I have a series of thoughts and opinions I wanted to touch on in the aftermath of the NCAA men's basketball national tournament brackets being released. That gave way to the National Invitation Tournament, which gives way to the College Basketball Invitational.
As always, comments are welcome. No one is stupid, no one is wrong. This is just a place to share thoughts.
1) Boise's draw in the NCAAs is aweful. Oh sure, it'll be packed and it'll probably be all right. But it was nice of the national selection committee to treat the Boise regionals as an afterthought, a place to throw the teams that were left over when all was said and done.
We're located in Idaho and yet received nary a Mountain West team. None of the six Pac Ten teams selected was sent to Boise. No Gonzaga. Instead, we get a set of games virtually void of interesting storylines, personalities, and matchups. At least, with Xavier and Marquette in Boise, it should be a favorite of the Roman Catholic church.
(Writer's Note: That whole "Roman Catholic" thing was a joke. Let's not get too wound up about it.)
So while Florida State heads this way from the Sunshine State, you have Utah, Arizona, and Arizona State all headed to Florida to play first-round games. Seems to me those teams might've been able to generate a little buzz in our little corner of humanity. Good thing the Rose Garden in Portland got both Washington AND Gonzaga.
Once again, basketball fans in Boise will be left to pull for an upset... Portland State over Xavier may not be the stretch it appears to be... otherwise, the matchups at Taco Bell Arena on Friday and Sunday will barely register on the tournament's collective Richter Scale.
2) What the hell is the CBI? The short answer, for now, is the third-tier tournament that gave Boise State a chance to play at least one more basketball game. The Broncos will play at Stanford on Wednesday at 8 PM (Mtn).
Its formal name is the College Basketball Invitational, and you better be willing to open your pocketbook if you want to play a home game in that tournament. Upwards of $75,000, to give you an idea.
I've never been a proponent of letting everyone in. I think there are waaaaaaaaaay too many college football games. And now, with the CBI and some other tournament called the collegeinsider.com, we've blown right by the line of reason in college hoops as well. I believe in rewarding excellence, not mediocrity. And any tournament that extends a welcome hand (and a home game) to a team that finished the season 13-17 is doing just that. Rewarding mediocrity.
By the way, Stanford finished ninth in the Pac Ten this season. Ninth.
3) The Collegeinsider.com Tournament? It came out late Sunday night that Idaho was not only invited to the CIT, but will host Drake in the first round on March 18.
I understand Idaho is geeked about continuing play after pulling the program off life-support this year. It was a huge step forward for Don Verlin and his club, but I can't reconcile the following comment from Terrence Simmons in my mind:
"We definitely deserve to be playing in the postseason after the season we had."
You already did, Terrence. It was called the Western Athletic Conference postseason tournament. You lost to Louisiana Tech in the first round, remember?
And nothing spells postseason fever quite like hosting a game in Memorial Gym.
Here's to hoping that both Idaho and Boise State represent the Gem State well. Don't fault the respective programs for taking advantage of opportunities afforded them. It's the existence of such opportunities that bother me. See point number two if you need to be reminded why.
4) Not a sense of accomplishment, but a sense of entitlement. As I watched the selection show on CBS Sunday afternoon, I was somewhat taken aback by the number of teams who, when shown live as their name was unveiled, kinda ho-hummed their selection.
The Memphis players, in particular, looked visibly put off by the whole thing. It's understandable, the logic went, because the Tiger players felt like they deserved a number-one seed.
Sorry, don't buy it. It's not like the selection committee put them as a seven-seed or something. And postseason play is a reward, not a right. Look, if being a second seed in the tournament is such a problem (in the case of Memphis), I'm sure Saint Mary's, San Diego State, or any number of other schools would be glad to take the Tigers' place.
Anyone see North Dakota State's reaction? You'd have thought every person in that gym had just been told that the state itself was being physically relocated from the harsh northern plains to the warm waters of the south Pacific. It was bedlam. Euphoria to the extreme. And they're a lowly 14-seed that will likely be bludgeoned by Kansas in a few days... though I'll openly be pulling for the Bison.
Let's see more of that and less of the pampered guys who act like they're owed something. Let's revel in the excitement, not the entitlement.
5) My Final Four? As long as Louisville keeps its collective head on straight, the Cardinal should roll through the Midwest bracket. I like Oklahoma in the South assuming Blake Griffin has control of all his marbles after concussion issues last month.
I could see any of about five different teams emerging from the West and, as a Washington State graduate, as long as it's not the University of Washington, I'll be happy. I think the top two seeds (Memphis and UConn) are vulnerable, but one of 'em will survive. I'll go with UConn.
And, much like the Midwest, the East is set up for Pittsburgh to steam its way to Detroit for the Final Four. I can't be that obvious, though, right? So I'll go with Villanova. Just for kicks.