Wku's Run - Who Will Benefit ?

[MeanGreen61]

March 23, 2008

WKU's run -- who will benefit

Western Kentucky kept right on rolling in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday with a win over San Diego.

Courtney Lee scored 29 points and the Hilltoppers survived late after blowing a double-digit lead for the second straight game. WKU got a break when San Diego pulled a first-round upset of UConn, making the road a little easier, but one has to give the Toppers credit. They have taken advantage of their opportunities to become the first Sun Belt team to reach the Sweet 16 since 1993 when -- you guessed it -- WKU won two games to make it to the third round.

There has been a lot of talk about how the Hilltoppers' run will benefit the Sun Belt. It certainly won't hurt. If someone watching the game on TV hadn't heard of the league before, he had the Sun Belt burned into his brain after it was mentioned 20 times that Courtney Lee was the league's Player of the Year.

The Sun Belt needs all the positive publicity it can get, but if I were a fan of another team in the league I would cast a wary eye toward Bowling Green. WKU is always loaded, has a great arena and the ability to recruit nationally. A Sweet 16 run is only going to add fuel to their fire. UNT and South Alabama could be enough to prevent a Sun Belt dynasty, but former WKU guard and current head coach Darrin Horn is going to have a lot to work with the next few years if he stays with the Hilltoppers.

I also wonder just how much a team benefits when another team in the league makes a run. I don't see Florida Atlantic's win in the New Orleans Bowl or WKU's run in the NCAA Tournament making a big difference for UNT.

Post your thoughts on the blog. Will anyone in the Sun Belt other than WKU benefit from the Hilltoppers' success?

[LoveMG]

I also wonder just how much a team benefits when another team in the league makes a run. I don't see Florida Atlantic's win in the New Orleans Bowl or WKU's run in the NCAA Tournament making a big difference for UNT.

nobody knows who they are or that unt even plays them; no help to unt. we need into cusa.

[CMJ]

As I tried commenting on his blog(maybe he'll put the comment up eventually) - if WKU keeps this up and other schools(like us) take up the challenge this could be GREAT for us. Look at Gonzaga. The WCC got 3 schools into the Dance this year - most likely because their league made the commitment not to let Gonzaga be unchallenged.

Edited March 24, 2008 by CMJ

[Arkstfan]

WKU's run MIGHT help the league.

Obviously it is two thirds of a nearly $600,000 per year windfall for the next six years. That's a big difference from the bowl world where most games are break-even at best and even a BCS windfall is just for one year.

The Sun Belt now has cash it can tap into for SIX YEARS to make improvements.

It hopefully raises expectations of what can be accomplished.

Way too many fans around this conference and I think administrators as well considered a great year to be one where you won the conference tournament and went home the first day of the NCAA Tournament. People have said repeatedly that this is a one bid league. USA proved it wrong. They demonstrated that if you play a decent schedule (doesn't have to be a full time BCS road show) and you win, you get an at-large berth. WKU has demonstrated that we can go and win a game and another game.

Before the tournament began, the chancellor at ASU said in an interview concerning the coaching search that he didn't see any reason ASU couldn't be like Memphis in basketball. That's the sort of targeting it takes. No we don't have the corporate money or history but Gonzaga didn't either when they started their NCAA run. That targeting had ASU going after Nolan Richardson and John Brady and talking to Rob Evans and Jeremy Cox.

Unless you get lucky, you never get any better than what you target and believe you can achieve.

Hoop fans around this conference may ramp up the pressure. UALR went 20-11 this year and a number of their fans were grumbling at the end of the season about having such a low RPI that they weren't on the radar of the NIT or CBI with 20 wins. They were questioning what should be realistic goals. I think we have a better idea of what those can be now.

That's the biggest impact WKU's Sweet 16 run or USA's at-large berth can have on the league. Raising the standard for what is acceptable job performance.

[drex]

The big winner will be the other conference schools. There will soon be a reality check at WKU when they move to 1A football. Then, I'll bet that their piece of the 'Big Dance Pie' will be gobbled up to prop up the football program. In the end, WKU and UNT and others will still have about the same overall budget for intercollegiate athletics. I don't see WKU overpowering the rest of the league in basketball. Now, if they go to the Big Dance consecutively for a couple of more years, they might be the bully on the block.

[Quoner]

As a fan, I am WAY more concerned about UTA.

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

nobody knows who they are or that unt even plays them; no help to unt. we need into cusa.

---WKU has a rather good history in basketball. They have made the Sweet-16 before and have several NCAA appearances. ESPN-radio had some guys talking today and the group considered the the last second 3 point shot against Drake the highlight play of the tournament. WKU next will be playing the team, UCLA, with the most NCAA championships.... and this will get the attention of the basketball world, especially if they do well or defeat them.

