Like the rest of us sports junkies, Georgia Southern men’s basketball coach Jeff Price won’t veer far from the television during the NCAA tournament.
But while we watch with hopes of winning some of our coworkers’ cash in the office bracket pool, Price sees March Madness as something much more practical — a valuable learning tool.
“I use the tournament to study the game and see what other teams are doing and how they’re being successful,” Price said from his office Wednesday.
He also tunes in for the excitement, and you can bet he’s always pulling for his fellow mid-majors schools.
“That’s one of the main reasons I watch it — to see if schools at our level can have success,” he said. “I’ll be very busy the next few days watching all the games.”
Price said all the No. 1’s– Florida, Kansas, North Carolina and Ohio State – were deserving of their seeds.
“I don’t think a 16 seed has ever beaten a No. 1, so they are probably all safe,” he said. “But after the first round, I think anything can happen.”
Despite winning 25 of its final 26 games, Southern Conference champion Davidson was seeded 13th and will face fourth-seeded Maryland today at 12:20 p.m. in Buffalo, N.Y. Price was hoping the Wildcats would get a better seed and an easier opponent than an Atlantic Coast Conference power.
“I think they are going to give Maryland everything they can handle, but Maryland is a team that’s playing well right now,” Price said.
With several notable non-conference victories, there were those who thought Appalachian State was deserving of an at-large bid to the Big Dance, but the Mountaineers were shunned and forced to settle for a trip to the National Invitation Tournament. Such is the life of a mid-major, Price said.
Overall, the little guys ended up with only six of 34 at-large bids.
“That’s the plight we deal with every year with this thing,” he said. “The mid-major’s bids have decreased each of the last three years, yet every year they play really well in the tournament. I think it’s unfortunate we are seeing a decline in mid-majors. Not to mention if you look at the bracket, mid-majors are playing each other in three games (Old Dominion vs. Butler, Nevada vs. Creighton and Southern Illinois vs. Holy Cross). So on the first day, you are going to have three mid-majors knocked out. I don’t understand the logic in it, particularly with how well they’ve done in the past. They add so much excitement to the tournament.”
Price isn’t in a bracket pool, but with a little nudge from the Statesboro Herald, he picked a Final Four — Florida, Kansas, Georgetown and Ohio State.
As for dark horse candidates, Price likes Southern Illinois and UNLV. But don’t rule out Winthrop.
“Southern Illinois and Winthrop are both really good — those two teams have proven they can play,” he said. “And Butler is really good. All the mid-major teams that are in are going to have a chance. It’ll be interesting to see which one will jump up and make a run like George Mason last year. I can promise you one of the mid-major schools is going to make a run. To the Final Four? I don’t know. That’s pretty deep, but one of them is going to make some noise.”
Alex Pellegrino can be reached at (912) 498-9413.
But while we watch with hopes of winning some of our coworkers’ cash in the office bracket pool, Price sees March Madness as something much more practical — a valuable learning tool.
“I use the tournament to study the game and see what other teams are doing and how they’re being successful,” Price said from his office Wednesday.
He also tunes in for the excitement, and you can bet he’s always pulling for his fellow mid-majors schools.
“That’s one of the main reasons I watch it — to see if schools at our level can have success,” he said. “I’ll be very busy the next few days watching all the games.”
Price said all the No. 1’s– Florida, Kansas, North Carolina and Ohio State – were deserving of their seeds.
“I don’t think a 16 seed has ever beaten a No. 1, so they are probably all safe,” he said. “But after the first round, I think anything can happen.”
Despite winning 25 of its final 26 games, Southern Conference champion Davidson was seeded 13th and will face fourth-seeded Maryland today at 12:20 p.m. in Buffalo, N.Y. Price was hoping the Wildcats would get a better seed and an easier opponent than an Atlantic Coast Conference power.
“I think they are going to give Maryland everything they can handle, but Maryland is a team that’s playing well right now,” Price said.
With several notable non-conference victories, there were those who thought Appalachian State was deserving of an at-large bid to the Big Dance, but the Mountaineers were shunned and forced to settle for a trip to the National Invitation Tournament. Such is the life of a mid-major, Price said.
Overall, the little guys ended up with only six of 34 at-large bids.
“That’s the plight we deal with every year with this thing,” he said. “The mid-major’s bids have decreased each of the last three years, yet every year they play really well in the tournament. I think it’s unfortunate we are seeing a decline in mid-majors. Not to mention if you look at the bracket, mid-majors are playing each other in three games (Old Dominion vs. Butler, Nevada vs. Creighton and Southern Illinois vs. Holy Cross). So on the first day, you are going to have three mid-majors knocked out. I don’t understand the logic in it, particularly with how well they’ve done in the past. They add so much excitement to the tournament.”
Price isn’t in a bracket pool, but with a little nudge from the Statesboro Herald, he picked a Final Four — Florida, Kansas, Georgetown and Ohio State.
As for dark horse candidates, Price likes Southern Illinois and UNLV. But don’t rule out Winthrop.
“Southern Illinois and Winthrop are both really good — those two teams have proven they can play,” he said. “And Butler is really good. All the mid-major teams that are in are going to have a chance. It’ll be interesting to see which one will jump up and make a run like George Mason last year. I can promise you one of the mid-major schools is going to make a run. To the Final Four? I don’t know. That’s pretty deep, but one of them is going to make some noise.”
Alex Pellegrino can be reached at (912) 498-9413.
