Lunardi's Latest after Sundays Games

bwsmoney said:
Don't blame the NCAA for this, the Conferences are free to decide how their official champion is determined, and they have all (except the IVY) elected to make that their tournament winner.
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Leave it to the Ivies to do the intelligent thing.
 
ddiction said:
I have no problem with any conference getting an automatic bid for their tournament winner. If it weren't for that, most of their conference's own fans would lose interest completely by midseason. As long as the tournament produces a bid, there's at least a sliver of hope for the fans of every team and a motivation for them to keep following the games. It's good for basketball in general.
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I agree and I like it. I also think the bid they steal should be from their own conference. It keeps things on the up and up and makes a team that could have done something about it suffer the consequences...just my opinion.
 
I think that both Illinois and Minnesota are in regardless of BTT results. However, MN is much closer to being out than is Ill.

Minnesota is just not a good basketball team right now. If you were grabbing the top 37 (or whatever the number is) at-large teams as of right now--not body of work, but quality of team this very minute--Minnesota would be out. They built up a lot of goodwill early, and I think it will be enough to get them in.
 
LG210 said:
I think that both Illinois and Minnesota are in regardless of BTT results. However, MN is much closer to being out than is Ill.

Minnesota is just not a good basketball team right now. If you were grabbing the top 37 (or whatever the number is) at-large teams as of right now--not body of work, but quality of team this very minute--Minnesota would be out. They built up a lot of goodwill early, and I think it will be enough to get them in.
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If Minnesota were to end up in the NIT they most likely would lose the 1st time they had to go on the road. I agree they are not playing well at all.
 
hawkfan33 said:
Why? A team like MTSU does not belong in the tournament if they can't win their conference tournament.
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What has a team like Iowa done to validate its argument? Win a big game OOC, nope. Schedule tough OOC, nope. Close out games against top teams in conference, nope.

Look I think Iowa deserves more discussion, but they had plenty of opportunities to get enough wins. A team like MTSU, never gets that chance and if they are the regular season winners, the teams they play put their best effort in to beat them knowing there is no other shot to get to the NCAA tournament.

The other issues I have had with the mid-majors have had to play each other in the tournament as well. I like the idea of the little guys getting the shot, I just always have. Why does one loss in their conference tournament have to ruin their chances as well, when Power Six teams have opportunities to win big games all the time? Peeing games down your leg, or losing close games means you lost games against good teams, just like a mid-major team can.
 
Section136 said:
I really hope this is the case. Just a gut feeling but I think that Minny would have a better chance of being left out than Illinois if they lose the 8/9 game.
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Agree. Ill is in, however if Minnesota puts up another horrible performance, they could get left out. The eyeball test counts for something, and they fail it big time right now.
 
Rlesterfan said:
Agree. Ill is in, however if Minnesota puts up another horrible performance, they could get left out. The eyeball test counts for something, and they fail it big time right now.
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This is why the last 10 matters. Resume alone Minny is in, but their last 10 shows major concerns.
 
sportstalent said:
What has a team like Iowa done to validate its argument? Win a big game OOC, nope. Schedule tough OOC, nope. Close out games against top teams in conference, nope.

Look I think Iowa deserves more discussion, but they had plenty of opportunities to get enough wins. A team like MTSU, never gets that chance and if they are the regular season winners, the teams they play put their best effort in to beat them knowing there is no other shot to get to the NCAA tournament.

The other issues I have had with the mid-majors have had to play each other in the tournament as well. I like the idea of the little guys getting the shot, I just always have. Why does one loss in their conference tournament have to ruin their chances as well, when Power Six teams have opportunities to win big games all the time? Peeing games down your leg, or losing close games means you lost games against good teams, just like a mid-major team can.
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They have beat ISU, Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota, every single one of those wins is better than MTSU's best win.

MTSU beat a bunch of bad teams, not impressive.
 
hawkfan33 said:
They have beat ISU, Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota, every single one of those wins is better than MTSU's best win.

