# B-ball game after league tournament? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [March 9, 2011, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027 "2011-03-09T10:03:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/1 "2011-03-09T10:03:46Z")
This coming Friday (March 11), Weber State will play St Mary’s in a non-league basketball game. This is not part of any tournament since it’s after their respective league tournaments are done and before the NCAA tourney starts. Just an ordinary non-league game. Is this at all common? I can’t remember such a game scheduled like this before, although I’ll admit to not following college basketball that closely. I generally only follow my team and the league it’s in (Pac-10), so perhaps it happens elsewhere from time to time. The reason I’m asking is that I’m trying to figure out how many Div I teams end their season with a win. Near as I can tell, it’s usually about 8 and could be as few as 6 or as many as 11. But if this kind of thing is common, it could be more. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/2 "2011-03-09T14:50:49Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > The reason I’m asking is that I’m trying to figure out how many Div I teams end their season with a win. Near as I can tell, it’s usually about 8 and could be as few as 6 or as many as 11. But if this kind of thing is common, it could be more. Interesting. What’d you come up with so far? Seems a bit low. NCAA Tourney Champ NIT Champ NAIA Champ 4 possible Ivy League teams who don’t get invited to a tournament 7 independent D1 teams ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/3 "2011-03-09T15:27:44Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Is this at all common? No. In fact, so far as I know, it’s unprecedented. > [@Munch](#): > > NAIA Champ Division I schools don’t play in the NAIA tournament. However there are now two additional D-I tournments, the CBI and the [Collegeinsider.com](http://Collegeinsider.com), besides the Big Dance and the NIT. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/4 "2011-03-09T17:33:40Z")
> [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](#): > > Division I schools don’t play in the NAIA tournament. However there are now two additional D-I tournments, the CBI and the [Collegeinsider.com](http://Collegeinsider.com), besides the Big Dance and the NIT. I was confused by their website - they must have their own D-I then, is that it? I also meant to add that not every team in the Big East goes to the conf. tourney - so they could end on a win as well. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/5 "2011-03-09T18:54:34Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > I was confused by their website - they must have their own D-I then, is that it? Right. > [@Munch](#): > > I also meant to add that not every team in the Big East goes to the conf. tourney - so they could end on a win as well. The Big East has expanded its tournament, and even last-place DePaul (1-17) got a berth and a first-round exit. However I’m pretty sure there are still _some_ conferences that exclude one or more bottom-feeders, so the point is still valid. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/6 "2011-03-09T23:49:16Z")
> [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](#): > > Right. > > The Big East has expanded its tournament, and even last-place DePaul (1-17) got a berth and a first-round exit. However I’m pretty sure there are still _some_ conferences that exclude one or more bottom-feeders, so the point is still valid. One example is the Southland Conference, (which typically contributes a 15 or 14 seed to the dance)…they are a 12 team league (2 six team divisions) but only the top 8 play in their tournament. (Go Roadrunners.) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2011, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/7 "2011-03-10T01:07:01Z")
I was unaware of the [Collegeinsider.com](http://Collegeinsider.com) tourney. And I also thought that all leagues had all teams in their tourneys. So obviously my numbers are low. My minimum number (6) was from three tourney winners plus three from the Ivy League. Since there’s another tourney, that rises to 7 minimum. According to Wikipedia, there are only [4 independent Div I schools](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NCAA_Division_I_independent_schools_(basketball)) in basketball (and one of those is trying to change to Div II). So my max (11) was from three tourneys + four indies + four Ivys. So now the max is at least 16 (4 tourneys, 4 indies, 4 Ivys, 4 Southlands) plus any other schools that don’t get into their league tourneys. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2011, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/8 "2011-03-10T01:31:31Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2011, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/9 "2011-03-10T16:15:20Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > My minimum number (6) was from three tourney winners plus three from the Ivy League. Since there’s another tourney, that rises to 7 minimum. If you’re talking _minimum_, it’s possible for more than one Ivy League last-game winner to get a post-season bid. Last year Princeton was in the CBI, and this year the second place team (Harvard or Princeton) is likely to make the NIT. It’s theoretically possible, although probably not likely, for all four last-game winners to go _somewhere_. So your minimum, I think, is 4. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2011, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/10 "2011-03-10T16:23:31Z")
I miss consolation games. The last time the University of Illinois ended their season with a win was in 1980, when they won the NIT consolation. They had a chance in the 1990’s, one year when they were on probation (See? Probation is good for _something_!), but they ended the regular season with a loss to Indiana. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2011, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/b-ball-game-after-league-tournament/574027/11 "2011-03-10T16:30:50Z")
This isn’t the first time St. Mary’s has scheduled a game after the West Coast Conference tournament. On March 13, 2009, between the WCC conference and the start of the NIT–which they played in–they played a game against Eastern Washington. I seem to recall at the time their coach felt that the game against Eastern Washington was intended to give role players a workout, let their team try strategies without tournament pressure, etc.