Friday, February 13, 2009
Mike Slive, chairman of the NCAA Tournament selection committee, announced Tuesday that the state of the economy would not change the landscape of the NCAA Tournament.
Slive said teams would not be geographically placed closer to home to make it financially easier for fans to travel. This could be bad news for Kansas.
The Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., is one of eight locations hosting first and second round tournament play. Playing less than an hour away from Lawrence would be an obvious advantage for the Jayhawks.
Slive’s announcement means it won’t be any easier for Kansas to be assigned to play in Kansas City. Kansas coach Bill Self never thought about it to begin with.
“We’re not mature enough to be thinking like that,” Self said. “That’s not something we’ve ever even remotely discussed with our team is where regional or sub-regional sites are.”
In other words, Self left it to the Morning Brew to do the honors. Here are the eight first round sites: Kansas City; Minneapolis; Dayton, Ohio; Philadelphia; Greensboro, N.C.; Miami; Boise, Idaho; and Portland, Ore.
Barring an epic collapse, Kansas (19-5, 8-1) will be in the 65-team field. Depending on who you ask, the Jayhawks are somewhere in the range of a three to six seed right now.
Only top four seeds get geographical consideration. But it’s usually only the top two that are rewarded — meaning as of right now, the Jayhawks playing at the Sprint Center is a long shot.
ESPN.com’s bracketology, compiled by expert Joe Lunardi, projects Kansas as a No. 3 seed in Boise at the moment. What does Self think about that? Doesn’t care, of course.
“There’s a reason why it’s done,” Self said. “But I think all coaches would tell you it’s pretty ridiculous that bracketology is coming out in December.”
It’s done because it’s fun for fans to speculate where their favorite teams will wind up. It’s done because the NCAA Tournament is one of the most anticipated sporting events of the year.
For those reasons, let’s contemplate how Kansas could defy the odds and land an hour up I-70 come mid-March. The Jayhawks need to lose no more than two more games in the regular season and cap off their season with the Big 12 Conference tournament title.
If they do that, a No. 2 seed looks in reach. If they do that, Slive’s announcement will have no effect on them.
JACKSON BACK WITH CAVALIERS
That was fast.
The Cleveland Cavaliers sent former Jayhawk Darnell Jackson down to the Erie Bayhawks of the NBA Development League Monday. Jackson played in one game — a 102-89 victory against the Utah Flash — and scored a game-high 26 points with six rebounds. Then, the Cavaliers called him back.
“They sent me down there to get some work in,” Jackson told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. “Basically, it’s the same system down there. It was fun to get in the rotation with those guys and get some contact.”
— — Edited by Justin Leverett
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Comments
Morning Brew: Hawks may fly far from nest
I think we'll end up playing in the Sprint Center. But I don't think we have an advantage in the Sprint Center. We are 1-2 in KC so far this year. As long as we stay in the Midwest, we'll be fine.
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