Another Mid-Major Hater

[BradleyBrave]

This guy really doesn't beat around the bush with what kind of tournament he wants. Have a vomit bag nearby. I'm sure ESPN and the BCS are forwarding this onto the NCAA as we speak.

http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/7947960?MSNHPHCP&GT1=39002

[tornado]

But what this guy is saying is like claiming I will only eat in 4-Star restaurants...

Nice if I can pull it off.....but it just isn't going to happen...
There will always be upsets, and the chance of always getting the four best teams into the Final Four is unlikely,
so I guess this guy will be forever miserable!

[Da Coach]

I think we need to get rid of all sports writers, except those few that are capable of winning the Pulitzer Prize. Since 99% of all sports writers will clearly never be considered for such a high level honor, let's fire them all, and only allow the few high-echelon writers to write all the sports columns in the country.

I really only enjoy what I read from Pulitzer Prize winners, anyway.

[BradleyBrave]

I'm with T and DC. I'm only eating at 4-star, 4-diamond restaurants and I am only going to read Hemingway from now on. I'm also only going to watch Oscar-winning films and Emmy-winning TV shows, and only going to drive the Motor Trend Car of the Year (I guess I will be leasing annually)...

[BUBraves06]

The thing about this article that is so rediculous is that the author doesn't even recognize that maybe ... just maybe ... Davidson is better then Georgetown, for example. He is basically saying that because certain teams are in certain high-level (see: BCS) conferences they should have the birth right to the Sweet 16. What a moron.

[BradleyBrave]

I think this guy might be ghost writing for Packer, Phelps, and Hubert Davis. Unfortunately I have to give Jay Bilas enough credit of having the ability to put pen to paper, although rational thought often escapes him.

[thefish7]

Plus, how about an observation about just how awful some of the play of the power conference teams has been?

[it's boogie time]

If the big dawgs truly are big dawgs, won't they be playing in the Elite Eight & Final Four regardless of how many teams start in the tournament? One of the great things about the NCAA tournament is that flaws are exposed.

I guess everybody has an opinion.

[Lakeview Brave]

The thing about this article that is so rediculous is that the author doesn't even recognize that maybe ... just maybe ... Davidson is better then Georgetown, for example. He is basically saying that because certain teams are in certain high-level (see: BCS) conferences they should have the birth right to the Sweet 16. What a moron.

Davidson is good but I dont think they would win the Big East. One game in a tournament setting does not show or prove which team is better over the long haul. If they played 10 times I think Georgetown wins 7 or 8.

[Braves4Life]

Davidson is good but I dont think they would win the Big East. One game in a tournament setting does not show or prove which team is better over the long haul. If they played 10 times I think Georgetown wins 7 or 8.

Yep! Right on Lakeview.......Just like BU/KU and BU/Pit...............However, if Davidson was in The Big East and had to build a team to compete in this conference I have no doubt that they would; McKillop is a GREAT coach!

This is what makes The Big Dance SO FUN. Go Davidson!

[Bravesfan]

I will agree with him on one level that yes, you do want the best teams to be rewarded with good seeds and go on to win the tournament. Good teams do have to earn their way through and he wants those that played the hardest and accomplished the most to earn their right to play for the title. There's nothing wrong with that. However, my problem is that the NCAA hierarchy is set up so it does not allow the smaller schools, who potentially are as good as the big boys, a fair opportunity to work their way up into elite status.

When a Butler or Bradley is constantly shunned by most of the BCS schools, there is no way to schedule these teams (outside of a preseason tourney or an occasional "two-for-one" by the few coaches willing to even do this) to see if we are their equal. Then when Butler, Bradley or Illinois St amass a gaudy record of 25 or more wins but get saddled with a 7 seed, or no NCAA birth at all, then whose fault is it?

People who have the same mentality as this columnist, that's who!

[BUBraves06]

Davidson is good but I dont think they would win the Big East. One game in a tournament setting does not show or prove which team is better over the long haul. If they played 10 times I think Georgetown wins 7 or 8.

I agree, I was just pointing out that he doesn't even recognize that a school like Davidson or Bradley has the ability to compete with a school like Georgetown or Kansas. It seems like he is saying just because Georgetown would beat Davidson most of the time that Davidson shouldn't get credit for their win or even a chance to play against the Hoyas which is just plain stupid.

[Guinness]

Fox Sports, modeled after Fox News.

Retarded.

[JBinPeoria]

I really like watching mid-major basketball. I feel that mid-major teams place a much greater emphasis on mastering the fundamental aspects of the game such as passing, creating open looks, taking smart shots, protecting the basketball, playing tough defense, blocking out and making free throws. Watching some of the major programs that have bowed out of the NCAAs early, I feel like they play with the same sense of entitlement as these writers bestow on them by basically implying that they deserve to be in the final four on the simple merit of climbing out of bed that day. College basketball with a lot of the so-called top programs revolves around exploiting one-on-one situations where there is a mismatch on paper. College basketball at the mid-major level revolves around the team concept and creating opportunities that play to the team's strengths without exploiting the team's weaknesses. I agree that these things matter at the major level, but I see so many innovative ways that coaches at the midmajor level develop players and devise strategies that overcome a team's shortcomings on paper. Players from mid-major schools work hard and deserve this opportunity to compete on a national stage with the rest of the nation's top programs. And when these teams come out ahead, I don't think we should look at them as "crashing the party"...but instead realize that their hard work and mastery of the fundamentals has paid off and allowed them to compete with the nations top programs.

[Bravesfan]

I really like watching mid-major basketball. I feel that mid-major teams place a much greater emphasis on mastering the fundamental aspects of the game such as passing, creating open looks, taking smart shots, protecting the basketball, playing tough defense, blocking out and making free throws. Watching some of the major programs that have bowed out of the NCAAs early, I feel like they play with the same sense of entitlement as these writers bestow on them by basically implying that they deserve to be in the final four on the simple merit of climbing out of bed that day. College basketball with a lot of the so-called top programs revolves around exploiting one-on-one situations where there is a mismatch on paper. College basketball at the mid-major level revolves around the team concept and creating opportunities that play to the team's strengths without exploiting the team's weaknesses. I agree that these things matter at the major level, but I see so many innovative ways that coaches at the midmajor level develop players and devise strategies that overcome a team's shortcomings on paper. Players from mid-major schools work hard and deserve this opportunity to compete on a national stage with the rest of the nation's top programs. And when these teams come out ahead, I don't think we should look at them as "crashing the party"...but instead realize that their hard work and mastery of the fundamentals has paid off and allowed them to compete with the nations top programs.

I couldn't have said that any better myself! I think the Diggers and Packers of the world should take note of what you said!