2023-2024 Schedule

[GoBearcats31]

Per Jon Rothstein, the Big 12 is expected to release its schedule next Tuesday, 9/26

[GoBearcats31]

UC's 2023-24 opponents, per Bart Torvik's T-Rank projections
(UC is #51, as of today)

#2 Kansas (away)
#7 Houston (home, away)
#12 Texas (home)
#19 TCU (home, away)
#24 Baylor (away)
#38 Kansas State (home)
#42 Texas Tech (away)
#43 BYU (away)
#48 Iowa State (home)
#56 Oklahoma State (home)
#57 Xavier (away)
#60 West Virginia (home, away)
#68 Oklahoma (home, away)
#71 Dayton (neutral)
#86 Georgia Tech (home)
#101 UCF (home, away)
#123 Florida Gulf Coast (home)
#149 Northern Kentucky (home)
#181 Stetson (home)
#186 Bryant (home)
#214 Howard (away)
#210 Eastern Washington (home)
#221 Illinois-Chicago (home)
#285 Detroit-Mercy (home)
#287 Merrimack (home)
#299 Evansville (home)


https://barttorvik.com/trankpre.php

(For reference, here are the AAC teams: 21, 30, 76, 90, 95, 99, 106, 107, 137, 153, 190, 198, 232, 266 -- noting three of the top four, among others, are new)

[Lobot]

Per Chad Brendel, UC had been working on a higher profile opponent for the road game, but they couldn’t get together logistically. It became a scramble to find another team this late.

That would explain why we're playing this home and home. Normally this would have been a buy game.

[swilsonsp4]

Road game at Howard, return game next season https://collegehoops.today/rothstein...ashington-d-c/

Per Chad Brendel, UC had been working on a higher profile opponent for the road game, but they couldn’t get together logistically. It became a scramble to find another team this late.

[GoBearcats31]

Fremantle and Hunter are gone for the season apparently

in other news we’ve schedule Howard to fill our OOC schedule gap.,

Road game at Howard, return game next season https://collegehoops.today/rothstein...ashington-d-c/

[Lobot]

Jeff Goodman says Zach Freemantle of XU likely out until at least January (foot).

Fremantle and Hunter are gone for the season apparently

in other news we’ve schedule Howard to fill our OOC schedule gap.,

[GoBearcats31]

Jeff Goodman says Zach Freemantle of XU likely out until at least January (foot).

[GoBearcats31]

The season/home opener for the women's team is set for 6:00 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 6.

With the men slated for their season/home opener that same day, I'd say bet on it being a 9:00 p.m. tip.

[swilsonsp4]

I was able to speak to John Cunningham before the football game today and asked him when the basketball schedule might be announced. He said the B12 portion should be out by the end of next week. When I mentioned that it appeared that there's one OOC game left to schedule, he confirmed that and said they are in negotiations for a road game. I didn't bother to ask for the possible opponent. I knew he'd never tell me.

[Lobot]

One of the next frontiers for Miller is to beef up the non-conference schedule. I would say that Cincinnati now has the athletes to play a much stronger non-conference schedule. However, I also understand that a coach must balance the likely wins with teams that can beat you. Let's be honest about it, if the current non-conference schedule holds, this is a pretty weak non-conference schedule. Even when UC was not Power 5, they would routinely play two or three Power 5 teams in the non-conference. Hey, I get it. There will be PLENTY of opportunities for Power 5 wins in the conference. Clearly, Miller is putting all of his eggs in the BIG XII basket. Any team that gets enough wins in the BIG XII is in the NCAA tournament. Let's hope that UC does not get upset in the non-conference. That would be a very bad sign because this is NOT a demanding schedule and it may not get them ready to play in the conference. However, this schedule may be designed to give the team confidence. That approach can work. Think Cronin's first NCAA Tournament team at Cincy. They played a very weak non-conference schedule that season. This strategy could work. We will see.

I'd go so far as to say as much as I don't want Cronin's cupcake non con strategy, that's probably what you're going to have to do because the Big XII conference schedule is a gauntlet. It's very similar to the old Big East. It'll be enough to get us to the dance without a difficult non conference slate.

This scheduling strategy stopped working for Cronin when we shifted to the American Conference because we had perennial bottom feeders in conference to kill our SOS numbers. In the Big XII it should work really well.

[leeraymond]

Final 2023 KenPom ranking for each team is listed above. Average ranking is 189.

I'd like to see the final game be a road game (of a future home and home) with a top half Big Ten/ACC/SEC program.

One of the next frontiers for Miller is to beef up the non-conference schedule. I would say that Cincinnati now has the athletes to play a much stronger non-conference schedule. However, I also understand that a coach must balance the likely wins with teams that can beat you. Let's be honest about it, if the current non-conference schedule holds, this is a pretty weak non-conference schedule. Even when UC was not Power 5, they would routinely play two or three Power 5 teams in the non-conference. Hey, I get it. There will be PLENTY of opportunities for Power 5 wins in the conference. Clearly, Miller is putting all of his eggs in the BIG XII basket. Any team that gets enough wins in the BIG XII is in the NCAA tournament. Let's hope that UC does not get upset in the non-conference. That would be a very bad sign because this is NOT a demanding schedule and it may not get them ready to play in the conference. However, this schedule may be designed to give the team confidence. That approach can work. Think Cronin's first NCAA Tournament team at Cincy. They played a very weak non-conference schedule that season. This strategy could work. We will see.

[GoBearcats31]

Despite reports of November 15, the UC will host NKU on Sunday, November 19 per NKU

[red_n_black_attack]

Well done. What on earth happened to Evansville? They used to be one of those smaller programs that you didn't want to play.

They had a few good seasons after Jim Crews left in 2002, but not much consistency. It's a shame too, because there are some good players in the KY/IL/IN tri-state recruiting area, but after McCarty, Lickliter took team in wrong direction. I hope the new coach (Ragland) can bring back some of the magic, but it will be difficult to compete in today's NIL at a school with 2-3000 undergrads.

[GoBearcats31]

Georgia Tech series official https://gobearcats.com/news/2023/8/1...on-nov-22.aspx

The University of Cincinnati men's basketball program has announced a home-and-home series with Georgia Tech. The first installment will be Wednesday, Nov. 22 in Fifth Third Arena, with the 2024-25 return in Atlanta at a date to be determined.

UC leads the all-time series 8-3, with the last meeting an 87-70 win in the 1996 Sweet 16. Both teams were also Metro Conference rivals from 1975-78. Cincinnati went 2-0 against the ACC last season, defeating Louisville in Maui and Virginia Tech at home in the NIT.

The Bearcats and Yellow Jackets are also the nightcap of a volleyball doubleheader against Kansas (1 p.m.).

[GoBearcats31]

Well done. What on earth happened to Evansville? They used to be one of those smaller programs that you didn't want to play.

It all went downhill when they ditched the sleeved jerseys...

But in all seriousness, it appears things recently took a bad turn starting with the short tenure of former Kentucky star Walter McCarty.