After local teams like St. John’s and Seton Hall were left out of the NCAA Tournament, Jerry Recco put together a plan to revamp the selection process.
Given the committee’s high praise of the analytic models that rank teams throughout the season, Jerry says those numbers should be the barometer for which teams get in, so teams like the Johnnies, ranked 32nd in NET rating, don’t get left home.
“I think it sucks that St. John’s isn’t in the field of 68,” Jerry said. “I think it sucks a team like Indiana State isn’t in the field…I think it sucks a team like Seton Hall isn’t in it.
“If we’re going to use the NET ranking - we’re in an era of stats and analytics - to determine who the best teams are in college basketball, then let’s use them. If Indiana State has a NET ranking of 29, how are they not in the field of 68? If St. John’s has a NET ranking of 32, how are they not in the field of 68?”
So, under Jerry’s model, the NCAA Tournament would be composed of all of the conference champions, then the next highest 36 teams in NET rating, to avoid glaring snubs from being left out.
“We should use it to put the right teams in,” Jerry said. “We take 32 spots for automatic bids…that leaves 36 spots. The 36 top teams in the country automatically are in the NCAA Tournament. That’s it…yeah, you’re gonna get snubbed from these automatic bids from certain conferences from time to time, but it’s not gonna be teams that are 29th or 32nd for a field of 68.
“You’re gonna tell me Seton Hall, St. John’s, and Indiana State shouldn’t be in that field?”