NCAA Basketball

ESPN is always great at marketing its Championship Week, and it is with the same enthusiasm that the network launched "Bracket Buster Saturday." This latest ploy involved showcasing the best teams from the mid-major conferences from noon to 2 a.m. this past Saturday on several on the ESPN nationwide networks. By showcasing these talented teams from small schools, the network is blatantly shoving these teams in the faces of the Tournament selection committee for future consideration.

More than likely, this is a campaign by ESPN and many of its analysts to rally support for more at-large mid-major conference teams being admitted to the NCAA Tournament, in place of mediocre major conference teams. While smaller conference teams do not have the luxury of relying on an at-large bid, some of the large conferences get up to as many as five at-large bids. Not to mention that the team that usually wins major conference championships would have gotten an at-large bid anyway.

In the world of small conference NCAA basketball, if you win your conference tournament you are invited into the world of March Madness. Lose, however, and you don't have a prayer of getting in. Last year, a mid-major power, the Butler Bulldogs, won 25 games, yet failed to win their conference tournament. Despite having one of the highest win totals in the nation and dominating their conference for most of the regular season, the Bulldogs were denied entry to the NCAA Tournament.

The ESPN Network wanted to recreate the do-or-die type of mentality that accompanies these conference tournaments. Showcasing these smaller teams on a grand scale gives the teams a chance to prove what they can do in front of a national audience, as well as their ability to gain some fans outside of their small communities. Ultimately, the NCAA Tournament selection committee is trying to field the most competitive field of 65 teams, so a good performance in this setting could do wonders for a team's selection standing.

The event this past Saturday featured 18 mid-major teams, including several from the top mid-major teams that were guaranteed to wreak havoc in tournament brackets come March. First on the schedule was this year's darling mid-major, the Creighton Bluejays, up against Fresno State Bulldogs. The Bluejays appear to be a lock for the NCAA Tournament, but if they slip they might need a victory against the Bulldogs to make it.

Fresno State could have improved its resume with a victory against a ranked opponent. Lucky for the Bluejays they had Kyle Korver to lead them to a 67-66 victory. Korver, a player of the year candidate, lead Creighton with 27 points and 7 three-pointers. Obviously, Creighton realized the best thing for them to do, as a mid-major was to win every game and not leave the decision of getting into the NCAA Tournament up to the Selection Committee.

Other games from "Bracket Buster Saturday" included mid-major contenders Ball State Cardinals, Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, Bowling Green Falcons, Hawaii Rainbows, Kent State Golden Flashes, and Detroit Titans. Kent State and Hawaii looked to be a vital game for the Golden Flash. The team plays in the competitive Mid-American Conference, where at-large bids haven't been automatic in recent years. Unfortunately for Kent State, they suffered a 79-78 heartbreaking loss at home.

The night culminated with the marquee matchup of the nine "bracket buster" games with the Tulsa Golden Hurricanes at the Gonzaga Bulldogs at midnight. After being down 35-27 at halftime, Gonzaga staged a strong second half comeback, ending in a 69-60 triumph. The Bulldogs have been the cinderellas of the NCAA Tournament the past few seasons, but unless they win the West Coast Conference, they will need this win against the Golden Hurricanes to earn an invitation to the big dance.

In August ESPN reached a multi-year agreement with several conferences to present "Bracket Buster Saturday," realizing that this event had a lot of potential. Hopefully, this showcase will allow more mid-major teams at-large bids the NCAA Tournament, and put an end to the early round exits of mediocre, underachieving power conference teams.