How to improve the MVC?

[Cdizzle]

I've seen a lot of discussion about ways to improve RPI and in so doing improve the overall ranking of the conference. Most make sense like limiting any scheduled games above a 200-250 RPI, trying to schedule more teams in the 100-150 range etc. etc. Win those games and all that certainly helps the conference standing and ranking as well as lifting the individual standing of each team doing it. But quite frankly RPI doesn't mean squat if your goal is to make an NCAA Tourney; it can be used against you if it's too low, but we've seen too many cases where a solid RPI [ 30's] didn't get a team in. Anymore it's all about top 50 -100 wins, and that's the dilemma for our conference plain and simple. Scheduling is the only answer, but how to accomplish that consistently is becoming almost impossible. One of the things I hate about the current Conference Tourney format is that for major conferences you have 2-3 bubble teams in each conference getting several shots at top 100 wins against teams that are often already Tournament solids, while conferences like ours present the opposite.

Correct. But even if the improved schedules don't net Top 50 or Top 100 win chances in the OOC, if they result in multiple Top 50 and Top 100 teams in conference, the problem is solved anyway, as now your league schedule is providing the those opportunities. There is a tipping point. The MVC is just a long ways from it.

[Jsnhbe1Birds]

The MVC already has a contract with the MWC. I'd also like to see a contract with either WCC or A-10, although the A-10 would be more tricky with 14 teams. But, the best from each conference from the previous season play each other and the worst play each other and everything in between. I'd also like to see the top 20 teams from the midmajortop25.com play each other. 1 v 2, 3 vs 4. Hell, even 1 vs 20 should be a decent win to the resume. I think Valporaiso was ranked 20th. It could be like the bracket buster was and the teams will save an open date for later in the season but truly i don't even care if it's based on last season's final standings and played in November. If that's the case you run the risk of a team losing a lot of players and being sub-200 but overall I think the risk is worth it and the majority of the time you'll find yourself with a top 150 game. If these two things happened that would be three quality games for the MVC teams from the get go. Add in a buy game and a home and home with a P5 and another home and home versus another decent mid major school along with an early season tournament and that's not only 3/4 of their non conference schedule (9) but 3/4 their non conference schedule with quality games. It's not a stretch to think they couldn't schedule another quality game or two with the three games left. Even on down seasons when you're not good enough to receive an invite to an early season tournament or a midmajortop25.com game that takes four games away but you're still at five quality games, almost half, from the get go. That's a better situation than the MVC is currently in