2010-2011 Men's Basketball Schedule

[MDZip]

So to boil it down, the real question is would a strong OOC schedule lessen the Zips chances to win the MAC? On the plus side, you'd think a tougher schedule would toughen them up for conference play but on the down side they could be a little more beat up, and have a little more fragile psyche if they have a rough non-conference schedule. On the whole I'd lean toward the tougher schedule, because if not, you've eliminated half your options for the NCAA tournament. Looking at this year's schedule, hiowever, there is at least the potential for an at-large bid if they do very well OOC (like 13-3 with a couple of marquee wins). Don't think you could say that as easily in most previous years.

[zipboy]

Put me in the camp in favor of the schedule. MSU over Milken would have been nice. Overall though I am satisified.

I am much more excited about going to the JAR early in the year for CSU and even YSU than I was for the stretch of games that we had last year. I like the tough stretch in Dec. KD talked about rebuildiing toughness in the program. Temple and Minnesota back to back is a good test. We draw like flies anyway in Nov and Dec so might as well play on the road or at a neutral site. CSU will be better than last year and Detroit I believe signed Ray McCallum' son which should vault them into the upper tier of the Horizon. This is a schedule that with 20+ wins gets us into the NIT which is much better than last year.

[GP1]

Don't you guys understand?........This is a freaking building process for crying out loud. Get with the freaking program already.

Miliken is a freaking great addition...they will try to cover us with denim, but we will prevail with our table cloths.

[skip-zip]

Scheduling a more difficult OOC schedule and winning more of those more difficult games is easier than winning the MAC tournament? I think that one needs to be reconsidered a little more carefully.

How many times over the last 20 years were the Zips realistically close to an at-large bid versus how many times were they realistically close to winning the MAC championship and automatic bid?

In any case, I'm not thinking in terms of 20 years ago, or 15, or 10. I'm thinking in terms of the last 5 or so years, and the direction that KD has taken the team. The Zips have gone from a mediocre team to a genuine threat to win the MAC championship and NCAA bid every year. If that progress continues, the Zips will also increase their odds of getting an at-large bid. We all want that progress to continue.

I'm not debating that a weaker schedule is better than a stronger schedule. A stronger schedule resulting in more losses might make the Zips a better team for the MAC tournament. But they'd actually have to win some of those more difficult OOC games to raise their chances of an at-large bid. All I'm saying is that the Zips are currently very close to consistently having a realistic chance to win the MAC tournament every year, and very far from having a realistic chance to get an at-large bid every year.

My point is that if the Zips continue to get stronger, their odds of winning the MAC tournament or getting an at-large bid will both improve. But the odds of winning the MAC tournament have been, are, and will continue to be much better than getting an at-large bid from the NCAA.

Don't get me wrong. I was in no way implying that the at-large bid could be easier than the auto-bid. But I am insisting that the auto-bid is not an "easy option". And these are definitely more good discussion points here. And it opens up another train of thought also...close isn't good enough when you need that auto-bid. Nobody knows that better than us. One bad game, one bad 2 minute stretch, and even one lucky shot (ouch..it still hurts) and everything you worked for all year long gets thrown out the window in an instant. Heck, even the 1 out of 20 MAC titles that we did win depended upon a last-second shot on our part JUST to advance to the quarter-final round. The possibility of another option exists every year, and we aren't taking it.

[Dave in Green]

Skip, I think you and I are pretty much in agreement on this. There is no easy path for any MAC team to the NCAA tournament. The MAC tournament is no piece of cake. My original comments were simply to point out how much more difficult and unlikely the at-large bid path is. Like everyone else here, I want to see the Zips continue to improve and raise their odds of being considered for an at-large bid. I just think it's realistic to consider exactly what kind of record and SOS the Zips would need to actually receive such a bid based on the historical records and SOS of teams that have been stiffed by the NCAA.

[Blue & Gold]

I haven't read through this entire thread, so I don't know if I'm being redundant here, but I'm, sad to say, once again not too overly thrilled with the home OOC schedule. The overall schedule is pretty decent, but look at our lame home OOC slate:

John Carroll

Millikin

YSU (exciting IMO)

CSU (exciting)

Bethune Cookman

Arkansas-Pine Bluff

Oral Roberts

These are the games we get at the JAR? We need a "yawn" emoticon.

However, I think the overall schedule is pretty good. I like both YSU and CSU (especially beating down CSU). I'm also pumped about Temple & Dayton (the more A-10 schools we can schedule, the better IMHO), Minnesota & Miami FL.

