OCC schedule needs a significant upgrade

[WeepNoMore]

IMHO, our out-of-conference schedule needs a significant upgrade. Let's face it--we play basketball in the SEC, the weak sister, redheaded stepchild of the Big 5 conferences.

Playing an OCC schedule filled with directional schools and schools you have to Google-search to figure out who they are (with a few quality opponents sprinkled in) followed by our SEC schedule does little to prepare us for the calibre of teams we face in the NCAA tournament.

UK, as the "gold standard" of college basketball, needs to take the lead, even if it costs the athletic department some money, to add three or four more home-and-home series with upper-level opponents from the Big 8, ACC, PAC 10 and Big 10 or top programs from the second-tier conferences (Villanova and Xavier come to mind).

 

[TheEgyptianMagician]

You have to play those teams for financial reasons... you can't just schedule TCU and Penn State and all other middling major conference teams as they will want return games and then you simply aren't making money.

 

[UKWildcats#8]

UK regularly plays one of the toughest OOC schedules in the nation. OP knows nothing about basketball. Check this coming season's schedule you goof.

 

[hotelblue]

yeah xavier. why didn't cal think of that?

 

[WeepNoMore]

You have to play those teams for financial reasons... you can't just schedule TCU and Penn State and all other middling major conference teams as they will want return games and then you simply aren't making money.

I beg to disagree. UK is one of a handful of BB programs that has a net profit. In addition, UK and the rest of the SEC are flush with cash from the recent deal with ESPN. Money should no longer be an excuse for the weak OOC.

 

[TheEgyptianMagician]

You can disagree all you want, but there is a reason no major conference team plays a slate full of OOC away games.

Lots of reasons.

 

[WeepNoMore]

UK regularly plays one of the toughest OOC schedules in the nation. OP knows nothing about basketball. Check this coming season's schedule you goof.

You couldn't be more wrong! Have played and studied the game in all likelihood longer than you have been alive.

More importantly, you missed my point altogether: Because (1) we play in such a weak conference dominated by FB schools that care little about BB, (2) our goal is to win, not just make, the NCAA tournament, and (3) we are the self-proclaimed "gold standard" of college BB, we should have an OOC schedule that is the by far the toughest in college BB.

 

[WeepNoMore]

You can disagree all you want, but there is a reason no major conference team plays a slate full of OOC away games.

Lots of reasons.

And those reasons are?????

 

[Geo_Armstrong]

Playing and studying basketball doesn't do **** for knowing scheduling, team experience, and numbers. Cal knows his team waaaaaaaay better than you and schedules accordingly. You get 13 non-conference games. You have to win 10 of them to feel comfortable going into SEC play. Period. if you have Anthony Davis and co., play the world, doesn't matter. If you have this year's team, you want some solid tests, but you need some wins. It's as simple as that. Further, SEC athleticism and familiarity (scouting) makes the road much tougher to hoe than the nation fools would lead you to believe.

 

[TIE543]

Didn't we have one of the toughest OOC schedules this year..?

 

[Re2126]

When a poster has to break out "I've played and studied the game longer than you've been alive", you know the rest of their posts are non sense.

Probably an all time great in their own mind.

 

[bthaunert]

What the hell, I'll bite. Big time neutral site games have always been much more important for tournament preparation than home and home series. It provides a quality opponant and a tournament atmosphere. BTW, next year we play Michigan State, Louisville, UNC, Arizona State, UCLA and a Big12 team (rumored to possibly be Kansas). I ask you to provide another big time program that plays a similar OOC schedule.

 

[irishcat1965]

You couldn't be more wrong! Have played and studied the game in all likelihood longer than you have been alive.

Then you need a tutor.

 

[hotelblue]

You couldn't be more wrong! Have played and studied the game in all likelihood longer than you have been alive.

More importantly, you missed my point altogether: Because (1) we play in such a weak conference dominated by FB schools that care little about BB, (2) our goal is to win, not just make, the NCAA tournament, and (3) we are the self-proclaimed "gold standard" of college BB, we should have an OOC schedule that is the by far the toughest in college BB.

what does the sec being a football conference have to do with our strength of schedule in basketball? maybe alabama could schedule ohio state instead of southern miss and set a precedent.

 

[makersmarkambassador]

BTW, next year we play Michigan State, Louisville, UNC, Arizona State, UCLA and a Big12 team (rumored to possibly be Kansas).

Matt Jones said on his show a couple of days ago, that Kansas is the Big12 team that UK will play at Rupp next season. Also, I am sure UK will add a couple other teams to their OCC schedule.

 

[Ben101er]

UK regularly plays one of the toughest OOC schedules in the nation. OP knows nothing about basketball. Check this coming season's schedule you goof.

