Unbalanced Big Ten schedule favors Wisconsin gives Iowa a rough road

I don't know if this has been posted or not but here it is anyway:

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The release of the Big Ten's unbalanced schedule earlier this week undoubtedly inspired different reactions from various fan bases.

They were smiling in Madison. They were cringing in Iowa City.

Wisconsin caught a huge break only playing Big Ten contenders Michigan State and Ohio State once apiece, both at home, a coup for a Badgers team 0-8 in the Breslin Center since 2004 and 9-1 at home against the Buckeyes since 2001. The advantage is tempered a bit by also getting perennial bottom feeders Nebraska and Penn State once as well, but not going to East Lansing or Columbus should enable Wisconsin to contend for yet another top four Big Ten finish.

Iowa is positioned to rise in the Big Ten pecking order after returning the core of a NIT finalist, but schedule makers did the Hawkeyes no favors giving them all the league's top teams twice apiece. The four teams Iowa faces once are rebuilding Nebraska, mediocre Purdue and Penn State and an Indiana program likely to take a step or two backward after the departure of Cody Zeller, Victor Oladipo, Jordan Hulls and Christian Watford.

Unbalanced schedules are necessary in the 12-team Big Ten because schools favor an 18-game league schedule over a 22-game round-robin format. As a result, Big Ten schools play seven conference opponents twice and faces the remaining four only once.

The other disadvantage to the format is it fails to guarantee rivalry games will be played twice each year. Next season, for example, Michigan and Ohio State will only meet in Columbus and Indiana and Purdue will only meet in West Lafayette.

When the Big Ten adds Rutgers and Maryland in time for the 2014-15 season, this is a problem league officials should consider addressing. It's worth guaranteeing every team in the league two games against its chief rival so that this predicament doesn't become more common in the future.

Divisions for Basketball?

Play division teams twice = 12 games

Play opposite division teams once = 7 games

TOTAL = 19 games

I'd say the advantage of no road game with OSU/MSU is tempered not just a bit but a LOT by the lack of virtual guaranteed home Ws against Nebraska and PSU. Those two teams combined to represent 1/3 of Bucky's regular season Ws in the B1G last year, not having two easy home Ws is a problem. Bucky has been increasingly prone to losing games at home to lesser regarded teams in recent years (such as IL in 2010, IA in 2012, and Purdue last year) but never loses to at home against true bottom feeders like PSU and Nebraska.

OSUfan said:

I'd say the advantage of no road game with OSU/MSU is tempered not just a bit but a LOT by the lack of virtual guaranteed home Ws against Nebraska and PSU. Those two teams combined to represent 1/3 of Bucky's regular season Ws in the B1G last year, not having two easy home Ws is a problem. Bucky has been increasingly prone to losing games at home to lesser regarded teams in recent years (such as IL in 2010, IA in 2012, and Purdue last year) but never loses to at home against true bottom feeders like PSU and Nebraska.

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Depends if you're a contender or not. Those near the bottom, those home games against dwellers are important. For those contenders, all they do is waste home games against those which it is most important. For example, the Gophers playing PSU only at home last year.

I believe Wisconsin, being a contender, benefits strongly from this arrangement, as the author stated.

station19 said:

Divisions for Basketball?

Play division teams twice = 12 games

Play opposite division teams once = 7 games

TOTAL = 19 games

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I think that the expansion to 12 was ok, the expansion to 14 totally idiotic (especially if Congress demolishes the cable TV package arrangements that currently are forced upon us, which could really affect something like the BTN). But that said, if we're going to have 14 *#&$# teams in the B1G, then yes, west/east divisions in basketball (and football, other sports), please!

cncmin said:

I think that the expansion to 12 was ok, the expansion to 14 totally idiotic (especially if Congress demolishes the cable TV package arrangements that currently are forced upon us, which could really affect something like the BTN). But that said, if we're going to have 14 *#&$# teams in the B1G, then yes, west/east divisions in basketball (and football, other sports), please!

