It will be a successful 1st year in the NBE if my team...

[MUBoxer]

Sooo many people responded... Could someone just do a bullet point against me so that I can respond? As far as the hoyas being the true big east champion last year we split with you and had the same record... I agree with everyone that Louisville is the champs but as far as regular season goes those three teams took care of business equally when all the other teams didnt. (That's all I've got someone's going to need to organize the other stuff I gotta respond to)

[MUBoxer]

I'm sorry you haven't heard of the regular season but it is celebrated as there's a trophy for it in every conference. In fact it was a big deal when Washington a two years ago became the first BCS regular season champion to not receive an invite to the NCAA tournament. So you can see it's a thing across the board.

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MUBoxer, I actually agree with the idea that NCAA tourney success is the single most important thing for me as a fan of my school. You and I agree on that part. But your examples provided I think dilute your argument. First, you talk about the importance of the regular season but you concede that it meant absolutely ZERO to Washington a few years back as they didn't even get an invite after winning the "Regular Season Crown." Not sure why you would point to that as proof of your argument. Secondly, a picture of 3 different schools holding up the same trophy for the same year is a little lame, no? It reminds me of when my daughter was 6 and every kid got the same exact trophy in her soccer league regardless of how many times they got drubbed by some of the other, more talented teams. L'ville was the BET champ last year. Period. If you want to throw up a pic that 2 other schools can match, puff out your chest and proclaim that your team was the best in the BE in 2012-13, I guess that's your perogative. But in and of itself when 3 different schools can lay claim to the same thing, no one really owns it at the end of the day.

Ok the Washington point was brought up to prove that people recognize regular season champs and that people got all huffy when they didn't get an invite. Same with the trophies I was trying to point to the fact that it is recognized as a legit accomplishment. I'm not puffing out my chest saying we were THE champs Louisville was but the fact is MU and GTown took care of business in every way Louisville did during the conference games.

[MUBoxer]

Marquette was not the #1 Seed. Georgetown was the #1 Seed. Marquette was the #3 seed. And Marquette fans don't care about the BET as much because 1) They're still new to the BE and 2) They've had very little success in the BET. No trips to the Final, 2 trips to the Semis. Seeing your team win the BET in MSG is one of the best things in the world. I put a BET title above everything but a final 4 or above.

Ok not to be debbie downer here but really a final four or above? I mean come on. It's definitely better to advance to the second weekend or more in the tournament, the tournament is national. While the Big East tournament, despite being huge, doesn't draw even remotely the same amount of attention that the NCAA tournament does. I was there court side when Louisville won the BET and went out with a bunch of them after and they were going on about how it was great but they just don't want to choke in the NCAA tournament. So MU isn't the only ones thinking more on the NCAA tournament than BET.[/quote]


The difference between a BET Title and a Sweet 16 or Elite 8 birth is with the latter you didn't win anything. With a Final 4 you won your region. I'd rather win something. And using Louisville as your example doesn't help your cause as they came in at the same time as Marquette. You don't understand the way the old guard of the BE does.[/quote]

Ok so what your saying is that because Louisville and Marquette added to the BE we don't understand? Dude 8 years is a long time! In the first 8 years of the BE you guys won what 5 tournament championships? But by your logic you didn't understand because it was still new. Ill tell you what Marquettes 8 tournament appearances, sweet 16s elite 8, BE player of the year, BE regular season title, all of our first team all conference players all will have asterisks next to them same with Louisville because we don't understand the BE the way you guys do. Get off your high horse.

And maybe it's just been too long for GTown you've forgotten what advancing in the NCAA tournament is like? Every game youre beating a team that is absolutely top notch, you can't say that in the BE tournament no matter how badly your like to pretend otherwise. Every game is a game that most of the sports fans in this country are watching and decide in a split instance if they like you or not. Every time you advance you get exponentially higher TV ratings, exposure, fans, even applicants to your school. But ill tell you what you guys focus on winning the BET and meanwhile we'll continue to advance in the tournament while you guys get beat by 14, 13, and two 11 seeds and at the end of the a few years we'll See who is more recognizable.

[TheHall]

I wonder if this conversation is a regional thing...NYC, the Garden, classic BET moments (Ray's shot against Iverson, Providence's epic run), local fanbases clashing on the train, etc...maybe these assets just don't carry the currency beyond the eastern time zone. I say this because I find it hard to believe that fans of Dayton, Richmond & even VCU would feel that way about the BET & would absolutely kill to be in it. I feel like doing an Iverson-- Regular Season, we're talking about the regular season...No knock, but it's the regular season.

