March is coming to a close, and with the end of March comes the destruction of the “perfect bracket” narrative. Nevertheless, March Madness has delivered in every sense of the word, as it has year after year. Upsets galore, top-tier talent, and strong personalities on the sidelines; it’s everything America could want from the NCAA’s premier postseason tournament.
With March Madness comes a bevy of close games, and the single-elimination factor compounds the thrill of it. There is no chance for redemption in March; once you’re out, you’re out. It’s time for sports like baseball, hockey, and others to take a page from the NCAA and change their playoff format to single-elimination. While the thrill of a Game 7 is electric, it is not on par with a single-elimination game.
One of the main draws of March Madness (and, by extension, the College Football Playoff) is the idea that anyone can win. Take Princeton’s monumental upset of Arizona in this year’s March Madness tournament. While the Tigers are a well-coached, fundamentally sound program led by Pete Carril disciple Mitch Henderson, odds are they’re not beating Arizona in a seven-game series. The same can be said for Fairleigh-Dickinson, who shocked the world by becoming only the second 16-seed to beat a 1-seed after they toppled Zach Edey and Purdue. Imagine this chaos in the NBA. The Milwaukee Bucks are a juggernaut; led by Giannis Antetokounmpo, they currently have the best record in the entire league. Now imagine the NBA Playoffs being single elimination and the Bucks falling to the eight-seeded Atlanta Hawks on a Trae Young halfcourt shot. Call me an anarchist, but the chaos ensuing would be glorious.
Another argument for single-elimination across all sports is that the risk of injury significantly diminishes. We have seen too many seven-game series dramatically altered by costly injuries. Of course, these same injuries pervade single-gamers too, but the risk goes down when you only play one game instead of a minimum of four. That means the best talent is on the floor, more than likely, ensuring a quality matchup largely unaffected by fatigue or other factors.
I am not condemning Game 7’s. They have always been an integral part of the mystique surrounding sports culture. However, I am calling for more anarchy across the sporting landscape. Everybody loves an underdog, and the consistent success of the NCAA Tournament, as opposed to the NBA, MLB, and NHL playoffs, proves that single-elimination creates more quality matchups than a seven-game series.
Sports Editor
