Please, someone, put the MAC West out of it’s misery. The six teams that did their level best (or is it worst) to drag the entire league out of Mid-Majordom and into Low-Majordom — Ken Pomeroy ranks the MAC 18th overall, percentage points above the Southland — went at it tonight. While the West really isn’t relevant, the fact is that the MAC West’s top finisher will get an undeserved and critical first round bye in the MAC tournament next week. It’s for that reason alone that we’re going to talk about a single game between MAC West sides that took place tonight.
As much as I diss the six teams that play in the MAC West, fact is that I respect Ball State. Not only have they been the best of a very sorry lot in the West, but the Cardinals also feature two of my favorite players in the MAC in frosh big Jarrod Jones, a star in the making, and steady senior wing Anthony Newell. If there is a team in the West that could make a semi-justifiable argument towards being the second seed in the MAC, it was Billy Taylor’s Cardinals.
I say was because Ball State rolled into the ‘Zoo tonight to take on Western Michigan (7-8, 10-19) with a chance to claim the MAC West tilte on the line. And they shit the bed, losing to an eminently beatable Broncos squad, 84-82 in OT. In normal years, that would be a decent result. Not this season, with David Kool and company suffering through a miserable season, and especially not with a chance to clinch the MAC West.
Since this was the Cardinals second loss in a row — they had a brutal 56-55 loss at an Northern Illinois this past Saturday — I shouldn’t be that surprised that Ball State couldn’t get it done, but I am. When it comes down to it, I guess I’m most pissed about the fact that a much more deserving MAC East team will have to play next Tuesday because Ball State is, well, committing grand theft first round bye.
It might sound stupid, but getting the bye with a 9-7 league mark sounds infinitely better than getting it by finishing at .500 in league play, or 7-9. Meanwhile, at least one team from the East that finished 9-7 is going to have win four games in five days to go dancing. And that just isn’t fair.
I think it’s time to ditch the two divisions and go single table in the MAC. If the single table’s good enough for leagues like the ACC, Atlantic 10, Big East, Big 12, and CAA, I don’t see why it’s not good enough for the MAC. While the single table may solve the problem of the MAC West sucking mastodon balls next season, it doesn’t solve the problem for this season.
How about this, MAC West teams. Just stay home next week. Don’t go to Cleveland. Forfeit instead. Think of the money you’ll save in the worst economy in memory. Think of the shame and embarrassment you’ll prevent by not playing. Think of the misery you’ll spare paying spectators by not showing.
Ball State was the only MAC West team seemingly capable of winning in Clevo next week. Losses to Western Michigan and Northern Illinois in their last two games make it clear that they actually aren’t capable of winning in Cleveland at all.
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