thesportsfag | my gay sports blog

It’s not surprising that my boyfriend and I disagree on something.  But I surprised myself recently when I argued for the NBA playoffs over the NCAA tourney.  OMG, I’m a southern boy who, until recently, had never lived in an NBA city.  What am I thinking?  My bf graduated from Carolina, and Auburn grads, like myself, are more likely to have attended a spring football scrimmage than a college basketball game.  So maybe that explains it.

Is it a case of graduates from traditional basketball schools preferring the tourney cause of their allegiance? How about people who didn’t attend college at all or grads from non-basketball schools?  Do they prefer the NBA playoffs over the tourney?  Maybe so but, I went to a top 15 football school and I would rather watch the NFL playoffs over the BCS shit.  OK, not a fair comparison cause the BCS is inexplicably fucked up.

So here’s my not so scientific approach to deciding whose got the best format.

Hottest Guys

OK, so this doesn’t have anything to do with the formats, but it’s important to us sports fags.  The college game gets the nod for a higher % of hotties playing. When watching a college game, there’s a good chance you’re gonna say, ‘Damn he’s hot’.  Not so in the NBA.  Of course, preference has something to do with it.  OK, on to the real differences.

1 Game or a Best of 7?

The tourney’s got that ‘one and done’ intensity with every game.  The NBA progressively builds intensity through the series.  There could be several elimination games in each series.  Advantage NBA (Score NBA 1-0).

Note to TNT and ESPN it’s not a “Win or Go Home” situation with every elimination game cause if the eliminator loses they do not go home.  I digress again.

Best Team Advancing or Cinderfellas?

It’s extremely rare that a series upset occurs in a best of 7.  The better team advances in the best of 7 playoff format.   The NCAA tourney thrives on CinderFellas upsetting the big boys and creating March Madness.  It’s a doubled-edged sword as it could either lead to yawners in the later rounds or more drama if that team continues to advance.  The CinderFella is what makes March Mad.  Advantage NCAA (Score tied)

Note to NCAA, April Awesomeness doesn’t have the same ring to it as March Madness, so finish the damn tourney in March from now on.  Damn, I digress again.  Where’s my Adderrall, Squirrel!

Home Court Advantage or Off Campus Arenas?

NBA teams plays the entire season to earn home court advantage.  The NCAA doesn’t play for home-court advantage, unless your North Carolina, but that’s another story.  Tourney tickets are split, not always evenly, amongst the four schools playing at a particular site.   NBA teams play in front of sold-out, raucous home crowds every game.   Way too many half empty arenas during NCAA tournament games for me.  Advantage NBA (Score NBA 2-1).

Final Test

What if you switched them up?  What would you rather watch the NBA playoffs as a one and done or the top 16 NCAA teams matched up in best of 7s?  That’s a no brainer for me.  Advantage NBA format (Score NBA 3-1).

This topic is strictly related to the format, not to the level of or type of play in each league.  So I gotta say the NBA playoff format, to me, is far superior to the NCAA tourney.