Welcome to college hoops, where being number 1 overall in the tourney might actually be a bad thing

SCOTT JACOBS

There’s no BCS and college hoops fans have to be incredibly thankful for that.  Because after a week where the top 4 in college hoops all went down, allowing #5 Duke (the only team that was able to get out of its own way) to leapfrog all the way back to #1, this sure would have been a lot scarier for teams title dreams if computer numbers dictated who goes to the championship.

Thankfully they don’t.  Which presents an interesting question: In actuality (a shout out to new NCAA Tournament partner TruTV) does being #1 matter?  Like at all.  Besides having bragging rights, and the chance to put it in your media guide and history books, does being #1 really mean anything in college hoops?

To which, I say no.  And a strong no at that.  Bet on College Basketball at BetUS, and you’ll see that most teams within the top 10 are all pretty close.  Especially in a year where there is nothing close to a dominant team.  While Ohio State stayed undefeated the longest, they have come back to the pack, and their young team no longer looks like the world-beaters they appeared to be.

The last time the top 4 teams all lost during the same week?  That would be November 2003, when Connecticut, Duke, Arizona, and Michigan State all lost.  The irony of course is that none of those teams made the Final Four, which doubly ironic, was won by yours truly Carmelo Anthony and his Syracuse Orange.

So what’s the message here?  Just get in.  The higher the seed the better obviously, but the number one overall seed in the tourney hasn’t claimed the title since that 2001 Duke team.  And they were flat out awesome.

There’s no flat out awesome team to note in this year’s field, just a bunch of very good teams who tend to slip up.

Now, if there is a trend that smaller-conference schools have to be wary of, it’s this one:  no non-BCS conference has laid claim to winning the tourney since 1990.  UNLV cut down the nets that year, and that was two decades ago.

Butler (2010), Memphis (2008), George Mason (2006), Utah (1998), UMass (1996), and UNLV (1990, 1991) are the only non-BCS schools to even make it to the Final Four in those 20 years.  So the odds are stacked against the likes of the San Diego States and BYU’s of the world, even though they have an equal opportunity to win it, if they can get in it.  Which getting in has never been more realistic, considering that 68 teams now get a crack at the ruckus that is the NCAA Tournament.

But that doesn’t make it easy.

Even during their glory run, Gonzaga only once made the Elite Eight.  Saint Joseph’s in their dream season with Jameer Nelson leading the way, only made the Elite Eight as well, and they were a #1 seed.  Of course in the past few years teams like Memphis and Butler have made the championship game, so it’s not exactly unfathomable, and it’s a hell of a lot easier than making it as a non-BCS school in college football.

But the Aztecs and Cougars will have their shot to win 6 in a row come March and that’s all you can ask for as a fan of the sport.  Even though there’s only usually a handful of teams that seem capable of winning a championship come April, anything can happen, as George Mason can attest to, when they shocked the world all the way to the Final Four.

But being #1?  Why, that’s hardly necessary.  In fact, it’s probably more pressure than it’s worth.  Kansas got caught in the mousetrap that is top overall seed when they fell to Northern Iowa in the secound round last year.  Remember when Kentucky fell to U.A.B?  And the beat goes on.

The moral to the story: when it comes to college hoops there is hardly a difference being a 1, 2, or even a 3 seed.  The competition is slightly harder the lower your seed, but you’re talking about top 12-top 15 caliber teams, who can beat anyone on a given day.  That my friends, is why it ain’t what you’re seeded.  It’s what you do once the tourney starts.  Like the Packers proved in their historic playoff run.  Just get in.  Anything can happen from there.

Photo: AP

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