Weekend Watch: Bias Test
Opinion
| BYU
| California
| Dayton
| Florida
| Florida State
| Georgia Tech
| Liberty
| Michigan State
| Minnesota
| Montana
| NDSU
| Northeastern
| Northern Arizona
| St. Thomas
| Stanford
| UC San Diego
| UC Santa Barbara
| UNC-Charlotte
| USC
| Wake Forest
(Photo by Ross Kohl)
by Jac Coyne | MCLA.us
LA CROSSE, Wis. – For the first 20 years of the MCLA Division I, there were always moans of “West Coast Bias” from those outside the three western-most conferences – RMLC, SLC and WCLL.
Those three conferences seemed to snag all of the choicest spots in the poll, all the posh seeds and infest the top two or three All-America teams.
Much to the chagrin of grousers in the other parts of the MCLA footprint, there was actually a pretty decent reason for this.
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Other than a three-year Michigan window, every single championship went to one of the Big Three’s teams from 1997-2017.
Membership has its privileges.
That narrative was starting to shift. Michigan State was crowned in 2018 and South Carolina sat in the king’s chair at the conclusion of 2019 – the first time an SELC team had won the championship.
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— 2022 MCLA National Tourney (@MCLA_Tournament) April 4, 2022
Things obviously got discombobulated the following two seasons, but the current Top 10 in the D-I New Balance poll show that the power balance has still tilted eastward. Seven of the top ten outfits are from outside the Big Three.
Alas, the top two teams – Brigham Young and Concordia-Irvine – reside in the old guard’s territory.
Which is why Friday night’s (Saturday morning?) contest between top-ranked BYU and No. 3 Liberty is so compelling.
We get a midseason test of where the power lies at this point.
Obviously, it won’t be anything definitive. Only the eventual champion will determine which area has the momentum, but it will certainly be of great interest to the selection/seeding committee. These games can shape narratives.
And it’s not just in Division I. After owning D-II for nearly a decade, the UMLC’s stranglehold on the division has loosened considerably.
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— 2022 MCLA National Tourney (@MCLA_Tournament) April 4, 2022
The conference usually owned six of the top eight spots in the poll, but now the UMLC has three Top 10 teams with the top team being ranked No. 3. Is it the start of a pendulum swing in that division, too?
We shall see.
The Midnight Madness game is, fundamentally, going to be a fantastic watch in a fun setting.
But it will also act as a significant bias test.
GAMES I’M FOLLOWING
Michigan State at No. 9 Minnesota, Friday – 7 p.m.
The Spartans appear to be the only remaining team standing between the Gophers and a runaway UMLC championship. Since this is the first of likely two meetings between these traditional B1G foes – the second, of course, being in the UMLC title game – we’ll get a feel as to whether State has the juice to make things interesting.
No. 21 Northern Arizona at No. 13 UC San Diego, Saturday – 12 p.m.
This game could also be a preview of a championship game, in this case the SLC-II title tilt. San Marcos still has something to say about how the south subdivision shapes up, but the Lumberjacks have the North locked down. Goalie play will be pivotal in this outcome (as it usually is).
No. 23 UC Santa Barbara at Stanford, Saturday – 1 p.m.
The Gauchos are an interesting team. They got bamboozled by Boston College and have a perplexing rout at the hands of SDSU, but every other loss – including games against Cal, Concordia-Irvine and USC – was by two goals or less. Now UCSB is on the cusp of qualifying for the WCLL tournament. All they need is this win over Stanford. That would leave them a win over Cal Poly away from a one seed in the conference tourney.
No. 14 USC at No. 7 California, Saturday – 1 p.m.
Speaking of the Trojans and Bears, they both head to Reno for a neutral affair. It’s the last ranked non-conference opponent on the docket for both of them. As such, it’ll be a nice momentum builder for the winner heading into their respective conference tourneys.
No. 12 Montana vs. No. 11 North Dakota State, Saturday – 2 p.m.
Conventional wisdom would say these two teams are comfortably into the D-II field of 16 at this point, but both have lost two of their last three games. Picking up a Top 15 win at this point of the season would be a nice feather in one of these team’s caps and will come in handy during the seeding process.
No. 4 Dayton at No. 3 St. Thomas, Saturday – 7 p.m.
The last time these squads paired off was in the 2019 D-II championship game in Salt Lake City. Man, that feels like a lifetime ago. Anyway, both are serious contenders to make it back to the Round Rock version of the finals. This is when both of these teams traditionally round into form, so I see this as a serious indicator of what we can expect from both at the UMLC tournament and nationals.
No. 4 Florida at Florida State, Saturday – 7:30 p.m.
It’s a been a while since the Gators were the bully in this matchup, but there is no question they are the huge favorites. Florida has been taking care of business all season and the Seminoles are on a four-game skid. That’s why the Gators should be nervous. Every one of FSU’s losses is to a ranked team, so if they poach the Gators this weekend, they not only bag a huge Top 5 win but also grab the top seed in the SELC south. Rivalry games can get pretty funky, too.
No. 16 UNC-Charlotte at No. 20 Wake Forest, Sunday – 12 p.m.
The winner is in the driver’s seat for the top seed in the ALC. If the Demon Deacons win it, they lock up the top spot. If the 49ers take it, they still have a little work to do, but would be presumptive favorites. Coastal Carolina is probably the only one who can upset the apple cart and potentially create a three-way tie. Thankfully, we love tiebreakers here at the Watch.
No. 8 Georgia Tech at No. 15 Northeastern, Sunday – 1 p.m.
Listen, I grew up in Boston. It’s not exactly the greatest spot for an early-April lacrosse game, but I do give props to the Ramblin’ Wreck for making the journey and giving the CLC a desperately needed non-conference home game. And they’ll get to walk the Freedom Trail! Anyway, a win here by the Huskies and they would be favorites in the CLC and a serious at-large candidate.