LSU Scores Blow for Power Conferences

A major topic of discussion this past week was how mistreated the mid-majors have been in recent years by the NCAA tournament selection committee. Butler is definitely one of the best teams in the nation not from the so-called BCS conferences. The Bulldogs were slotted against LSU, a team from the most maligned BCS conference, the SEC.

Not only did Butler lose to LSU in the first round of the tournament on Thursday, but they came out completely flat and seemed noticeably overmatched in the first five minutes. Sure, things settled down and Butler was in the game to the end, but this game did nothing but reinforce the supposed under-representation of the mid-majors when it comes to at-large berths.

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Marcus Thornton was "the man" for the Tigers, as he scorched the nets for 27 points on 10-14 shooting. He also survived what had to have been a scary moment for Tigers fans mid-way through the second half, when he tweaked his ankle underneath the basket.

Matt Howard led Butler, despite fighting foul trouble throughout the game, with 22 points and nine rebounds.

Overall, the season will be considered a success for Butler. They weren't even predicted to be in the running for the Horizon League title from many outlets, and they dominated the conference in the regular season. There is still a solid foundation moving forward, and they'll have another shot at a big school next season in the tournament.

The main story emerging from the tournament's first real game, though, was the power conference taking down a mid-major in what should amount to an even matchup. Butler had a chance to start off the tourney with a mid-major statement. Instead, chalk one up for the allegedly biased committee.