[dmac80]

gets back to the NCAA for the first time since 2004!!!!! We're starving!

[xavierfano8]

Xavier:
1. Top 4 in BE regular season
2. Win BE Tournament (lot of teams could have a shot)
3. Sweet 16 has become the standard at X

[DumpsterFireA10]

If my school gets out of the Dumpster Fire they put themselves in.

I'm rooting for Xavier in the Big East for the time being...so here goes.

1...Top 4 Finish
2...8 or better seed in the Tournament
3...BE Conference Tournament Final
4...Semaj for POY

Dumpster!! I always thought you were a good dude, this just confirms it! Appreciate the good karma your sending Xavier's way.

Y'all got out of the Dumpster Fire. Gives the rest of us hope. That, and I had fun watching X/SLU games for the past few years. Good luck, and get r done X-men!

[Daffron24]

I wonder if this conversation is a regional thing...NYC, the Garden, classic BET moments (Ray's shot against Iverson, Providence's epic run), local fanbases clashing on the train, etc...maybe these assets just don't carry the currency beyond the eastern time zone. I say this because I find it hard to believe that fans of Dayton, Richmond & even VCU would feel that way about the BET & would absolutely kill to be in it. I feel like doing an Iverson-- Regular Season, we're talking about the regular season...No knock, but it's the regular season.

Nailed it. It's definitely a regional thing. The allure of MSG, playing in the big city, winning the best conference tournament over the last 20 some odd years is something that means a lot more to east coasters/schools. Most MU fans are from the midwest so I don't think playing at MSG or in the BET is as big to us. For me, growing up watching NCAA basketball I loved watching the NCAA tournament and could care less about conference tournaments. And as Iverson would probably put it, regular season, we're talking regular season. He also would probably say conference tournament, we're talking conference tournament.... Not the NCAA tourney but conference tourney. I mean it's great to win the BET, but every year I'm looking for MU do well in the regular season to get to the NCAA's. Do I wish we performed better in the BET and advance further, hell yea, but at the end of the day all I care about is making the NCAA tournament and advancing.....end result.

[MUSeashells&Balloons]

I wonder if this conversation is a regional thing...NYC, the Garden, classic BET moments (Ray's shot against Iverson, Providence's epic run), local fanbases clashing on the train, etc...maybe these assets just don't carry the currency beyond the eastern time zone. I say this because I find it hard to believe that fans of Dayton, Richmond & even VCU would feel that way about the BET & would absolutely kill to be in it. I feel like doing an Iverson-- Regular Season, we're talking about the regular season...No knock, but it's the regular season.

Nailed it. It's definitely a regional thing. The allure of MSG, playing in the big city, winning the best conference tournament over the last 20 some odd years is something that means a lot more to east coasters/schools. Most MU fans are from the midwest so I don't think playing at MSG or in the BET is as big to us. For me, growing up watching NCAA basketball I loved watching the NCAA tournament and could care less about conference tournaments. And as Iverson would probably put it, regular season, we're talking regular season. He also would probably say conference tournament, we're talking conference tournament.... Not the NCAA tourney but conference tourney. I mean it's great to win the BET, but every year I'm looking for MU do well in the regular season to get to the NCAA's. Do I wish we performed better in the BET and advance further, hell yea, but at the end of the day all I care about is making the NCAA tournament and advancing.....end result.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

[FriarJ]

Well if the Big East Tournament is just not that big a deal to all the new(er) schools then the Big east has indeed changed a lot. You guys may think that it doesn't matter but I can speak for certainty and Val Ackerman backed this up on Coach Cooley's radio show yesterday; it is the number one thing for the BE to stay an elite conference, outside of one of the schools winning a NC. Why do you think they are setting up the HQ in NYC and why the MSG contract and name were so important?

If the fans don't flock to this event and BE loses MSG we will be a mid major conference as quick as the 7 bolted. Despite what many would like to believe the BE is trying to return to it's roots and it's roots are urban in every regard and their is nothing more urban than MSG.

Here is a fair question I think; would you as a fan rather your team finish first in the regular season standings and bomb in the BE tournament or finish 3-6 in the regular season and win the tournament?

If any fan of any of the original 5 were to not choose the latter I would be shocked.