CARBONDALE, Ill. “”mdash; Thanks to an Ohio federal judge’s
ruling, elite NCAA basketball programs can no longer run and hide
from the schedules of successful mid-major programs.
Ruling in favor of the numerous sports tour organizers who filed
suit, Judge Edmund A. Sargus overturned the NCAA’s 2-in-4
rule, which went into effect prior to the 2000-2001 season and
prevented college basketball teams from participating in more than
two exempted tournaments in a four-year period.
“The court is cognizant of the fact that the NCAA occupies
the unique position of standard-setter in the market of Division I
men’s basketball,” Sargus wrote in his ruling.
“Nevertheless, this role does not allow the NCAA to act in a
manner that restrains competition in a manner that is
anticompetitive, unless the NCAA can demonstrate an offsetting
beneficial effect.”
Exempted tournaments, such as the Maui Invitational and the
Great Alaska Shootout, are classified as tournaments that count as
only one game against a team’s NCAA limit of 28 contests per
year.
Related rules that still stand are that a team can participate
in only one exempted tournament per season, and a team cannot
participate in an exempted tournament in the same season that it
goes on a foreign tour.
As far as Southern Illinois is concerned, the ruling will have a
major impact on its scheduling and future NCAA hopes.
“It’s critical for us because scheduling becomes
harder and harder for teams in the MVC, especially if you do well,
because no one wants to play you,” Saluki assistant
basketball coach Rodney Watson said.
“It was amazing how tough it was for us to complete our
schedule this year.
“The exempt tournaments give us an opportunity to play a
team with a very outstanding RPI and play them on a neutral
court.”