 15:46:31 GMT -6
I lean toward maintaining the status quo. When the Panthers went to the Sweet 16 in 2006, we were all elated. No one seriously thought they would go all the way to take the title. That is the type of experience mid-major fans live for, and can only happen by competing with the power conference schools as they do now.
This year's bracket went mostly chalk with the high majors winning. Is this the sign of a trend or an aberration? Time will tell.
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Post by BBFran on Mar 25, 2019 17:42:10 GMT -6
I’m just recognizing reality. If you aren’t from a top 8 conference you have no realistic hope of winning the title. If you aren’t from a top 12-15 conference you effectively have almost no hope of just getting to the second weekend. As it stands, our conference has only a remote hope of even winning a first round game. The last team that was even competitive was Valpo in ‘15 — and of course they are gone from the league. Suppose you look just at the bottom 16 conferences — that’s roughly half of D1. Many of the schools in those leagues don’t even realistically have any hope of EVER making the tournament, much less winning a game. (Bluntly, that’s pretty much where we are now, but I digress.)
I just have to wonder how many of those schools are going to continue to be satisfied with a system that is so thoroughly stacked against them.
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Post by ghostofdylan on Mar 25, 2019 19:47:03 GMT -6
Let's all pull out now and the big boys and their sponsors will soon feel the sting of not ever having any Cinderellas! That will at the LEAST be a tremendous bargaining chip!!!
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Post by Cactus Panther on Mar 25, 2019 20:47:24 GMT -6
There is precedence for what you are advocating, the FCS in football. I wonder how the majority of FCS fans feel about the potential of doing the same thing in basketball.
It would result in a national championship trophy in some mid-major school's trophy case each year. The cost of winning such a trophy is national relevance.
Remember that great FCS championship game last year? You don't? That's the point. No chatter at the water cooler for that one, except in North Dakota and the locale of whoever ND State played in that game. Irrelevance is never a good thing. We Panther fans are seeing that first-hand right now.
It is a good topic for debate with pros and cons either way.
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Post by ghostofdylan on Mar 26, 2019 12:24:04 GMT -6
"Hello, NBC Sports Network! Have I got an idea for you!"
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Post by BBFran on Mar 26, 2019 12:46:14 GMT -6
Why not run it two weeks ahead of the "Class A" tournament, and then do a crossover? The Final Four teams in the "Class B" tournament all get slots in the Sweet Sixteen of the Class A, with the Class B national champ getting an Elite 8 spot? I haven't done (and am not going to) the math on how that would work, but something like that could actually ADD to the March Madness excitement while giving the "little guys" both their own championship (which people WOULD watch, because of what it meant) and a meaningful (and truly well earned) shot against the "big boys."
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Post by Cactus Panther on Mar 26, 2019 14:14:10 GMT -6
Sure, that would be great. But how can the power conference schools be convinced to automatically give up those lucrative Sweet 16 spots?
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Post by BBFran on Mar 26, 2019 15:40:28 GMT -6
That's easy. If the networks say jump, those schools will say "How high?"
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Post by ghostofdylan on Mar 28, 2019 11:34:14 GMT -6
Man, did Lipscomb ever get screwed!! They are surely one of the most exciting teams in the country and would pass any "eye test!" What a damn shame!!!
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Post by Pounce Needs Pals on Mar 28, 2019 13:01:56 GMT -6
I wouldn't say they got screwed. That's going a little too far. Their best wins over tourney teams was Vermont & Liberty. Also won at TCU & SMU. That said, they are fun to watch. Heck of a win last night. I hope they win at MSG!
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Post by gman2 on Mar 28, 2019 15:39:20 GMT -6
You can have two tournaments by having a consolation bracket for a third and fourth place. The first weekend of the tournament every team is guaranteed two games. Starting with the sweet sixteen double eliminated are done, first loss teams move into consolation. The logistics can get a bit tricky. This keeps the excitement of the tournament opening weekend. A low or mid major could make a run on the consolation side to bring some excitement going.
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Post by Pounce Needs Pals on Mar 28, 2019 16:39:39 GMT -6
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Post by Pounce Needs Pals on Mar 29, 2019 7:56:58 GMT -6
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