what's the reason for it?

[coolm]

WHY are smaller schools more able to keep up with the majors now ... where 20 years ago they were getting tore up for the most part.

Sir Cumference (CB) says that NCAABB is "tair-bull" now and that's why.

Others claim it's because there are mo better HS players now.

Another school of thought is the smaller school players staying longer.

Poor coaching? Better coaching? I wonder why

 

[DenverSooner]

I think the early departures to the NBA are one big reason. However, I would question the merit to the entire argument. Indiana State went to the final four in the 70s. Wichita State had a strong team in the 70s if I recall correctly. The little guys have always played hard and made some noise. I just think the little schools have put together some big runs lately and people have forgotten about the past.

 

[MsProudSooner]

WHY are smaller schools more able to keep up with the majors now ... where 20 years ago they were getting tore up for the most part.

Sir Cumference (CB) says that NCAABB is "tair-bull" now and that's why.

Others claim it's because there are mo better HS players now.

Another school of thought is the smaller school players staying longer.

Poor coaching? Better coaching? I wonder why

All of the above, except I don't think NCABB is as bad as CB says.

The MVC (Wichita State, Tulsa, Creighton, etc) was a very good basketball conference in the 1980's. I never really considered them to be Cinderella's.

 

[Sid]

The NBA. As a result, the quality of play at the collegiate level has suffered greatly. IMO, that's why we continue to see a decline in attendance around the country. In terms of the quality of play, there is not that much difference between SC's team and LK's team.

 

[thegreyghost]

there isn't a lot of great talent in college basketball right now.....thats why VCU and Butler can make it to the final game

 

[Ham]

Fundamentals are the great equalizer for athleticism.

See: International basketball for most of the last 20 years.

Granted, you need some skill and some athleticism to begin with. But if practically all you are operating on is minimal skill and superior athleticism, a little dog can bite you pretty easily.

All that said, this has always been true. Just more apparent now with sloppy play and the mentality of HS seniors that all believe they can play at the next level and end up on ESPN's top ten w/o putting in the work.

Magic, Bird, and obviously MJ...each and every one of them is a warhorse in the gym.
Kobe, Garnett, the list goes on...

 

[sperry]

Mid majors beat the two seeds because those 2 seeds basically were mid-major teams themselves. Guard oriented teams that jack up a ton of 3s. The way most big schools have beaten small schools in the past is by having better big men and pounding it inside and getting rebounds and drawing fouls. Mizzou was a bunch of midgets, and Duke just didn't utilize their inside game, which basically made the playing field level.


Despite the fact that Detroit is likely better than either of the 15s that won today, Kansas is going to beat them because they'll utilize their inside advantage.

 

[SoMuchDramaInTheLNC]

Too many one and dones/players with one and done attitudes = lack of urgency to win (more emphasis on stats) = actual ”teams” playing for school pride taking down more talented programs.

 

[campbest]

It's not rocket science.

 

[DFWHoopster]

Two other factors in my opinion:

1. Low cost to scout. Web based platforms that break down your opponent over a laptop. Small schools in the past didn't have the budgets to keep up with bigger programs in game prep 5+ years ago. Now the playing field is more level thanks to technology.

2. Neutral courts. Norfolk and Lehigh are used to playing these bigger programs on the road for guaranteed payouts. Those are tough to win. Often 8 on 5. At the tourney they pull in bandwagon fans in droves. I'm at the PIT. When South Dakota State pulled to within 4 on Baylor late in the game, the arena got very loud in support of the Jackrabbits. Some players like Kim English start to feel that pressure and don't perform as relaxed as they would normally.

 

[WTSooner]

Really pretty easy, the bigger schools are getting more guys that leave for the NBA early, so they never have those JR/SR loaded teams. Look at that Duke roster. There was no J.J. Redick. No Elton Brand. No Shane Battier, Grant Hill, or Christian Laettner.

Look at Kentucky. They certainly have a TON of talent, but almost all of it is young. Some of those great UK teams under Pitino had a lot of JR/SR leadership. Guys like Pelfrey, Delk, and Mashburn.

 

[coolm]

may not be rocket science but there are a lot of factors involved

 

[mc_soonerfan]

It's not rocket science.

Wow, that was a quality post. Since you're implying that you know the answer, why don't you add a little more and explain it to those of us who aren't so smart?

 

[Sawyer]

A lot more good players.

Fewer great ones.

Not much else to it IMO.

For a lot of reasons, there are more good players today. Kids start playing earlier and they play more games. The system is designed to find good players early and maximize their potential. A lot of people have a vested interest in the business of basketball, and whether you think that's a good thing, it has given a lot of kids an opportunity to play.

At the same time, the NBA lures away most of the truly great players much earlier than in the past. This doesn't affect everyone directly, of course, but take Kentucky for example. Twenty years ago, they might still have Wall, Cousins, Bledsoe and Orton (all would be juniors now). If those guys stay, maybe Brandon Knight ends up at UConn, where he helps them win a title last year and leads them to a 3 seed this year. Maybe Terrence Jones decides he'd rather play at Oklahoma, or maybe Michael Kidd-Gilchrist joins Knight at UConn (pushing them to a 1 seed). And maybe Anthony Davis decides he'd rather play at Ohio State instead of sitting behind Cousins (which makes them, too, a 1 seed).

Now you've got Kentucky, OSU, UConn, Syracuse, UNC, Michigan State all with 1 seed talent. UNC and MSU, though, get pushed down the line and become 2 seeds. MU falls to a 3, and probably ends up playing a team that doesn't have a 6-10 kid we can't handle (because almost no teams seeded that low do). That eliminates one upset. Duke would also fall to a 3 seed, changing another outcome. There's two historic upsets gone. Apply the same rules to other elite programs that have lost players early and I'm sure things get worse and worse for the small teams.

 

[DenverSooner]

Another factor we have not really mentioned is the 3 point line. It is relatively knew and a big equalizer. Kids that might be a step slower and lack a bit in their vertical but can shoot keep these small schools in the game.

 

[SoonerinNC]

Several reasons.

Fundamentals; when international teams with very few NBA quality players beat a NBA all-star team with good basic defense, rebounding and patient offense with good shooters then why is anyone suprised that a mid-major can knock off any of the elite teams.

AAU programs. Often poorly coached teams loaded with top talent builds egos that even the best coaches have problems dealing with. Instead of getting a badly needed education they have dreams of becoming instant NBA stars and sacrifice by spending a few months on campus and then fading into oblivion when reality sets in.

Style of play; How many times do you see teams playing with the ball a few seconds and then someone goes for a one on one move that either draws a foul or scores. This is particularly true with teams with a strong point guard. Then they come up against a team that plays good defense and runs an efficient if not spectacular offense and they get behind the eight ball and can't recover.