Ivy League Lacrosse Tournament

[Ben]

Schedule:

Friday, May 6

#3 Harvard vs. #2 Penn, 5 pm
ESPN3.com

#4 Yale at #1 Cornell, 8 pm
ESPN3.com & WCHU

Sunday, May 8

Championship Game, Noon
ESPNU, ESPN3.com & WCHU

Tickets for Friday are $12 for adults, $8 for students and children. Championship game tickets are $10/$5.

[Al DeFlorio]

Apparently the league will decide after this year's tournament whether to continue it in the future.  I'd just as well they shoot it dead, but I'm guessing they won't.

[phillysportsfan]

Why would you get rid of it?

[KeithK]

Why would you get rid of it?

There are three reasons to have a tournament: 1) Generate fan excitement (which is really...) 2) generate revenue and 3) improve NCAA tournament standing.  If the tourney isn't making money and isn't helping the league get at-large bids then maybe it's not worth doing.

[Al DeFlorio]

Why would you get rid of it?

I'm not interested in seeing a replay of the Cornell-Yale game.  I'd rather see Cornell play Notre Dame or Johns Hopkins or Hofstra with a 14th game.

[KenP]

Why does lacrosse traditionally play only one game per week?  This and championship weekend seem to be the only times they play 2x per weekend?  Is that enough of a reason right there to have an Ivy tournament -- mental and physical preparation for the postseason schedule?

[Al DeFlorio]

Three times this year Cornell played a Tuesday game after a Saturday game--winning all three including games against Stony Brook and Syracuse.

[Towerroad]

Why would you get rid of it?

I'm not interested in seeing a replay of the Cornell-Yale game.  I'd rather see Cornell play Notre Dame or Johns Hopkins or Hofstra with a 14th game.

I agree. We need to be playing top ranked teams in order to be in tournament condition.

[Chris '03]

Why would you get rid of it?

I'm not interested in seeing a replay of the Cornell-Yale game.  I'd rather see Cornell play Notre Dame or Johns Hopkins or Hofstra with a 14th game.

I agree. We need to be playing top ranked teams in order to be in tournament condition.

Typically, the Ivy group produces multiple top ranked tournament caliber teams.  Also, I am not too familiar with lax game limits and the like but I read somewhere that conference tourney games are an exempt way to play more games overall. So you couldn't scrap the tournament and add Hopkins.  I don't mind the tournament from the position that as long as the selection criteria isn't going to change and the extra games will help ratings, the league might as well do it (can't beat, 'em join 'em).  

That said, I'd rather it not be played the week before the NCAA tournament. Why not advance it all a week or two and allow teams to play one game tuneups the last week of the season (bring Hobart back to Slope Day!).  The ACC gets the best of every world at the moment.  RPI padding tournament plus a few more weeks of scheduling other teams after their meaningless tournament.  Of course, as more conferences start up tournies, the ACC will run out of opponents to schedule on conference tournament weekend.

[Al DeFlorio]

Also, I am not too familiar with lax game limits and the like but I read somewhere that conference tourney games are an exempt way to play more games overall. So you couldn't scrap the tournament and add Hopkins.

Syracuse plays fifteen games with no tournament, and Hopkins fourteen with no tournament.  So it's not an NCAA game limitation issue.  If it's an Ivy issue, it seems to me if playing two additional Ivy teams in a tournament is OK why not allow one or two additional non-Ivy games?

[ugarte]

Also, I am not too familiar with lax game limits and the like but I read somewhere that conference tourney games are an exempt way to play more games overall. So you couldn't scrap the tournament and add Hopkins.

Syracuse plays fifteen games with no tournament, and Hopkins fourteen with no tournament.  So it's not an NCAA game limitation issue.  If it's an Ivy issue, it seems to me if playing two additional Ivy teams in a tournament is OK why not allow one or two additional non-Ivy games?

It is in the Ivy League's interest to be hypocritical in precisely this way.

That said, I agree with you in principle; I'd rather have more top-flight OOC competition rather than a tournament AND I'd rather have the regular season champion get the autobid.

[ben03]

IIRC there is total game limit per academic year (e.g. 2010-11) a school can play. This includes regular season games, scrimmages and fall ball - the allotment can be determined by each program. I believe this runs in parallel with the number of overseen official practices that must be logged that coaches can run and attend - hence the need for "captains practices." I do not know the exact number but I recall it being something around 18 total and Ivies may have dropped that even lower.

[Al DeFlorio]

Harvard leading Penn at the half in game one, 8-3.

[Josh '99]

Harvard leading Penn at the half in game one, 8-3.

Harvard sucks.

Penn sucks.

That's a lot of suck for one game.

[nyc94]

Harvard 12 Penn 8 Final