Bracketology- is Wichita State going to get a bid or is MVC a one-bid conference?

[Da Coach]

Joe Lunardi of ESPN his bracket to finally correct his mistake, where he had Wichita State in yesterday's tournament bracket, but not Northern Iowa.
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology/_/iteration/251

He now has UNI as a #14 seed, but he still has Wichita State in as a #7 seed, exactly where he had them last week, before they got beat by UNI and eliminated form the MVC Tournament. That is very strange that he has them seeded that high, since some bracketologists like CBSSports Jerry Palm have Wichita State as among the First Four Out, and virtually everyone else predicting brackets has them no higher than the last 4 in, and no higher than a #10 or #11 seed.

 

[Stickboy46]

Joe Lunardi of ESPN his bracket to finally correct his mistake, where he had Wichita State in yesterday's tournament bracket, but not Northern Iowa.
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology/_/iteration/251

He now has UNI as a #14 seed, but he still has Wichita State in as a #7 seed, exactly where he had them last week, before they got beat by UNI and eliminated form the MVC Tournament. That is very strange that he has them seeded that high, since some bracketologists like CBSSports Jerry Palm have Wichita State as among the First Four Out, and virtually everyone else predicting brackets has them no higher than the last 4 in, and no higher than a #10 or #11 seed.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bubblewatch

Here is a partial explanation of that.

 

[Da Coach]

Was that written by a publicist for Gregg Marshall?

It still doesn't explain why Joe Lunardi's seeding for WSU did not change between last week and this week, despite getting beaten. Even Top 10 teams get their seeds knocked down when they get beat in their conference tournaments. Nobody else in the world had them seeded anywhere near as high as 7th.


Update- just a couple minutes ago, Joe Lunardi posted another update to his brackets, and today, he dropped Wichita State down to a #8 seed!
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology/_/iteration/252

So what the heck just happened between yesterday and today that made Wichita State drop down a notch? Could it be that Joe Lunardi is sensitive to the ridicule he was getting for seeding them too high?

BTW, there are other issues I have with his bracket- like why does he have Monmouth in the tournament, but Valpo is way out? Valpo's RPI is better, their record is better, and their SOS is better than Monmouth. But then maybe he thinks the Monmouth "Bench Mob" is what puts them in the tournament?

 

[Stickboy46]

Was that written by a publicist for Gregg Marshall?

It still doesn't explain why Joe Lunardi's seeding for WSU did not change between last week and this week, despite getting beaten. Even Top 10 teams get their seeds knocked down when they get beat in their conference tournaments. Nobody else in the world had them seeded anywhere near as high as 7th.


Update- just a couple minutes ago, Joe Lunardi posted another update to his brackets, and today, he dropped Wichita State down to a #8 seed!
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology/_/iteration/252

So what the heck just happened between yesterday and today that made Wichita State drop down a notch? Could it be that Joe Lunardi is sensitive to the ridicule he was getting for seeding them too high?

BTW, there are other issues I have with his bracket- like why does he have Monmouth in the tournament, but Valpo is way out? Valpo's RPI is better, their record is better, and their SOS is better than Monmouth. But then maybe he thinks the Monmouth "Bench Mob" is what puts them in the tournament?

I think an 8 is too high also. 10-11 is my guess. I'd actually prefer a 10-11 (without the play in) over a 8-9 anyways.

As far as Monmouth ... I don't get it either. They are giving them a lot of credit for 2 Top 50 wins and playing a lot of road games (like 23 games away from home). They also have 3 x 200+ RPI losses though. I really don't see what's to like about their resume. They have all the negatives of WSU's resume (lack of quality wins), but none of the positives (they have bad losses, bad analytical rankings, etc)

 

[tornado]

Was that written by a publicist for Gregg Marshall?

It still doesn't explain why Joe Lunardi's seeding for WSU did not change between last week and this week, despite getting beaten. Even Top 10 teams get their seeds knocked down when they get beat in their conference tournaments. Nobody else in the world had them seeded anywhere near as high as 7th.


Update- just a couple minutes ago, Joe Lunardi posted another update to his brackets, and today, he dropped Wichita State down to a #8 seed!
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology/_/iteration/252

So what the heck just happened between yesterday and today that made Wichita State drop down a notch? Could it be that Joe Lunardi is sensitive to the ridicule he was getting for seeding them too high?

