If educated college basketball fans are assuming Kentucky will be a clear cut No. 1 seed overall when the NCAA tournament bracket is announced on Sunday, Scott Barnes would like them to know “that’s certainly a good read on the situation.”
Barnes, chair of the Division I men’s basketball committee and director of athletics at Utah State, told reporters Wednesday that there are some unique elements to this year’s process as the committee gathered in Indianapolis to finalize the field and the bracket.
He said this is the first time in his five years on the committee that the top seed is a virtual lock at the start of selection week. Kentucky (31-0 heading into the SEC tournament) is trying to record the first perfect season since Indiana in 1976. UNLV is the last team to reach the Final Four undefeated but the Runnin’ Rebels of Jerry Tarkanian lost to Duke in the 1991 national semifinals and finished 34-1.
That’s how Kentucky has found itself in this unique position.
“Again, there’s going to continue to be jockeying for positions,”Barnes said in the national teleconference call. “Those comments are based on where things sit today. In my five years, this unique in that there seems to certainly be some separation there.”
The committee was expected to take its first vote on the at-large field Wednesday afternoon. But even before that, Barnes said the top two lines – the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds – seem well defined. That should be good news for Duke, Virginia, Villanova, Arizona, Wisconsin, Gonzaga and Kansas – in addition to Kentucky.
“As I think about the first two lines here as we get going with seeding and bracketing, in my five years I can’t remember it being quite as clear as it is in terms of the teams that might populate those two lines,” Barnes said. “Certainly, that’s the perspective of today. There’s more games to play. But it is one thing that seems to be shaping up. I wanted to also mention to you, conversely, when you look at the seed lines, for instance, three to five, six to nine, I think we’re in for a lot of work. I think there will be some challenges in coming to decisions on that group of teams.”
Kentucky will almost certainly begin the tournament Thurs., March 19 in Louisville, despite playing in the SEC tournament on Sunday. Geography – giving Kentucky the opportunity to play close to home – now dominates the committee’s thinking. The NCAA is no longer guided by the “S curve” that would match the top 1 seed against the worst 2 seed.
“We as a committee, to a person, would love for all conference tournaments to end on Saturday, just giving us more time to put the big puzzle pieces together, if you will, that is bracketing,” Barnes said. “Absolutely would love to have that happen. It is at this point totally out of our control.”
The American Athletic Conference tournament begins in Hartford Thursday and, for the first time, concludes Sunday with the championship game on ESPN at 3:15 p.m. Defending national champion UConn needs to win the AAC to get the automatic bid because of poor credentials for an at-large bid. As great as that would be for the Huskies, it might put another conference team – Tulsa, for example – in a bad spot.
The AAC decided to switch dates, against the advice of the NCAA. It seemed like a bad idea at the time. And it seems even worse now.
Jay Bilas, ESPN analyst, recently recommended a change in committee procedure that might ease the process and put greater emphasis on the regular season results. Essentially, Bilas’ proposal would establish a list of all at-large teams to be ranked at the end of the regular season. Automatic qualifiers would then be added at the bottom, eliminating the lowest at-large teams.
Barnes said that change has never been discussed by the committee – but hinted it might be examined before next year.
“What is really good about this process, this committee in particular, is that we are always trying to improve our process,” Barnes said. “So this summer we will talk about what you’ve mentioned to determine whether changes need to be made, but certainly not in midstream at this point.”
AAC TO ANNOUNCE TOP AWARDS THURSDAY
Before UCF and East Carolina tip off in the first game of the AAC tournament at the XL Center Thursday, the conference will hold a luncheon and press conference to announce Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Coach of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors.
In a vote of the 11 conference coaches, UConn center Amida Brimah was chosen AAC Defensive Player of the Year, it was announced Wednesday. In addition, SMU forward Markus Kennedy was the winner of the Sixth Man Award, while Mustangs’ center Yanick Moreira was named the conference’s Most Improved Player. Memphis forward Shaq Goodwin was chosen as the winner of the league’s Sportsmanship Award.
Brima established the AAC record for blocked shots with 101 in the regular season.
UConn guard Ryan Boatright and SMU guard Nic Moore are the top contenders for the Player of the Year award. Both were unanimous selections to the AAC first team on Tuesday. UConn’s Daniel Hamilton and East Carolina’s B.J. Tyson are the frontrunners for the Rookie of the Year.
PLAYERS MAY GET MORE TIME TO DECIDE ON NBA
Players deciding on early entry to the NBA may soon have more time to make that difficult call, according to a report by USA Today. . . . Duke, Wisconsin, Georgetown and VCU will highlight the field for the 21st annual 2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project. The tournament will be played at Madison Square Garden in New York.
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