I like how the MAC tourney is going on and people still find a way to make the MAC Tourney thread the place for their expansion fantasies.

Back to the topic...Buffalo and Ohio is going to be another slugfest tonight. I think it has the potential to be one of the best conference championship games in all of college basketball this season.

(03-13-2021 07:28 AM)MacLord Wrote:  I like how the MAC tourney is going on and people still find a way to make the MAC Tourney thread the place for their expansion fantasies.

I like how your idea of "expansion fantasies" is so broad that it includes "how can the MAC with its current 12 members improve itself as a basketball conference".

Kent State is out, so may be the best team win and go ahead to score at least ONE win in the Big Dance.

Kind of torn,. Like Buffalo to win to be an established team that people recognize. Have always liked Ohio as a peer university and so much like UMass fighting big teams in the state for recognition and being more of a country center. Buffalo is a flat suburb, but is AAU. Anyhow, for the good of the conference will say Buffalo.

You guys never listed the media stuff. Sunday March 14, ESPN2 7:30PM ET.

(03-13-2021 08:18 AM)Steve1981 Wrote:  Kind of torn,. Like Buffalo to win to be an established team that people recognize. Have always liked Ohio as a peer university and so much like UMass fighting big teams in the state for recognition and being more of a country center. Buffalo is a flat suburb, but is AAU. Anyhow, for the good of the conference will say Buffalo.

You guys never listed the media stuff. Sunday March 14, ESPN2 7:30PM ET.

What’s Sunday @7:30? Is that the Selection Show?

(03-13-2021 10:07 AM)axeme Wrote:  

(03-13-2021 08:18 AM)Steve1981 Wrote:  Kind of torn,. Like Buffalo to win to be an established team that people recognize. Have always liked Ohio as a peer university and so much like UMass fighting big teams in the state for recognition and being more of a country center. Buffalo is a flat suburb, but is AAU. Anyhow, for the good of the conference will say Buffalo.

You guys never listed the media stuff. Sunday March 14, ESPN2 7:30PM ET.

What’s Sunday @7:30? Is that the Selection Show?

Clearly was confused, Saturday March 13, 2021 7:30PM ET

https://www.rocketmortgagefieldhouse.com...-210310-13

(03-13-2021 01:44 AM)BruceMcF Wrote:  

(03-12-2021 10:17 PM)axeme Wrote:  

(03-12-2021 10:39 AM)kreed5120 Wrote:  I don't think the MVC is better than the MAC since Wichita State left. What I feel is that the MVC thinks they're better than the MAC. I'm not sure if you noticed but MVC excludes itself from the mid-major polls because they're still living in the past.

The MVC had two teams in the top 20 for a good part of the year. Last time I looked, Loyola was NET #10. They have starters who were freshmen on their Final Four team who are seniors now and a team that is probably better this year. They have multiple bids more often than they don’t, certainly more often than the MAC who essentially never does. Two teams in the NET top 50, MAC has none.

Seems like there are lots of ways the MVC is a better basketball conference. I’m having a hard time coming up with any ways the MAC is better.

I would probably agree with this. The thing is that even after Wichita left, having Wichita in the conference not only inspired but, more importantly, justified a number of schools to invest in basketball, whether to catch Wichita in a down year or to pull on upset when they have a good year that goes down on the record as a very good win.

The distribution of NET score on today's NCAA Division 1 NET by quartile is (Top, 1st Quarter, Middle, 3rd Quarter, Bottom):
MAC: 64/102/155/301.25/337
MVC: 10/100.25/184/224/243

The only part of the distribution where the MAC is slightly better is the middle MAC team has a higher NET than the middle MVC team, at a position in the NET where a difference of 30 slots doesn't matter very much at all.

The MAC isn't exactly having a banner season. MVC maybe its best since Creighton and Wichita St has departed. Loyola and Valpo I do agree were solid fill-ins.

The question to me is more "What does a conference do for you?" Where is the conference tournament and what is it like. How is the TV package? It wasn't long ago that MAC had its semifinals on FS Ohio and its quarters on Sportstime. MAC has upgraded to CBS Sports Net and ESPN+.

The MAC as it is might be more functional for Buffalo, Akron, Kent, Ohio than a more stacked mid major conference. Look at UMass in the A10 they aren't doing as well because they are stuck behind the private schools. Its better to have a conference that you can control as Gonzaga has proved than something too competitive.

Halfway through first half, Ohio blowing UB out of the building.

(03-13-2021 08:00 PM)zrb2 Wrote:  Halfway through first half, Ohio blowing UB out of the building.

Almost like having half the conference season off due to covid was a benefit now as they look fresh.

(03-13-2021 08:24 PM)adunifon Wrote:  

(03-13-2021 08:00 PM)zrb2 Wrote:  Halfway through first half, Ohio blowing UB out of the building.

Almost like having half the conference season off due to covid was a benefit now as they look fresh.

Yeah maybe so. But UB picked a bad night to forget how to shoot and defend. Would take a real collapse by OU at this point. non-competitive first half.

Not exactly a showcase game for the conference. All OU in the first half and second half is just a slog. Congrats to the Bobs, though. Good luck next week.

congrats to OU. beating Toledo and Buf back to back. That’s a nice run.

Just brutal for UB. they beat this club by 20 just a couple weeks ago. That’s sports.

Any guess on what seed OU will be?

So, are either Toledo or Buffalo in the frame for an NIT invite?

(03-14-2021 04:19 AM)BruceMcF Wrote:  So, are either Toledo or Buffalo in the frame for an NIT invite?

Doubt it. No auto bid, no sex ($) appeal.

(03-13-2021 10:43 PM)BobcatEngineer Wrote:  Any guess on what seed OU will be?

I would wager on 14 and depending on how many lesser teams pull upsets and steal their conference’s bid, maybe 13. But if I only have one bet, I’d bet 14.

(03-13-2021 10:43 PM)BobcatEngineer Wrote:  Any guess on what seed OU will be?

Lunardi has us as a #13 seed. I was thinking possibly a #14.

Just looked around a little to see what the various bracket predictions are.

Lunardi on ESPN has Ohio as a 13 playing Purdue.
Palm on CBS has 13 playing Fla. St.
A NET bracket has 14 playing UVA.

It’s all guesses, especially the opponents which just give you a rough idea of the approximate quality of opponent you would face on that seed line.

Edit: And DeCourcey on FoxSports has 14 playing Texas.

Lunardi had Toledo between a 12 and 13 at times and then yesterday had Buffalo at 13 before the game. The MAC was even enough that the easy thing to do was just replace one mac team with the next in his formula.

Also congrats Ohio fans, your guys played their asses off and deserved that. Now make some noise this week!

Congrats to all Bobcat fans and rooting for an upset in the big dance.