NCAA Thinking of moving women's hoops one week later.

[joecct]

We've been expecting this. From the NCAA News of the Day

DI Women’s Basketball Committee to study moving the tournament back a week

By Greg Johnson
NCAA.org

The NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Committee has asked for a comprehensive feasibility study of sliding the entire Division I Women’s Basketball Championship one week later.

The complex issue involves potential adjustment to the start of practice, regular-season competition, the recruiting calendar and conference tournament schedules. The committee wants to ensure the matter is studied, reviewed and discussed in a broad manner.

The committee, which met the last week of June, requested its future strategies subcommittee to focus on the topic.

Additionally, NCAA President Mark Emmert will assemble a panel of key stakeholders from the membership to review the study and forward a recommendation.

After reviewing data, survey and research information, the committee cited potential benefits to the championship including less head-to-head competition with other NCAA championships, better attendance, more corporate champion/partner activations, greater overall media exposure and expanding growth opportunities for the game.

“Importantly, the committee recognized that among several options that had been raised in conversation over the past years, it was useful to narrow its focus toward the option that most logically should be considered in depth,” said NCAA Vice President of Division I Women’s Basketball Sue Donohoe. “During the summer meeting, the committee had preliminary discussions with ESPN and they will obviously be further engaged in the dialogue. ESPN has agreed to provide what data they can to help the committee in its decision making but noted that any schedule change may bring about issues for them that must be considered.”

ESPN, which signed an 11-year deal with the NCAA in 2001, has been the exclusive broadcast home of the Division I Women’s Basketball Championship since 1996. The 2011 championship marked the ninth consecutive year all 63 games of the tournament have been broadcast on ESPN’s family of networks.

Committee members also informed representatives of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association of the feasibility study, Donohoe said.

No deadline has been set for the completion of the study, although Division I Women’s Basketball Committee chair Marilyn McNeil encouraged an expedited examination.

“As a committee, we want to do what is best for women’s basketball,” said McNeil, vice president and director of athletics at Monmouth. “If this is the best way of enhancing the championship, the sooner a decision is made, the sooner an implementation date can be established.”

Preliminary rounds

In other action, committee members compressed the timeline for when it decides which institutions will serve as hosts for the 16 predetermined first- and second-round and four regional sites.

The announcement of the 2013 preliminary round sites will be determined in spring 2012. In past years, those decisions were made in the fall of the previous year.

“The committee believes it will be able to project more accurately the teams that are having success and achieving great crowds and community support for their programs,” Donohoe said. “We would look at sites with that in mind. It still gives a host plenty of time to market the games.”

The change is also in line with broader site-selection reviews that are being undertaken by a new unified championship structure that is designed to streamline operations for all 89 championships.

 

[LtPowers]

Re: NCAA Thinking of moving women's hoops one week later.

Help me out here... when are the squeakball tourneys in relation to the D-I men's hockey tournament?


Powers &8^]

 

[komey1]

Re: NCAA Thinking of moving women's hoops one week later.

The first and second round of the hockey tournament occur the same weekend as the NCAA regional final, The Frozen Four is the weekend after the Final Four.

Basically, this means that the women's tournament will get top billing on ESPN. It will force the Hockey championship to ESPN2 at best.

 

[Alton]

Re: NCAA Thinking of moving women's hoops one week later.

Basically, this means that the women's tournament will get top billing on ESPN. It will force the Hockey championship to ESPN2 at best.

I don't know. Women's hoops is Sunday-Tuesday right now; I would assume that if they move, they would want to move to Friday-Sunday. If that's the case, then there is no conflict. I'm sure that ESPN would not want the two to take place at the same time.

 

[bigmrg74]

Help me out here... when are the squeakball tourneys in relation to the D-I men's hockey tournament?


Powers &8^]

TV time. The womens Bball is on ESPN and it limits the available timeslots for airing games. The hockey regional games are either buried on the dial, or played at odd times. And let us not forget the lacrosse game fiasco. Timing the frozen four up so that they're not bumping int the bb conference finals and the big dance, the better ratings and time slots hockey can get.

 

[joecct]

Re: NCAA Thinking of moving women's hoops one week later.

Maybe hockey goes to VS??

I know. VS is NBC and NCAA events are restricted to CBS/E$PN.

 

[kdiff77]

Re: NCAA Thinking of moving women's hoops one week later.

Maybe hockey goes to VS??

I know. VS is NBC and NCAA events are restricted to CBS/E$PN.

It's ABC and E$PN, not CBS.

Hey, maybe they'll put the hockey championship on ABC!!

Oh wait...this is the real world. Phooey.