Not sure what the answer is

[starkvegasdawg]

But they need to do something to eliminate these heinous 16 vs 1 games. 99.999% of the time they are complete routs against teams with no business being in the tournament. I wish they'd just pick the 68 best teams and let them play. Games like the one UK is playing now are not even fun to watch. I think there's already been another game today with the margin of victory over 40 points. If you're a bubble team that just missed the cut you have to be sick seeing your spot taken by these glorified high school teams.

[sleepy dawg]

While the 16 seeds may not have really deserved a shot, does any of the bottom half? Ole Miss was the #43 overall seed. Did they really do enough in the regular season to be able to play for the championship in the post season? By the time you get that deep, who really cares that they would take all conference winners over some above average teams?

[Liverpooldawg]

It's part of what makes the tourney so great. You get to see a nobody up against the Kentuckys of the world. It's the closest thing we have to the FA Cup. One day a 16 is going to pull it off. I hope I'm alive and watching.

[Liverpooldawg]

One more comment: I bet you one of the best memories of their college careers for the players on the 16s is the day they got to suit up against Kentucky or Duke in the NCAAs.

[TXDawg]

It's part of what makes the tourney so great. You get to see a nobody up against the Kentuckys of the world. It's the closest thing we have to the FA Cup. One day a 16 is going to pull it off. I hope I'm alive and watching.

You do realize that when it happens, we'll be the #1 that gets beat, right? Are you sure you want to see that?

[starkvegasdawg]

One more comment: I bet you one of the best memories of their college careers for tWhe players on the 16s is the day they got to suit up against Kentucky or Duke in the NCAAs.

Maybe it's just me but I fail to see the greatness from getting my ass handed to me on national TV.

[Martianlander]

Follow the money. As long as the schools and networks are making money on it they will be played. That's also why we have so many bowl games.

[thf24]

Simple solution: drop the PC factor and tell the committee to put who they honestly think are the best 64/68 teams in the tourney. Instead giving an obscure team who cleaned up in an obscure conference the 16 seed as a symbolic feel-good participation trophy, put a team there who actually has the talent to make a game of it. It's always frustrated me that they give these tiny, outmatched teams a tourney birth just to get thrashed by 30-40 in the first round, while relegating other teams who played the 1 seeds close (or maybe even beat them) during the regular season to the NIT, or even no post-season at all. Perfect example: Say Ole Miss lost on Tuesday. They wouldn't have even made the tournament after coming close to beating UK on the road during the regular season, while neither of the play-in 16 seeds stood a chance in hell at beating UK. Or aTm; took UK to two overtimes during the season, but gets passed over altogether in favor of multiple teams they'd beat 9 out of 10 times. I'm all for giving the little guys their moment in the spotlight on the big stage, but not when it means snubbing others who everyone and their mothers knows are better. Put the best teams in the tournament and you'll get the best games.

[The Croom Diaries]

I like the fact that the 1 seeds have a warm up game in the first round. They've earned it during the regular season. Now they basically have a game to shake any tourney nerves, get used to the court, etc. in prep for the 8/9 seed in round 2...which means they have a 90% chance of making the sweet 16. That's how it should be for teams who've had a great regular season.

Plus there are 16 games per day in the first round. That's plenty to watch, and there are 3 other games going on you can watch rather than the 1 seed demolish a 16, so it's not like the game is wasting anyone's time.

[LC Dawg]

Duke vs Valley in 86 is one of my favorite tournament games of all time. I realize most of the 16 seeds will get blown out but when one of them gets hot its fun to watch.

[DistrictDawg92]

Ask the 16 seeds if they think the game is worth playing. If you eliminate the 1vs16 games people would soon be wanting to eliminate the 2vs15 game and so on. Can't imagine how exciting it would be for some small school to get the opportunity to beat one of the top 4 teams in the land and leave their mark on college basketball forever. With that said, they are rather boring games, but it's just how a bracket works. I think it would be more interesting if all the high seeds were at large bids rather than tie ins, but it is what it is.

[dawgs]

1 seeds are rewarded with what should be an easy game in round 1 for having a superior season. Just like a 4 seed has a supposedly easier draw than a 8 seed, and so on and so forth. 1 seeds earn an easy game to start, and they'll have to beat some good teams before its all said and done to win the tourney. And when a 16 puts a scare in a 1, everybody watches.