Arch Madness Smaller and Larger

Only Ten Men’s Teams Invited, but the women join in.

(St. Louis, MO) – Arch Madness will be smaller this year, or will it be larger? Missouri Valley Conference Commissioner Jeff Jackson confirmed Monday that the Valley’s signature event would no longer bring every MVC team to the end of the season tournament.

He also announced the women’s teams will be joining the men’s squads at the St. Louis-based event. Saying the tournament isn’t smaller, but larger, Jackson also announced the top two seeded teams in each tournament will receive a double-bye into the tournament’s semifinal rounds.

In a move that has been talked about behind closed doors for several years, the Board of Directors voted to alter the men’s event and move the women’s. Previous iterations of the women’s tournament have previously been played the weekend after Arch Madness and the tournament has been played in several different cities.

Jackson said the descussions on the topic began 16 months ago, and we’ve heard from reliable sources for about that same time that the league was losing great amounts of money on the women’s tournament and moving it to St. Louis was a serious option.

Jackson says the real impetious for moving the tournament stemmed from the Valley wanting to protect its top two seeded teams. The recent expansion of the NCAA Tournament was also factored in.

 

 

Tradition Lost? 

Fans have been outraged that the league is eliminating the tradition of every Valley team being invited. Beginning this season, the top ten ten teams will make the trek to St. Louis. The women will open the tournament with four games on Wednesday and the men compete four times on Thursday.

Jackson says fans should look at this as getting to see more basketball not less. He doesn’t believe the elimination of the eleventh place team changes the tournament significantly.

 

Since the men’s tournament moved to St. Louis, every Missouri Valley Conference team has been invited. Many call Arch Madness a ‘family reunion’ and that aspect of the tournament is now gone. The Commissioner correctly pointed out that the last place teams do not fare well at the league tournament.

The Board’s decision to protect the top two seeds, meant they couldn’t bring all eleven teams to St. Louis. Surprisingly, Jackson says finances were not a big part of the decision. A statement, that does not jive with the rampant rumors of large financial losses for the women’s event.

 

I asked him how they balanced the three competing factors. The loss of tradition, the women’s tournament massive financial losses and the protecting of the top two seeded teams are those issues. He categorically says the decision was not driven by finances. The top motivator was their desire to protect the top two seeds, with an eye to procuring more and better seeds in the NCAA Tournament.

 

Other Views

Coaches have been mostly favorable but fans on social media have been loudly against this notion. Retired Southern Illinois Hall of Fame broadcaster Mike Ries has been vocal in his disapproval. Many fans have noted that they will no longer be able to purchase ‘all session’ tickets in advance. They’ll not know if their team will be included..

Women’s tournament fans will now have to spend five days in St. Louis instead of four.

There are logistical issues, like splitting the two women’s semifinals around the men’s semis. The woman’s championship game will need to be played late in the day on Sunday, because the men’s championship will be played at 11:00 am. Both of those issues are dictated by television contracts.

Do Good