We obviously have an extremely difficult time luring quality OOC opponents to the JAR (the pickle of being a tough mid-major) so I'm happy with the fact we'll get to see both YSU & CSU. I enjoy these geographic rivalries; we should make them annual affairs.

Maybe we can start up a few 2-for-1's with some BCS schools? It'd start paying dividends in 2 years. It'd be nice if @ least once a year we could bring one BCS team to the JAR.

Only die hard UA fans will be breaking their backs & butts in the JAR bleachers again this year.

[Quickzips]

We obviously have an extremely difficult time luring quality OOC opponents to the JAR (the pickle of being a tough mid-major) so I'm happy with the fact we'll get to see both YSU & CSU. I enjoy these geographic rivalries; we should make them annual affairs.

You pretty well hit the nail on the head right there. I agree, outside of Cleveland State and YSU which bring some regional excitement, the home OOC schedule is a real yawner. Unfortunatly we are just good enough that the truly good teams are extremly reluctant to come to our place. It offers them no benefit in terms of RPI or national perception. If they come here and win, no big deal, they were supposed to beat us anyways. If they come here and lose its a negative headline and provides a hit to their tournament resume. As a fan I'm just happy that it at least looks like KD is softening his stance on the whole, "we won't go play at your place unless you agree to come play us at home" deal. It at least gives us some chances to beat some of those good teams on the road which could in turn generate enough interest to get a few more of the non-die-hards out to the JAR to watch us hammer Bethune Cookman.

[Captain Kangaroo]

We obviously have an extremely difficult time luring quality OOC opponents to the JAR (the pickle of being a tough mid-major) so I'm happy with the fact we'll get to see both YSU & CSU. I enjoy these geographic rivalries; we should make them annual affairs.

You pretty well hit the nail on the head right there. I agree, outside of Cleveland State and YSU which bring some regional excitement, the home OOC schedule is a real yawner. Unfortunatly we are just good enough that the truly good teams are extremly reluctant to come to our place. It offers them no benefit in terms of RPI or national perception. If they come here and win, no big deal, they were supposed to beat us anyways. If they come here and lose its a negative headline and provides a hit to their tournament resume. As a fan I'm just happy that it at least looks like KD is softening his stance on the whole, "we won't go play at your place unless you agree to come play us at home" deal. It at least gives us some chances to beat some of those good teams on the road which could in turn generate enough interest to get a few more of the non-die-hards out to the JAR to watch us hammer Bethune Cookman.

I think YSU basketball brings about as much excitement to the JAR as Wright State baseball brings to Lee Jackson Field.

It is a guaranteed win... an easy-to-schedule annual home-and-home for Dan Peters (former YSU coach)... an easy road trip for the Zips faithful... but there is no amount of lipstick you can slather on the pig that is YSU basketball. People in Youngstown don't care about YSU basketball...and people in Akron care even less about it.

Football would obviously be a different story.

[Dave in Green]

Let's just hope the players get more excited and motivated than the fans about YSU and the other teams that will come to the JAR with lower ratings than the Zips. The first step toward having a great record is to avoid being upset and beat all the teams you're supposed to beat. The second step is to start upsetting higher-ranked teams that are supposed to beat you.

Fewer upsets of the Zips and more upsets by the Zips will result in higher ratings, which will in turn help reduce some of the problems mentioned in this thread, such as the difficulty of getting higer-ranked teams to come to the JAR.

In addition to the advantage of Zips fans having a short drive to the YSU away games, hosting YSU may help generate a little more local media and fan interest than hosting a similarly ranked team from out of state. But I think we all agree that we don't want to see too many games against teams with national rankings at the YSU level and below.

I agree with everyone who thinks this year's schedule is a baby step forward. Having MSU in place of Millikin would have represented a big step. I give the Zips schedulers credit for trying, and hope they try even harder and have more luck next season.

[Quickzips]

We obviously have an extremely difficult time luring quality OOC opponents to the JAR (the pickle of being a tough mid-major) so I'm happy with the fact we'll get to see both YSU & CSU. I enjoy these geographic rivalries; we should make them annual affairs.

You pretty well hit the nail on the head right there. I agree, outside of Cleveland State and YSU which bring some regional excitement, the home OOC schedule is a real yawner. Unfortunatly we are just good enough that the truly good teams are extremly reluctant to come to our place. It offers them no benefit in terms of RPI or national perception. If they come here and win, no big deal, they were supposed to beat us anyways. If they come here and lose its a negative headline and provides a hit to their tournament resume. As a fan I'm just happy that it at least looks like KD is softening his stance on the whole, "we won't go play at your place unless you agree to come play us at home" deal. It at least gives us some chances to beat some of those good teams on the road which could in turn generate enough interest to get a few more of the non-die-hards out to the JAR to watch us hammer Bethune Cookman.

