A look at our remaining games by quadrant! A reminder of how it works:
Home: Q1 #1-30, Q2 #31-75, Q3 #76-160, Q4 #161-353
Neutral: Q1 #1-50, Q2 #51-100, Q3 #101-200, Q4 #201-353
Away: Q1 #1-75, Q2 #76-135, Q3 #135-240, Q4 #241-353
Wins in green, losses in red and future games in normal font. Neutral site games will always have the location in parentheses, and within each tier the teams are listed by NET ranking - NOT by how close that game is to moving from one tier to another.
Quad 1: 3-3
L 64-66 vs. #2 Tennessee
L 87-100 vs. #10 Alabama (Birmingham, AL)
W 109-77 at #23 Oregon
W 90-77 vs. #37 Arkansas (Kansas City, MO)
L 66-70 in OT at #45 Northwestern
W 80-77 vs. #48 Missouri (St. Louis, MO)
vs. #3 Duke (New York, NY)
at #11 Michigan
vs. #15 UCLA
vs. #17 Maryland
vs. #21 Ohio State
at #26 Michigan State
vs. #26 Michigan State
at #33 Wisconsin
at #44 Nebraska
at #62 Indiana
Quad 2: 1-0
W 86-80 vs. #33 Wisconsin
vs. #31 Purdue
vs. #41 Penn State
vs. #45 Northwestern
vs. #49 Iowa
at #84 Rutgers
at #95 Washington
Quad 3: 0-0
vs. #91 USC
at #165 Minnesota
Quad 4: 6-0
W 66-54 vs. #202 Oakland
W 92-34 vs. #208 Little Rock
W 90-58 vs. #246 SIU Edwardsville
W 112-67 vs. #292 Eastern Illinois
W 87-40 vs. #355 Maryland Eastern Shore
W 117-64 vs. #356 Chicago State
So my initial thoughts:
1. If you think that seems like a huge number of Quad 1 games, you are right! We had played 11 Quad 1 games last year before the BTT, and this would be SIXTEEN, with home games vs. Purdue and Wisconsin being RIGHT on the edge.
2. A lot of our games are actually pretty "safe" right now. None of our Quad 1 losses are likely to fall to Quad 2, and Mizzou is the only of our Quad 1 wins that is in any jeopardy of slipping (at least right now, and unless Arkansas collapses). As much as it sucks, root for Mizzou to stay in the top 50. It isn't just good for our resume, it is better for the rivalry long-term for us to beat GOOD Mizzou teams every year in a great environment in St. Louis!
3. On that note, I always find it kind of fun to watch teams' NET ranking and hope they can slide into the next tier up, haha. I have zero faith Wisconsin will regain Quad 1 status at home (i.e., top 30), but I think Purdue can sneak back in there. Looking just at today's rankings, we are very lucky to get #11 Michigan, #15 UCLA, #17 Maryland and #21 Ohio State only at home. They are ALL Quad 1 opportunities on our own home floor.
4. I really want Rutgers to get it together and get back into the top 75. They are REALLY struggling, and right now that away game is Quad 2. While I think we are the better team, that game scares me right now ... RU has a ton of talent, and the RAC is one of the best atmospheres in the Big Ten when it is "on." Yeah, I know we destroyed them there last year, but ... many more losses there by some of our good teams before that!!
5. We have such an exciting schedule left with so many opportunities for big wins and very few opportunities for resume-hurting losses. Right now, there are only two games I will watch with more anxiety than enjoyment - January 11th at home vs. USC and February 8th at Minnesota. Those are our only two remaining Quad 3+ games, and we cannot lose either one, period. I don't think we will, but I have a much easier time enjoying those Quad 1 and Quad 2 opportunities ... MUCH less stressful!!
6. Here are a few games of ours that are currently close to sliding up or down:
- Quad 1 win vs. #48 Missouri in St. Louis becomes Quad 2 if they fall out of the top 50.
- Quad 1 road game at #62 Indiana becomes Quad 2 if they fall out of the top 75 ... a ways to go but DEFINITELY possible, lol.
- Quad 2 win vs. #33 Wisconsin moves from Quad 2 to Quad 1 if they climb back into the top 30.
- Quad 2 season finale game vs. #31 Purdue becomes Quad 1 if they climb into the top 30.
- Quad 2 road game at #84 Rutgers becomes Quad 1 if they get into the top 75.
7. And finally, since I enjoy this and am an ardent defender of AT LEAST the first couple BTT games mattering for a team's seeding (we all know Sunday is too late to count), here is where each potential BTT opponent would fall on a neutral court in Indianapolis!
Quad 1
#11 Michigan
#15 UCLA
#17 Maryland
#21 Ohio State
#23 Oregon
#26 Michigan State
#31 Purdue
#33 Wisconsin
#41 Penn State
#44 Nebraska
#45 Northwestern
#49 Iowa
Quad 2
#62 Indiana
#84 Rutgers
#91 USC
#95 Washington
Quad 3
#165 Minnesota
