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RPI is no more!
The NCAA has finally replaced one of the most disputed metrics for determining tourney teams. The RPI system has been broken during its entire run. It never worked, and we rarely had a year where someone out there was not screwed by it.
Now we have the NET system, a more predicative model. NET weighs five categories to determine its rankings: wins, team value index, team efficiency, scoring margin, and adjusted winning percentage.
This is a huge step in the right direction for college basketball. While the NCAA could have done more, this is a great sign that the tournament will have truly the strongest possible field.
In case you missed it
Look at the hustle! This video went viral, and deservedly so. Just the athleticism and hustle Justin Ferris displayed to make that play.
We could use a ballhawk like that on the gridiron.
Should the automatic bids go to regular season champions?
In the major basketball conferences, multiple bids are basically a give in. The conference tournaments offer a chance for someone to sneak in, and few bubble teams to solidify their stake. The majority of teams, however, are just around for bragging rights or to stay hot going into the big dance.
However for the one bid leagues, your bottom of the barrel seeds from the American East Conference for example, the conference tournament is their only hope. That is not the best model for the bid process. It invalidates an entire season of work, since in almost no scenario will one bid leagues earn a second one.
The fairest system is rewarding the regular season champion. Reward the total body of work, not just a flash in the pan run. The conference tournament is fun and for bragging rights, but the automatic bids should be solidified during the regular season.
I know we would lose some of the fun of a Cinderella getting hot at the right time, but as special as that is the best field should be found with the best overall teams. You prove that in the regular season, not in a single-elimination conference tournament.