Columnist Ron Kantowski: Mid-majors don’t dance very long

Thursday, March 22, 2001 | 10:17 a.m.

Ron Kantowski's column appears Thursday. Reach him at ron@ lasvegassun.com or 259-4088.

This is the column I planned to write last week. But when lower seeds began sprouting all over the big boys' gardens during the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the timing for an essay on how to make March Madness even better seemed woefully off. Like Shaq-on-a-free-throw off.

As a colleague from Arkansas likes to say, "Don't mess with the gravy."

But with the second round in the books, virtually all of the gravy belongs to college basketball's meat-and-potatoes programs. All but three of the Sweet 16 berths are occupied by teams from the six so-called power conferences. And Cincinnati (Conference USA) and Temple (Atlantic 10) aren't exactly party crashers.

Neither, for that matter, is Gonzaga, although the rest of the country apparently doesn't recognize it. With three consecutive Sweet 16 appearances, it's time to acknowledge that the glass slipper is getting a little snug on Cinderella's foot.

But in terms of "mid-majors," Gonzaga of the West Coast Conference is the only team without a college basketball pedigree that is still dancing.

There's really no room for mid-majors on the dance floor anymore. Over the past 10 years, there have been 40 Final Four participants. Only four (1991 UNLV, '92 Cincinnati, '96 UMass and '98 Utah) have represented the have-nots against the have-lots.

Name another sport where you show up for the first day of practice, knowing you have virtually no shot at playing for the championship. If you're a point guard at Kent State or a power forward at Montana, that's the straw you have drawn. And if you play for a SWAC or MEAC school, it's even worse. The Cubs have a better shot at playing in October than those teams do in March.

So at what point does March Madness break off into two tournaments?

Most likely, never. The staid NCAA is happy leaving well enough alone. Just look at its football bowl system. And with all those billions coming in from CBS for the right to televise the tournament, maybe there's no reason for progressive thinking.

But in the bizarro college basketball world in which I live, there would be two 48-team tournaments. I'd run them concurrently, with the little guys playing during the day on ESPN and the big boys at night on CBS.

I can hear Huggins complaining already. Fine. Instead of being forced into the smaller event, teams would have the option of declaring (prior to the start of the season), which tourney they want to play in. If Cincy thinks it is good enough to run the table against the power brokers, then it would have the opportunity.

And Cinderella, bite your tongue over there. I know, I know. Were it not for the delicious possibility of Hampton shocking Iowa State, the first-round games would hardly be worth tuning in. But in a 48-team tourney comprised solely of heavyweights, virtually every first-round matchup is going to be a knockout. What would you rather watch: Duke vs. Monmouth or Duke vs. say, a fifth- or sixth-place team from the Big 10, such as Ohio State or Penn State?

So we'll compromise. What about reserving a handful of wild-card slots in the big tournament for the top finishers in the little one? Or better yet -- how about the two winners meeting in a David vs. Goliath title game?

If you don't think that concept works, just remember Joe Namath wagging his finger while trotting off the field at the Orange Bowl.