Women’s Notebook – Let them all eat cake!
By Stephen Zerdelian
One of the main overriding questions in the region as teams continue to postpone games is how will it all shake out once playoff time arrives? There are shredded nerves all around, since it could be a very tight window to try and fulfill entire conference schedules within the prescribed amount of time we have in a season. There are two absolutes here:
- The NCAA is highly unlikely (read – not happening) to alter their tournament dates; and
- All conferences want to play out a league tournament and crown a champion.
With those in mind, here is a solution – allow every eligible team to partake in their conference tournament and the NCAA regionals. I know the latter is pure fantasy (even though I have a plan for it) but the former can be done, and without an overwhelming amount of change. In a season with so much uncertainty, why wouldn’t it be a good idea to open the doors wide? This way, teams might ease their stress levels in terms of trying to get every game played. Yes, we all hope they can, but what if that turns out to be impossible?
If all teams were able to participate in league/regional tournaments, the importance of strength of schedule, quality wins, etc. would immediately be diminished. Those factors would still impact seeding, of course, but not entry, and ultimately could produce less angst along with more long-range planning. Perfect? No. But let’s not let perfect be the enemy of better.
Looking at each conference separately and using their original last regular season date and playoff format, here is how they can all allow every team into their private dance. To incentivize playing as many games as possible, I’d recommend tweaking the established tiebreakers so that the standings are by total conference victories, not winning percentage (in the case of an uneven number of games played). Only when tied teams have the same number of games played should normal tiebreaker processes come into play.
Let’s begin with the easiest ones to change, the ECC and NE10.
East Coast Conference
Original last date of regular season: Saturday, February 26
Original playoff format: The top six teams get into the field with the top two receiving byes and seeds #3-6 playing in round one (keep in mind that of the ten ECC teams, newcomers D’Youville and Staten Island are ineligible for post season play, so it was really six of the eight teams making the field).
This is an easy fix. Instead of the top two teams getting byes, all eight teams play in the first playoff round. Just call it the quarterfinals and be done with nomenclature. This was scheduled for Wednesday, March 2, and there is no need to change the date – just add seeds #1 and #2 to the mix:
Quarterfinals (March 2), higher seeds host:
Seed #8 @ Seed #1
Seed #7 @ Seed #2
Seed #6 @ Seed #3
Seed #5 @ Seed #4
The semifinals and finals we slated for Queens to host on Saturday/Sunday, March 5-6, so that doesn’t have to change. I wish they were all this easy…
Northeast-10 Conference
Original last date of regular season: Tuesday, February 22
Original playoff format: Seeds #1-5 in each division (of seven teams in each division qualify) and seeds #4-#5 in each division cross-over in the first round and compete in a play-in game. The winners advance to the quarterfinals and so on.
This one isn’t all that bad but slightly more complex that the ECC. All fourteen NE10 teams can easily get into the field without adding a single gameday to the schedule or altering the dates used. Instead of the #4 and #5 seeds playing in the play-in round, give the top seed in each division a bye and have the other dozen teams go at it in the first round. The divisions can cross-over here, just as they normally would:
First round (Friday, February 24), higher seeds host:
Seed # 7 (Southwest) @ Seed #2 (Northeast)
Seed # 7 (Northeast) @ Seed #2 (Southwest)
Seed # 6 (Southwest) @ Seed #3 (Northeast)
Seed # 6 (Northeast) @ Seed #3 (Southwest)
Seed # 5 (Southwest) @ Seed #4 (Northeast)
Seed # 5 (Northeast) @ Seed #4 (Southwest)
The six winners advance to the quarterfinals on Sunday, February 27 with the two #1 seeds, which would produce the exact same set of games as normal. The semifinals would still be on Thursday, March 3 and the title game on Sunday, March 6. All games would be hosted by the higher seed, as always. Easy-peasy.
Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference
Original last date of regular season: Saturday, February 26
Original playoff format: Seeds #1-4 in each division (of seven teams in the South and six teams in the North) compete in the quarterfinals, leaving five of the thirteen CACC teams out of the mix.
This one is a little trickier but there is still a pathway without serious duress to have them all included.
The first game would pit the #7 South seed at the #6 South seed on Sunday, February 27. Yes, it is the day after the last regular season game but that’s the penalty for finishing where they have. Life isn’t always fair.
Normally, the CACC quarterfinals would be on Tuesday, March 1, but here instead seeds #3, #4, #5 and #6 (which includes the South #6/#7 survivor) duel for quarterfinal berths. Seeds #1 and #2 in each division watch the carnage:
First round (Tuesday, March 1), higher seeds host:
Seed #6/#7 (South) @ # Seed #3 (North)
Seed # 6 (North) @ Seed #3 (South)
Seed #5 (South) @ # Seed #4 (North)
Seed # 5 (North) @ Seed #4 (South)
The next step would be to add a gameday (this is necessary in the revamped format) for the quarterfinals. Let’s give the Tuesday winners a day of rest and roll:
Quarterfinals (Thursday, March 3). The higher seeds host and you can decide any format you want to match-up the teams that got the byes with the first-round winner:
First-round winner @ Seed #1 (North)
First-round winner @ Seed #1 (South)
First-round winner @ Seed #2 (North)
First-round winner @ Seed #2 (South)
The final four would still be the same days (Saturday/Sunday, March 5-6) and at the same venue (Caldwell) already decided at the start of the season. Not as clean and neat as the ECC or NE10 but with an odd number of teams, it could never be.
