2013 Division III NCAA Tournament

Started by Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan), May 11, 2012, 07:58:58 AM

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Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)


So the championship game will be played on Sunday, April 7th in Atlanta - but there's no real plan or schedule for the rest of the tournament.

I like the exposure, but somehow this seems like a debacle waiting to happen.  Thoughts?
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Pat Coleman

There's a plan but the NCAA hasn't seen fit to include it in their Division I-centric coverage. We're not printing what we've been told without better confirmation but it is interesting.
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Quote from: old 40 on September 25, 2007, 08:23:57 PMLet's discuss (sports) in a positive way, sometimes kidding each other with no disrespect.

KnightSlappy

Quote from: Pat Coleman on May 12, 2012, 12:14:14 AM
There's a plan but the NCAA hasn't seen fit to include it in their Division I-centric coverage. We're not printing what we've been told without better confirmation but it is interesting.

Does it include rounds of 8 and four in Salem?

Pat Coleman

Publisher. Questions? Check our FAQ for D3f, D3h.
Quote from: old 40 on September 25, 2007, 08:23:57 PMLet's discuss (sports) in a positive way, sometimes kidding each other with no disrespect.

Ralph Turner

I can see it now...

Thank you UWSP, Amherst, F&M and IWU...

Do you wish to give your microphone time at this press conference to players from Duke?

hickory_cornhusker

Quote from: Ralph Turner on May 14, 2012, 12:31:04 PM
I can see it now...

Thank you UWSP, Amherst, F&M and IWU...

Do you wish to give your microphone time at this press conference to players from Duke?

I don't think it will be quite that bad. I more fear that they will just ask the D3 players endless questions about the D1 Final Four, or questions forcing the D3 players to validate their presence in Atlanta that weekend or being able to say they are under the D3 banner.

I don't fear this one because I absolutely believe it will happen: There will be at least one article written slamming the D3 and/or D2 schools for their talent level.

hopefan

Quote from: hickory_cornhusker on May 14, 2012, 02:57:41 PM
Quote from: Ralph Turner on May 14, 2012, 12:31:04 PM
I can see it now...

Thank you UWSP, Amherst, F&M and IWU...

Do you wish to give your microphone time at this press conference to players from Duke?


I don't fear this one because I absolutely believe it will happen: There will be at least one article written slamming the D3 and/or D2 schools for their talent level.

Being the D3 fan that I am it's difficult to express how 'unhappy' that would/will make me
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Flying Dutch Fan

hopefan - I hear you.  The very thought of all of this makes it difficult for me to express how ridiculous this is - at least from a fan's point of view. 
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goodknight

Ralph Turner

So the NCAA will validate the experiences and the cultures of the National Championships of D-II and D-III student-athlete competition by bringing them to the National Championship of D-1 to be the off-day entertainment? 

Hmmm? Does that work?

Flying Dutch Fan

Quote from: Ralph Turner on May 14, 2012, 04:02:20 PM
So the NCAA will validate the experiences and the cultures of the National Championships of D-II and D-III student-athlete competition by bringing them to the National Championship of D-1 to be the off-day entertainment? 

Hmmm? Does that work?

That would be a big fat NO in my book.  In fact, in some ways it says the NCAA is trying to invalidate the existing championship expereince in DII and DIII. 
2016, 2020, 2022 MIAA Pick 'Em Champion

"Sports are kind of like passion and that's temporary in many cases, but academics - that's like true love and that's enduring." 
John Wooden

"Blame FDF.  That's the default.  Always blame FDF."
goodknight

Dave 'd-mac' McHugh

For those interested... more information about the championship game in Atlanta can be found here: http://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2012/05/dutcher-interview-2013-title-game

I talked with Dan Dutcher, Vice President for Division III, who answered a number of questions surrounding the decision and the event. Hope it provides you with a little bit of insight. I hope to provide a few more interviews in the coming months as more details are ironed out.
Host of Hoopsville. USBWA Executive Board member. Broadcast Director for D3sports.com. Broadcaster for NCAA.com & several colleges. PA Announcer for Gophers & Brigade. Follow me on Twitter: @davemchugh or @d3hoopsville.

Ralph Turner

Quote from: Dave 'd-mac' McHugh on May 20, 2012, 06:32:52 PM
For those interested... more information about the championship game in Atlanta can be found here: http://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2012/05/dutcher-interview-2013-title-game

I talked with Dan Dutcher, Vice President for Division III, who answered a number of questions surrounding the decision and the event. Hope it provides you with a little bit of insight. I hope to provide a few more interviews in the coming months as more details are ironed out.
Excellent interview...

First thoughts and questions:

Trying to learn from the experiences with lacrosse and ice hockey... (about the 9:00 mark of the interview)

(My gleanings as an outsider from the postings on the D3sports.com websites is that the lacrosse "family" is in many ways unique in collegiate athletics.  That does not seem translatable from lacrosse or ice hockey basketball.)

