Bearcats News
The art of nonconference scheduling
While not directly pertaining to the Bearcats, this provides some insight into how programs should strategically schedule nonconference games. Critics have harped on UC’s non-Big East opponents in the past few years and they have a point about teams like Chicago State and Presbyterian being slotted on there. But a lot of things are out of Cincinnati’s control such as the ability to literally pay to have teams play the Bearcats at home. There just isn’t enough money in the athletic department to pay for higher RPI teams.
But what most of these critics seem to conveniently overlook is that Cincinnati plays in the toughest, deepest conference in college basketball. The Big East offers plenty of high-RPI teams on a night-in and night-out basis. You know your conference schedule is difficult when half of the opponents are ranked and/or receive NCAA Tournament bids. Winning against these teams has certainly helped get UC a high seed in the Big Dance and helps overlook a porous OOC schedule. Of course signing to play well known non-Xavier opponents helps silence the critics even though Big East opponents make up a bulk of Cincinnati’s schedule as it is.
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Top 21 Big East Players for 2012-13 – Not surprising, SK on this list. What is surprising is absence of Cash.
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Track & Field Sets Relay Record At NCAA East Prelims
1200 Club Report: Second Annual Blue Jean Ball A Success
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BEast News
Big East to change postseason basketball tournament format – Play-in games. Love it.
Nati News
Bailey Goes Distance, Continues to Torment Bucs – Hell of a performance yesterday.
Around the Nation
Georgia Tech Target Receives 52 Letters in One Day – There’s a fine line between recruiting a player hard and going overboard. This is an example of the latter.