Expansion: UAB to reunite with Marquette and DePaul in NBE?

[Edrick]

There is absolutely no chance the conference expands in the next three years and a miniscule chance of expanding in the next 10.

NO ONE wants expansion and there are no candidates. BYU and Gonzaga are the only two programs in the country that fit, but they are four time zones away. There is no one. There will not be expansion. Period.

"Hopefully can have a multibid year"

There will never be a year this league doesn't do that, it's set up for 5/6 now. And back to the original point, that's 60% of the conference earning NCAA credits to be distributed to 10 programs. More mouths to feed isn't what anyone is looking for.

[Bill Marsh]

Location may not be a problem for MBB, but if they were coming on board for all sports it becomes a huge problem for all teams in the non-revenue sports.

Also 20 conf games hurts the conf RPI a great deal. The fewer zero-sum games you play the better off you are for that. 20 conf games really, really hurts the bubble teams. Even moves some that may be in to the bubble.

No, it's not a problem for all teams in non-revenue sports. For many of them, conference competition means a single tournament or all-conference track meet or the like. It's only a problem for a few non-revenue sports which play full com fervency schedules. There are many ways to handle the schedule to ease the travel burden, but if this is truly a basketball-first conference, then those problems should be solvable. The revenue provided by M BB should provide the financial resources to help with the solutions. Bottom line is that non-revenue sports should be able to work with one long distance trip per year. The return that Gonzaga would bring to the conference would be worth it.

I know a lot about RPI but I have no idea why a 20 game schedule would hurt the conference RPI. Nonetheless, the worst that would happen is that they retain the 18 game schedule and everyone matches up with a few teams only once each season. Rotate the singleton match ups and everyone still plays everyone H & H most of the time. The Big 10 worked with an 11 team league and an 18 game schedule for 20 years, so it's certainly doable. The advantages of adding Gonzaga are simply too great to turn down for a few scheduling challenges.

Than why isn't Gonzaga in the conference? If there are so many pluses shouldn't they be in already?

You're asking the wrong person. I don't have that information.

[Bill Marsh]

There is absolutely no chance the conference expands in the next three years and a miniscule chance of expanding in the next 10.

NO ONE wants expansion and there are no candidates. BYU and Gonzaga are the only two programs in the country that fit, but they are four time zones away. There is no one. There will not be expansion. Period.

"Hopefully can have a multibid year"

There will never be a year this league doesn't do that, it's set up for 5/6 now. And back to the original point, that's 60% of the conference earning NCAA credits to be distributed to 10 programs. More mouths to feed isn't what anyone is looking for.

I don't know what your source is, but the Xavier AD, Christopher, said exactly the opposite just a year ago.

The lower 48 states have only 4 time zones, so how can anyone be 4 time zones away? Fonzaga is 3 time zones away from some and two from others. BYU, in the Mountain TZ, is one time zone from some and 2 from others.

More mouths to feed is only a problem when you're dealing with a pie of a fixed size. The conference tournament didn't sell out last seasons, so there are more seats to be sold there. Once the tournament sells out, increased demand means higher ticket prices, which means further increased revenue. More conference members means increased Inventory, which means increased TV revenue. A higher conference profile means greater overall interest and therefore improved TV ratings.

I don't know if expansion would increase or decrease revenue for each member, but I do know that it's a more complex issue than just "more mouths to feed."

[stever20]

There is absolutely no chance the conference expands in the next three years and a miniscule chance of expanding in the next 10.

NO ONE wants expansion and there are no candidates. BYU and Gonzaga are the only two programs in the country that fit, but they are four time zones away. There is no one. There will not be expansion. Period.

"Hopefully can have a multibid year"

There will never be a year this league doesn't do that, it's set up for 5/6 now. And back to the original point, that's 60% of the conference earning NCAA credits to be distributed to 10 programs. More mouths to feed isn't what anyone is looking for.

