Lost in all this - why does the NCAA do the final four in the pacific time zone?
Nevermind the fact that for TV viewership the start times are absurd considering the majority of the population is in the eastern half of the US, but there have been 8 champions from west of Louisville since the tourney expanded to 64. Kansas (3x), Arkansas, UNLV, UCLA, Arizona, Baylor.
In the final, there have been 8 total runner ups from the western time zone.
Why are we placating an overwhelming minority of the basketball watching and basketball playing population?
There are massive domed stadiums in Dallas, Houston, Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Detroit, St Louis, and New Orleans in the middle of the country.
No team/fanbase should have to travel 6 hours if they've earned a trip to the final four.