BTW, there are other issues I have with his bracket- like why does he have Monmouth in the tournament, but Valpo is way out? Valpo's RPI is better, their record is better, and their SOS is better than Monmouth. But then maybe he thinks the Monmouth "Bench Mob" is what puts them in the tournament?

the people who do sports on TV all have some weird fascination/obsession with those bench clowns at Monmouth....
Not only do have a camera perpetually aimed at them during broadcasts so they can catch every move & re-show again and again on Sportscenter....
But they had them all in their studio to help do the Sportscenter broadcast - treating them like guest-hosts...and having them "RECREATE" their supposedly "entertaining" actions..
If that doesn't tell ya they are the epitome of "media-darlings" then I don't know what will...
Let's just see how much the "fair and unbiased" Selection Committee seems to be influences by the media coverage...

certainly if Lunardi drops Wichita's seeding after numerous days when they haven't even played a game, then it certainly is because he was checking the twitter reactions he was getting and he was letting the wave of criticism sway his supposedly "unbiased" opinion.
They are all actors - every bit as much as Leonardo DiCaprio - all trying to suck up to the cash cow in whatever way they can.

This is why despite the main media's hatred for independent bloggers and internet people, we really need these right thinking people to shine the light on the hypocrisy within the media and NCAA.

 

[Stickboy46]

the people who do sports on TV all have some weird fascination/obsession with those bench clowns at Monmouth....
Not only do have a camera perpetually aimed at them during broadcasts so they can catch every move & re-show again and again on Sportscenter....
But they had them all in their studio to help do the Sportscenter broadcast - treating them like guest-hosts...and having them "RECREATE" their supposedly "entertaining" actions..
If that doesn't tell ya they are the epitome of "media-darlings" then I don't know what will...
Let's just see how much the "fair and unbiased" Selection Committee seems to be influences by the media coverage...

certainly if Lunardi drops Wichita's seeding after numerous days when they haven't even played a game, then it certainly is because he was checking the twitter reactions he was getting and he was letting the wave of criticism sway his supposedly "unbiased" opinion.
They are all actors - every bit as much as Leonardo DiCaprio - all trying to suck up to the cash cow in whatever way they can.

This is why despite the main media's hatred for independent bloggers and internet people, we really need these right thinking people to shine the light on the hypocrisy within the media and NCAA.

Also, it appears the reason WSU moved down, is because St. Marys moved up after their 81-66 win over Pepperdine (who they lost to twice this year).

 

[Indy_BB]

Wichita State's entire resume boils down to one home win over Utah. To put in perspective, Utah's Pomeroy is 25th. Seton Hall's is 29.

They should probably prepare for the worst with a hope of a surprise. They have the kind of profile that kept an arguably better Murray State home recently.

 

[Stickboy46]

Wichita State's entire resume boils down to one home win over Utah. To put in perspective, Utah's Pomeroy is 25th. Seton Hall's is 29.

They should probably prepare for the worst with a hope of a surprise. They have the kind of profile that kept an arguably better Murray State home recently.

That's incorrect. That's the one part that everyone focuses on. And really that's the only thing that is saying that WSU doesn't belong. Litterally every other category is good for WSU. No Bad losses, VERY strong non-con SOS, very high computer rankings (KenPom, BPI, Sagarin all Top 25, KPI: 36). A 17 pt win over Utah is a VERY good win. Eye Test passes with the 20+ MOV the last few months. That's all without account for injuries. The resume is there .. most people just like to ignore everything but Top 50 wins.

http://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/mens-basketball-selections-101-selections

There is way more to the selection process than just Top 25-50 wins.

 

[tornado]

I agree- simply common sense would tell you that Wichita is certainly one of the best 68 teams in Division I...
sadly, tho - that's not how it works...
250 RPI teams get in plus the 7th, 8th and even 11th best teams (with 64 RPI) in some conferences actually make it.

(yup the Big East got 11 bids in 2011 including three 12-loss teams and a 15-loss team..
Georgetown was given a #6 seed then got hammered by #11 seed VCU, Louisville lost to a #13 seed, Syracuse, Cincy & St. John's all lost to #11 seeds, ND to a #10-seed!
In all, NINE of the 11 got knocked out the very first weekend, even tho they were gifted by being paired with #11 thru #16 seeds!!!
In the end it makes a total joke of giving any conference nearly a dozen bids- a 6th of the entire tourney!)

 

[Indy_BB]

most people just like to ignore everything but Top 50 wins. .

Yep. You know why? Because the Committee has proven to do just that. Games outside of the Top 50 may as well not even happen, assuming you don't lose them.

They have a chance, but its not better than 2:1, probably worse.

 

[Stickboy46]

Yep. You know why? Because the Committee has proven to do just that. Games outside of the Top 50 may as well not even happen, assuming you don't lose them.

They have a chance, but its not better than 2:1, probably worse.

I'd give them 70% odds to get in. I agree, the committee doesn't always make the right choice, but they have been trending away from RPI for a couple years now. More advanced metrics have been used.

