Great West Conference granted automatic postseason bid

[Da Coach]

The Great West Conference does not qualify to be granted an automatic postseason bid to the NCAA tournament. However, the ColllegeInsider.com tournament has stepped forward with an automatic bid to the winner of the Great West Conference. The CIT was the tournament that Bradley made the finals last year.

http://www.greatwestconference.org/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/092909aab.html

[PTownHawkeye]

Until today I had never heard of the "Great West" conference. I looked at the teams and would honestly say I couldn't imagine a more haphazard grouping of teams.

It is particularly "special" that the New Jersey Institute of Technology is in the Great West.

[bugregshu]

I had never heard of the Great West conference either. If the goal of these smaller post-season tournaments in to gain legitimacy, then this is certainly not the way to do it.

[tornado]

I had never heard of the Great West ...

understandably....it's made up of some of the most obscure D-I schools....several of which are as bad as Winston Salem State who just dropped out of D-I.

[DoubleJayAlum]

For the most part, it is a grouping of teams that have just made the step up (or are transitioning) to D1...

[BUFAN]

I'm surpurized Elgin didn't try to grab a couple of these guys.

[TheAsianSensation]

For the most part, it is a grouping of teams that have just made the step up (or are transitioning) to D1...

This.

It mostly seems like a loose group of teams banding together because otherwise they'd be independents and a lot worse off. I don't even think they can technically call themselves a conference, even.

I think it's good for the CIT. They're not trying to really curtail towards the big boys anyway, good for them for guaranteeing an independent school a chance at a postseason.