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College basketball is far more popular than the NBA in most of the U.S. The exception is in the cities and surrounding areas that have NBA teams.

The NBA consists of two seasons: the regular season and the playoffs. Regular season games are played to determine which teams make the playoffs; boredom is built in because of a schedule that includes over 80 games.

In college, fans from every state have a team and a conference to root for. The alliances are more intense and widespread than their NBA counterparts.

Nothing compares to the excitement and entertainment value of the NCAA Tournament, which decides the national champion of college basketball. Fans from all over the nation become emotionally involved with the fate of their team in the Big Dance.

It's the sudden-death aspect of the NCAA Tournament that leaves fans as limp as a wet dishrag when their team loses and has to go home. The abruptness and irrevocability of a season-ending loss is emotionally draining. But the excitement, before the defeat, is like nothing else in the world of sports.

Players in college basketball give it their all in most of their games; the most talented young men are chasing a dream of playing for a lot of money in the NBA. In the NBA, the leading players often put their games on cruise control during the regular season. That's not a criticism; the season is so long and draining that none of the players can play with the effort of collegians two or three times a week during an 80-game schedule.

College games draw entirely different crowds from those that attend NBA games; the students lend an excitement and vitality that is missing in NBA crowds. That's not to say that excitement is missing from NBA games, it's just a different and more attractive atmosphere in college towns.

In college basketball, the mode of play varies greatly from one team to another. The NBA is stereotyped. All teams play similar styles and that becomes boring over a number of games.

Another advantage of the college game is that teams vary from year to year; sometimes an entire team will graduate. Most NBA teams change very little from one season to the next. Many of the most talented players spend their entire careers (about 10 years) with one team. Trades and young players from the draft can modify NBA teams, but those changes are usually gradual.

The NBA playoffs are entertaining, but not even close to the level of the NCAA Tournament. When the NBA championship series begins, the college season is long gone. And the NBA has to compete with major league baseball during their playoff time.

There's a place for both college basketball and the NBA, but the college game has more fans and will continue that dominance in the future. It's been that way for a long time and nothing indicates a change.

Learn more about this author, Mac Stevenson.
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