 

[tornado]

They have also been trending way, way, way away from giving at-large bid to mid-majors...
I think they are fed up seeing mid-majors like UNI, Bradley, Wichita, SIU, etc...if even given half-a-chance with terrible seeding...
..surge to the Sweet Sixteen and beyond and embarrassing their beloved BCS schools....
I predict no more than 3 or 4 mid-majors will get at large bids this year...and probably even fewer..

 

[Stickboy46]

They have also been trending way, way, way away from giving at-large bid to mid-majors...
I think they are fed up seeing mid-majors like UNI, Bradley, Wichita, SIU, etc...if even given half-a-chance with terrible seeding...
..surge to the Sweet Sixteen and beyond and embarrassing their beloved BCS schools....
I predict no more than 3 or 4 mid-majors will get at large bids this year...and probably even fewer..

I agree with this, though thankfully I don't really see any Mid-Majors with better resumes than WSU at the moment. MAYBE St. Marys if they lose to Gonzaga tonight.

 

[Tulsa Brave]

They have also been trending way, way, way away from giving at-large bid to mid-majors...
I think they are fed up seeing mid-majors like UNI, Bradley, Wichita, SIU, etc...if even given half-a-chance with terrible seeding...
..surge to the Sweet Sixteen and beyond and embarrassing their beloved BCS schools....
I predict no more than 3 or 4 mid-majors will get at large bids this year...and probably even fewer..

Do you consider the American Conference a major or a mid-major? If you consider it a mid-major, then mid-majors will get more than 3-4 at-large bids this year guaranteed.

 

[Da Coach]

Also, it appears the reason WSU moved down, is because St. Marys moved up after their 81-66 win over Pepperdine (who they lost to twice this year).

That would make sense if Lunardi moved St. Mary's up to a higher seed than WSU, thus pushing the Shockers down, but that is not the case. He put St. Mary's up to an #8 seed, which was lower than Wichita was at #7. The only team that moved from lower than WSU to now above WSU is Texas Tech. Texas Tech was a #8 seed yesterday, but today is a #7 seed, moving WSU from #7 yesterday, down to #8 today.

That is quite funny, since neither Wichita State or Texas Tech have played a game in the last 4 days! What changed to move TTU up and WSU down, other than the twitter criticism directed at Lunardi?

 

[Stickboy46]

That would make sense if Lunardi moved St. Mary's up to a higher seed than WSU, thus pushing the Shockers down, but that is not the case. He put St. Mary's up to an #8 seed, which was lower than Wichita was at #7. The only team that moved from lower than WSU to now above WSU is Texas Tech. Texas Tech was a #8 seed yesterday, but today is a #7 seed, moving WSU from #7 yesterday, down to #8 today.

That is quite funny, since neither Wichita State or Texas Tech have played a game in the last 4 days! What changed to move TTU up and WSU down, other than the twitter criticism directed at Lunardi?

You would be correct. Maybe TT got a bump because they coach just won Big 12 COY by some site. ha!

I think he said yesterday he still had work to do with fine tweaks and would update this morning. I think he just didn't fully update yesterday.

https://twitter.com/ESPNLunardi/status/706873709500489729

 

[Stickboy46]

Do you consider the American Conference a major or a mid-major? If you consider it a mid-major, then mid-majors will get more than 3-4 at-large bids this year guaranteed.

I consider it major, but either way the AAC is going to cannibalize itself in the first rounds of their tourney. It seems pretty much all the bubble teams are facing each other early in that tourney. So Someone has to lose.

 

[tornado]

American is a major - big time FB, etc...

 

[SycamoreFanatic]

I'm still not sure whether the Carnage last night helps or hurts WSU. WSU's resume is better than all the 1 seeds that lost last night, but people seem to love Monmouth even though their resume isn't great.

I love Monmouth & Valpo & Hofstra & plenty more to come "Boy". You know there is only a single auto for all those BCS team leagues. Are you going to suggest they leave out the 8th place team in the Big 10 or SEC or ACC, etc. Never happen...........that's what at-large is intended to cover.........

 

[Stickboy46]

I love Monmouth & Valpo & Hofstra & plenty more to come "Boy". You know there is only a single auto for all those BCS team leagues. Are you going to suggest they leave out the 8th place team in the Big 10 or SEC or ACC, etc. Never happen...........that's what at-large is intended to cover.........

If it was done properly .. yes they should leave the 8th place team in a major conference that went .500 in conference out, but they wont. That's why I'm comparing to other mid-majors. Right now WSU has the best resume of all the mid-majors needing an At-Large. WSU could really use help from the American Conference though. They have a collection of teams on the bubble.