USC baseball not making NCAA Tournament raises a key point about sports TV

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You know by now that the USC baseball team did not get into the NCAA Tournament. The story rates as a considerable surprise, given that bracket projections 48 hours before the selection show had USC well inside the cut line, not even one of the last four teams in the field. The Trojans’ place seemed relatively secure — not a lock, but very close. Arizona was viewed to be much more on the bubble than USC, but the Wildcats made the field while USC stayed home.

Compare all of this to UCLA basketball in 2015 and 2021. The Bruins were viewed as a team which did not deserve to be in the 2015 NCAA Tournament. Colorado State and Temple had better resumes that year. In 2021, it was a very close call for the Bruins, who lost to Oregon State in their opening game of the Pac-12 Tournament and had a long wait on Selection Sunday, but were able to get into the field as a First Four team. UCLA went all the way to the Final Four. The Bruins got a chance to do something in basketball. USC baseball won’t get that same opportunity.

Is this a case of NCAA Tournament selection committees liking UCLA more than USC? As much as any USC fan might hate UCLA, that’s simply not true.

It’s not about liking UCLA more than USC. What it does involve, however, is something UCLA basketball has … and which USC baseball lacks: the ability to generate considerable television revenue.

The NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament is a major moneymaker with a huge television contract. The NCAA Baseball Tournament is not a big moneymaker, and it doesn’t have its own standalone media rights deal.

UCLA makes the NCAA Basketball Tournament because CBS and Turner need schools which justify the advertising rates and can bring in big numbers. That same commercial pressure (incentive) does not exist in baseball.

What is the meaning or importance of all this? There is something to take away from this story: Baseball, softball, and other sports need to create their own standalone media deals for their respective NCAA…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/usc-baseball-not-making-ncaa-171949556.html?src=rss

Author : Trojans Wire

Publish date : 2023-05-30 17:19:49

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