Fix College Basketball

The small schools often play a role in it too. Wichita State whines these days because KU and K-State haven't scheduled the Shockers while they are good. But WSU cancelled those series in the 90s when they got tired of getting beaten by an average of 35 points.

Build a good program that will boost strength of schedule and RPI and teams will come play you. Gonzaga gets good home games now. VCU and Richmond host ACC teams. Oklahoma State was in Wichita last night.

You'll notice UNC and Kansas aren't making trips to Mississippi State or Rutgers either.

 

Yeah, and that's fair. Everyone wants a road game from those guys, because it will sell out and be on TV. The same goes for the high end mid-majors like the Shockers - other similar teams who can't get a high major team on the schedule all want to schedule them now. Even if they wanted to and were willing, they can't fit everyone who wants a matchup on the schedule. That's just reality.

Of course, there are also places where the local big school flat refuses to play a strong in-state smaller school because they are of the opinion that they have everything to lose and nothing to gain.

 

OK, one thing I would like to see fixed is the tournament committee relying -- to varying degrees depending on the year -- the flawed metric of RPI.

Because RPI doesn't factor in non-Division I teams the power schools are better off scheduling lower division patsies for their tuneup games than say, Mizzou (RPI 224) or Oregon State (RPI 334!!!). Let alone risk scheduling a mid major you aren't sure about. Playing Coppin State instead of Loyola could be the difference between making the tournament or not. So that's how we get Baylor playing NAIA John Brown and Colorado playing Division II Fort Hays State this week.

Side note, having Oregon State in the league could knock Pac-12 teams down a few seeds when the time comes.

 

Yeah, this idea that the middle-/lower-tier athletic programs are universally second-rate academic institutions is comical. Anybody who'd sneer at a UAB or a Georgia State academically because their athletics programs aren't top-of-the-line doesn't know his/her ass from a hole in the ground.

 

RPI can be tricky for lower tier teams, though. They have to be very careful scheduling, and even then teams that were NCAA tournament good a season or two ago when the game was scheduled may stink this season. Add in that sometimes they win in the conference on the road and still watch their RPI drop like a rock. You can try to schedule to help the RPI, but there is nothing you can do when the bottom half of your conference sucks swampwater. That's when even an excellent season can be washed away by an untimely loss in the conference tournament.

 

TV component is probably explains more of the current perception of college basketball. More entertainment choices and top games just don't have the same cachet anymore.

 

You ever try to watch early 80s college basketball? It's kind of trash.

 

RPI is tricky for everyone, some conferences are good at gaming the system and get their schools to schedule accordingly.

For a team like Baylor there's really no practical difference between scheduling any team rated 200 or below. It's a massacre either way. But if they play No. 201 and 207 it's not going to kill the strength of schedule. Playing No. 317 and 319 will.

 

Probably the wrong time to make this post, with Tech sitting a 9-1 with some quality wins. Three years ago, sure.

 

MARK MADNESS | End the practice of buying home wins | American Sports Network

 

Yeah, I'll bet the guy working for the network* with the rights to a handful of one-bid leagues is all in favor of forcing the big boys to regularly visit little schools. What would happen in practical terms is the bottom 5-12 leagues would get effectively left out of Division I, whether it's from them being banished formally or the handful of power conferences defecting and forming their own organization. It would actually be terrible for college basketball.

*Unless something has changed, ASN doesn't pay rights fees (or just a nominal amount) for the games it shows in syndication. It mostly exists to give Sinclair stations filler programming.