You Play To Lose The Game

Today's play-in game between Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Winthrop is a great opportunity for both teams. The Golden Lions and the Eagles made the postseason despite finishing second and third in their leagues (SWAC and Big South). By winning their conference tournaments, they get to face off against each other at Dayton Arena for a chance to move into the field of 64. What's at stake: a ticket to Jacksonville to play No. 1 seed Duke. Considering that a No. 16 seed has never beat a No. 1 seed in tournament play, it's like an amateur getting a shot at playing against Tiger Woods in match play.

On the other hand, playing against Duke in a NCAA tournament has to be a big rush for these players. Winthrop started out the season 5-9, while Arkansas Pine-Bluff got off an 0-11 start. The Golden Lions didn't even have a record above .500 until the conference tournament. The fact that both of these teams are still technically in the running for a NCAA championship is pretty amazing.

What is the significance of the play-in game? The first opening round game was played in 2001. It was created after the formation of the Mountain West Conference in 1999. When the NCAA decided to grant the winner of the Mountain West tournament an automatic bid, that pushed the automatic berths up to 31. Rather than reduce the number of at-large bids (34), it added an extra game. The opening round game has always been hosted by the University of Dayton. (Currently, there is discussion of expanding the field to 72 or 96, and thus creating more play-in games, and generating more revenue for the NCAA)

This is the second play-in game for the Winthrop Eagles, who were on the losing side in 2001. The Eagles, however, won a first round game against Notre Dame in 2007 (witnessed by me in Spokane). They also returned to the tourney the following year, and got beat by Washington State. Senior forward Mantoris Robinson was a member of both teams. When will a No. 16 seed beat a No. 1 seed? Probably not this year, but it's not an impossible feat.

Regardless of what happens in the play-in game, it has to be more exciting than the College Basketball Invitational, now in its third year. The CBI is a third-rate tournament, featuring sixteen teams that couldn't make the NIT. You have to question the quality of a tournament that crowned Oregon State as its champion last year (no disrespect intended to the President's brother-in-law, who coaches the Beavers). Not to mention that the tournament can't draw enough fans to host its games on neutral sites. Unless you've always wanted to see a matchup between Morehead State and Colorado State, you'd probably agree with me that the CBI is not good for college basketball. It reminds me of the 2009 Insight Bowl, played between two 6-6 football teams (Minnesota lost to Iowa State in a thriller, 14-13).

The Beavers earn a CBI berth by finishing 14-17? That's just shameful.