SEC eliminates divisions for basketball

[insidehoops]

The Birmingham News on May 21 reported:

The SEC will consider abandoning men's basketball divisions during the conference's upcoming spring meetings, SEC Commissioner Mike Slive said Friday.

Slive said the conference office will present ideas to coaches and athletics directors about a 12-team league without divisions and how to schedule. Most conferences don't have divisions in basketball, and there's a feeling by some that the SEC's structure gives a false picture of its best teams to the NCAA Tournament selection committee.

The last three SEC West champions -- Alabama in 2011 and Ole Miss and Mississippi State in 2010 -- didn't make the NCAA Tournament. Alabama finished first in the West by three games last season but got undone by early-season struggles out of conference.

[bagelred]

The f-cking gov't has to be involved with everything. Unbelievable. The Federal gov't is out of control.

What does the Securities and Exchange Comminssion have to do with basketball? Retards.......

[insidehoops]

Originally Posted by bagelred

What does the Securities and Exchange Comminssion have to do with basketball? Retards.......

Hah

[TennesseeFan]

Should've done this a long time ago...

[KG215]

This has needed to be done for a long time now. Divisions in basketball make absolutely no sense. The SEC is the only basketball conference in the nation to use two separate divisions.

[insidehoops]

They did it. No more SEC basketball divisions. Now it's just the SEC

The AP reports:

The league, which will hand out an SEC-record $18.3 million in shared revenue to each of its 12 schools, also voted to eliminate divisions in men’s basketball. The teams will now be seeded 1 through 12 in the postseason tournament, with the top four teams receiving first-round byes. The SEC will keep a 16-game league slate for 2011-12, but will increase the number of conference games the following season.

The SEC also extended the current rule permitting Mississippi State to have cowbells in its home stadium. But league Commissioner Mike Slive said the SEC increased fines for using them at inappropriate times to $50,000. Mississippi State was fined $30,000 for violations last year, $5,000 for the first violation and $25,000 for the second.

“It was clear the fans violated our rule in at least the first two games, but there was very significant impact and improvement in the last two,” Slive said. “So under our fine structure, we will fine them $30,000 for last year’s violations.”

[InspiredLebowski]

Like it matters. SEC hoops will forever be a joke.