NCAA Tournament Selection Process

I caught this on kenpom.com. It describes the NCAA tournament selection process. It's a lot more democratic than I expected it to be. Committee members who are affiliated with a team participate in the discussion but remove themselves from the voting. Most teams are voted on many, many times before they are selected for the tournament and then again when they are seeded. Here's the write-up on the process:

http://www.midmajority.com/p/1296

It looks like the big names probably have an edge, especially early in the process. The further it goes along, the more it's up to the numbers. How exactly, is up to the individual voter, but conference affiliation or actual game play gets clouded by the numbers. The committee makes extensive use of the following selection sheet:

http://www.bbstate.com/schools/DUKE/sheet

Assuming the committee members are knowledgable about college basketball and don't have unconscious biases, they probably come up with the best tournament possible. Between the last four in and the first four out it's likely a pickem, but it looks like at that point it's so close that one more quality win would be enough to take a team off the bubble. So ultimately, it's up to the team to prove that it belongs.

At the end of the article, the placement of teams is discussed. I still don't like the home-court feel that the top seeds get, but I get that the NCAA wants people to show up to the games without spending a ton of money.

After reading these, there isn't much to argue about with the system. Even if there are biases coming into the selection process, they're likely pounded out of the members over the 5 days. If a team is good enough, it'll make it. If it's on the bubble and makes it, it's lucky. If a team just missed, it should have won another game or two.

Top 5 Most Disappointing Moments as a Fan

Today got me reflecting on this, mainly because I have not had many positive moments as a fan.

5.  2004-2005 ISU Football:  ISU failed to qualify for the Big XII Championship Game two years in a row because of missed fields and interceptions in the end zone.  The first time hurt, the second time was brutal.
4.  2011 Bears Football:  The Chicago Bears had a home game against their arch rival Green Bay Packers for a trip to the Super Bowl.  Needless to say their starting quarterback sucked, got hurt and a rally by their third stringer Caleb Hanie came up 20 yards short.  Nothing is worse than losing to the Packers.
3. 2001 Cyclone Basketball:  ISU inexplicably lost as a #2 seed to #15 seed Hampton in the NCAA tournament.  The television in my bedroom took a beating after this one.
2. 2000 Cyclone Basketball:  One victory away from the Final Four, Iowa State got hosed in a game that was as close to a home game that one can get in the NCAA tournament.  It was basically the title game in seeding that has since been corrected by the NCAA.
1. 2003 Cubs Baseball:  You all know where this is going so I don't feel the need to explain.  The worst part was it taking a week and a half of my life to happen.

Honorable Mention:
2007-2008 Cubs:  Two playoff appearances, zero wins
2002 Iowa State Football: Iowa State got up to #9 in the country with a 6-1 record including a near victory at Arrowhead Stadium against #2 Florida State the very first game of the year.  I still swear Seneca was in.  Anyway, the Cyclones finished at 7-7 after a loss to Boise State in the Humanitarian Bowl.
2006 Chicago Bears: Losing in the Super Bowl was the closest I have come to seeing one of my teams winning the "big one".