The Selection Committee really screwed the Cinderellas this year.
VCU -- a strong contender for a Sweet 16 run -- got three-time defending Final Four participant UCLA, then Villanova... in Philadelphia.
Siena -- which won a Tournament game last year -- was "rewarded" with a 9-seed, putting it up against Louisville in Round 2. (BYU got similar treatment, stuck in an 8/9 game, then UConn.)
Western Kentucky? Gonzaga? If they win their first-round games, they play... each other, ensuring that one mid-major won't advance.
When you look at the bracket -- from the seeding and placement to who they DIDN'T include (lowest-ever 4 non-power-conf at-large bids) -- you see a Committee favoring power leagues.
If this is truly the "Year of the Big East" -- and I confess my bracket goes long that it is -- the Committee did what it could to help push that along.
Last year's "all 1-seed" Final Four was, in my opinion, terrible for the sport and terrible for the Tournament. (The only thing that saved it was the novelty that it had never happened before.)
I am stunned at how few upsets I have predicted, particularly in the first round. (I don't think I have any beyond the non-upset 9-over-8, 10-over-7 and 12-over-5.)
Let's hope that at least a few non-power-conference teams defy the bracket and create some unexpected drama. "Chalk" is not what anyone wants from the NCAA Tournament.
-- D.S.
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2 comments:
Dan, the ball don't lie. If these Cinderella teams are good enough, then they will upset people because the draw doesn't matter. VCU has a good chance I believe of taking down a UCLA team that isn't as good as usual, just like they beat a not as good as usual Duke team a couple years ago.
I don't get this sentiment. Wouldn't a chalk result be validation for the committee? The goal is to place teams who are better in a game against a team they should beat.
And I think you're overthinking things if you believe the committee was consciously trying to get rid of mid-majors by either forcing them to play each other or potentially facing a #1 seed in the 2nd round.
This is probably the weakest mid-major year for bubble teams I can ever remember.
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