---CUSA had one team in the March Madness... The Belt had two. CUSA would be better for us because of the amount of Texas/local competition and more Texas media interest. However, I am not convinced that in 5 years CUSA will be the better conference, too many small private schools. We are holding our own against them in both basketball and football. (exception: Memphis basketball, which looks like a giant among dwarfs with Louisville and Cincinnati gone)

----- Good luck Toppers, and thanks for making the Belt look good ----

Edited March 24, 2008 by SCREAMING EAGLE-66

[UNTFan23]

nobody knows who they are or that unt even plays them; no help to unt. we need into cusa.

If there is one thing that Memphis has been dogged on regarding CUSA basketball, it's the weak opposition they face in their conference. It's also why CUSA has one bid and the SBC has two.

[e-bone ver2.awesome]

The conference and each team in it benefits. We get 2 bids and 1 team has made the Sweet 16. That can only be good in future years when the conference has two deserving schools and the selection committee can look back at see what happened this year when the conference received 2 bids.

[Quoner]

The conference and each team in it benefits. We get 2 bids and 1 team has made the Sweet 16. That can only be good in future years when the conference has two deserving schools and the selection committee can look back at see what happened this year when the conference received 2 bids.

They can look back and see that the champion won and the at-large team had their asses handed to them.

Edited March 25, 2008 by Quoner

[LoveMG]

However, I am not convinced that in 5 years CUSA will be the better conference, too many small private schools. We are holding our own against them in both basketball and football. (exception: Memphis basketball, which looks like a giant among dwarfs with Louisville and Cincinnati gone)

Get real. Sure, kick out Notre Dame, Miami, and USC too.

[emmitt01]

Get real. Sure, kick out Notre Dame, Miami, and USC too.

Right...because Notre Dame, Miami and USC are comparable to SMU, Rice and Tulane.

[e-bone ver2.awesome]

They can look back and see that the champion won and the at-large team had their asses handed to them.

To me it would show quality and depth that the lower seeded of the 2 teams made it to the Sweet 16. Also, the team that beat the other Sun Belt school almost beat the #2 seed two days later. South Alabama played the better team.

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

Get real. Sure, kick out Notre Dame, Miami, and USC too.

---Rice, Tulane, Tulsa are very small and their crowds do not get even close to the three you mentioned. SMU is a lot larger (10,000?) but can't seem to draw crowds either. The issue is not the fact that they are private schools but their size and fan appeal....and I doubt that their fan appeal will improve much in the future. The size of many of the Belt colleges could mean big changes. The four private colleges in CUSA mentioned have less total COMBINED enrollment than North Texas. The size and poor fan support of Rice, SMU, and TCU contributed to the breakup of the SWC.

[UNTLifer]

---Rice, Tulane, Tulsa are very small and their crowds do not get even close to the three you mentioned. SMU is a lot larger (10,000?) but can't seem to draw crowds either. The issue is not the fact that they are private schools but their size and fan appeal....and I doubt that their fan appeal will improve much in the future. The size of many of the Belt colleges could mean big changes. The four private colleges in CUSA mentioned have less total COMBINED enrollment than North Texas. The size and poor fan support of Rice, SMU, and TCU contributed to the breakup of the SWC.

Oops, didn't read your last sentence above. SMU, TCU, Rice and Baylor are one of the main reasons the SWC went away.

Edited March 25, 2008 by UNTLifer

[untjim1995]

Get real. Sure, kick out Notre Dame, Miami, and USC too.

Poor posting--don't type after midnight anymore.

[Quoner]

To me it would show quality and depth that the lower seeded of the 2 teams made it to the Sweet 16. Also, the team that beat the other Sun Belt school almost beat the #2 seed two days later. South Alabama played the better team.

If you follow the league - then yes, it does and I agree with you.

however, if you are generic sports fan, then it just looks like a conference got an at-large in that got its ass handed to it by a 7 seed - regardless if that 7 seed was placed way too low.

[UNTFan23]

If you follow the league - then yes, it does and I agree with you.

however, if you are generic sports fan, then it just looks like a conference got an at-large in that got its ass handed to it by a 7 seed - regardless if that 7 seed was placed way too low.

Georgia lost in the first round, was a 14 seed, and its conference tournament. What does that say about the SEC?

[LoveMG]

Poor posting--don't type after midnight anymore.

lol. smu tulsa and rice make up shortcomings in fans with money and facilities. they have history we do not and to say that the sbc will overtake them in a couple years is hopeful but not realistic. In 25 years maybe.

[Quoner]

Georgia lost in the first round, was a 14 seed, and its conference tournament. What does that say about the SEC?

No one "selected" Georgia to come over other teams. They were an automatic bid because they won the conference tournament - just like WKU.

I also cannot recall the committee sticking a major conference team with that low a seed because it was such an odd circumstance.

[e-bone ver2.awesome]

If you follow the league - then yes, it does and I agree with you.

however, if you are generic sports fan, then it just looks like a conference got an at-large in that got its ass handed to it by a 7 seed - regardless if that 7 seed was placed way too low.

Public perception isn't going to be changed in 1 season. I'm more worried about the Sun Belt's perception with the selection committee, which hopefully is rising and will lead to more multiple bids in the future. After that happens a few times and becomes a regular occurance, then public perception will be affected.

