The Ivy League presidents have decided to cancel the upcoming Ivy League men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, both of which were to be held at Harvard. Fear of the coronavirus led to the decision to cancel.
The regular season champions will receive the league’s automatic bids to the NCAA tourneys. For the men, that means Yale.
The cancellations are unfortunate. However, I see one beneficial effect.
In my opinion, a basketball conference like the Ivy League that will receive only one bid for the NCAA championship should send the winner of its regular season, not the winner of a post-season tournament. The regular season champion is more deserving, having proved its superiority over the course of a long season.
In addition, it is likely to make a better showing. When an inferior team wins the tournament of a weak conference, it is likely to be blown out in the opening round of the “Big Dance.” The regular season winner has a better chance of putting up a good fight and maybe pulling off an upset.
This principle may not be fully applicable to the Ivy League this year, though. Harvard, which finished second to Yale, defeated the Bulldogs twice during the regular season (and no doubt relished the chance to beat them again at Harvard). Harvard has a lower NET rating than Yale, but would likely be about equally competitive in the NCAA tournament. (No other Ivy League team has a decent NET rating.)
However, I still prefer to see the regular season champ in the NCAA tournament. Due to unfortunate circumstances, that will be the case this year with the Ivy League.
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