Sports

Did Unique Religious Rule Impact BYU Basketball Team’s NCAA Tournament Seeding?

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The BYU basketball team will play in the NCAA Tournament as a six-seed in the West Region. Did a religious rule unique to the school impact their landing spot?

It’s a question that surfaces each time the Cougars are included in the postseason field. In past events, there have been major repercussions.

The BYU Rule is simple. The team cannot compete on Sundays.

NCAA rules state that if a university competing in an NCAA championship has a written policy against competition on a particular day for religious reasons, the championship schedule must be adjusted to accommodate that institution. Brigham Young University has a written policy against Sunday play and therefore will have schedules adjusted to play on Saturday or Monday, even if it involves changing televised or otherwise broadcast events.

How can the BYU Rule impact the basketball team?

The Cougars must play on a Thursday/Saturday NCAA Tournament schedule. It essentially eliminates half the bracket in terms of potential destinations. It can also make things tricky for the committee.

Two years ago, BYU was viewed as a Top 20 team in the field. Its 17th overall rating equated to being considered the best five-seed in the bracket.

All of the five seeds in that particular field, however, had the potential for a Sunday game at some point in the tournament. To accommodate the BYU Rule, the Cougars were bumped to the six-line.

That move proved costly as the Cougars were dealt an early exit. Rather than play a 12-seed, they matched up with 11th-seeded Duquesne. It ended with a first round upset.

The Cougars will not be negatively impacted this year.

BYU is a six-seed in the NCAA Basketball Tournament. It is exactly where they were projected to fall. The committee viewed the Cougars as the 24th-best team in the field. That translates roughly to being the lowest rated No. 6 seed.

The Cougars went 23-11 this season with a 9-9 mark in Big 12 play. At one point, they were a Top 10 team. The finish to the season was a bit disappointing.

BYU won 16 of its first 17 games. It then dropped nine of the next 14. An injury to star Richie Saunders played a role.

The squad bounced back with a strong showing in the Big 12 Conference Tournament. It looks to ride that momentum into March Madness.

The Cougars will await the winner of a play-in game between Texas and NC State. They’ll start their NCAA Tournament on Thursday in Portland.