The last Division I conference to award its NCAA autobids to its regular-season champs has finally given in.

http://www.ivyleaguesports.com/informati...ng_in_2017

Quote:The Ivy League is set to add another milestone in its storied history, adding men's and women's basketball tournaments to its slate of conference championships beginning with the 2016-17 academic year.

The League's Council of Presidents approved four-team tournaments in men's and women's basketball, with a one-game reduction for each team in the regular season. The tournaments will determine the conference's automatic bids to the NCAA Division I Basketball Championships. The 2017 Ivy League Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments will both be held over the same two competition days, March 11 and 12, at The Palestra in Philadelphia.

Interesting, I wonder if it is more for exposure for their athletes versus revenue.

What I don't understand is the anti-football bias of the Ivy. ALL other sponsored sports are allowed to play full schedules and compete in their respective post season tournaments. Football is still stuck in 1970 with 10 games and no post season.

Geez...a one game reduction as trade? Seriously? Give up the gimmick.

(03-10-2016 01:33 PM)Wedge Wrote:  The last Division I conference to award its NCAA autobids to its regular-season champs has finally given in.

http://www.ivyleaguesports.com/informati...ng_in_2017

Quote:The Ivy League is set to add another milestone in its storied history, adding men's and women's basketball tournaments to its slate of conference championships beginning with the 2016-17 academic year.

The League's Council of Presidents approved four-team tournaments in men's and women's basketball, with a one-game reduction for each team in the regular season. The tournaments will determine the conference's automatic bids to the NCAA Division I Basketball Championships. The 2017 Ivy League Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments will both be held over the same two competition days, March 11 and 12, at The Palestra in Philadelphia.

They must feel very confident that it'll get good play on TV, though they don't really have a national TV contract, so who knows? I actually wish more conferences would get rid of their tournaments because a) their one good team gets snakebit or runs afoul of a hot team and their most reasonable chance at a conference-glorifying upset in the NCAAs goes away, or b) the conference footprint is too large for a neutral site to have a shot at drawing good crowds. But I'm sure they had their reasons.

(03-10-2016 01:40 PM)dcCid Wrote:  Interesting, I wonder if it is more for exposure for their athletes versus revenue.

I don't think the Ivy League cares much about the small revenue boost they may get from this. I think it is perhaps to get their champion a better seed due to better visibility.

(03-10-2016 01:40 PM)mikeinsec127 Wrote:  What I don't understand is the anti-football bias of the Ivy. ALL other sponsored sports are allowed to play full schedules and compete in their respective post season tournaments. Football is still stuck in 1970 with 10 games and no post season.

Could be because of when the football post season is, as it is during finals. I don't know about other sports, but they basically don't let basketball teams play during finals either.

They needed to do this for the auto NIT bid to the conference champion that gets knocked out. That makes it more likely to get 2 teams in the postseason v. one. Look at Yale last year, co champions for the IVY, lost the playoff game and then got nothing. If they had a tournament, Yale would have been the 1 seed and guaranteed the NIT when they lost.

(03-10-2016 03:14 PM)solohawks Wrote:  They needed to do this for the auto NIT bid to the conference champion that gets knocked out. That makes it more likely to get 2 teams in the postseason v. one. Look at Yale last year, co champions for the IVY, lost the playoff game and then got nothing. If they had a tournament, Yale would have been the 1 seed and guaranteed the NIT when they lost.

I'm thinking Hawks is right. I want to say that there's been a few years when the Ivy league had some champs that lost in tourneys that didn't go to any postseason (NCAA/NIT).

Wonder if they will also free IVY football school's and let them compete for a NCAA title.

I actually like the idea of the four-team tournament - it makes the regular season more meaningful.

(03-10-2016 06:58 PM)chargeradio Wrote:  I actually like the idea of the four-team tournament - it makes the regular season more meaningful.

I agree, and suspect it was intended as such, but it also has the useful side effect of helping the 1-seed's rankings, since their first opponent isn't so much of an RPI sinker.

I LOVE this!! Get the DCU center ready!

(03-10-2016 03:38 PM)bluesox Wrote:  Wonder if they will also free IVY football school's and let them compete for a NCAA title.

They'd more likely have the Ivy League face off against a Patriot League team in a bowl game. That'd be the most likely way the Ivy gets into the business of the football postseason. They're not playing or practicing during finals, even if it's likely only one team.

(03-10-2016 03:38 PM)bluesox Wrote:  Wonder if they will also free IVY football school's and let them compete for a NCAA title.

They will never permit themselves to be associated with the other FCS schools, except for the Patriot League.

(03-10-2016 01:40 PM)mikeinsec127 Wrote:  What I don't understand is the anti-football bias of the Ivy. ALL other sponsored sports are allowed to play full schedules and compete in their respective post season tournaments. Football is still stuck in 1970 with 10 games and no post season.

It is their ivy tower ego.

(03-10-2016 03:14 PM)solohawks Wrote:  They needed to do this for the auto NIT bid to the conference champion that gets knocked out. That makes it more likely to get 2 teams in the postseason v. one. Look at Yale last year, co champions for the IVY, lost the playoff game and then got nothing. If they had a tournament, Yale would have been the 1 seed and guaranteed the NIT when they lost.

I think you nailed it....