'Hardwood Classic' format lacking

MOSES LAKE - This was a basketball season that had a little bit of everything.

We had the highs of the Almira/Coulee-Hartline title runs at Class 1B. I couldn't be happier for a classier group of people regardless of the outcomes. I just wish they could have both brought home the golden ball.

Then we had the fun roller coaster ride seasons with the Ephrata girls, Royal boys, and Quincy boys. It provided a lot of late season drama.

Of course we then had the ugly. 

Some of the areas needing plastic surgery don't need to be addressed, but once again the state must deal with another failed WIAA experiment called the Hardwood Classic.

The top brass of the WIAA continue to impress upon the Washington sports world that they:

1. Have zero competitive logic

The WIAA limits basketball games to 20 per season. Now keep in mind, games, not dates, like many states stipulate.

So, it means if a team is in a sizeable league and has to play 14, 16, 18 league games, there is basically very little opportunity to get involved in holiday tournaments requiring a squad play three or four games over a weekend.

In states limiting game dates, it allows a team to play two or three games in a day and get credited for one day of play. This would allow programs to prepare for a final state weekend, where a team must win three games in three days.

Don't forget the brainiacs used to make teams have to win four games in four days while still limiting the number of games to 20.

Sure schools control their own ability to schedule but they are greatly pigeonholded and would be lucky to even get a few back-to-back days of play, but three? Tough stuff to pull off under these rules.

Yeah, guys you really set the bar for consistency.

2. Like to pass out ribbons for mediocrity

Does anyone realize that a team could have finished its season with at least five losses in the postseason. Five losses in the postseason? What is this, the NBA?

This is supposed to be a playoffs not an exercise in let's give a team 4,343 chances to lose twice. Of course the individual regions don't help things with the quadruple-double elimination formats spread out over 32 days. OK, I may be exaggerating, but seriously many district and regional tournaments are allowing for so many losses to stay alive it's comical. Then they spread it out over five to ten days and how does this help the state finals qualifying teams prepare for a final weekend where a champion must win three games in three consecutive days?

3. Must be proud of the Hardwood Classic

Since it's obvious the west side of the state must be better in sports since they have more teams as earlier discussed. 

Right.

Well, we saw this poor idea rear it ugly head in state wrestling and now it continues to show its cracks in hoops.

Of the 48 state quarterfinal games in six classes of both genders, here are some interesting numbers:

* The average margin of victory for the winning teams was approximately 14.43 ppg. However, take out the five games that came down to the last possession (a 1-3 point decision) and the average hovers around 15.9 ppg. Not really competitive. 

Take out the 1B playoff games which averaged a whopping margin of 36.1 ppg and the other five classes still averaged a margin of victory of 10 ppg, which is still an average of winning by at least four possessions.

* There were 29 games, or just more than half of the first day contests, decided by 10 points or more. Of the teams that lost, 18 of those teams that got drilled were from the west side of the state, with the five biggest margins of defeat also registered by west side schools.

I am all for an eight or four-team final weekend, but get the best teams there. 

Solution? Power point-rankings, seed the top 16, play it over two weekends. The round of 16 and eight would be split between four regional sites and then the state semifinals would become the three 'Hardwood Classics.' How hard is that?