The temporal gap in the playoffs is addressed about 13:00.

Thoughts of how to give the Salem experience is about 15:30.

Dave's summaries and final comments at 20:00.

Next podcast update will be in about a month.

AO

Quote from: Flying Dutch Fan on May 14, 2012, 04:20:11 PM
Quote from: Ralph Turner on May 14, 2012, 04:02:20 PM
So the NCAA will validate the experiences and the cultures of the National Championships of D-II and D-III student-athlete competition by bringing them to the National Championship of D-1 to be the off-day entertainment? 

Hmmm? Does that work?

That would be a big fat NO in my book.  In fact, in some ways it says the NCAA is trying to invalidate the existing championship expereince in DII and DIII.
Whatever role the D3 title has in Salem, it was far worse than "off-day entertainment for the D-1 final four".  Put the game in front of the most eyeballs possible and let the players show what D3 is all about.

Dave 'd-mac' McHugh

Ralph - as one who follows lacrosse almost as closely as I do football and basketball... I would agree with your assessment that the lacrosse world is far more of a family across divisions then almost any other sport in the NCAA. Heck, when a D3 tournament game has a D1 coach as it's NCAA Representative and the sport's handbook encompasses all three divisions, then the attitude and committment is certainly different.

For those reasons and because of the history of Memorial Day Weekend, the lacrosse world is able to celebrate their championship weekend in grand style. I have been to many lacrosse championship weekends in several locations and it is very different than anything else I have experienced in the NCAA... but the fan base, institutions, coaches, and players help make it that way.

With all that being said, and with the understanding that no sport including hockey and basketball could duplicate what lacrosse has built and accomplished, I think the NCAA can take a page from that weekend to model other ideas, even on just one-time or short-period time frames.

No, the basketball weekend will not compare to lacrosse which is also a tight-knit family... but it may at least be able to take some of what works in promotions, schedules, events, and focus of the spotlight to help D3 and D2 still get the just due they deserve.

I personally look forward to seeing the games in Atlanta (it will mark the first time in my life I have been to the D1 Final Four) and experiencing the entire weekend. However, I hope this is a one-time event (women will have their event in the near future) and that D3 (along with D2) gets to go back to what as worked, arguably, for "our" division and "our" family.

Also, thanks for listening to the podcast... I promise more in the future... my "schedule" now allows it! :)
Host of Hoopsville. USBWA Executive Board member. Broadcast Director for D3sports.com. Broadcaster for NCAA.com & several colleges. PA Announcer for Gophers & Brigade. Follow me on Twitter: @davemchugh or @d3hoopsville.

rlk

Quote from: AO on May 21, 2012, 01:31:22 AM
Quote from: Flying Dutch Fan on May 14, 2012, 04:20:11 PM
Quote from: Ralph Turner on May 14, 2012, 04:02:20 PM
So the NCAA will validate the experiences and the cultures of the National Championships of D-II and D-III student-athlete competition by bringing them to the National Championship of D-1 to be the off-day entertainment? 

Hmmm? Does that work?

That would be a big fat NO in my book.  In fact, in some ways it says the NCAA is trying to invalidate the existing championship expereince in DII and DIII.
Whatever role the D3 title has in Salem, it was far worse than "off-day entertainment for the D-1 final four".  Put the game in front of the most eyeballs possible and let the players show what D3 is all about.

Agreed.

Salem was a big deal for me (as an MIT alum/fan).  It was a lot bigger, louder, and brighter (at least 2 stops brighter!) than Rockwell Cage.  But that's still small potatoes compared to a pro or D1 arena, and Salem is definitely more difficult to get to than a big city.  Flying to Roanoke involves a puddle jumper from somewhere else, and ground transportation was a bit hard to come by if you didn't want to rent a car.

The idea of giving D1 package holders free admission to the D2/D3 finals is a good one.  It's otherwise an off day for them, and if they want to take in some more college basketball, it's a great opportunity for them to do so.  Those who don't may just learn that it's their loss.

If the semifinalist D1 teams can be "encouraged" to attend the D2/D3 finals, that would also help build interest.

The rounds of 8 and 4 in Salem sound tricky to me.  That's 6 games.  The most obvious ways to do it would be to play all four quarterfinals on Friday and the semis on Saturday, or two quarterfinals on Friday and two on Saturday, with the two semifinal games on Sunday.  It's possible to play four games in one day -- the inaugural Koch Classic (which I managed) in the fall of 1986 at MIT did this, with two women's and two men's games -- but it made for an extremely long day of basketball.  The other way requires three days in Salem and has the Sunday problem.  The other problem either way is that it disrupts the pod structure of the early rounds of the tournament, and results in the finalists likely having to make four trips (rounds of 64 and 32, round of 16, rounds of 8 and 4, and round of 2).
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