CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS-YES OR NO

by phillyfansportstalk on Mar 11, 2009 3:02 PM EDT

For the longest time I have argued against conference tourneys on the grounds that each year you end up with two or three teams stealing NCAA bids that they probably don't deserve.

Case in point, Cleveland State winning the Horizon league title, beating Butler. No question Butler belongs at the big dance, but Cleveland State..I don't think so. Somewhere some bubble team..pick any one you like..is staying home now. The same thing may happen one or two more times before these conference tournaments are over. Completely ridiculous and unfair. If the NCAA needs money they should have a telethon before they resort to these tournaments.

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Should there be conference tournaments?

Yes

12 votes

No

3 votes

Indifferent

0 votes

15 votes | Poll has closed

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I love conference tournaments......

its like giving teams a second wind/breath/chance (whatever you wanna call it
I mean if the top seeds in the conference are good enough…they should win not only in the conference play……but in the tournament as well…..it’s what makes March fun…..

A person who performs good Karma (deeds) is always held in high esteem
12/19/08 - Thank you KLJ for coming into my life.

by norcaliangelsfan on Mar 11, 2009 4:15 PM EDT reply actions

Totally agree

I love the conference tournaments and seeing teams get in that wouldn’t otherwise have a shot. The bubble teams should have played well enough to not be on the bubble.

I think a good way to look at it is to see how anticlimactic the Ivy League auto-bid usually is. There isn’t near the excitement there that there is in say the MVC Championship that went to OT on Sunday (which CBS cut from to make sure we saw the tip of UNC-Duke, which I was pretty fired up about – I mean there was a dance card on the line and 1:50 to go, unacceptable. Sorry, I digress.)

by Chris Haines on Mar 11, 2009 4:45 PM EDT up reply actions

I like them

But I think there should be less of them.

Brady Hoke, Al Borges, and Rocky Long. Aztec football is back!

by Sam (sdsuaztec4) on Mar 11, 2009 5:09 PM EDT reply actions

Your point is irrelevant, imo

is that a couple bubble teams each year are snubbed because a couple lower-class conference tournaments get an extra team in and take a couple bubble teams out of the tournament. Yes, that’s true, and because of Butler’s loss yesterday what would have been the last team in would have been the first team out. However, I think that point, while factually correct, is very much irrelevant. Whatever team that won’t make it because of Cleveland State was going to get a seed in the 10-12 range, which puts them in an underdog position in the first round and no chance at winning the championship, let alone any headlines at all.

While March Madness may very well be about the madness and everything that madness entails, it is still ultimately to determine a champion, and the team(s) that would have been snubbed were not going to win the championship. Heck, they probably didn’t play well enough during the season to get in anyways, so maybe this is a positive message in disguise. ;) But anyways, as stated above, the conference tournaments provide an overall atmosphere nothing in sports can duplicate, and it really does keep teams playing till the very end, with that dream of getting to the NCAA Tournament. Taking away conference tournaments is taking away what makes college basketball and March Madness special, and I don’t want to see that happen, even if it comes at the expense of a couple bubbles bursting.

by uclaisthebest123 on Mar 11, 2009 7:14 PM EDT reply actions

I understand what you are saying..

but does Cleveland State have a shot to win anything? does that make your point irrelevant? Probably not But neither is mine..sorry

Marc Gross

by phillyfansportstalk on Mar 11, 2009 10:56 PM EDT up reply actions

Utlimately, all of the bubble talk is irrelevant

Because none of them have a chance at actually doing some serious damage in the tournament. Since that’s the case, we might as well allow the conference tournaments to occur, as it keeps every team’s dreams alive throughout the season and allows for some serious pre-tournament madness. You just won’t see the kind of pure will to win that you see in these mid-to-low conference tournament games, and that will is what creates these amazing games and atmospheres. Do we really want to take away what makes March so special?

by uclaisthebest123 on Mar 11, 2009 11:18 PM EDT up reply actions

I don't know about that...

…look at Nova last year. They were a 12, and by my count the very last team in. They got all the way to the Sweet Sixteen. George Mason was certainly a bubble team and got to the Final Four.

Visit bloggingthebracket.com, SBNation's, bracketology site!

by Chris Dobbertean on Mar 12, 2009 2:14 PM EDT up reply actions

another rational argument

on the Eagles blog..try to get even one of these

Marc Gross

by phillyfansportstalk on Mar 12, 2009 4:03 PM EDT up reply actions

actually

that is a pretty convincing argument

Marc Gross

by phillyfansportstalk on Mar 12, 2009 4:01 PM EDT up reply actions

Win and you're in.

All of the bubble teams can do exactly what Cleveland State did and win their tournament.

I just got back from your mom's basement.

by Warden11 on Mar 11, 2009 7:29 PM EDT reply actions

I love the conference tournies

They provide a lot of excitement with the fact that you are never all the way out of it, you can play your way in. Who didn’t like watching Georgia win the SEC tourney last year or Cuse winning the Big East one in ’06? Also, they help the committee do seedings.

By the way, THANKS FOR PUTTING YOUR FANPOST TITLE IN ALL CAPS

March Madness College Basketball Forum >>> http://marchmadnessforums.com

by YoSixers on Mar 11, 2009 9:11 PM EDT reply actions

Is it wrong ...

to put the post title in all caps…if there is some unwritten rule, and you are serious about that, by all means, let me know and I won’t do that again!!

Marc Gross

by phillyfansportstalk on Mar 11, 2009 10:59 PM EDT up reply actions

I dont think its wrong by any means......

but its definitely not necessary……..Your post is gonna get read regardless I think….but (now this is just my opinion here) its tacky and looks like your dying for attention.

A person who performs good Karma (deeds) is always held in high esteem
12/19/08 - Thank you KLJ for coming into my life.

by norcaliangelsfan on Mar 11, 2009 11:00 PM EDT up reply actions

trust me..

not the case..nor do I want to send that signal out…so thanks for letting me know that

Marc Gross

by phillyfansportstalk on Mar 12, 2009 4:05 PM EDT up reply actions

Go By The Regular Season Championships

Anyone who has ever taken a statistics course knows that the best, most accurate results are obtained with the largest possible sample size — so why does it make sense to give a team an auto bid based on a four game winning streak they put together rather than looking at who won the regular season based on 16 or 18 or 20 games?

If you don’t want the best teams in the tourney then have the conference tournaments but if you’re looking for the best teams from each conference, you have to look at the long term results.

by D.M.J. on Mar 15, 2009 11:17 AM EDT reply actions