NCAA tournament 2011 — running thread

Never been to Greensboro, but it could be compared to Providence - not a major league city, but it turns out for a big event. Look at how golf fans turned out for the Greater Greensboro Open for years even as the PGA was moving to bigger, fancier markets.
It's hard to imagine anybody getting the NCAA tournament (at least on the men's side) and not selling it out. Providence got it last year for the first time since '99 (thanks to recent expansion at The Dunk) and even though the Friars have trouble drawing right now, the tournament sold out. Same thing when Providence has had Frozen Fours in the past - it should at least be back in the rotation for regionals if Manchester and Bridgeport are getting them.

 

I'm of the belief that Greensboro should be the permanent home of the ACC Tournament. It's like the Big East at MSG. They're natural fits, and a good environment is assured even in down years. For what it's worth, the same can be said of the CAA in Richmond.

 

Regarding the Gonzaga women's team hosting the first and second round games (which I attended), a few points:

1. Yes, the site was unfair to No. 3 seed UCLA. No doubt about that. But can anyone tell me that hordes of Bruin fans would have attended the NCAA games if they were held in LA? Probably not. Unfair as the bid system is, the NCAA tourney is about making money.

2. That being said, the NCAA should do like the men's tourney and have teams play on a neutral court (such as Charlotte, N.C., for Duke and North Carolina). At the very least, this weekend's games should have been at the Spokane Arena (an off-campus site), if not in another city such as Seattle or Portland.

3. If more teams played the run-and-gun style that Gonzaga does, I'd watch a lot more women's basketball. The GU-Iowa and GU-UCLA games were entertaining as hell.

 

Semi-neutral sites wouldn't work. Say Oklahoma bid to host, they might get a good crowd in Norman, but the vast majority of those same people aren't going to drive to Tulsa for the same game. I can't imagine Gonzaga's women drawing more than a few thousand in Seattle.

 

I agree with you. I've been to the ACC Tournament in Atlanta, Charlotte, Greensboro and D.C. Greensboro was by far the best atmosphere. The city goes all out for the tournament. Charlotte was second. In D.C. and Atlanta it was just another event at the MCI Center/Georgia Dome. I'd be happy if it stayed in Greensboro permanently.

 

I think the only problem with the ACC Tournament in Greensboro is it feeds the perception that the ACC is run by the four North Carolina schools.

 

True, but it's really the most convenient place for most of the league (and certainly back in the day when it was strictly DC to Atlanta. Sure, Greensboro is not especially sexy (except for the erotic car wash), but it and the ACC go together like two things that go really well together.

 

Re the women's tournament and home games: The men's tournament did the same thing until it became financially viable to rule teams out from playing on their home court. The 1986 LSU team always gets mention this time of year for being the lowest seed to make a Final Four, but what's never mentioned is that as the 11 seed they won their first two games on their home floor, in double overtime against Purdue and by two points against Memphis State. Syracuse played at home what seemed like every year.

The women's team had a home-court ban a few years back, and it was awful. Until the money is there -- and I don't believe it ever will be -- having host teams is the only solution.

 

Dan Shaughnessy hates the Tournament.

He hates the johnny come lately fans who fill out brackets.

But he also, apparently, just hates college basketball fans in general (and baseball NERDS!!!1! and fantasy football players):

http://www.boston.com/sports/colleges/mens_basketball/articles/2011/03/20/no_dancing_around_the_seamier_side/?page=1

Here’s a little test: Walk out your door and try to find someone who can name five players in this year’s tournament. You won’t find anyone unless you live next door to Bob Ryan, my boss Joe Sullivan, or one of the pudding-eating, basement-dwelling blog boys who’d normally be tracking UZR or NFL fantasy teams.

 

Jimmer on SI cover. Looks photoshopped, or taken from weird angle. Dude doesn't jump THAT high.

 

ACC Tournament will be held next year at Philips Arena in Atlanta.

 

Good lord, who shit in Curly's oatmeal.