MTSU beat a bunch of bad teams, not impressive.
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I am not advocating mtsu...just the little guys in general. By your logic no mid-major should get an at-large berth and to me more get the shaft than Power Six conference teams. Look at the decrease in the number of bids and then the results during the tourney...something doesn't quite add up. Good teams are left out every year and a lot of times it is the little guy and if those Power Six teams that make it lose...what is the difference?
 
sportstalent said:
I am not advocating mtsu...just the little guys in general. By your logic no mid-major should get an at-large berth and to me more get the shaft than Power Six conference teams. Look at the decrease in the number of bids and then the results during the tourney...something doesn't quite add up. Good teams are left out every year and a lot of times it is the little guy and if those Power Six teams that make it lose...what is the difference?
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I'm all for mid majors and teams in the MWC, Missouri Valley, A10, WCC, get several shots a year at quality wins in conf play. MTSU is a low major, I'm not in favor of low majors getting in.
 
1977Hawkeye said:
There's no such thing as an "easy" Big Ten schedule. It's only easy relative to what some other teams in the league had to face.

The Big Ten needs a round-robin type of schedule. But as the league continues to grow, this doesn't seem likely.
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That is out of Iowa's control though, they still finished 9-9 in the toughest conference. Sure the 2 teams they did beat both times were Northwestern and Penn State but Michigan lost at PSU and other teams lost at Northwestern. I would have loved to of seen Michigan and Ohio State play in Carver this year, it would have given them a couple more chances to add quality wins. Playing at MSU would not have been fun though.
 
hawkfan33 said:
I'm all for mid majors and teams in the MWC, Missouri Valley, A10, WCC, get several shots a year at quality wins in conf play. MTSU is a low major, I'm not in favor of low majors getting in.
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How many times do I have to say that I am not advocating MTSU to get in and using the term "mid-major" and not MTSU?

I agree with you, but my thinking won't change, I want to see the little guys get in and compete. I think it is growing up in a small school and now coaching at one; then having to deal with the idiots that think their kids are better because they are at bigger schools, it is high school, but the premise is the same.

George Mason, VCU and Butler have proven that the little guys need to get the benefit of the doubt, not counting the other teams that have made Sweet 16 runs in the past. The big boys get their opportunities on a nightly basis and when it is a single game elimination anything can happen. Watching teams like UNI beat Kansas is fun for me. Davidson almost beating Kansas is fun for me. Valpo knocking off Missisippi, I think, was awesome.

I just hate it when you see mid-major vs. mid-major in opening round games, it defeats the purpose and it also skews the overall records for the mid-majors as well, one is always going to lose. Put them against other Power Six teams, I like to see how those match-ups play out.
 
sportstalent said:
I am not advocating mtsu...just the little guys in general. By your logic no mid-major should get an at-large berth and to me more get the shaft than Power Six conference teams. Look at the decrease in the number of bids and then the results during the tourney...something doesn't quite add up. Good teams are left out every year and a lot of times it is the little guy and if those Power Six teams that make it lose...what is the difference?
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MTSU should have schedule more than 2 tough games out of conference if they wanted anything to do with an at large bid. Look how many mid-major teams are gong to get in because of their conference tourneys. Is that not enough? Maybe we should just make this the mid-major tourney instead. If you have 1 top 100 win on the entire year, you don't deserve to get in. If you want to pull teams out of the tourney look no further than the A10/SEC/Mountain West. Too many average teams with worse resumes that are going to get in.
 
jozzer said:
MTSU should have schedule more than 2 tough games out of conference if they wanted anything to do with an at large bid. Look how many mid-major teams are gong to get in because of their conference tourneys. Is that not enough? Maybe we should just make this the mid-major tourney instead. If you have 1 top 100 win on the entire year, you don't deserve to get in. If you want to pull teams out of the tourney look no further than the A10/SEC/Mountain West. Too many average teams with worse resumes that are going to get in.
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Easier said than done for a school like MTSU. Nobody wants to play a low major that might be good.
 
ssckelley said:
Easier said than done for a school like MTSU. Nobody wants to play a low major that might be good.
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Ding, ding, ding...we have a winner folks.

There are teams out there on the low-major front that can't get good games because how embarrassing it would be for a Power Six team to lose to them.

Look at Iowa, they schedule some of the worst possible teams in the nation and would never schedule an MTSU that possibly could be good.

People wouldn't schedule teams like Butler, Gonzaga, VCU or any A-10 team like a UMass or Temple until it became more of a marqee game that wouldn't hurt a Power Six team.
 
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