Starting in 2010, the Atlantic 10 Conference will change the way it handles its postseason tournament, with the final pushed back a day and opening round games played at campus locations.

The site still hasn’t been set for the 2010 tournament — it could be back in Atlantic City, it could be somewhere else — but the tournament will now end on Selection Sunday as one of CBS’ opening acts before the bracket is revealed. Previously, the tournament ended on Saturday on ESPN.

In addition, the teams that finish fifth through eighth in the league will host first-round games on campus. At neutral sites, those games always drew very poorly because the games were played on a Wednesday and only zealots, or fans who lived in the area, would show up. This way, the games should get a good crowd at home on Tuesday, and then the final eight teams will meet at whatever site is chosen for games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. By having those games on the weekend, it should boost attendance there as well.

The switch will be a big plus for teams that have to play the first round game (teams 13 and 14 still won’t qualify), since they won’t have to win four games in four days to win the tournament. While the top four seeds will have more rest, at least they won’t be playing a team that played the night before.

It seems like a good move to me, though in past years, fans (and journalists) have been able to book flights to the tournament site in advance, knowing there’s a good chance that as long as St. Bonaventure and Duquesne are in the league, you’ll qualify. Now, only eight of the 14 teams will be go, and only four will be certain. On the other hand, that first day of the conference tournament can be a killer.

The site for the 2010 conference tournament will be announced sometime this winter.