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Because congress has been so forward thinking in adopting a pick what you want format for cable and satellite in the past 20 years that it has been suggested? It won't happen until all tv is on the internet, then they won't have a choice. In fact, hopefully congress will be unable to regulate it and it can be an open market for once ever. I still don't understand why I can't watch the local news of any other city I want to since DirecTv is sending it down the wire. What a joke.

That said, I haven't heard any speculation whether the Big Ten will go to an east/west format in basketball like they do in football. I suppose once you get to 16 teams they will have to.

cncmin said:

Depends if you're a contender or not. Those near the bottom, those home games against dwellers are important. For those contenders, all they do is waste home games against those which it is most important. For example, the Gophers playing PSU only at home last year.

I believe Wisconsin, being a contender, benefits strongly from this arrangement, as the author stated.

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I'm not sure you get my point. Wisconsin typically isn't quite on the same level talent-wise as the top programs in the Big Ten (MSU, UM, OSU, and IU were all better last year), and they have been susceptible to occasionally losing home games against NIT or worse teams in recent years as a result. But they never lose against the very weakest teams like PSU and NE. No game is a waste for them in their quest to finish in the top-4, they thrive on dominating the weakest teams in the Big Ten regular season, and they win a decent number of games against the top teams but I think it's the mid-level teams where they have lost ground in the conference race to the top teams. Them losing to an unheralded team at home not an isolated incident when it happens at least 3 times in 4 years. They have a virtual 100% chance of beating Neb and PSU at home, but they have proven to have a stinker home game here and there and lose at home against weaker teams, games that they assumed would be wins. That's what the other side of the coin to this schedule is for Bucky - the can lose to a Purdue or an Illinois at home, they can't lose to a PSU or Nebraska. Yes, not having a road game at OSU or MSU is good for them, but it is tempered by the lack of the ability to win more than 2 games against two of the likely bottom-tier teams.

Sparlimb said:

Because congress has been so forward thinking in adopting a pick what you want format for cable and satellite in the past 20 years that it has been suggested? It won't happen until all tv is on the internet, then they won't have a choice. In fact, hopefully congress will be unable to regulate it and it can be an open market for once ever. I still don't understand why I can't watch the local news of any other city I want to since DirecTv is sending it down the wire. What a joke.

That said, I haven't heard any speculation whether the Big Ten will go to an east/west format in basketball like they do in football. I suppose once you get to 16 teams they will have to.

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I believe that's because of the television stations' rules. The stations and providers are quite happy with the current arrangement, which is why it hasn't gone forward even though the consumers are getting hammered. This is akin to internet provider monopolies and the entire medical industry.

OSUfan said:

I'm not sure you get my point. Wisconsin typically isn't quite on the same level talent-wise as the top programs in the Big Ten (MSU, UM, OSU, and IU were all better last year), and they have been susceptible to occasionally losing home games against NIT or worse teams in recent years as a result. But they never lose against the very weakest teams like PSU and NE. No game is a waste for them in their quest to finish in the top-4, they thrive on dominating the weakest teams in the Big Ten regular season, and they win a decent number of games against the top teams but I think it's the mid-level teams where they have lost ground in the conference race to the top teams. Them losing to an unheralded team at home not an isolated incident when it happens at least 3 times in 4 years. They have a virtual 100% chance of beating Neb and PSU at home, but they have proven to have a stinker home game here and there and lose at home against weaker teams, games that they assumed would be wins. That's what the other side of the coin to this schedule is for Bucky - the can lose to a Purdue or an Illinois at home, they can't lose to a PSU or Nebraska. Yes, not having a road game at OSU or MSU is good for them, but it is tempered by the lack of the ability to win more than 2 games against two of the likely bottom-tier teams.

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I recognized your point, I just disagree. No worries.

station19 said:

Divisions for Basketball?

Play division teams twice = 12 games

Play opposite division teams once = 7 games

TOTAL = 19 games

Click to expand...

I think that I probably like the idea of having two divisions, but I don't see a scenario where you would play an unbalanced home vs away number of games. I can't think of an example where that happens in sport? 18 or 20 games maybe

golfing18now said:

I think that I probably like the idea of having two divisions, but I don't see a scenario where you would play an unbalanced home vs away number of games. I can't think of an example where that happens in sport? 18 or 20 games maybe

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Good catch.