Why are the higher seeds visiting the lower ones?

[Ramathorn]

Is this standard? Doesn't make sense to me.

 

[VinceYoungScores]

Sites are predetermined, and they want to sell tickets.

 

[Ramathorn]

Ah, I see. I guess the men don't have to do this. I know Tenn is winning and Rutgers won anyway, but it sort of defeats the purpose of being a higher seed if you have to play at the lower seed's place.

 

[TXSNOS]

Yeah, in terms of fairness it makes no sense, but it sells tickets and increases attendance.

 

[mishatx]

It used to be that if you were a higher seed in the pod, you hosted the first two rounds on your home court.

They stopped doing that a few years ago and went to predetermined sites. But the predetermined sites are usually on or near the home courts of teams that end up getting high seeds. WBB is so stratified this is easy to design.

Unlike the men, the women's tourney does not have a rule that you cannot play on a "home court".

 

[Ramathorn]

yeah, and not that it mattered, but I would've been pissed if I were Tenn if I had to play at Purdue. It would be similar to our men going to Gonzaga or Davidson in round two. Like I said, notreally fair, but I guess it's the way it is. Do the coaches complain?

 

[basketsofhorns]

My understanding from the seeding committee chairwoman was that the coach ask that geography be the big factor in placing the teams. That they be as close to home as possible.

 

[WCBBNUT]

Basically they place the teams in order from 1 to 64. Starting with number one, you get assigned to the closest available pre-determined site to your homecourt. (ie - Conneticut was overall number one so they went to Greensboro Region with Hartford as the First Round site in that region). If you are the fourth number one seed your given whatever regional site is left at that point (MD as the fourth number one seed went all the way to Spokane Region because that was all that was left but got College Park, MD as the opening round) and then it starts all over again with the two seeds, three seeds etc. When your number comes up you get the location that is a) still available and b) closest to your home court. Some teams get moved around so that no two teams from the same conference have a chance to meet one another before the semi-finals (ie - no Big 12 team met another Big 12 team in the first or second round and OSU couldn't be in the Oklahoma City region as a three seed because A&M got that and there was the possibiltiy that OSU and A&M might have met in the Sweet 16 - turns out the committee was right.)

Hope that helps.

 

[anhyzer]

In reply to:

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[WCBBNUT]

I tend to agree. It seems a lot of upsets happen during the regular season but very little in the tournament. Once Texas is out I tend to stop watching unitl the final game...and if that game is between Tenn and UConn I don't bother.