[NU Sports] MSU drubs Ioway

[Scott Zeller, M.D.]

OK, call me crazy, but I have an intuition. IF things play out OK this
weekend and there are sufficient slots available (obviously a big if), I
think NU has a decent shot at one of the last spots for a play-in game. It
still counts as making the tourney, you know. I think the committee, which
has to have pressure from the networks, will want an interesting marquee
game for Tuesday night play-ins. An NU team (who can provide the RPI for
justification) playing in its first-ever NCAAs, a Big Ten rep and the
Chicago market to boot -- seems like a big story that would be
irresistable. I think if it comes down to NU or a mid-major that is fairly
comparable, NU goes.
On Fri, Mar 9, 2012 at 1:26 PM, Eric C West <e-west at northwestern.edu> wrote:

> Actually, the Big Ten has only received 7 bids twice in the last 10
> seasons. Yes, Minny can still get the automatic bid, but otherwise it's not
> even close to a given. If NU somehow backs into a bid, it will be because
> our overall resume is better than those of Seton Hall or Mississippi State
> or Oregon or a bunch of other bubble teams who lost early in their
> conference tourneys. The Hawkeyes and Gophers will never get an at-large
> bid this year, and the Cats wouldn't be compared to them in the committee
> room.
>
> Eric West
> e-west at northwestern.edu
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nwu-sports-bounces at tssi.com [mailto:nwu-sports-bounces at tssi.com] On
> Behalf Of Beamsley, Jeff
> Sent: Friday, March 09, 2012 2:36 PM
> To: nwu-sports at tssi.com
> Subject: [NU Sports] MSU drubs Ioway
>
> http://www.mlive.com/spartans/index.ssf/2012/03/michigan_state_overwhelm
> s_iowa.html<http://www.mlive.com/spartans/index.ssf/2012/03/michigan_state_overwhelms_iowa.html>
>
> So who is the #7 BT team invited to the dance?
>
> Iowa beat an Illinois team who just fired their coach and finishes the
> season 17-16 with an RPI rank of 126.  So I don't think it will be Iowa.
>
> Minny has a shot if they beat UoM today.  That will give them a 20-13
> record with signature wins against Illinois at home, Indiana on the road,
> and Michigan (neutral).  Their RPI before tonight's game ranks 84th.
>
> But let's assume that they lose to UoM.
>
> What happens then?
>
> Minny ends the season 19-14 with an RPI twenty places lower than NU.
>
> By comparison, NU loses to a Minny team in overtime and finished the
> season 18-13 with an RPI rank of 53.  Our signature wins were against Seton
> Hall (neutral), MSU at home, and Illinois on the road.
>
> I agree that there is no requirement for the NCAA to extend invitations to
> 7 BT teams, but they still manage to do it regularly.
>
> So if Minny loses, what other team with a better RPI, better W-L record,
> and better set of signature wins is going to take our place?
>
> Jeff
>
>
>
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