The WPIAL’s decision to have an open postseason basketball tournament — allowing in all teams wishing to participate — is a good solution to what will likely be a crazy and somewhat uneven regular season.

Schools have revised their 2021 boys and girls basketball schedules as the season restarted this weekend.

Yet, as Moniteau athletic director John Stoughton said when he submitted the Warriors’ new schedules: “This could change about 100 times or so.”

An obvious exaggeration, but his point is well-taken.

Some teams may end up playing all of their section games. Others might play a few.

Some critical match-ups that could decide a team’s place in the standings may be canceled along the way.

The right thing to do this year is have an open tournament — and to its naysayers, it’s not the end of the world.

Critics of this decision say that a bottom-feeder could rise up and knock off a top team in the first round or two. If that happens, it happens. Upsets are a part of sports.

Ask the Pittsburgh Penguins about that.

Any team that is truly championship-caliber wouldn’t allow such an upset to occur, anyway.

Allowing every team in the WPIAL tournament only adds another round or two of postseason play. And teams aren’t forced to enter the tourney. Some may opt out because of too many injuries or a won-loss record their respective school district doesn’t deem worthy of postseason play.

Ohio and West Virginia have held all-inclusive postseason basketball tournaments for years. In Ohio, every team belongs to a section. Postseason play begins with a section tournament.

Win that and advance to the district tournament. Win that and move on to the regional tourney. Win there and advance to the state tournament.

Once you lose a playoff game along the way, your season is over. There are no “do-overs.” You can’t finish so high in your district tourney and gain an invitation to the state tournament.

I’ve never quite understood that system in the PIAA.

Playoffs should have a sense of finality to them. Once you lose, that’s it. The state champion should have to run the table in the playoffs.

That should be true in football, soccer, baseball, softball — all team sports. It was that way in soccer in 2020, which added even more to the WPIAL championship games.

That’s how it should be.

There are 133 boys basketball and 126 girls basketball teams in the WPIAL. They all have a chance to go for the gold.

And. no, an open tournament does not cheapen the regular season. The better teams will use their regular schedule to sharpen their skills, strengthen team chemistry and position themselves for postseason success.

This open tournament is only a one-year thing.

Honestly, I hope it sticks around.

John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle