So, two pieces of big news for MBB today....one of them OMG! and one of them more on the routine side.
The huge news is that Anthony Stacey will be returning to BG. It is safe to say that it was well received in the Falcon Nation. Stacey is our second leading scorer all-time, MAC POY and twice All-MAC... and one of our most popular players ever. He was an assistant for Huger for five years, staying with BG through the COVID-cancelled tournament, where BG may have lost a real shot...and then went to Whitmer. His supporters point to the fact that his departure coincided with the decline of the Huger program. He is known as a good coach and is very well liked by the players. He has also been very successful at the HS level...took Whitmer to the State Final Four. We have a player, Mekhi Leary, who played at Whitmer.
Welcome home, Anthony.
The other news is that the schedule is out. Dropped only one day from the season ticket renewal deadline, the schedule is about what we have come to expect.
First, we have 3 non-D1 games. I am on the record as being against this. I think one is fine. Two is OK. Beyond that, it's just not right. Yes, I'd rather we played on the road. (They are Bethany College, DIII, 7-18 last year; Aquinas College, NAIA, 14-15 last year; Siena Heights, 8-20).
There is one P4 on the schedule--Kansas State, where Marcus Johnson is playing.
D1 Home games
Texas State, part of Sun Belt Challenge, 16-26 last year.
Le Moyne...D1...but one of the 10 worst D1 teams last year.
William & Mary....good mid-major home and home. 17-15 last year.
Utah Valley....Last year's WAC regular-season champion. KenPom was #112. Good mid-major game at the Stroh.
Chicago State--we seem to play them a lot. 4-28 last year. Beat Le Moyne. 3rd worst team in D1.
Away and neutral games:
Davidson--assuming it is home and home, it is a good one. 17-16 last year, KenPom 147.
Bucknell, in Ft. Myers. Won the Patriot League last year. Appeared in 17 and 18 Dance. Won a game in 09.
VMI, also in Ft. Myers. 13-18 last year. Have three Dance appearances , including in the Elite Eight in 1976.
Kansas State....16-17 last year. KenPom of 65.
We talked earlier that MAC play is starting before New Year's, so BG opens with Miami in 2025.
.jpg)
As a one-bid league, the role of non conference schedules center exclusively around preparing the team for MAC play. With rosters in flux to the degree they are with 10+ new players each year, games that allow different lineup combinations to be experimented with and still allow the team a good chance of winning seems like a good strategy.
ReplyDeleteIt's meant to pad records and stats. You'd want to test lineups against like competition...
ReplyDeleteThat is true, but with Kansas State, Utah Valley and a few of the others it balances out
ReplyDelete