Mountain West school presidents announced earlier this week that they are planning to make changes to strengthen non-conference basketball schedules. The past two seasons, the MWC has sent just its conference tournament winner to the NCAA Tournament. The conference produced three or more tournament teams in a four-year stretch from the 2010 to 2013 season. Scheduling tough teams in November and December continue to be an issue for the MWC.
To improve the schedules, the board of directors concluded that they will do the following:
- Use metrics to better assemble non-conference schedules
- Be given assistance in balancing games that are played at home or on the road
- Athletic directors will work with coaches to piece together schedules that better resemble that of the MWC football programs
This past season, Nevada (the MWC tournament autobid), played just one top 100 KenPom non-conference opponent, despite its growing national label.