I think YSU basketball brings about as much excitement to the JAR as Wright State baseball brings to Lee Jackson Field.

It is a guaranteed win... an easy-to-schedule annual home-and-home for Dan Peters (former YSU coach)... an easy road trip for the Zips faithful... but there is no amount of lipstick you can slather on the pig that is YSU basketball. People in Youngstown don't care about YSU basketball...and people in Akron care even less about it.

Football would obviously be a different story.

They still will likely bring more opposing fans than any other team on our home OOC schedule save CSU and MAYBE John Carroll. I suppose it shows the pathetic state of YSU hoops that our exhibition game against John Carroll could potentially bring a bigger away crowd, but still. At least people in this area have heard of them. Start asking them about Bethune Cookman, Oral Roberts or Arkansas Pine-Bluff and get ready for some blank stares.

[Captain Kangaroo]

We obviously have an extremely difficult time luring quality OOC opponents to the JAR (the pickle of being a tough mid-major) so I'm happy with the fact we'll get to see both YSU & CSU. I enjoy these geographic rivalries; we should make them annual affairs.

You pretty well hit the nail on the head right there. I agree, outside of Cleveland State and YSU which bring some regional excitement, the home OOC schedule is a real yawner. Unfortunatly we are just good enough that the truly good teams are extremly reluctant to come to our place. It offers them no benefit in terms of RPI or national perception. If they come here and win, no big deal, they were supposed to beat us anyways. If they come here and lose its a negative headline and provides a hit to their tournament resume. As a fan I'm just happy that it at least looks like KD is softening his stance on the whole, "we won't go play at your place unless you agree to come play us at home" deal. It at least gives us some chances to beat some of those good teams on the road which could in turn generate enough interest to get a few more of the non-die-hards out to the JAR to watch us hammer Bethune Cookman.

I think YSU basketball brings about as much excitement to the JAR as Wright State baseball brings to Lee Jackson Field.

It is a guaranteed win... an easy-to-schedule annual home-and-home for Dan Peters (former YSU coach)... an easy road trip for the Zips faithful... but there is no amount of lipstick you can slather on the pig that is YSU basketball. People in Youngstown don't care about YSU basketball...and people in Akron care even less about it.

Football would obviously be a different story.

They still will likely bring more opposing fans than any other team on our home OOC schedule save CSU and MAYBE John Carroll. I suppose it shows the pathetic state of YSU hoops that our exhibition game against John Carroll could potentially bring a bigger away crowd, but still. At least people in this area have heard of them. Start asking them about Bethune Cookman, Oral Roberts or Arkansas Pine-Bluff and get ready for some blank stares.

I'd rather see Bethune Cookman. They MIGHT be good. You know YSU sucks. Every year.

[Blue & Gold]

We obviously have an extremely difficult time luring quality OOC opponents to the JAR (the pickle of being a tough mid-major) so I'm happy with the fact we'll get to see both YSU & CSU. I enjoy these geographic rivalries; we should make them annual affairs.

You pretty well hit the nail on the head right there. I agree, outside of Cleveland State and YSU which bring some regional excitement, the home OOC schedule is a real yawner. Unfortunatly we are just good enough that the truly good teams are extremly reluctant to come to our place. It offers them no benefit in terms of RPI or national perception. If they come here and win, no big deal, they were supposed to beat us anyways. If they come here and lose its a negative headline and provides a hit to their tournament resume. As a fan I'm just happy that it at least looks like KD is softening his stance on the whole, "we won't go play at your place unless you agree to come play us at home" deal. It at least gives us some chances to beat some of those good teams on the road which could in turn generate enough interest to get a few more of the non-die-hards out to the JAR to watch us hammer Bethune Cookman.

I think YSU basketball brings about as much excitement to the JAR as Wright State baseball brings to Lee Jackson Field.

It is a guaranteed win... an easy-to-schedule annual home-and-home for Dan Peters (former YSU coach)... an easy road trip for the Zips faithful... but there is no amount of lipstick you can slather on the pig that is YSU basketball. People in Youngstown don't care about YSU basketball...and people in Akron care even less about it.

Football would obviously be a different story.

I just noticed your "yawn" emoticon!

