Illinois State Bubble Bursts

[Panther789]

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.

It was CU beating SIU in 2003. The difference was that, SIU beat CU earlier in the year.

Honestly, are there ANY examples of at-large teams getting a bid without beating a single team in the rest of the field? I don't know the answer, but if there are examples, I would imagine they are very rare.

[Matt Trump]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

On CBS, the committee chair was asked by Packer how could the Big East get so many bids over the ACC when the ACC was the #1 conference. The chair said when discussing teams, they did not take conferences into consideration. They merely looked at each teams resume and evaluated based on how they did against the good teams. Illinois State did not have a good resume regardless of who they did or didn't get a game against.

[UNIChippewa]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

I can feel bad for Illinois State, but I can also feel bad for Dayton, Arizona State, etc. They have just as much to gripe about as the Redbirds do.

Also guys, remember that 5 or maybe even 6 of the 10 selection committee members represent "mid-major" schools or conferences.

[Khan4Cats]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Also guys, remember that 5 or maybe even 6 of the 10 selection committee members represent "mid-major" schools or conferences.

WRONG

10 member selection committee:

4 from the 6 power conferences-that's nice and proportional, isn't it?

Commish-SEC, AD-UCLA, AD-UConn, AD-Ohio State (Gene Smith)

4 from "Mid" Conferences

Commish-Horizon (who is former assistant commish of the ACC), AD-George Mason (CHAIR), AD-Utah, AD-Kent State

2 from smaller conferences

AD-UC-Riverside, AD-UT-San Antonio

So a 4-4-2 split. If there is any knid of "block" voting, any guess where the two "glad to be included" representatives line up. Wherever they have to to avoid having their schools in the play-in game.

Incidentally, the play-in game one again avoids having the two worst schools playing in it, since both would be from HBCU conferences. Showing the committee truly is gutless.

Butler, 7 seed. Nice job Horizon Commish.

[Panther789]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

WRONG

Butler, 7 seed. Nice job Horizon Commish.

Unless I am missing something, Butler played exactly ONE team from the rest of the field.

Butler played Drake at home, and lost by 7.

The more you look at the field, the more it looks like this is the distinction. ISU didnt beat a single team in the field. South Alabama as well as St Marys, both with worse RPI's than Illinois State, had multiple victories over teams in the field.

[06panther10]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Its really hard to believe that ISU did not beat a single tourny team. I doubt that any at large team can get in with that being the case.

[Matt Trump]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Unless I am missing something, Butler played exactly ONE team from the rest of the field.

Butler played Drake at home, and lost by 7.

Yep, plus they lost some games in a conference that was not the greatest.

[Matt Trump]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Just now on Jim Rome show, Billy Packer said he doesn't know much about the bubble teams this year...

[jman2004]

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.

Illinois State, Dayton, and ASU deserved to be in over Oregon, Villanova, and Oklahoma. The committee is ridiculous.

Again, why can't this be down to a science? We've got numbers like RPI, SOS, etc. Combine them all together, work in the conference champions, auto-bids, and this shouldn't be too difficult.

With a committee of 10 guys sitting down and subjectively judging these teams on an individual basis, they're bound to screw things up and they do. Teams get lucky because they're from a larger conference and teams get unlucky because they play in smaller conferences.

It's time to take the human element out of this. It could be done easily. Then I guarantee you teams like Oregon and Villanova do NOT make the dance after the season they both had.

[Panther789]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Illinois State, Dayton, and ASU deserved to be in over Oregon, Villanova, and Oklahoma. The committee is ridiculous.

Again, why can't this be down to a science? We've got numbers like RPI, SOS, etc. Combine them all together, work in the conference champions, auto-bids, and this shouldn't be too difficult.

With a committee of 10 guys sitting down and subjectively judging these teams on an individual basis, they're bound to screw things up and they do. Teams get lucky because they're from a larger conference and teams get unlucky because they play in smaller conferences.

It's time to take the human element out of this. It could be done easily. Then I guarantee you teams like Oregon and Villanova do NOT make the dance after the season they both had.

What forumula do you want to use? Oklahoma went 22-11, had an RPI of 29 with 6 top 50 wins.

[Cap'n Cat]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

I'm just glad we beat them b*stards in football this year.

[UNI_12]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Oklahoma had wins over Arkansas, Gonzaga, at West Virginia, at Baylor, Baylor at home, and Texas A&M...with close losses to Memphis and USC...absolutely NO way Illinois State deserves in over them...they were also missing Blake Griffin for a couple of their losses...I really think RPI is very overrated. No way a team who's best win is over a non NCCA Tourney team should be able to have an RPI 50+ spots better than a team that has wins over Stanford, Arizona (2), at Xavier, and USC...I'm as big of an MVC fan as everyone else...but RPI is overrated, and besides RPI, Illinois State's individual resume just isn't impressive enough.

[UNI_12]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

The good news is Eldridge, Josh Young, Egleseder and Koch, Josh Bone, Stinnett and Lawson are all underclassmen...the future is bright for this conference.

[Khan4Cats]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

Unless I am missing something, Butler played exactly ONE team from the rest of the field.

Butler played Drake at home, and lost by 7.

The more you look at the field, the more it looks like this is the distinction. ISU didnt beat a single team in the field. South Alabama as well as St Marys, both with worse RPI's than Illinois State, had multiple victories over teams in the field.

Hey, nice job of editing my post to avoid the fact that you were wrong about the committee make-up.

Anyway, can anybody name a power conference school that would be ranked pretty much all year (28 pre-season, but in the top 25 since week 2)win its conference regular season and tournament title and then get a 7 seed.

Didn't play anyone in the field. That's right because after last year, and they returned basically everyone, who would want to play them. Oh yeah, Va Tech, Texas Tech, Ohio State, and Florida State. All games they won by the way. Please tell me if any one of those teams beat Butler that they are not a Tournament team, but since Butler won, they bubbled out. Must not be any good, they lost to BUTLER!!!

The two games they lost in conference were AT Wright State (NCAA qualifier last year) and AT Cleveland State (NIT). But I guess mid-majors conferences suck so any in-conference gaem shouldn't matter.

Well at least the committee has a win-win in its match-up. See we gave South Alabama an at-large and 10 seed aren't we generous and if they beat Butler, wow do we look good. And both teams get a date with Tennessee in round 2, so minimal worry about a George Mason team from this bracket. Hope Butler shoves it right back at them.

[Khan4Cats]

Re: Illinois State Bubble Bursts

The good news is:

We know the criteria used this year.

So, next year, get out your crystal balls and figure out what teams will be in the field and get them on the schedule so you can get a couple wins. Oh sorry mid-majors, the major conference teams won't schedule you because this is a criteria that they already meet by playing in conferences where half their conference will be in the field. Too bad.