CIAC alters divisions for 2021-22 season
There has not been a completed CIAC boys or girls basketball state tournament since March of 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The five-division format remains in place for both sports. But how teams were placed in those divisions went differently than in recent seasons.
“The pandemic has created a lot of ripple effects in all of our lives,” said Gregg Simon, the associate executive director of the CIAC. “It’s no different for our tournaments. Not having a tournament for one or two years is going to have a dramatic impact.”
The girls committee chose to not fill in all five of the brackets this season. But for one season only, teams can qualify for state tournament play with a 30 percent qualifying record rather than the normal 40 percent. This change was approved by the CIAC Board of Control.
“The only reason it’s going to 30 percent is because the committee did not like the idea of filling out the brackets any longer,” Simon said.
The success in tournament factor was also used to determine the divisions. Normally, schools of choice can move up anywhere between one and three divisions based on the previous three seasons of state tournament play.
But because there were no state tournaments held in 2021, the committee instead decided that schools of choice can move up no more than two divisions based off the 2019 and 2020 tournaments. Even though
the 2020 tournament was not completed, it did reach at least the quarterfinals for all five divisions (LL, L, MM, M and S).
“The committee felt very strongly to not go back another year (2018). They felt using the results from that year was too long a look back,” Simon said.
The boys committee decided to continue to use the formula it has the past few seasons. That formula takes success in both recent league play — including last year’s abbreviated season due to the pandemic — and state tournament play into account. Last year’s league tournaments were not factored in.
State tournament success only applies to the schools of choice. The only state tournament results that factored in came from 2019. There was no tournament the last two seasons, save for one day in 2020.
“A lot of smaller schools of choice didn’t have success in that year (2019), so they will be in smaller divisions,”
Simon said. “Enrollment drives a lot of these divisions. Once you take away success points, enrollment is the biggest piece.”
The enrollment multiplier used went down slightly percentage wise.
There are now 20 teams in Division I, rolled back from 24. Two schools of choice, Trinity Catholic and Sacred Heart, both of which had been in Division I, have closed.
Boys teams from Division II through V can petition to play in Division I this season. Teams have until Nov. 8 to decide whether or not to join the 20 teams in the top division.
As of this week, no teams have moved up to Division I, according to Simon.
The girls basketball season begins practice on Nov. 29 with games starting Dec. 13. The boys start practice on Dec. 2, games begin on Dec. 16.