Who are we playing these games for, anyway?

Who are we playing these games for, anyway?

There has been much to discuss this week in Ponte Vedra, FL at the annual Big East Conference meetings. Things like…survival?

Little things like schedules and tournament venues and whether or not everyone deserves to go to a Big East Tournament have also been discussed, and by some national scribes – dismissed as irrelevant and a waste of time.

Really? To whom?

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Let’s consider for a moment who these games are really played for. Aren’t college athletics about the athlete? About the experience for that athlete? About our enjoyment of watching young athletes (hopefully) grow into mature adults, and maybe grow into better players? And, aren’t they about the chance for an upset or an unexpected outcome? Or are they played for the writers and broadcasters and fans “forced” to watch largely irrelevant basketball games?

Here are two words for you: Don’t. Go. Plenty of others will.

It’s been a subject simmering in the minds of many over the past few months – what to do about the Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden, beginning in 2014. That’s when the Big East really will be the “Bigger” East with 18 teams potentially participating. It sure sounds unwieldy, I’ll give you that. But when you stop to consider who these games are really meant to benefit, here’s why everyone – every school, every team, every player – should be there.

This isn’t for us. It’s for the student-athlete.

And, it’s also for the schools…the institutions that use the annual trip to New York as a large selling point for their alumni, boosters and season-ticket holders. Can’t forget them – they pay the freight. Without the carrot of New York dangling at the end of the stick, sure…it’s tough to hold your hand out for that donation to support a team that finishes 18th. So what do you expect the bottom schools to do? Go away and come back next year for another beat-down? How do they improve their situation, without the chance – any chance – to build momentum for the future? They do that, by getting the chance to compete.

It’s easy to say the bottom schools should all stay home, they’re not worthy. And it’s bad basketball anyway…who’s going to watch? First, alumni, students and boosters will watch. Second, national TV contracts will have a national audience watching. Maybe it won’t be as large an audience as later in the week, but it’s still a national audience, nevertheless. Writers, broadcasters, fans – they’ll all still be there.

South Florida head basketball coach Stan Heath was quoted this week as saying that Kentrell Gransbury – a very good player, by the way – never got the chance to go to the Garden to play during his time at USF. Granted, he was only there a couple of years…but the point was, he never had the chance. Coaches sell the chance to their players and their recruits. Teams that are beaten, that bring up the rear, that occupy the basement in the standings…they certainly don’t want to stay where they are. The only way they can improve their lot in life, and in the standings, is by getting the chance. It’s what competition is all about.

If Syracuse or Georgetown or UConn found themselves at the bottom of the standings…don’t you think they’d be the first to scream for the chance? Think their fans would be screaming, too?

This isn’t everyone receiving a trophy, like little kids playing soccer. These are bigger kids, and adults, and there are still winners and losers. The scoreboard still tracks points, and the clock still winds down to 0:00. So, before you completely dismiss SMU vs. Central Florida on a Monday night at Madison Square Garden, remember…this isn’t about you having to watch a relatively meaningless basketball game. This is about those players, coaches and fans having the chance to play, the chance to win and the chance to improve. The better teams usually win, but in March come tournament time, haven’t we learned all you need is a chance?

Whether you go and watch or not is what’s irrelevant.

Notes:

Wednesday night, the Big East announced its format for an expanded 18-team men's basketball tournament beginning in the 2013-14 season would feature two play-in games with the lowest-seeded teams. Those play-in games would take place on the Monday of tourney week at a site yet to be determined in the New York area. Madison Square Garden, the primary host for the Big East tournament, is certainly an option, but it isn’t known at this time what scheduling conflicts may exist. And potentially, what contractual obligations must be considered or changed.

The tournament bracket would be set up like this: Tuesday of tournament week, the top four seeds would play the bottom four seeds. Then on Wednesday, the middle seeds would play against each other.

This could give the Tuesday winners an advantage, since they'd have a day off before the quarterfinal round would begin Thursday. For the women's Big East tournament in Hartford, play-in games would be held Thursday of tourney week. The highest seeds would continue to earn double-byes.