[Quoner]

Public perception isn't going to be changed in 1 season. I'm more worried about the Sun Belt's perception with the selection committee, which hopefully is rising and will lead to more multiple bids in the future. After that happens a few times and becomes a regular occurance, then public perception will be affected.

I agree - but for the Billy Packers of the world, all this does is validate their jackassery. It would have been nice if the WCC and Sun Belt could have had multiple winners, but I did not mean to imply it was the end of the world.

[untjim1995]

lol. smu tulsa and rice make up shortcomings in fans with money and facilities. they have history we do not and to say that the sbc will overtake them in a couple years is hopeful but not realistic. In 25 years maybe.

The money may be there, but the facilities for each of those schools are similar to UNT. Tulsa's football stadium is awful, Moody Coliseum is terrible, and Autry Court is worse than every D-1 arena except Texas Hall in Arlington. To me, Fouts is god-awful, but the Super Pit is terrific, much like Ford Stadium is great. The thing about the Sun Belt is that there are schools that have made tremendous strides in the last 10 years--much like Tulsa, who I don't include in the mix with SMU or Rice. The other two have not made significant progress in anything as far as winning goes. If the Belt can continue winning in tournaments and bowls and CUSA keeps struggling, it wouldn't surprise me to see the public schools in CUSA leave these schools behind (SMU, Rice, Tulane) and get into a conference with other state schools that have much more in common. It is not easy for me to see SMU ever letting UNT in a conference with them. It is not hard for me, though, to imagine a day (in less than a decade) where a conference existed like this:

UNT UAB

Houston Troy

So.Miss ULL

Arkansas State Memphis

UTEP La Tech

New Mexico State Middle Tennessee

These schools are large, public, and in need of good traveling crowds. You would get the Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, El Paso, Memphis, Birmingham, and Nashville markets, which are all growing with large alumni bases of each school. What gets me going the most is that the private schools in the state (Baylor, TCU, SMU, and Rice) think that they deserve to determine who they should be conference-mates with. It ought to be the other way around. SMU should never be able to dictate if North Texas gets in a conference, whether we are talking SWC or CUSA. It galls me to no end that our leadership over the years has let that happen. Those schools may have money but there support in terms of viewership is piss poor-and it ain't gonna get better. The SBC/CUSA public schools have the potential to do just that if they would sit down and find some common ground. It would make for a better sports world in football and hoops--that I can guarantee myself.

[foutsrouts]

The money may be there, but the facilities for each of those schools are similar to UNT. Tulsa's football stadium is awful, Moody Coliseum is terrible, and Autry Court is worse than every D-1 arena except Texas Hall in Arlington. To me, Fouts is god-awful, but the Super Pit is terrific, much like Ford Stadium is great. The thing about the Sun Belt is that there are schools that have made tremendous strides in the last 10 years--much like Tulsa, who I don't include in the mix with SMU or Rice. The other two have not made significant progress in anything as far as winning goes. If the Belt can continue winning in tournaments and bowls and CUSA keeps struggling, it wouldn't surprise me to see the public schools in CUSA leave these schools behind (SMU, Rice, Tulane) and get into a conference with other state schools that have much more in common. It is not easy for me to see SMU ever letting UNT in a conference with them. It is not hard for me, though, to imagine a day (in less than a decade) where a conference existed like this:

UNT UAB

Houston Troy

So.Miss ULL

Arkansas State Memphis

UTEP La Tech

New Mexico State Middle Tennessee

These schools are large, public, and in need of good traveling crowds. You would get the Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, El Paso, Memphis, Birmingham, and Nashville markets, which are all growing with large alumni bases of each school. What gets me going the most is that the private schools in the state (Baylor, TCU, SMU, and Rice) think that they deserve to determine who they should be conference-mates with. It ought to be the other way around. SMU should never be able to dictate if North Texas gets in a conference, whether we are talking SWC or CUSA. It galls me to no end that our leadership over the years has let that happen. Those schools may have money but there support in terms of viewership is piss poor-and it ain't gonna get better. The SBC/CUSA public schools have the potential to do just that if they would sit down and find some common ground. It would make for a better sports world in football and hoops--that I can guarantee myself.

There are MANY worse D1 basketball venues than Autry and even Texas Hall. Especially Autry, which I've been to dozens of times and which really isn't all that bad considering their fan base. Ever been to a BBall game at Northwestern State? Talk about a Junior High bleacher scene. It's been a decade or so since I've been to Natchitoches, so forgive me if they have a new facility.

[GreenBat]

There are MANY worse D1 basketball venues than Autry and even Texas Hall. Especially Autry, which I've been to dozens of times and which really isn't all that bad considering their fan base. Ever been to a BBall game at Northwestern State? Talk about a Junior High bleacher scene. It's been a decade or so since I've been to Natchitoches, so forgive me if they have a new facility.

You mean the hanger? It's a great place to watch basketball game. The demon mascot goes a little over board, just ask Talon 90 and FFR.