And this year would have been the toughest, had a couple of teams been better. Usually, UCLA and OSU are really good, but you have no idea how good they are going to be 2-3 years down the road, when you sign the contract.

 

[yoshukai]

You couldn't be more wrong! Have played and studied the game in all likelihood longer than you have been alive.

More importantly, you missed my point altogether: Because (1) we play in such a weak conference dominated by FB schools that care little about BB, (2) our goal is to win, not just make, the NCAA tournament, and (3) we are the self-proclaimed "gold standard" of college BB, we should have an OOC schedule that is the by far the toughest in college BB.

Well , if we are the " gold standard " ,then what we've been doing must be working .

 

[Kats23]

What more do you want with the name of the schools we've played OOC? Here's another thing I'm sure you are well aware of. These OOC are scheduled a few years out. So when UK went to UCLA, and played Ohio St in the Barkley's center, there is no way of knowing what they or what UK will look like? Ohio st and UCLA on paper look like good teams.

 

[wild mandu]

You're misguided. Our OOC schedule is always tough, that's never been the problem.

We can schedule Kansas, Duke, UNC, UCLA, Michigan State, Indiana, UL, Ohio State, Virginia, Villanova and Arizona, but if you lose to Auburn and Tennessee...

I vote for leaving the conference.

 

[turkeywildturkey]

IMHO, our out-of-conference schedule needs a significant upgrade. Let's face it--we play basketball in the SEC, the weak sister, redheaded stepchild of the Big 5 conferences.

Playing an OCC schedule filled with directional schools and schools you have to Google-search to figure out who they are (with a few quality opponents sprinkled in) followed by our SEC schedule does little to prepare us for the calibre of teams we face in the NCAA tournament.

UK, as the "gold standard" of college basketball, needs to take the lead, even if it costs the athletic department some money, to add three or four more home-and-home series with upper-level opponents from the Big 8, ACC, PAC 10 and Big 10 or top programs from the second-tier conferences (Villanova and Xavier come to mind).

Let me get this straight. We played Kansas, Duke, Louisville, Arizona State, UCLA and Ohio State. The strength of the first 3 teams needs no explaining. The other 3 were all expected to be better when we scheduled them, and UCLA and Ohio State beats us. So did Kansas. So, we go 3-3 against these teams. How much tougher do you want to make it? No one else plays an OOC schedule like we do year in and year out.

 

[seccats04]

Let me get this straight. We played Kansas, Duke, Louisville, Arizona State, UCLA and Ohio State. The strength of the first 3 teams needs no explaining. The other 3 were all expected to be better when we scheduled them, and UCLA and Ohio State beats us. So did Kansas. So, we go 3-3 against these teams. How much tougher do you want to make it? No one else plays an OOC schedule like we do year in and year out.

True, but we need a tough OOC schedule because we play in the crappy SEC. I am more excited for the OOC games because we usually play some good teams. It's just getting old playing all these scrub teams from the SEC who only get up to play us. I really wish we'd move to the Big 10 or ACC where we'd be in a better bball conference and could be more competitive in fball.

 

[awf]

Didn't we have one of the toughest OOC schedules this year..?

Shhhh! Let Weepnomore weep.....

 

[RacerX.ksr]

Are you guys saying the OP is an idiot? It sure seems that way. I guess I would agree, but he's probably just ignorant though.

 

[RoyKent]

Gotta love when random tools show up and proclaim to know more than everyone, spouting of nonsense and then when facts are thrown his way he mysteriously disappears.

OP - congrats, you have won the "Douche of the week" award!!

 

[WeWant9]

We typically play one of the tougher OOC schedules. It's easy to say schedule a bunch of P5 teams, but you never know how they'll be since schedules are made in advance. I thought playing ASU would be a great test and resume boost this year, and they went on to be below .500.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

Fail thread. Sorry we can't schedule the Spain National Team and Golden State..

 

[DelkBowl]

OP is right. Everyone else in the country can play them except us. It's only fair that way next year. :boxing:

 

[catzfanjim]

You couldn't be more wrong! Have played and studied the game in all likelihood longer than you have been alive.

More importantly, you missed my point altogether: Because (1) we play in such a weak conference dominated by FB schools that care little about BB, (2) our goal is to win, not just make, the NCAA tournament, and (3) we are the self-proclaimed "gold standard" of college BB, we should have an OOC schedule that is the by far the toughest in college BB.

 

[K_TIME]

What the hell, I'll bite. Big time neutral site games have always been much more important for tournament preparation than home and home series. It provides a quality opponant and a tournament atmosphere. BTW, next year we play Michigan State, Louisville, UNC, Arizona State, UCLA and a Big12 team (rumored to possibly be Kansas). I ask you to provide another big time program that plays a similar OOC schedule.

Exactly...

