This week, the NEPSAC executive board ruled that teams competing in the New England Basketball League (NEBL) will be ineligible for the NEPSAC boys postseason effective this season.
The NEBL teams had until an Oct. 19 deadline to inform NEPSAC of their intention to stay in the NEBL and thus forfeit their eligibility for the playoffs. The teams impacted include the two-time reigning NEPSAC Class AAA champion, Newman, and the reigning Class AA champion, Cushing, in addition to Darrow, Hoosac, CATS Academy, Tilton and Brimmer & May.
There is plenty of fallout from this decision that significantly shakes the NEPSAC championship picture. Here are some takeaways, thoughts and lingering questions.
1. Why now?
The NEBL has been in existence since 2019, featuring many of the same teams over the years that still make up the league today, and there has seemingly been no issue from NEPSAC. So, why is the NEBL suddenly a problem?
I talked to Terrell Ivory, the president of the NEPSAC coaches association and the head coach at Phillips Andover, about the ruling, and he told me that the NEBL's addition of Masters Academy International and Woodstock Academy, which are both not NEPSAC members, triggered NEPSAC to draw a line in the sand.
In an email sent to NEPSAC Athletic Directors and coaches, Ivory referred to a guideline in the NEPSAC handbook that participation in a non-NEPSAC league or event without prior written consent from the NEPSAC executive board renders those schools ineligible for NEPSAC postseason play.
Essentially, from NEPSAC’s perspective, there wasn’t an issue in prior seasons because all NEBL teams were NEPSAC members; Putnam Science was an associate member. But the addition of two non-NEPSAC schools forced them to act in an effort to protect their guidelines.
2. What about the playoffs?
It’s hard not to feel like the NEPSAC playoffs – in AAA and AA – are going to be a bit watered down because of this ruling.
That’s what happens when you take out Newman and Cushing, not only the reigning champs in AAA and AA but arguably the two best teams in NEPSAC, period, over the last two seasons. Hoosac was the AAA runner-up last season, and Darrow has been a contender in AAA since moving up two years ago. Tilton is set to make a big leap this season as one of the best teams in AA. But now the champions of each of those classes won’t have to go through any of those teams.
The champions of each of those classes will absolutely still be earning something that’s hard to accomplish. There are still plenty of really good teams eligible for the playoffs. But there will be a cloud hanging over it. “Well, they didn’t have to play Newman.” I think that’s an unavoidable feeling people will have, at least in the short term.
3. Opportunity knocks for some
On the flip side – there will be more opportunities for NEPSAC schools in AAA and AA to compete for championships. The NEBL will almost have a bit of a ‘Super 8’ feeling to it – the Super 8 tournament in several MIAA sports essentially pulls up the best teams out of their divisions, while the remaining teams in those divisions compete for titles.
There's a case to be made that eventually, this will just be viewed as the new normal. Teams have moved out of NEPSAC and changed classes throughout the league's history, and we'll just get used to Newman, Cushing and others not being involved in the playoffs. But that also doesn't mean everyone has to like it.
4. Logistical playoff impacts
In AAA, there are now just five eligible teams for the postseason – St. Thomas More, New Hampton, Brewster, Bridgton and Vermont Academy. It’s unclear now what the playoff format would look like. You could have a straight four-team playoff of the top four seeds. Or you could have a five-team playoff featuring a play-in game between the No. 4 and 5 seeds, with the winner facing the top seed in the semifinals. The latter is how the Class AA girls operated their five-team playoff last season.
In AA, there will now be 11 tournament-eligible teams, so an eight-team playoff bracket can continue. Every AA team is required to play 14 games against AA opponents, and the standings are based on a point system from those games. That will stay the same. So, essentially, the season will play out as normal – but when it comes time to select the playoff field, the ineligible teams will be skipped over. For example, say Cushing is the No. 1 seed and St. George’s is the No. 2 seed. St. George’s would slide up to the No. 1 seed.
