Bracketology

Why is it that BYU is more often than not projected into play-in games in NCAA tournament? I see Lundardi has us as a play-in game with North Carolina with us both as a 11 seed. Last year at one point we were projected to be a playin team. We've been a playin team before.



http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology



I'll take whatever it takes to get in the Big Dance, but we know we have received poor seeding in the past, but always wanting to put us in play-in games is ridiculous.

In reality, I've never understood the logic behind the NCAA not only putting 16 seed teams in play-in games. How can you have teams ranked 12-16 that are not in a play-in game and you're a higher seed and have to play-in to get to the theoretical 1st round.



If you're a higher seed then dadgumit, you should not have to play a game more than any seed lower. I'd like someone to explain that to me.

EM_Puma wrote:

In reality, I've never understood the logic behind the NCAA not only putting 16 seed teams in play-in games. How can you have teams ranked 12-16 that are not in a play-in game and you're a higher seed and have to play-in to get to the theoretical 1st round.



If you're a higher seed then dadgumit, you should not have to play a game more than any seed lower. I'd like someone to explain that to me.

The NCAA is an organization that punishes schools like BSU for having a recruit sleep on a player’s couch more severely than a TN that is handing bags of cash out or Miami pimping prostitutes to recruits, both of whom essentially walked away scott free. The NCAA is neither fair or competent.

BoiseBYU wrote:

In reality, I've never understood the logic behind the NCAA not only putting 16 seed teams in play-in games. How can you have teams ranked 12-16 that are not in a play-in game and you're a higher seed and have to play-in to get to the theoretical 1st round.



If you're a higher seed then dadgumit, you should not have to play a game more than any seed lower. I'd like someone to explain that to me.

The NCAA is an organization that punishes schools like BSU for having a recruit sleep on a player’s couch more severely than a TN that is handing bags of cash out or Miami pimping prostitutes to recruits, both of whom essentially walked away scott free. The NCAA is neither fair or competent.

But the selection committee is separate from the NCAA admin. I can't imagine them telling the participants to sock-it-to BYU just because. This projections is from an ESPN individual. Somehow we need to shed this level of prejudice of our program. I'm sure it won't happen, but everybody seems into getting rid of any level of unfair and prejudiced approaches, let's be done with this tendency to throw BYU into play-in games.

EM_Puma wrote:

In reality, I've never understood the logic behind the NCAA not only putting 16 seed teams in play-in games. How can you have teams ranked 12-16 that are not in a play-in game and you're a higher seed and have to play-in to get to the theoretical 1st round.



If you're a higher seed then dadgumit, you should not have to play a game more than any seed lower. I'd like someone to explain that to me.

I agree 100%. Actually I'd prefer to just keep the tournament at an actual 64 teams without the stupid play-in games. And if BYU is #34 in NET shouldn't that mean that we are a 9 seed? Part of me wants the committee to straight up use the NET ranking to take the human element out of the tournament seeding because they seem to always screw BYU. Let the stats speak for themselves!

The idea of a play-in game for a 12 seed game makes sense if you think of the conference auto-bids. If some not very good team ends up winning their conference tournament they should get ranked as a 16 seed but they did win their conference so they should be in the tournament, otherwise you have the same situation as the football farcical playoffs where only teams from the SEC, ACC, and Big 10 are invited.

byufan4ever wrote:

In reality, I've never understood the logic behind the NCAA not only putting 16 seed teams in play-in games. How can you have teams ranked 12-16 that are not in a play-in game and you're a higher seed and have to play-in to get to the theoretical 1st round.



If you're a higher seed then dadgumit, you should not have to play a game more than any seed lower. I'd like someone to explain that to me.

I agree 100%. Actually I'd prefer to just keep the tournament at an actual 64 teams without the stupid play-in games. And if BYU is #34 in NET shouldn't that mean that we are a 9 seed? Part of me wants the committee to straight up use the NET ranking to take the human element out of the tournament seeding because they seem to always screw BYU. Let the stats speak for themselves!

Honestly, I'd rather be an 11 seed instead of 8/9, get to avoid a 1 seed in the second round.



The "first four" games are chosen by the 4 bottom autobid teams, which are 16 seeds, and the 4 bottom at-large teams, which are 11 seeds. I really think this is dumb. Should just be the 8 worst teams in the tourney. I'm guessing they do it to get more people watching the play-in games

tmoney35 wrote:

Should just be the 8 worst teams in the tourney. I'm guessing they do it to get more people watching the play-in games

Exactly!

I think more than anything if we had a consistent history of winning those games and going into the second week we would not keep getting stuck there.



Just keep winning!

Go Cougs

KYCOUG

Louisville, KY

KYCoug wrote:

I think more than anything if we had a consistent history of winning those games and going into the second week we would not keep getting stuck there.



Just keep winning!

Go Cougs

KYCOUG

Louisville, KY

I know I can look this up, but didn't we win our last play-in game? I thought that's the one we came from 30 something down.

Against Ione I think.

As KYCoug says, "just keep winning" and all will take care of itself. We can make it to conference tournament with only 1 loss and losing to Gonzaga I don't believe will hurt us much. It did knock us out of receiving any votes, even though we swept SMC and USF.

EM_Puma wrote:

I think more than anything if we had a consistent history of winning those games and going into the second week we would not keep getting stuck there.



Just keep winning!

Go Cougs

KYCOUG

Louisville, KY

I know I can look this up, but didn't we win our last play-in game? I thought that's the one we came from 30 something down.

As I recall BYU was up by 17 at halftime in its last play in game--in the "We score points but don't play a lick of defense" era. The opponent came back and won the game tying the record for the largest comeback in NCAA history that BYU had set a year or so prior against Iona. I don't remember who beat BYU. I try not to remember the painful moments; and come to think of it, that was BYU's last NCAA appearance (darn Covid).

hawkwing wrote:

The idea of a play-in game for a 12 seed game makes sense if you think of the conference auto-bids. If some not very good team ends up winning their conference tournament they should get ranked as a 16 seed but they did win their conference so they should be in the tournament, otherwise you have the same situation as the football farcical playoffs where only teams from the SEC, ACC, and Big 10 are invited.

I agree I like have the conference champions. But IMO all at-large bids and all seeding should be done by the NET ranking. Humans have too much bias.

jadesroom wrote:

KYCoug wrote:

I think more than anything if we had a consistent history of winning those games and going into the second week we would not keep getting stuck there.



Just keep winning!

Go Cougs

KYCOUG

Louisville, KY

I know I can look this up, but didn't we win our last play-in game? I thought that's the one we came from 30 something down.

As I recall BYU was up by 17 at halftime in its last play in game--in the "We score points but don't play a lick of defense" era. The opponent came back and won the game tying the record for the largest comeback in NCAA history that BYU had set a year or so prior against Iona. I don't remember who beat BYU. I try not to remember the painful moments; and come to think of it, that was BYU's last NCAA appearance (darn Covid).

It was Mississippi and it was a brutal loss.

We don't have the best history when it comes to winning games in the dance. I'll take what we can get.



I am fine with the play-in games. Allows more teams a shot.

hawkwing wrote:

The idea of a play-in game for a 12 seed game makes sense if you think of the conference auto-bids. If some not very good team ends up winning their conference tournament they should get ranked as a 16 seed but they did win their conference so they should be in the tournament, otherwise you have the same situation as the football farcical playoffs where only teams from the SEC, ACC, and Big 10 are invited.

Correction, Alabama, Ohio St, Clemson, and an at large bid.

https://www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/30302581/the-varying-states-ncaa-tournament-bracketology



Now Lunardi has us as a #10 seed playing UCon. I like that better than the play-in game.