Part of the annual selection of 65 teams is the annual argument of who belongs and who doesn't.
Year after year, teams tend to come from the major conferences. This season, Ohio earned the MAC's automatic bid by winning the conference tournament. Tournament finalist Buffalo and semifinalist Miami -- the regular-season champions -- were snubbed, and settled for the National Invitation Tournament.
Part of Kennedy's hopes are to better understand what the selection committee looks for, from the RPI index to road wins to head-to-head competition.
Most NCAA followers believe that the selection committee should pick more deserving teams such as Buffalo and Miami for at-large bids. But the system is set up to pick the ``best'' college teams not represented, which often is an average team from a major conference.
``It's usually a very small thing that eliminates a program from the tournament,'' he said.
One of the changes Kennedy said might benefit MAC schools would be to decrease conference games from 18 to 16. This would allow teams to add to additional nonconference games.
MAC institutions will have a chance to discuss this and other issues at a meeting of athletic directors and basketball coaches in May in Chicago.
Kennedy is the administrative chair for MAC men's basketball.
<a href='http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/sports/11190775.htm' target='_blank'>http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/sports/11190775.htm</a>
And he doesn't even mention airports or flagships as part of the equation. What's he thinking?
I think it is imperative for the MAC to go from 18 to 16 league games, if their goal is to get at-large bids to the NCAAs. Teams beating up on each other in MAC conference games counts for nearly nothing in the eyes of the committee members. They most closely look at the non-conference performance. (Of course they do the OPPOSITE for the Big Boys.)
So what's the best OOC for MAC teams to schedule? In my opinion:
1) NO non D1s (Although you don't officially get penalized for it, it's one less opportunity on your resume.)
2) One & ones against mid-majors and some low-majors.
3) One & ones and sometimes two for ones against one or two high majors.
4) Play high majors on neutral courts during in-season tourneys.
5) Minimize "pay days" against big name teams to no more than one per year. Better money can be made in football rather than hoops; but if you need the money, try angling for a 2/1 or 1 road/1-neutral court.
That's my recipe for good OOC scheduling... if you have a good team, it should show. (Ohio U was an anomaly this year because they were so young; they were a "work in progress" early in the season.) Incidentally, most of the MAC teams followed this approach this year, but they had very few convincing wins or they were offset by "bad" losses.
Of course there is one other way to get two teams in.... Have one team have an unbelievable season, but lose in the MACC. The Missouri Valley has been doing that for years. I do envy those suckers; they have been the bane of the MAC.
Okie Chippewa Wrote:1) NO non D1As (Although you don't officially get penalized for it, it's one less opportunity on your resume.)
I'm sure you mean, "NO non D-Is."
In Bowling Green, we'd miss our annual game with Detroit.
Okie Chippewa Wrote:I think it is imperative for the MAC to go from 18 to 16 league games, if their goal is to get at-large bids to the NCAAs. Teams beating up on each other in MAC conference games counts for nearly nothing in the eyes of the committee members. They most closely look at the non-conference performance. (Of course they do the OPPOSITE for the Big Boys.)
Yes. Kent State's AD has the right idea Move to a 16 game schedule for our 12 team conference. Four byes to the MAC tournament to protect the top schools from losing early at the Gund
The answer is NOT expanding to 14-16 schools adding WKU, SIU, MTSU, and Troy State. 16 mid majors chasing one automatic bid.
Less is more in college basketball: (see West Coast Conference)
Wow...you guys play 18 conference games?!?
...I know you hate NCUSA comparisons...but we're only going to play a 14-game conference schedule. It is mostly Memphis's bitching and moaning that led to 14 games instead of 16, but in the end, it gives us (NCUSA) a chance to schedule more OOC and show what we're made of...or fall on our own swords.
Okie Chippewa Wrote:I think it is imperative for the MAC to go from 18 to 16 league games, if their goal is to get at-large bids to the NCAAs. Teams beating up on each other in MAC conference games counts for nearly nothing in the eyes of the committee members. They most closely look at the non-conference performance. (Of course they do the OPPOSITE for the Big Boys.)
So what's the best OOC for MAC teams to schedule? In my opinion:
1) NO non D1s (Although you don't officially get penalized for it, it's one less opportunity on your resume.)
2) One & ones against mid-majors and some low-majors.
3) One & ones and sometimes two for ones against one or two high majors.
4) Play high majors on neutral courts during in-season tourneys.
