SCU Men's Basketball - Season Outlook - Can we RISE?

Let's just get it out there.  

As season ticket holders and fans, we're not thinking so much about the regular season, but HOW we can get to the post season?

After 20+ years of post season Ground Hog Day, we need to have the spell broken. 

Coach Keating's new program mantra is R-I-S-E... For him, maybe that's the metaphor for resuscitation of a program that was operating below the poverty level for a D1 basketball team.

For us, it means elevate and compete at the top of the WCC and earn NCAA or NIT bids.  We've won two post season tournaments, the CIT and CBI, that were great for our athletes to experience, but largely invisible for "amping" up our program.

Let's face it, the odds of NCAA at-large bids are lower than the U.S. Congress approval rating...

Looking at our schedule, my guess is that an 18-12 record would be a pretty good season, but not post season worthy.

To R-I-S-E from 18-12, we will need to beat BYU, Pepperdine, and St. Mary's at least once and finish 3rd in the WCC.  

At 21-9 we might be NIT worthy.  

The HOW to an NCAA bid on top of the above, is to knock off Arizona or Providence/Evansville(all NCAA teams) in the Wooden Legacy AND make the WCC tourney finals.  Now that would make all our season ticket holders RISE.

At the end of the day, there's only one sure bet:  beat Gonzaga OR BYU in the WCC tourney final game.  I say BYU because some prognosticators have picked them to win the league.

Our team is healthy, bigger, faster and even though young, have more experience than in the past few years at key positions.  We can actually defend the paint and have shooters that can take pressure off Jared Brownridge.  

Tonight marks the start of what we hope is the new Santa Clara Men's Basketball program, blessed by the Blue Ribbon committee and more funding from Father Engh and the Trustees.

Can we R-I-S-E?

I know this.  If we do, the season ticket holders and fans will "rise" with a standing ovation and a campus will be re-ignited and re-energized with true SCU spirit....

SCU Men's Basketball - Season Schedule Preview - Ouch!

I'm just going to be blunt.

Our Men's BB schedule is a hot mess...

It's not necessarily "who" we play as much as it is the "when" we play our key games...It's awful...

I'm not blaming Coach Keating for all of it; rather the WCC and the stuff job they're doing on us and pretty much everyone else not named Gonzaga.

After the Cable Car ends on November 15th, our students will get to see one home game until January 14th...

That's more than half our schedule - "poof" - gone.  Oh, wait, I'm sure they'll swarm back for St. Mary's two days before Christmas or even better, Gonzaga on NEW YEAR'S EVE...

Perspective:  Zag students will miss only four home games on their break.  When they get back - five of the next seven are in Spokane.  For SCU, five of the next eight are ROAD games...

I guess that's the reward the WCC bestows on them as the "rainmakers" for 15 + straight NCAA appearances.

OK, I'm done with the ranting...

Well, not really.

Overall our schedule is pretty strong.   We will play up to six 2015 NCAA qualifiers, one NIT team, and one CBI team.

Our non-league home schedule is made up of teams that mostly only NCAA trivia buffs have heard of; with the exception of San Jose State.   As I wrote in my last blog, we're just not there yet where we can get "name" teams to play us.

This is not a home schedule you can build a "brand" around and will be a significant challenge to achieving one of our new A.D.'s most important goals.

Her first chance to help comes next season.

That being said, the Cable Car does feature two mid-major teams who will compete for NCAA/NIT bids. Lipscomb played Vanderbilt, Belmont, and Texas last year and has key players returning.  Milwaukee played Wisconsin, Oklahoma State, Arkansas, and Auburn.

The Cable Car teams are not big names, but they're also not easy W's.

If you want to see the best of the season, you'll need to spend Thanksgiving in Anaheim this year at the Wooden Legacy tourney. We play Irvine, Arizona, Providence or Evansville, then maybe Michigan State or BC.   All NCAA teams.   Now THAT'S a schedule we'd love!!!

In a weird way, our schedule may work in our favor.   If we can beat most of these "patsies" at home and show strong at the Wooden Legacy or "shock" at the WCC tournament, we could get an NIT bid or maybe even an NCAA bid. 

If we could only bring our big name, "away" games home, then our "no name" home games will go away and Leavey will be rockin!!

Next: Season Outlook and Predictions
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