Dear NCAA,
The NCAA tournament is perfect the way it is. 64 65 teams is pure perfection, please don't change a thing and expand to 96.
Here's the thing, NCAA, the tournament is already expanded to its capacity. As it stands today, the tournament allows over 300 teams in.
How do I figure? Well, each conference has a conference championship and the winner of those tournaments gets an automatic trip to The Dance. That means that Radford Highlanders have as much of a chance of making the tournament as any other school in the country.
Lamar Cardinals? If they can win the Southland conference tournament they are in.
All the Prairie View Panthers have to do is win the SWAC and they are booked.
Think Georgia Bulldogs of 2008. 4-12 in conference, they swept through Atlanta and got the invite. They thank you, NCAA, for that admission into such elite company.
See, NCAA, the tournament is perfect the way it is, and all teams have an equal shot of participation. What expansion will do is allow the Big TelEveN or SEC or Big 12 to get an 8th and 9th member in. What are the realistic chances that the 8th or 9th school in any of these power conferences will win it all? Zero. Hell, the lowest seeded team to win the whole thing was an 8-seed. Now you are talking about having a 24-seed?
The 16-seed has never beaten a 1-seed, but now you expect a 24 to beat a 1?
Teams will take weeks off. Players will get rusty. The game will get sloppy. You are talking about adding an additional weekend with the champions eventually playing three more games than they play now. #1 seeds are notorious for sitting their starters for almost an entire half in the 1/16 matchup as it is. Now you are adding three games to that rest. If my math is right, it will be two full weeks, from the end of the conference title games, to when the highest seeded teams will actually play for 40 minutes. Essentially expansion will hurt the game.
So NCAA, please do the right thing and do nothing. I understand money talks and my BS might walk, but let's not ruin what is a perfect ending to a perfect season.
Lovingly,
- Big 12 Hoops
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