5) Minimize "pay days" against big name teams to no more than one per year. Better money can be made in football rather than hoops; but if you need the money, try angling for a 2/1 or 1 road/1-neutral court.
That's my recipe for good OOC scheduling... if you have a good team, it should show. (Ohio U was an anomaly this year because they were so young; they were a "work in progress" early in the season.) Incidentally, most of the MAC teams followed this approach this year, but they had very few convincing wins or they were offset by "bad" losses.
Of course there is one other way to get two teams in.... Have one team have an unbelievable season, but lose in the MACC. The Missouri Valley has been doing that for years. I do envy those suckers; they have been the bane of the MAC.
Let me add one point to OOC scheduling. Work to identify top mid-majors and try to get "one and ones" with them.
Here are clubs (mid-majors) that have been in top 100 (or close) of RPI the last two years (RPI in 2004 and 2005 in parentheses).
Missouri Valley:
* SIU (25, 17)
* Northern Iowa (59, 37)
* Wichita St. (68, 45)
* Creighton (77, 44)
* SW Missouri St. (96, 52)
SunBelt:
* La-Lafeyette (71, 47)
West Coast:
* Gonzaga (9, 10)
Colonial
* VA Commonwealth (54, 82)
* Old Dominion (99, 35)
* Drexel (101, 87)
Horizon
* UW-Milwaukee (75, 59)
American East:
* Boston University (84, 85)
MAAC:
* Niagara (98, 96)
Big West:
* Utah St. (43, 50)
* Pacific (65, 22)
Atlantic Sun
* UCF (62, 108)
There's 17 clubs. Throw in the A-10 and the new C-USA and you probably can find 20 or so clubs. Now, given that the coaches are basketball experts, the MAC as a conference should be able to identify the top 20-30 mid-major programs over the next couple of years and work to get two or three MAC teams playing these teams in "home and home" series. And, go a step further, do this as a conference. These clubs want the same thing the MAC teams do. Quality opponents on their home court. They're hard to come by.
If a Wisconsin-Milwaukee could get an Akron at home, but have to go to Miami for a road game, I bet they'd go for it.
Another thing that would help, but efforts have failed is a MAC-based OOC tournament. The closest I can think of is the Rock'n'Roll shootout in Cleveland, which had been a doubleheader usually featuring one or two MAC clubs. Kent got to play Boston College and Xavier in the shootout. Toledo beat Cincinnati one year, Ohio got Wisconsin one year. Attendance had been dropping, so they didn't have one last season.
It might be better to do it in Toledo and have a doubleheader with BG and Toledo or Detroit with a mixture of the directional Michigans, Detroit Mercy and MSU or Michigan.
bopol Wrote:Let me add one point to OOC scheduling. Work to identify top mid-majors and try to get "one and ones" with them.
Here are clubs (mid-majors) that have been in top 100 (or close) of RPI the last two years (RPI in 2004 and 2005 in parentheses).
This is what the bracket buster is about. Its a good idea as you are saying because many of these Mid-Majors are just as strong yearly as BCS boys.
I like 2 for 1's and neutral site games with big schools for the MAC. Most MAC schools struggle in attendance before January and it doesn't make any financial sense to fill up the schedule with a bunch of home games against mid-majors that nobody is going to watch. I know Ohio for a fact can't handle more than 2 December games without taking a major hit in attendance.
Ohio signed a 2 for 2 with DePaul a couple years ago, and has luck with Kentucky including a Wildcat visit to the Convo.
I like the dropping to 16 conference games, but fear many teams will only use the opportunity to add more scub teams (at least one). What will help the MAC the most is less parity. Had another team or two broken away from the fray this year, they may have gotten an at-large bid. Let's say Akron, Kent State and Ohio stand out from the rest of the conference in the East -- like I expect next year -- the MAC will get at least two teams in. I'd go as far as to say three if things align right.
brahmag Wrote:I like the dropping to 16 conference games, but fear many teams will only use the opportunity to add more scub teams (at least one).
"Opportunity" isn't the right word. The verb, I think, is "desperately fill their schedule with."
As a Bowling Green fan, I can tell you that some programs in our league really struggle for nonconference home games.
I agree with the logic of shortening the conference schedule -- but I have a strong hunch Bowling Green would be dead set against it.
And I doubt Bowling Green would be alone. After all, there must be *some* reason the MAC plays an 18 game schedule.