OK, what if we could convince the NCAA to allow all 35 teams eligible into a redesigned East Regional tournament? I know they’d never allow it but what fun it would be! There are two scenarios here, the first of which bypasses the mandated NCAA deadline of finishing regional play by the Tuesday before the Elite Eight (in this case, March 15/22).
Having 35 teams in the field would require six game days, most/all of which would mean higher seeds hosting every game. The regional committee can seed them from #1-#35 as the previous week goes along but only need to reveal the last six seeds before the normal Sunday night (March 6) timeframe. After all, the bottom six teams would not be participating in conference tournament semifinal/finals – they’d be done and waiting to see when/where they play. So, they can be informed days ahead (Friday, March 4th, maybe?) and prep to play on Monday, March 7:
First round (Monday, March 7), higher seeds host:
Seed #35 @ Seed #30
Seed #34 @ Seed #31
Seed #33 @ Seed #32
This whittles the field to 32 teams, the perfect amount to move forward. Seed the other teams from #1-29 after the conference tournaments end and let the bracket play out. For brevities sake, I won’t print out complete matchups (you all know what a 32-team bracket looks like) but the game dates are key. This where scenario one differs from scenario two (which will hold to the NCAA mandated finishing regionals date). My proposal under scenario one…
Round of 32 – Wednesday, March 9
Round of 16 – Friday, March 11
Quarterfinals – Sunday, March 13
Semifinals – Tuesday, March 15
Championship – Thursday, March 17
Now, with the Elite Eight set to start in Birmingham, Alabama on Tuesday, March 22, the winner has time to recover and travel. If the circumstances locally permit a final four tournament setting, the East Regional can slice a day off the calendar and have it on March 15-16 but that’s a small tweak.
Scenario #2 squeezes the calendar a bit, and requires the use of single-site, four-team pods. The round of 32 includes 16 games but pair them up at the same site (such as #1 vs. #2, and #16 vs. #17), so the brackets flow. Then hold the round of 32 and round of 16 on back-to-back days at one of the eight sites on Wednesday (March 9) and Thursday (March 10).
Once that’s done, take the quarterfinalists and either stick them in one spot (like a normal regional) and have them play on Saturday (March 12), Sunday (March 13) and Tuesday (March 15). If an eight-team venue is too much, use two four-team pods for the quarterfinals (Saturday) and semifinals (Sunday), and have the highest remaining seed host a championship game on Tuesday.
All these scenarios (both within conferences and the NCAA regionals) assume every team can play and doesn’t go into protocols, by the way. If one does, call the game a no-contest and advance the other team.
Sure, this is like youth sports – everyone gets orange wedges and a trophy but so what? In a season riddled with uncertainty and gloom, let’s let them all in and create a festival-like atmosphere. Think outside the box here and have some fun with it, folks!
Extra sessions!
Saturday, January 8, was a pretty good day if you like overtime. For the first time since January 27, 2018, the region showcased three OT games in one day, including a double-overtime contest.
The 2OT clash saw the College of Staten Island claim its first ECC win ever, a 92-88 battle of attrition with Bridgeport. Jenalyse Alarcon tossed in a career-high 32 points (and grabbed 17 boards) to lead the Dolphins while Gia Esposito added 22 markers. Their effort superseded UB’s Samirah Henderson’s 29-point (7-16 3FG) effort and extended the Purple Knights slide to seven games. UB led 59-42 with 9:04 left in regulation but CSI rallied and forced OT thanks to an Esposito trey with nine ticks left. Noemia Massingue prompted a second OT frame for the Dolphins with a basket at :02 left in first OT and five points from Kristina Arvelo put the home team ahead to stay once there (87-82, 3:18).
Elsewhere in the ECC, St. Thomas Aquinas kept Queens winless with an 86-82 OT success. Alexa Huertas topped five double digit Spartan scorers while Chelsea Reeves netted a career-best 33 points for the Knights in a game which featured eleven ties and six lead changes. Erin Leary scored the last four points of regulation for STAC to force overtime (80-all) and the visiting Spartans racked up eight of the ten OT points to grab the win.
Tiara Mahorn buried a three-pointer for Felician with eight seconds left in regulation to send their game to overtime but in the end Chestnut Hill prevailed, 61-57, to improve to 4-0 in CACC play, and pull even with Sciences atop the CACC South. Emily Chmiel (13 points, 13 boards) led the Griffins while Briana Lee (17 points, 15 rebounds) double-doubled to front the Golden Falcons. CHC ended the game on a 10-0 surge after Felician opened the OT with a 7-3 run, shutting down the guests for the final 2:55. The defeat was the first in CACC action for the Golden Falcons, which sits third in the CACC North.
