Illinois State Bubble Bursts

[Newsbreaker]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

The problem isn't that we don't get a fair shake, it's that we are dealt with in a completely fair way, and it kills us. We're expected to match teams from leagues that get to play 6-10 games a year against no-doubt-about-it tournament teams. We might get half that.

Teams like MVC teams have to get over this "we can't get them to come here" nonsense and take the hard road games. Go to Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Kansas State, Mizzou or Nebraska regionally. Take one or two of those every year each, even if they refuse to give us a home game. The Bracket Buster is worthless, we have to create our own 'bracket busters.'

[OhNewby]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Valley gets screwed again! How can the RPI only be wrong with Valley teams?

[9YRPLAN]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

kentucky is a joke

[Newsbreaker]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

12-4 in the SEC is a joke?!?!?!

[BCPanther]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

CBS's Gary Parrish agrees with us...

http://gary-parrish.blogs.sportsline.com/mcc/blogs/view/6271764

Newsy, I totally disagree with you. Why should we lower ourselves to taking guarantee games. We play fantastic basketball in this league, the 'eye test' and the numbers show that. We just have to realize that the whole tournament is a subjective process and that it is slanted toward the bigger conferences, which is just fine, just be honest and up front about it.

Also, Tell us what the criteria is and don't waver on it when its convenient.

[Newsbreaker]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

It's not "lowering" ourselves...it's giving ourselves the chance to pass the tests that pay the real dividends.

One win at those places is worth three, four, even five in our own league. Pride is the only reason not to 'take' those games, and that's a horrible reason.

I agree we're shooting at a moving target, however.

[Panther789]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

The committee has told us the criteria. However, unless you limit the criteria to 1 or 2 things, there isnt going to be some sort of mathmatical formula that spits out the at large-bids with certainty.

St. Mary's and South Alabama both had lower RPI's than ISU. They both had only a few chances to beat other teams in the field. The difference is, they each got a few wins against the rest of the field, while Illinois State was 0-5, including a 30 point egg on a neutral court.

[BCPanther]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

You know what Newsy, what you just said rings with me and I was blind to it and I am guessing that a lot of us were. Blind pride is standing in the way of more bids. The best way to get what we want (BCS teams on our floors) is to go out and gain their respect. If we can go and win games in those places, it raises the profile of the league and people will understand that it is tough to win games in this league night in and night out. As we raise the profile of the league, those bigger conference teams are going to realize that their is no shame in losing in a Valley building and that a win in one of our buildings is a resume building win...

Yes, that target is zig-zagging in an uncontrollable and unpredictable pattern...

[UNI_12]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

The RPI is a joke...how is Arizona State 88th with 2 wins over Arizona, and wins over Stanford, USC, and at Xavier...while Illinois State is 34th with their best win of the year being at Creighton...the RPI should not be weighed as heavily as it is.

[Panthers to the Bone]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

The Valley does try to go out and play any game, any time, and any where. They try to get home and homes, 2-for-1's, etc...but the bottom line is that if UNI said to Minnesota "hey, we'll play you in Minneapolis", they wouldn't take it. Same for other 'power conference' type teams. Yes, losing to SIU and Creighton is no longer such a big deal, but UNI still doesn't have the name to get those type of games. At the same time, the coaches know MVC teams and to stay away from them. I think it's just so very difficult to get these games, regardless of if it's a one game deal or not. The only way most of those games would get done is if all Valley schools wait until late in July and August and try to wait these teams out to get these 'BCS' games. The MVC has done this, and sometimes it doesn't work out like they thought. Wichita was a success with their game at Syracuse, but that's about the only one I can think of.

[BCPanther]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

PTTB-

In the end what is the answer?? How do we find the games that are going to matter this time of year. In our case we can't even get the UMKC and Loyola's of the world to play us anymore. I fear in the future that we are not going to be able to find enough games to fill the schedule...

[9YRPLAN]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

you think the SEC is a great league this year? kentucky did not have the resume of some of the other bubble teams. if they are going to judge teams on they are playing at the end of the season, they should also take into account that patterson is out for the year and they just got beat by georgia (and looked like idiots while doing it).

[UnderParPanther]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

MVC gets 1 team in with a higher seed than all 3 WCC teams even though St Marys beat Drake. So the 14th ranked rpi conference gets 3 teams in but the 8th doesnt get 2?

The MVC will never get respect until we start getting 3-4 teams in EVERY year and teams from power conferences quit seeing scheduling us as a lose/lose situation (lose the game and it hurts you, win and it's no big deal because you were supposed to). They seem to schedule A-10 schools with no problem and we've been better than them the past 5 yrs or so

[12thFloorBender]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

I guess that big loss kept Illinois State out. If it would have been a 10 point game or under, I bet they would have gotten in.

You do have to wonder how a team Oregon got in and a team like Illinois State did not.

[Panthers to the Bone]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Creighton got beat by SIU by 20+ points (or was it CU beating SIU) in the championship game of the MVC tourney a few years ago and both teams made it. It obviously didn't help them, but it shouldn't have been what kept them out.