I'd say slow down saying that this league is set up for 5/6 bids now. With as much parity as we have, our 5th and 6th place teams are going to be 9-9 or maybe if lucky 10-8 for the 5th place team. A 9-9 team has to have the right OOC record to have a chance to make the tourney. That's one thing that makes 10 teams so darn tricky. your 4/5 game especially and even some years 3/6 in the tournament will most of the time be a game where the loser is dangling entering selection sunday. Even this year with us having a great start- only 2 undefeated teams and 3 teams already with 2+ losses. And that's with not even half of the toughest games played. We'll know a lot more in 4 weeks before the conference play starts.

Also, for the one that said that SLU will be added- just do not see it. Right now they're projected to finish 16-15 in Ken Pom. They have to prove they are more than Rick Majerus. They SCREAM mid-major. They problably more than anything else are why we are at 10 right now

[WaitingPatiently]

I know a lot about RPI but I have no idea why a 20 game schedule would hurt the conference RPI. Nonetheless, the worst that would happen is that they retain the 18 game schedule and everyone matches up with a few teams only once each season. Rotate the singleton match ups and everyone still plays everyone H & H most of the time. The Big 10 worked with an 11 team league and an 18 game schedule for 20 years, so it's certainly doable. The advantages of adding Gonzaga are simply too great to turn down for a few scheduling challenges.

The reason it hurts the RPI is because it limits the W/L record for the conference. Every conference game ensures a W and a L for the conference. The fewer games you play against each other, the more opportunities for W there are. 2/4 less conference games gives you opportunities for 2/4 more W across the board. It's not a coincidence that the conferences that play 16 conference games edge out those that play 18 when they are similar in strength. Because as a conference they can go 17-3 in those games to the other being 10-10.

[Edrick]

http://m.omaha.com/creighton/commission ... l?mode=jqm

There's one. You could probably Google around if you'd like to read the dozens (hundreds) more. Everyone who cares to even mention it says it's not happening. And, of course, there's just the common sense of it. THERE ARE NO CANDIDATES. This is idiotic. The Big East isn't going to upset their preferred format for anyone who isn't incrementally adding to the conference in terms of prestige. Unless they can figure out how to relocate Spokane no such program exists.

If the league was going to be larger, it would be larger already. The phantom mystery candidates would've joined two years ago.

It's no happening.

[cu blujs]

Why would a league of Catholic universities add as an 11th team, a random public university located in Birmingham? I'd have to say that even Zaphod Beeblebrox's infinite improbability drive can't come up with that one.

[ChestRockwell85]

Stop with the F'ing UAB talk already. Are you guys serious? It is nauseating. The mid-major mentality has got to go. UAB is a HUGE step down. If we take them I have officially lost respect for this new league. UConn, Gonzaga, VCU, schools like that, fine, worth the discussion. UAB? ENOUGH.

[Doge McDermott]

I don't know why we aren't looking at Duke. Once UNC gets the death penalty, the ACC is toast. No decent schools left in that conference. Duke also fits our profile; it's a private, basketball-centric school. We got the FS1 contract locked up, so its not like they'd miss ESPN. Huge alumni base in New York, so they'd turn up for the conference tournament. I mean, I know they have football, but it's kind of a joke. They'd drop it in a heartbeat to come join us. It just makes sense, right? Make it happen, Val.

NOTE: The scenario I laid out is equally as likely as expansion is in the next 5 years. Just keep beating everyone in sight (except for Creighton), and health of the conference will be just fine.

[BEwannabe]

SLU's problem is singular in their head coach Crews is a hayseed. Rick passed away, Crews was asst and had success with a very talented team. He's a good basketball coach but kids aren't going to find him interesting. So SLU has a problem, they have no upside with Crews heading the program, no charisma = no talent, you have to have some and he's a ZERO.

A couple of folks have it right here-the conference will expand because 10 isn't going to bring the desired result. BE attendance in NYC will become and issue and at 10 getting 4-5 bids is going to be the exception not the norm because the same tournament lacking in attendance #'s is going to burst bubbles