MACfan

Each conference has officials that are affiliated with one or more conferences, and are as Rick B. pointed out perfectly as independent contractors. An official can work for more than one league -- MAC, Horizon, Mid-Con, Big Ten, etc. -- but aren't employees of the conference So, when coach Dambrot said that Nevada had their own officials, they in essence had officials that are assigned by their conference office. It's the same way game contracts are handled in football.I think it's now time to start focusing on other things and not bashing the league, or the officials or whatever. The fact of the matter is that Miami won and there's nothing that can be done about it. The brackets are out and it's time to watch as the 'Road to Atlanta' develops. If Akron makes one free throw at the end or doesn't blow a late, big lead, it's over and everyone on this message board would be complaining that Akron got an 11, 12 or 13 seed in the NCAAs. The league has come a very long way since the 1980s and 90s, yet is still facing some troubling times when schools can't draw for football and even basketball!Yes, the Zips didn't make postseason play but you can also blame the fact that there were upsets along the way in conference tournaments that played a factor in NCAA and NIT selections. Toledo, as regular season champs, were destined to go to the NIT since they didn't win the conference tourney (one of 8 auto qualifiers that didn't win their league tournament). NC State, as a No. 10 seed in the ACC, played its way into the NIT by advancing to the finals. Syracuse got the shaft and so did Drexel, just to name a few. By making the NIT smaller by eight slots, it hurt the chances of a school like Akron of getting an at-large bid to the NIT.What it comes down to is that Akron and other schools in the MAC have to fight like hell to find a way for the big boys to play them. It's the same fight that the league has in football. The unfortunate thing is that no one wants to play MAC schools. Find a way to get a message to the AD, coach and even the president that the school needs to beef up its basketball schedule and there is a price to pay to do it! In the end, stop playing teams like Tiffin and develop scheduling relationships with leagues like the Horizon (some), the Valley, the Big Ten, Colonial or the ACC. Scheduling games with many of these schools and winning, whether its home, away or neutral will go a long way in helping the overall RPI -- and especially the non-conference RPI.Finally, stop whining and bitching about wanting to leave the MAC and go elsewhere, like Conference USA. It's not gonna happen! Look at the fact that Miami and Toledo, among others, were courted years ago and declined. And that was before the league imploded and the big guns went to the Big East. Marshall is buried in that league and hasn't been competitive since it left the MAC. The only big basketball team, realistically, is Memphis.Think of the positives and all of the good that has come of Akron basketball in the last couple of years.That's my two cents!!MACFan