Tonight, the Jays begin their quest for an unprecedented seventh MVC Tournament Title in 11 years, and their quarterfinal opponent is the Wichita State Shockers, who will be 22 hours removed from a play-in round win over Missouri State. They're the No. 2 seed, which is very good thing: the Jays are 16-2 all-time as the No. 2 seed, and have won the tournament the last four times they've been seeded there. And then there's this: the No. 2 seed has won at least one game in 10 straight tournaments, reached the final in nine of the previous 10 seasons and won the title in five of the previous seven years.
They stand at 25-6 overall, and probably need at least one win in St. Louis to feel good about their at-large chances for the NCAA Tournament should they not win the championship. Two wins would get them to 27-6 -- and NO TEAM HAS EVER BEEN LEFT OUT WITH 27 WINS. Not that the committee pays attention to such things (they don't), but its worth noting.
Arch Madness should be colloquially known as the Creighton Invitational. Why? The Jays have a 20-4 record in Arch Madness since 1999. They've reached the semifinals 8 of the past 10 years. They've won 12 straight games as the No. 2 seed. Dana Altman is 21-7 all-time in the tournament. Yup, the Jays have dominated it for over a decade. You bet.
Keith Olbermann Memorial Special Comment: So the other day, I get an email from a buddy of mine. In it, he enlightened me to a discussion going on over on Wichita State's message board about how they're too good for the Valley. On the surface, its not a completely ridiculous argument; in fact, I remember some Creighton fans trying to frame such an argument about the Jays early in this decade. But the truthiness that they employ to rationalize the argument slays me. No commentary from me, because honestly, material this good is funny enough on its own. Some choice quotes:
"Wichita State is a major program locked into a mid-major conference. Wichita State is ALWAYS a good choice when a D1 recruit is looking to play for a school that isn't in the top 6 conferences but still has the feel of a major powerhouse."
"The Shox are being held back by the Valley."
"The Missouri Valley Conference sucks. There are perhaps two teams in the entire conference that could be considered financially bullet-proof. One of those teams doesn't even own their arena. Then you go down the list and there are 4-5 teams that are extremely cash-strapped. And finally you have two-three that are a whisper from DII-status.
Most teams play in Podunkia (tiny media markets) and have little to no relevant tradition. We MUST find a way to leave this conference and make an upgrade. CUSA would be an excellent choice."
And then the cherry on top of the bullshit cake:
"There really is no program in the conference that rivals Wichita State. With our budget, facilities, and tradition, we belong in a conference like CUSA...Just picture the MVC without Wichita State, things would be more even in appearance and Creighton could firmly establish its spot as king of the dip shyts...Add in Creighton-like schools such as Drake, Evansville, NIU, Indy St., Bradley etc. etc. and you have a very comparable conference picture. SIU-C, Illinois St., and SWOMO, are bigger schools but have such deplorable fanbases and program revenues to draw from that they still manage to blend nicely into the surrounding mid-major atmosphere.
Without the asterisk that references Wichita State as the only National University in the conference with a respectable enrollment, comparatively massive athletic budget, tremendous fan-base/local support, and national recognition in more than one sport, smaller colleges like Creighton can better establish a name for themselves... kind of like how Winthrop did in the Big South.
Schools like Creighton or (insert MVC one-year-wonder here) will be more successful without the added burden of a Wichita State. Because even in a rebuilding year like this year, we are still looked upon as the premiere program in the conference simply due to the sheer size and wealth of the Shocker Nation. The vast majority of fans that fill our arena do not wear the colors of a neighboring school. And our entire city, whose MSA is approaching 3/4 of a million people collectively pull for Wichita State University."
As if you needed any further proof, there it is. Or to put it in words Wichita fans might better understand, "Here's your sign."
Also, that's why I was rooting for them on Thursday night. Its always fun to see Wichita State fans be even more depressed and delusional than they normally are, and I have a feeling when its Creighton knocking them out, it'll feel even worse. After all, we're just a tiny Catholic school with obviously inferior characteristics. How dare we be better than The Wichita State University, with all of its wealth and size? Hahahahaha!
One Big Paragraph With Lots O'Dots (TM): Wichita State, with last night's win, is now 16-15 overall ... Gregg Marshall did not get thrown out of the game, breaking his streak of getting tossed from every MVC Tournament Game he'd ever coached in. Before you ask, small sample sizes do not apply to facts about douchebags ... Play-in teams have won just one game in the quarterfinals since the Valley enacted the play-in round ... The No. 2 seed has won its quarterfinal game 11 straight times ... The Jays are 16-0 in first round games of tournaments since 1998 ... The Jays' 10 tournament titles are twice as many as any other school. Apparently Wichita State has been epically upset in the tournament an awful lot, because for a school that is so obviously superior, its remarkable that another school could have twice as many titles ... The Jays 14 regular season titles are second all-time and first among current members of the conference ... Creighton plays is the largest television market in the MVC. Drake is No. 2. Wichita State is No. 4 ... How dare those other schools have more titles than the superior program in Wichita? ... Looks like I picked the wrong year to give up fact-checking for Lent.
The Last Time They Played: We will not be discussing the last time they played in this space ever again.
Pete Rose Memorial Odds: Creighton is favored by 7, and the over-under is 130.5.
Official Gametime Snack: Oh man, its Lent, which means its time to be a vegetarian for a day. That means I'll go to Long John Silvers for the only time all year and load up on some 9000 calorie fried fish, and then have to run twice as long at the gym to work it off. Good times.
The totally random song I'd play right now if I were still a radio DJ: Wichita State thinks they're too cool for school, and it would be very tempting to play a Ramones song for them in honor of this fact. But they don't deserve the Ramones. They deserve Carly Simon.
I'm sorry you had to see that.
Prediction: The Jays have won 10 straight and 25 overall, yet their season comes down to three days. If you believe they must win two to secure an at-large bid, tonight's game is big but tomorrow's potential rematch with Illinois State is bigger. If you believe they must win one game, as I do, then the entire season comes down to one game against a team with inferior talent and a crybaby coach.
I predict a Cobra Kai Dojo Game: No Mercy. This will be the best defensive effort we've seen all year long. Kenneth Lawson the Second will get a double-double, P'Allen Stinnett will score 20, Booker Woodfox will get 25, and the Jays will win going away.
Creighton 74, Wichita 52
You bet.