You get around 13-14 non conference games. If we play those 6 above, roughly half of our OOC will be elite or solid squads from a power 5 conference. Hardly anybody does as much as we do.

 

[Xception]

We could have more titles than Duke , UNC , UL and lol Kansas if only we were more prepared .

 

[CatPhight_rivals65113]

You couldn't be more wrong! Have played and studied the game in all likelihood longer than you have been alive.

[laughing] what a butt nugget of wisdom

 

[shutzhund]

IMHO, our out-of-conference schedule needs a significant upgrade. Let's face it--we play basketball in the SEC, the weak sister, redheaded stepchild of the Big 5 conferences.

Playing an OCC schedule filled with directional schools and schools you have to Google-search to figure out who they are (with a few quality opponents sprinkled in) followed by our SEC schedule does little to prepare us for the calibre of teams we face in the NCAA tournament.

UK, as the "gold standard" of college basketball, needs to take the lead, even if it costs the athletic department some money, to add three or four more home-and-home series with upper-level opponents from the Big 8, ACC, PAC 10 and Big 10 or top programs from the second-tier conferences (Villanova and Xavier come to mind).

Yeah, we should take a young team out and get their heads constantly thumped before they ever get their feet on the ground. Makes good sense. Sort of like whipping a kindergartner for not answering a question on calculus correctly.

 

[WeepNoMore]

Gotta love when random tools show up and proclaim to know more than everyone, spouting of nonsense and then when facts are thrown his way he mysteriously disappears.

OP - congrats, you have won the "Douche of the week" award!!

Been around this board for quite a long time and have no plans to disappear any time soon! :sunglasses:

Only post when I have something to day, unlike a lot, not all, of the posters in this thread who will post any kind of garbage or criticism to increase their sacred post counts. :sunglasses::sunglasses::sunglasses:

As far as "Douche of the week", I have far too many highly qualified competitors to be in the running for such a prestigious award. :sunglasses: :sunglasses: :sunglasses:

 

[JonathanW_rivals]

Every year we have a top 10 non-Conf schedule. But it could be better. As already stated, major Conf schools expect a H&H, which doesn't work financially. So each year you have to figure out who will be the good/decent small Conf teams.

 

[Rockford]

IMHO, our out-of-conference schedule needs a significant upgrade. Let's face it--we play basketball in the SEC, the weak sister, redheaded stepchild of the Big 5 conferences.

Playing an OCC schedule filled with directional schools and schools you have to Google-search to figure out who they are (with a few quality opponents sprinkled in) followed by our SEC schedule does little to prepare us for the calibre of teams we face in the NCAA tournament.

UK, as the "gold standard" of college basketball, needs to take the lead, even if it costs the athletic department some money, to add three or four more home-and-home series with upper-level opponents from the Big 8, ACC, PAC 10 and Big 10 or top programs from the second-tier conferences (Villanova and Xavier come to mind).

[roll]

Wow. Just wow.

 

[Mike-D]

Get your Troll on.

 

[WeepNoMore]

When a poster has to break out "I've played and studied the game longer than you've been alive", you know the rest of their posts are non sense.

Probably an all time great in their own mind.

Far from an all-time great, but actually playing the game does provide a perspective that many of you spectator-only posters obviously lack.

Simply watching someone paint a portrait and reading all of the how-to-paint publications in no way makes a person qualified to be an art critic, something many, not all, of the posters in this thread simply can't comprehend. :sunglasses:

 

[DCFseattle]

Cal sets a schedule up to get the best out of his teams.

he always has marquee teams in there, always.
he also tries to schedule as many OOC tournament quality teams as he can, judging by either past success or what he projects them to be in the future. the biggest of the big at neutral sites to simulate as much as one can the tournament environment.

even the Popcorn States of the world that he schedules, he believes they are capable of winning their conference, thus being a team you'd see in the first couple rounds of the NCAA tournament.

this is his philosophy, as stated by him.

he also knows by now that his roster is gonna be one of the youngest each year, so while he wants to challenge them and prepare them for the tournament, as well as their future pro careers, he also wants to instill confidence rather than marching them out and getting them hammered two times a week for two and a half months.

but you know better than he does about it.
that's why you're the coach and Cal is just some dude.

 

[LadyCaytIL]

The OP is trolling. you guys are just feeding him.

 

[uk78_rivals88018]

Back to the premise rather than the put downs.....

It is true that when you play less talented teams you make plays that won't occur against the good teams. Skal was pretty good when we played crappy teams, wasn't he? He generally stunk when we faced good teams. I do think Kentucky is like most of the very top programs they play some high school teams and some possible championship teams. I do think, though, it might be better for the team to have one or two of those tough match-ups later in the season to fine tune. Just playing some marginal SEC teams may give a false sense of ability.