Old Titan Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 This is no doubt a bit of a money grab; adding an additional day of four games on Friday. Plus, it affords UST a postseason goal to shoot for until they become fully eligible in four more years. It is assumed that if UST did win the tournament during this time, the loser in the championship game would earn the NCAA trip, but there's also the possibility that berth might go to the No. 1 seed from the SL tournament, no matter where they lost in the tournament process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keenan Henderson Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 There are pros and cons to this idea but overall, I think it is a good move. St. Thomas should not have to wait five years to begin postseason play. The Tommies have proved that they belong in the league and are bringing in a very good recruiting class this year. I also like that each team is eligible for tournament play and has a shot at the NCAA tournament. Of course, we want ORU to win every year, but this gives everyone a chance every year. It makes the future Summit League tournaments even more exciting! On a side note, quite a few teams in the league have never even made the NCAAs in their program history: WIU, South Dakota, Kansas City, Omaha, Denver, and of course St. Thomas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Cornelius Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 1 hour ago, Old Titan said: Plus, it affords UST a postseason goal to shoot for until they become fully eligible in four more years. It is assumed that if UST did win the tournament during this time, the loser in the championship game would earn the NCAA trip, but there's also the possibility that berth might go to the No. 1 seed from the SL tournament, no matter where they lost in the tournament process. That's my only issue with this move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted January 17, 2022 Author Share Posted January 17, 2022 If UST was to win it, the league deserves whatever fate befalls it. If none of your conference membership is capable of knocking off an upstart in three (or, even worse, four) games, then whoever does get the NCAA nod will likely get their hat handed to them in the first round, and be derided for how they got there in the first place. Let the Tommies play; it rewards their efforts in the regular season slate, and gets their fans and students accustomed to the wonders of Sioux Falls in March. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Cornelius Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 11 minutes ago, Old Titan said: If UST was to win it, the league deserves whatever fate befalls it. If none of your conference membership is capable of knocking off an upstart in three (or, even worse, four) games, then whoever does get the NCAA nod will likely get their hat handed to them in the first round, and be derided for how they got there in the first place. Let the Tommies play; it rewards their efforts in the regular season slate, and gets their fans and students accustomed to the wonders of Sioux Falls in March. I agree that St. Thomas should be eligible immediately. It only hurts the conference to hold them back in a waiting period. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ORU40 Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 That is buffoonery!! How could the Summit league "leadership" possibly think having a team play in its conference tourney, that if it wins cannot advance to the NCAA tourney as the conf. champ be a good idea??? What can possibly go wrong! If they are allowed to play, they should absolutely be allowed to advance if they win! Who is running this conference? Sometimes I think it's an SNL skit! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted January 17, 2022 Author Share Posted January 17, 2022 1 hour ago, ORU40 said: That is buffoonery!! How could the Summit league "leadership" possibly think having a team play in its conference tourney, that if it wins cannot advance to the NCAA tourney as the conf. champ be a good idea??? What can possibly go wrong! If they are allowed to play, they should absolutely be allowed to advance if they win! Who is running this conference? Sometimes I think it's an SNL skit! UST can't advance if they win; they are ineligible (in ALL sports) for NCAA D1 championship tournaments until they serve out their mandatory transition period. Oakland, IUPUI, IPFW, SDSU, NDSU, UND, and USD all served similar probationary periods when they joined the Mid-Con/Summit. It's a rite of passage for all schools entering D1. Look, this isn't the same as a Power-5 conference with multiple bid opportunities allowing a team on probation to possibly cost them a "unit" by winning their tourney and not being able to advance (aka Oklahoma State this year). The Summit has always been a one-bid league. Only one team is going to the dance, and the other teams all get paid the same from that entry, regardless of who goes that year. If St. Thomas wins (which is highly unlikely; ORU last year was the first non-Dakota school to win the tournament in Sioux Falls), you simply send someone else; preferably the team most likely to win a game or two for extra units (such as the regular season champion). What's the big deal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ORU40 Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 21 minutes ago, Old Titan said: If St. Thomas wins (which is highly unlikely; ORU last year was the first non-Dakota school to win the tournament in Sioux Falls), you simply send someone else; preferably the team most likely to win a game or two for extra units (such as the regular season champion). What's the big deal? It's unlikely, but possible. So the conf; with only one bid, will hopefully determine before the tournament who goes if STU were to win it, which means the tourney would have been irrelevant in that case. Or worse case, they don't specify who goes if STU wins before hand and wings it at that point. It just allows the possibility (although unlikely this year, but who knows 2-3 years down the road) for the Summit to really look bush league, just for an extra days revenue at the tourney! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EagleManiac Posted January 17, 2022 Share Posted January 17, 2022 In my opinion, it's weird for a team to be competing during the year without being allowed to be participate in the post-season. I don't fully understand why the NCAA requires that, though I'm sure there are reasons. It's weirder (is that a word?) for there to be a conference champion who does not represent the conference in the NCAA tourney. Though it's unlikely that UST could win, I'm 100% with ORU40 in saying that sending the runner up would be a bush league move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted January 17, 2022 Author Share Posted January 17, 2022 Here's some alternative weirdness to consider: Oakland, during its probationary period, proving itself over two months of conference play in 1999-2000 to be the best team in the league, finishing in first place at 11-5, only to sit home in March while Valparaiso, who finished in second place at 10-6, not only gets the No. 1 seed for the Mid-Con tourney in Fort Wayne, but gets a FIRST ROUND BYE, and ends up winning the tournament and earning an NCCA bid. Is THAT fair? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted January 17, 2022 Author Share Posted January 17, 2022 And, ANOTHER thing! (lol) We have the ACC to thank for starting this whole "conference tournament" platform, anyway. It was all about money, and what did they care about who won: their top teams were getting at-large bids win or lose, and if a No. 7 seed in their tournament breaks through and steals an additional bid in the round of 64/68, even better! Other big leagues wasted no time following their model. But for 1-bid leagues like the Summit, it really makes one wonder why they do it: most low-majors make no money with their conference tournaments (which is why many now play opening rounds or even the whole thing on home floors of the higher seeds), plus annually some poor small conference sees their potential Sweet Sixteen regular season champ get knocked out in their first round and relegated to the NIT with a 26-4 record. So, why DOES the Summit League do it the way they do? ATTENDANCE. They are one of the few low majors that DOES make money hosting a tournament in one place, and you have those Dakota schools - particularly their WOMEN'S TEAMS - to thank for that (plus an incredible tourism & convention organization in Sioux Falls that secures a LOT of sponsor dollars for the event). It only makes sense the SL would want to add another day to the festivities. Another day of ticket sales, another day of hotel rentals, another day of restaurant tabs, etc. And if little ol' St. Thomas happens to win the thing and the league has to assign a surrogate to the big dance? Easily worth any potential embarrassment, I am sure they would say... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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