NCAA Tourney Team Selection Options

[defkit]

I'm 99% sure of this, but the NCAA does not mandate that the AQ goes to the tournament winner - that's determined by each conference.

As an aside, I really don't think this season is a reasonable barometer for judgment on anything. Be it the AQ, PWR vs. KRACH vs. eye test, or anything else. We should let the season play out as it does and not make knee-jerk changes as a result.

Agreed. I didn't follow the other conferences much, but two things come to mind. St. Lawrence only had to win two games (or was it one?) to win the tourney. That wouldn't happen in a normal year. Second, Lowell would not have been a 7 seed in a normal year. They would have had more games to move up the standings before the tournament started. They clearly found their game in the "second half".

[J.D.]

Yep, a million options. UMass could be a 1 seed for all we know. We're talking about Bemidji as a 4 but do they fudge it and put them and LSSU as 3s so UND can play SLU, by far the worst team in the field.

Then how do they pick the last bubble teams? Do they use a certain metric to sort teams within a conference to help with that? Do they throw up their hands and just add Canisius and BG as a way to avoid a tough decision? We truly have no idea.

[J.D.]

If they want to try and protect UND as overall #1 and not punish Mankato at the same time as possibly the top #2, I could see Fargo as:

1. UND
2. UMD
3. Bemidji
4. SLU

UND and UMD only played twice all year and not since December. Sure, SLU has to fly but at this point we don't know just how much of a factor it will be.

[J.D.]

Bemidji still ahead of LSSU in KRACH so maybe LSSU gets a 4 seed.

[J.D.]

And would it be easier to keep Mankato as a 1 seed and have one of the East regionals as:

1. Minnesota or Mankato
2. UMass
3. QU
4. HE#4, AH#2, LSSU

1. BC
2. Wisconsin
3. BU
4. AIC

[J.D.]

By process of elimination in Loveland

1. Minnesota or Mankato
2. SCSU
3. Michigan
4. LSSU/Denver/Omaha

[J.D.]

Looks like I didn't end up too far from what FS23 had

[IronRange]

I think the committee has some really tough choices for the last at large spot. End of the day you can float all the theories you want but it will be subjective and leave three programs upset. I’m not concerned about the whole QU discussion. Their track record historically is abysmal. Whoever they draw will devour them. Sioux should get the Saints which is a bye.

Anyone looking past St Lawrence and Zetterquest, might want to look again. And to say the track record of QU is abysmal, is just uninformed. Compare their last 5 years to anyone in the B10 or HE.

[manurespreader]

One overlooked issue is the way different leagues ref differently. I could see, based on the way AH refs called games this year, that some eastern teams will be either happy or upset about how calls were made/ not made in their regional. Same for western teams. There is a major difference in the physicality of the various leagues and we could easily see, for instance, UND having a parade into the box vs St. Lawrence and the score might reflect that at the end.

[Bonin21]

One overlooked issue is the way different leagues ref differently. I could see, based on the way AH refs called games this year, that some eastern teams will be either happy or upset about how calls were made/ not made in their regional. Same for western teams. There is a major difference in the physicality of the various leagues and we could easily see, for instance, UND having a parade into the box vs St. Lawrence and the score might reflect that at the end.

Like 4-1 UND instead of 6-0?

[J.D.]

But you could have western refs for that game too. WCHA as an example.

[manurespreader]

I think it hurts close checking teams like for instance Lowell vs up and down teams like Michigan. However watching the AIC game yesterday some of what went on uncalled was shocking!
now another question: shouldn't the pairwise be tweaked for next year.? it's just the RPI right now. I'd like it to be more like Kratch IMHO.

[Fighting Sioux 23]

But you could have western refs for that game too. WCHA as an example.

It raises an interesting question: Will the NCAA mandate limited travel for the officials?

[J.D.]

Jayson Moy with UMass as a 3 seed somehow

[chrisP]

Another turn at the projected bracket - actually is pretty good. Could see this being how it really turns out.

https://www.sbncollegehockey.com/202...l-bracketology