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Want A Sneak Peek At The Bracket? - Jan 29, 2008
posted by: Josh
January’s about to give way to February, and we all know what that means. March is right around the corner! There are 47 days until Selection Sunday, 51 days until the Division I men’s tournament begins and 67 days until the first national semifinal tips in San Antonio. But before we begin discussing Tex-Mex while remembering the Alamo, fans can get a sneak peek at where their teams stack up – and we’re talking better than Joe Lunardi. Next week, fans from across the country can find out just where their teams might be, and where they might go, if the tournament started a month early. Last year, the NCAA invited sportswriters from across the country to come to Indianapolis and take part in a mock selections process for the Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. There are a lot of misconceptions about how the field is chosen each year, so the writers have an opportunity to work through the data the same way the committee does in March. What does all this mean? Next Wednesday, sportswriters will once again arrive at the national office to select a bracket. On Thursday, television and radio folks will come in and select a bracket of their own. For the first time, women’s basketball writers will have the same opportunity and will choose their bracket on Thursday and Friday. Not just an exercise for the writers, this also provides us all with access that we can never get during the private discussions that happen in March. Next week, I will sit in on the mock selections and will live blog as the bracket is decided. We will offer analysis, podcasts, pictures from inside the room (which looks just like the one in March except a little bigger) and other live information for all of the college basketball junkies out there. We will debate into the wee hours of the morning on Wednesday and Thursday about the brackets, as well as what we can expect in the next month of action. I’m not sure I’ve ever been more excited – and curious – about an assignment in my life. It’s going to be a ton of fun – more to come on this as we get closer to Wednesday. Mark your calendars! 
CommentsOne gripe I have heard about the brackets is that it’s always two autobids from two of the weakest conferences in D1 that play in the play-in game. Why should an autobid have to play in that game when they've already earned the right to be in the tournament by winning their conference tournament? Shouldn't at-large teams play in that game??? Interesting point concerning the play-in game. When the winner of the play-in game can beat its first-round opponent, then talk of some kind of change can motivate the powers-that-be (the Selection Comittee) to pay more attention to that situation. Remember - winning conquers all! True, chances of the play in game winner beating their first round opponent are slim to none, but if you change it up a little with adding the no Autobids in the play in game, that makes that matchup a lot more interesting. With that change, you would be more likely to get a bigger school that would have been normally seeded as a 12th to 15th seed in that game. The NCAA should do something similar with some of the more active basketball bloggers or those who maintain pertinent websites. I know I would love an opportunity to participate in a mock selection exercise. Ken Pomeroy: kenpom.com, basketballprospectus.com Cort, and the two Jeffs run the three best bracketology blogs in the country. Another possibility would be to use those bloggers that participate in the Blogger's Top 25 poll. Post a Comment |
  
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