The 8th seed in each conference is automatically demoted, and the 6th-ranked team from each conference competes with the 7th-ranked team from the other conference in a best-of-three relegation series. The fifth-ranked teams are safe, but they dont get a shot at the championship, either.For the single-match eliminations, the team with the higher standing is given the home-court advantage. When there is a best-of-three series, the team with the higher standing has the home-court for the first match and for the tie-breaker (if a third game is necessary), and the lower-ranked team has the home-court for the second match.