March Madness 2012: 8 Reasons NCAA Tournament Is Better Than NBA Playoffs

The NCAA Tournament is better than the NBA Playoffs, plain and simple.

At no time during the NBA Playoffs is the whole country on the edge of their seats, waiting for an upset, a last-second game-winning shot, or the hope that they have the million-dollar bracket.

NBA analysts have no clue what they're talking about when they say there is a better brand of basketball in the NBA than in the NCAA.

There's a lot of people who will disagree with that statement, while many others will say, "Amen."

Now, before I start this slideshow, I won't discount the fact that there are better players in the NBA than in the NCAA. That's a given.

Go ahead and throw that excuse out.

So, here's a look at eight reasons why I believe the NCAA Tournament is better than the NBA Playoffs.

8. Television Ratings Say It All

When you look at the television ratings, there's been no contest between the NBA Finals and the NCAA Championship Game.

Now, maybe that's because there are more games in the NBA Finals, but that just goes to show you there's more excitement in the NCAA Tournament.

Case in point, over the last five years the NBA Finals have received ratings of 10.2, 10.6, 8.4, 9.3 and 6.2, while the NCAA Championship Game has received ratings of 13.3, 16.0,  11.9, 12.1 and 12.2.

Just by looking at the numbers, there are more households tuning into NCAA's championship game.

So, tell me...if more people are tuning into the NCAA Championship Game, how is it that the NBA Playoffs can be considered better than the NCAA Tournament?

7. Last-Second Shot for the Win

Although it doesn't happen as much, the last-second shot is something that is great to see.

Had Butler forward Gordon Hayward's half-court shot gone in at the buzzer of the 2010 National Championship Game, that game would have gone down as the greatest title game in history. Unfortunately, it missed.

Still, Butler had a shot at the end of the game to win it. And it was a good look that almost went down.

Other times have proven successful in the tournament.

From Tyus Edney's shot for UCLA in the 1995 tournament to the shot that everyone is familiar with by Christian Laetner and Duke.

Those moments live forever in NCAA-lore, while after about a month of being on Sportscenter's top 10, the NBA's game-winning shots in the playoffs are largely forgotten about.

Quick...name me the last team to hit a buzzer-beating, game-winning shot to win a game in the NBA Playoffs? Don't worry, think about it and get back to me.

6. You Don't Know Who Will Go the Distance

Every year, there is just as much excitement about the tournament as there was in the previous year.

Can you say that about the NBA?

Most NBA fans know that the Eastern Conference is going to be represented by the Chicago Bulls or Miami Heat in the NBA Finals, while the Oklahoma City Thunder or L.A. Lakers are likely going to represent the Western Conference.

Can you honestly say that you know who will be in the National Title Game this year?

Sure, you can make your predictions, but are you absolutely sure?

Is your bracket busted yet? Are your two championship game teams still playing? How about all of your Final Four teams?

5. Second Round All Day

All day.

The Thursday and Friday of the second round of the tournament are the most basketball-intensive days this country has ever seen.

With four channels now carrying games all day, the viewer really is in control.

Think about it, within a 12-hour period, you can watch 16 games, where more than half of them are exciting from start to finish.

The tournaments first two days are a fans' dream.

Can the NBA really give you that?

4. Mid-Majors in Final Four

I'll admit, this is a more recent addition with Butler having made the National Championship Game the last two years, but we're seeing a lot of mid-majors pull major upsets to get to the Final Four.

In the last six years, we've seen George Mason (2006), Butler (2010, 11) and VCU (2011) make it to the Final Four as mid-major teams, although Memphis (2008) was from a mid-major conference, but a highly-ranked team.

The gap is closing every year between all levels of Division I basketball.

No longer is it a guarantee that Duke is going to get out of the first round. And no longer is it a guarantee that all four teams in the Final Four will be from power conferences.

3. Neutral-Site Games

Neutral-site games are one of the best things about the tournament.

How many times have we seen the first day of the tournament where fans from other teams, who are waiting for their team to play, are rooting for the underdog?

Think about the Norfolk State-Missouri game in which fans of Purdue and St. Mary's were rooting for the Spartans to pull the upset.

Now, those fans had nothing invested in the game, but they were just like many other fans in wanting to see the underdog win.

It's amazing how many people will quickly jump on the underdog's bandwagon for one game then two days later, they're rooting against them when their own team is playing.

2. Lose and You're Done

There is no tomorrow.

Unlike the NBA Playoffs, one loss and your season is done.

Players don't reach the second half and think to themselves that they can just come back tomorrow and try to get the best of them. They have to give everything, because for many, it could be their last game.

When you look at the NBA, few players play in the playoffs with a chip on their shoulder that it could be the final game of their career.

For Murray State, there were three seniors on the team that saw an end to not only their college careers, but also their basketball careers, unless they go overseas to play.

Unfortunately, there aren't as many spots in the NBA as there are in the NCAA.

So, for many of these guys, it will be the last time they put on a basketball uniform in that type of competitive environment.

1. Can You Say Upset?

How many times have you seen the consummate underdog win in the NBA Playoffs?

While it does happen, it doesn't happen nearly as much as it does in the NCAA Tournament.

You can call it parity and you'd be correct, but you also have to take pride into account.

Not only do the major-school players want to carry on the name and tradition of their school, but players from the little schools want to make a name for themselves.

Did anyone actually think that two No. 15 seeds in Norfolk State and Lehigh would be power conference schools like Missouri and Duke?

That's what the tournament is about.

Expect the unexpected.

In the NBA, the unexpected rarely happens.

So, fire away.

Am I full of it? If so, why?