Very difficult schedule with just 4 home non-conference game. Bobcats will struggle as they play true roads games at some strong majors and midmajors. at Maryland, Kansas, Holy Cross, Temple and Bucknell are 5 expected losses. New Mexico State, St John's, Georgia could be 3 more. Even Cornell may be the preseason Ivy league pick this year. St Bonaventure and Delaware come from good conferences. St Francis-ny is on the road and those games haven't been slam dunks for O'Shea who lost to FIU, American, and St Francis-pa on the road in recent years. This is gonna be a top 10 SOS in the nation during the non-conference, 10 of these teams could be top 100 if Bobcats get into the winners bracket in Hawai.
This is what a non-conference schedule should look like if your goal is to play deep into March.
Ohio has the WAC, Ivy, A-10, and CAA at home......that is a pretty decent home schedule........no crap DII schools.
Ohio usually plays 1 national basketball program in the non-Con. I like how we've stepped it up with 2 this season (Maryland, Kansas).
Lot of East Coast on the schedule.......Ohio is playing games in DC, Philly, Boston, and NY. This should be nice for recruiting.
We play 10 games against East Coast schools and only 15 from the Midwest.
No off nites with this schedule. Just like the MAC, you don't show up you lose. This schedule forces the team to raise its game instead of playing down to the competion. Too often the Bobcats would play sloppy while beating Central Michigan or Bowling Green, then continue the sloppy play losing the very next game. A tough schedule forces the team to play a full 40 everynite just like Kent State, Miami, and Akron will likely do once MAC play begins.
similar to toledo's sched last yr. the rockets also had a veteran team and took some lumps early but were toughened up by mac play and won the league.
Love the schedule. They might take some lumps early w/ the young and new players but I think it will prepare them for conference and tourney play.
Kit-Cat Wrote:Ohio usually plays 1 national basketball program in the non-Con. I like how we've stepped it up with 2 this season (Maryland, Kansas).
Congrats, even though Toledo has already beaten you to the punch last year. With Road games at three High Quality schools in Missouri St., Vandy and Kansas. Toledo had their opps to beat all three, taking both Miss. St. and Vandy to OT and being with in 10 of Kansas the whole game. Now this season we get return games from both Vandy and Missouri St. with the possiblity of playing Tennesse in Savage Hall.
BusDriver Wrote:Kit-Cat Wrote:Ohio usually plays 1 national basketball program in the non-Con. I like how we've stepped it up with 2 this season (Maryland, Kansas).
Congrats, even though Toledo has already beaten you to the punch last year. With Road games at three High Quality schools in Missouri St., Vandy and Kansas. Toledo had their opps to beat all three, taking both Miss. St. and Vandy to OT and being with in 10 of Kansas the whole game. Now this season we get return games from both Vandy and Missouri St. with the possiblity of playing Tennesse in Savage Hall.
When I'm talking National Program I'm talking a very elite group of schools
UConn
Syracuse
Cincinnati
Louisville
UNC
Duke
Maryland
Kentucky
Florida
Ohio State
Michigan State
Wisconsin
Kansas
Texas
Oklahoma State
Arizona
UCLA
That short list of the nations very biggest basketball programs are the only programs OU will play without a return game in Athens. This year we have Maryland and Kansas, last year it was Cincinnati and Louisville. This was because of the increase in non-conference games on the schedule for all schools and the MAC going to 16 games.