Despite Michigan State Basketball winning the Big Ten Conference Tournament, they weren’t able to get one of the four No. 1 seeds in the Big Dance.
As written prior to the outcome of Michigan State beating Michigan for the third time in 22 days and capturing the Big Ten Tournament Title to go along with their regular season conference, the Spartans deserved a #1 Seed.
To add insult to injury, Michigan State didn’t even get the top #2 seed as Tennessee even though the Vols did not win their conference regular season title or the SEC conference tournament title, was awarded the top #2 seed.
#MichiganState deserved better than being a No. 2 seed -- and by ending up paired with Duke. That's garbage.
— Rod Beard (@detnewsRodBeard) March 17, 2019
Thirty years ago, most people would wait til Monday morning to read their local newspaper, listen to their favorite sports talk show on the radio, or tune into Sportcenter on ESPN to see and hear what others thought of the NCAA seeding of their favorite team.
"I am really shocked Michigan State is not a No. 1 Seed." - @RealJayWilliams pic.twitter.com/FuFBweEuvq
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) March 17, 2019
Twenty years ago, most people under 30 were tuned in to the internet going to every website possible to see what others were saying about their favorite teams seeding and even posting on the comments section of ESPN.com and Cbssports.com articles. Some would even go to message boards and post their own opionions on the NCAA seeding.
Congrats to Michigan State for winning two Big Ten titles and apparently stealing the parking spots of everybody on the committee.
— Michael Rosenberg (@Rosenberg_Mike) March 17, 2019
Fast forward to today, even fans for thhe most part over 30, go to Facebook or to various websites for reactions to NCAA seeding and post their opinions on-line. Now with Twitter and various other social media sites, on Selection Sunday minutes after the bracket was announced people look for instant reactions from experts, fans, and anyone with an interesting opinion. So what was the reaction to the Spartans receiving a #2 seed in the East region?
"Most Quad 1 wins in the country: Michigan State ... it seems somewhat inexplicable to me."
— Michigan State on BTN (@MichiganStOnBTN) March 18, 2019
- @BTNDaveRevsine, on @MSU_Basketball getting No. 2 seed opposite Duke#MarchMadness x #MarchOnBTN pic.twitter.com/4dmPnB58kc
Then came the reaction all over social media and then some. Look at some of the reactions from around the country.
The Big Ten gets a conference-high 8 teams in the Tourney but where’s the respect for Michigan State? A 2-seed in the same region as overall #1 Duke? And playing on Thursday after playing the last game today? C’mon. #B1G #NCAATournament #MarchMadness
— Ryan Baker (@RyanBakerMedia) March 18, 2019
Michigan State, the regular-season and postseason champ of B1G, considered the best conference, gets the No. 2 seed in top-overall seed Duke's region. 🤷♂️
— Brent Yarina (@BTNBrentYarina) March 17, 2019
Michigan State beat Michigan three times, won the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles — and gets a No. 2 seed in Duke’s region.
— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) March 17, 2019
Huh?
The Spartan fans and supports voiced their frustration
Michigan State 13 Quadrant 1 Wins
— Final FourU (@MSUfinalfouru) March 17, 2019
North Carolina 10 Quadrant 1 Wins
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Hm, three teams from the ACC get a No. 1 seed? Seems about right.
— Spartan Avenue (@SpartanAvenueFS) March 17, 2019
It appears from fans to media to even those onlookers looking from the outside in objectively, everyone seems baffled and confused on Michigan State’s seeding for the NCAA Tournament.