By the way, the last time the region had four overtime games in a single day was on February 21, 2015, when Adelphi (over Pace), Daemen (against Mercy), Queens (vs. LIU Post) and Roberts Wesleyan (Over St. Thomas Aquinas) all picked up single-OT victories.
Notes…
How about Mercy’s 4-0 start in the ECC? The Mavericks dropped Molloy on Monday, 61-57, to reach that mark for the first time since the 1990-’91 campaign. All five Mercy starters played at least 30 minutes, with Taysha Bender and Kellie Nudd leading the scoring with 19 points each. An 18-2 run to start the second half helped flip a 33-31 halftime deficit into a 49-35 lead for the visiting Mavericks but the Lions rallied and eventually pulled within a digit (58-57) with 1:59 left. Mercy hit 3-4 at the line to nail down the victory, though, and rise above Daemen (3-0) to sit atop the loop. The Mavericks and Wildcats are slated to meet for the first time (protocols pending!) on January 23, so we will see how it looks at that point… UDC suffered its first ECC loss last week as Roberts Wesleyan beat them, 76-63. Each team had four double figure scorers in that one, but the Redhawks had the upper hand. This came a few days after the Firebirds closed with a 9-0 spree to beat Bridgeport, 56-52. UDC held UB scoreless in the final 4:47, a span in which the Purple Knights (who have dropped seven in a row since inexplicably beating Pace) missed seven shots and committed five turnovers.
Georgian Court registered their first win at Jefferson since 2008 with a 64-61 decision over the weekend as Anyssa Fields (19 points) and Leighanna Lister (12 points, 12 boards) led the way. The Rams responded to the setback by beating Dominican, 80-65, handing the Chargers their fifth straight defeat. There was a sliver of light for DC, though, as Taylor Tomlinson scored her 1,000th point in the game. The Rams, with all five starters in double digits, used a 15-2 surge to break away in the fourth period. Jefferson followed that up with a key win over Sciences last night, 52-45, to hand the Devils their first CACC loss. A 9-0 flurry late in the first half staked the Rams to the lead for good, and they held Sciences to zilch from three-point land (0-13!) to punctuate the success… The upshot of the Jefferson decision over Sciences is that Chestnut Hill, a 53-42 winner over Georgian Court last evening, is atop the CACC South with a 5-0 league mark. The Griffins, on a five-game win streak, committed only four fouls in the game and did not have to watch GCU take a single free throw. When was the last time you saw that?... The CACC continues to provide big games this week, as Jefferson travels across town to face CHC tomorrow night while on Saturday, Sciences visits Dominican on Saturday.
The NE10 heavyweights have crossed swords in the last week, bringing some clarity to the standings but also setting up some good matchups in the coming weeks… Le Moyne has enjoyed the best week, extending their winning skein to four games, and pulling even with Pace atop the Southwest Division. Pace was the last team to lose in NE10 play, falling at Le Moyne, 55-41. The Setters shot just 27% and trailed at the half, 32-15, and never really had a chance to rally. Pace did bounce back with a 68-53 win against Adelphi, with Naya Rivera (26 points, 10-10 FG, 6-8 FT) enjoying a career day, and will head to Waltham to face Bentley on Saturday.
Le Moyne, meanwhile, added wins over Stonehill and Bentley to follow up on their victory over pace. Erin Fouracre filling the box score (18 points, 7 rebounds, 9-9 at the line) in the Dolphins 70-59 win against Stonehill on Saturday and then they never trailed in a hard-fought 53-50 win at Bentley last night. There was only one tie in the game (22-all late in the first half) but the Falcons had a chance to take the lead and tie in the dying seconds but misfired on a pair of three-pointers, allowing LC to hold on. The result means Le Moyne has won five in a row over Bentley, the first time the Falcons have lost that many consecutive games since dropping five straight against Stonehill from 2007-2009.
Bentley did pick up an 80-70 win at Southern Connecticut on Saturday to stay a step ahead of idle Southern New Hampshire in the NE10 Northeast Division, at least for the time being. (The Penmen have had seven straight games postponed/cancelled and haven’t played since December 19, incidentally). Ella Thompson netted a career-high-tying 25 points to lead the way for the Falcons at SCSU, nullifying a superb game by Owl point guard Zoe Amalbert (24 points, 6 helpers). The latter, for those who want a little history lesson, is the daughter of former Springfield guard Derek Amalbert (class of 1991), who was a terrific player in his own right. Dad Amalbert scored over 1,500 points at SC, which was a proud NE10 member during his career. Daughter Amalbert, who had to leave former school NYIT when they closed, has been a nice find for Southern Connecticut and is back to her best… More about the Owls - they knocked off Adelphi in a good game last weekend, 75-70. Amalbert (19 points and 11 assists in all 40 minutes) and Delaney Connors (29 points, 12-17 FG, also in all 40 minutes) topped the winners while Emily Miccile (18 points, 8 boards) and Sarah Deyo (10 points, 12 boards) shined for the Panthers. AU won the glass battle, 44-29 but SCSU shot 52% to make up the difference and prevail.