[Dave in Green]

Always up for a challenge, I tracked YSU basketball back to the 1995-96 season, and couldn't find a single season where the Penguins wouldn't have been challenged playing against a team of real penguins. Unfortunately, this appears to be a basketball team with no history to brag about. Captain Kangaroo is correct in pointing out that there isn't much upside for the Zips in scheduling the Penguins. But since every college basketball team in the country has at least a few cupcakes on their schedule, why not go with a local cupcake instead of one from across the country? Just let the Penguins be a local cupcake substitute for a distant cupcake team and not an addition to a long string of cupcakes.

[ZachTheZip]

1/30 CMU @ Akron, 6 pm ET (ESPNU)

Why can't we ever get an ESPN game away from the JAR? Why is it always a home game?

[Jalapeño Zippy]

1/30 CMU @ Akron, 6 pm ET (ESPNU)

Why can't we ever get an ESPN game away from the JAR? Why is it always a home game?

Most are at home which sucks, but I do remember playing at BGSU on ESPNU two seasons ago.

[Zipmeister]

We obviously have an extremely difficult time luring quality OOC opponents to the JAR (the pickle of being a tough mid-major) so I'm happy with the fact we'll get to see both YSU & CSU. I enjoy these geographic rivalries; we should make them annual affairs.

You pretty well hit the nail on the head right there. I agree, outside of Cleveland State and YSU which bring some regional excitement, the home OOC schedule is a real yawner. Unfortunatly we are just good enough that the truly good teams are extremly reluctant to come to our place. It offers them no benefit in terms of RPI or national perception. If they come here and win, no big deal, they were supposed to beat us anyways. If they come here and lose its a negative headline and provides a hit to their tournament resume. As a fan I'm just happy that it at least looks like KD is softening his stance on the whole, "we won't go play at your place unless you agree to come play us at home" deal. It at least gives us some chances to beat some of those good teams on the road which could in turn generate enough interest to get a few more of the non-die-hards out to the JAR to watch us hammer Bethune Cookman.

I think YSU basketball brings about as much excitement to the JAR as Wright State baseball brings to Lee Jackson Field.

It is a guaranteed win... an easy-to-schedule annual home-and-home for Dan Peters (former YSU coach)... an easy road trip for the Zips faithful... but there is no amount of lipstick you can slather on the pig that is YSU basketball. People in Youngstown don't care about YSU basketball...and people in Akron care even less about it.

Football would obviously be a different story.

I think YSU brings more excitement to the JAR than Wright State brings to Lee Jackson Field. At least we can beat YSU in bball. Them Raider boys own us in baseball: they lead the all time series 25-10 and it's been years since we got one of those 10.

[MDZip]

The Sun Belt is attempting to upgrade their RPI.

The Sun Belt will announce Monday afternoon that it will demand all of its teams, beginning in the 2011-12 season, to play non-conference games against teams that have a three-year combined power rating that is within the top 150 or if that school finished with an RPI inside the top 150 in the previous season .... The Sun Belt tried this mechanism once before from 2003 to 2005 and the league's RPI went to No. 12 in 2005.

The Sun Belt was RPI conference number 23 last year. Their champ, North Texas, got a number 15 seed. Something that maybe the MAC should consider?

[ZachTheZip]

The Sun Belt is attempting to upgrade their RPI.

The Sun Belt will announce Monday afternoon that it will demand all of its teams, beginning in the 2011-12 season, to play non-conference games against teams that have a three-year combined power rating that is within the top 150 or if that school finished with an RPI inside the top 150 in the previous season .... The Sun Belt tried this mechanism once before from 2003 to 2005 and the league's RPI went to No. 12 in 2005.

The Sun Belt was RPI conference number 23 last year. Their champ, North Texas, got a number 15 seed. Something that maybe the MAC should consider?

That's actually a great way to downgrade your conference RPI but increase your top couple of teams individual ratings. The easiest way to game the RPI as a conference is for the lower half of teams to schedule for wins. You play more conference games than OOC games, and the individual RPI is based heavily on your opponent's W-L record, so it helps if your conference has a great W-L record more than if your OOC opponents do. Your top teams should play stronger schedules, but your bottom teams only hurt the conference's top teams by doing the same thing.

[ZachTheZip]

Now that I've been thinking about it, I'm ok with playing Milliken when we do as a season opener. It basically gives Akron a second pre-season scrimmage before we head to Dayton. With all the turnover we had, it lets Dambrot evaluate his newcomers and set the rotation better. It certainly beats scheduling this game in the middle of the season like we have done with the past lower-division opponents.

I would still much rather have had Michigan State, though.