The Play-in...um, I mean "Opening Round" Game

For those of you who missed it, Niagara beat FAMU in the Opening Round game of the NCAA tournament. The title "opening round" is meant to imply that this game represents the start of the NCAA Tournament, the beginning of March Madness. I am willing to bet however that there were very few people outside of Niagara, New York and Tallahassee, Florida that were glued to their screens hanging on the outcome of every possession. In fact, even the players seemed a bit indifferent. It had the feel of a JV game taking place just before a high-profile Varsity game. The stands are packed with people anticipating the big boys to take the floor and who don't really care who wins the JV game. Meanwhile, the JV kids are just trying to get the game over with because they are semi-embarrassed because they know that people are secretly laughing at them for not being Varsity players and being relegated to having to play the show before the show. That's what the Opening Round game is. All of the teams that are actually in the tournament are preparing for the Big Dance while NU and FAMU are in Dayton, Ohio playing a game that allegedly means something but everyone, including the players, coaches, and fans, realizes does not.

I couldn't help but feel for the players. Think about the supreme elation those guys felt after winning their conference tournaments. They were going to the grown-up's table. They were in the show. In didn't matter if it meant getting slaughtered by a real contender. They were going to get to experience the madness and maybe, just maybe, be one of those teams that everyone would be talking about. Maybe Niagara would be this year's Mason, FAMU the next Gonzaga. And then, on Selection Sunday, the ball dropped. They would actually have to play a game before becoming the sacrificial lamb to Kansas. Bummer. It's like being told you are getting a car for your birthday and then being handed the keys to a Geo Prizm or a Ford P.O.S. Sort of takes the luster off, doesn't it?

Apparently, the city of Dayton has really embraced this game and have made it an "event" or something. Hey, that's cool. It's great that they try their darndest to make the two teams feel like they are real-life bona-fide tourney teams. That doesn't make it okay to exile two teams that nobody cares about off to a game that nobody cares about, the winner of which will be another bug on the bottom of a national powerhouse's shoe.

The idea of the Opening Round game is decent enough. It allows for one more at-large team. Thank goodness, because without this riveting match-up of MEAC champ vs. MAAC champ, teams that epitomize mediocrity, like Illinois and Arkansas, wouldn't have the opportunity to salvage their seasons with a tourney victory (I hope the sarcasm shines through that last sentence). My deal is if you're going to have one Opening Round game for one of the #16 seeds, have an Opening Round game for all of the #16 seeds. Make it an actual event. Having four Opening Round games on the Tuesday prior to the start of the tourney may actually be somewhat interesting. Plus, each #16 seed gets the equal disadvantage of having to play a game before getting beaten to a pulp by a contender.

The other change that should be made is that conference champions shouldn't be forced to play in the Opening Round. They earned their way in. They earned the right to experience March Madness. Did Arkansas really earn it? Was 7-9 in the SEC West and a cotton cushy draw in the SEC tourney really worthy of a bid? Meanwhile, Niagara and FAMU each finished second in their respective conferences, won over 20 games, and each rolled through their conference tournaments to win a spot in the actual Dance. Maybe the "worst" teams in the tourney shouldn't be forced to play on Tuesday. Maybe the last teams picked should have to play. Maybe the Opening Round game should be Arkansas vs. Illinois. It wouldn't have to be for a 16 seed, but perhaps a 13 seed, which is usually the seed that the last team in the tournament gets.

The point is simple. The NCAA wants people to think the Opening Round game is part of the Madness. It isn't. Everyone knows that, including the players in the game. It's too bad and it isn't fair. Unfortunately, it probably isn't going to change. As I said, the concept isn't ill-conceived because it allows an extra at-large. But does that at-large deserve it? And why should two conference champions be forced to play in the game-they-want-you-to-think-matters-but-actually-doesn't? Talk amongst yourselves.