(01-31-2018 04:32 PM)MU88 Wrote:  Dayton? No chance. Besides being in X's market, they did a nice job of ticking off Marquette back in the early 2000s. Dayton is also a distant 4th in their market behind UC, X and OSU. As for SLU, besides being a doormat, their President at the time was a bit nuts, which didn't help their cause. Also, while St. Louis is a good size city, it isn't known has a being a big supporter of basketball, college or pro. SLU has very little fan support., even Siena outdrew SLU last year.

In short, I have no problems with Butler being in the Big East. If they were looking to expand, I don't think I would put SLU or Dayton on the top of the list. They simply don't add anything to the conference.

Dayton is not even in the same CSA as Cincinnati let alone MSA or TV market. Therefore, it is its own market and the only game in town. I can buy the politics angle but not that it in any way shape or form is too close to Cincinnati. Even Ohio State is at best an equal partner in the market when it comes to college basketball.

SLU still has more long term potential than Butler, even with everything you said. If they start winning, they can be the team in St. Louis. Butler almost won two straight national titles and still isn't bigger than Indiana in Indianapolis. They're just that other team people get behind when Indiana isn't playing.