Theoretically, changing the format of the BB&T Classic basketball tournament to feature a slate of teams from the D.C.-metro area was a good idea.
In reality, it transformed the once nationally renowned tournament into a shell of itself, featuring two unentertaining and unwatchable games and a third game that would have been just as exciting as a stand-alone contest.
When it started in 1995, the BB&T Classic featured two of the area's most prominent and successful teams, Maryland and George Washington, with two other big-name programs. For 10 years, this format worked, attracting Connecticut, Gonzaga, Kansas, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Stanford, Texas and others.
While Maryland, which plays in the basketball powerhouse Atlantic Coast Conference, has no problem finding nationally ranked teams to play against, the BB&T Classic had been a useful tool for GW to gain national exposure. The old format guaranteed the Colonials would have at least one strong out-of-conference foe.
This year, GW coach Karl Hobbs told the Washington Post the new format "hurts no one but us."
And in past years, the names of the players on to the all-tournament team reads like a who's who of NBA stars: Caron Butler, Marcus Camby, Steve Francis, Raef LaFrentz, Paul Pierce, Quentin Richardson.
But the 2005 tournament slate was less than enticing for most college basketball fans. Three teams (AU, Howard and Navy) were winless coming into the tournament. The game between winless Howard and winless Navy begged the question: "Does someone REAL have to win?"
Rip Howard, president of the tournament's sponsor and namesake, struggled to find merit himself when he acknowledged the change in format in an interview broadcast during AU's game. The tournament usually "brings quality basketball to the area," he said. "This year we chose to shine the spotlight on some fine local teams."
Howard's company was lucky the tournament's centerpiece game was something local fans were salivating over.
The Maryland vs. GW match-up had national implications, something the tournament used to be chock full of. It was the first time since 1955 that both teams came into the game against one another nationally ranked. And it was the Colonials' win over the Terps during the 2004 tournament that catapulted the Colonials into the national spotlight, which ultimately led them to an NCAA tournament bid.
The change in tournament format was not limited to the geography, but also included scheduling cutbacks. This year's six-team, one-day event was no longer really a competitive tournament like it's four-game, two-day predecessor. It was merely a three-game showcase. The tournament's semifinals used to be deliciously compelling because they would determine the match-ups for the tournament final, held the next day. Instead, this year fans were subjected to two pedestrian games leading up to the main event.
Luckily, tournament organizers told the Washington Post the Classic would return to its normal format next year with the Terps and Colonials competing against two teams of national significance, although organizers may keep the one-day format.
Let's hope for the sake of good college basketball that the next time AU is invited to play in the BB&T Classic it will be because it is nationally ranked and considered a worthy opponent. Until then, tournament organizers should return the Classic to its original format.
