Post by cviller on Dec 10, 2007 11:34:17 GMT -5
By Jack Bogaczyk
Daily Mail Sports Editor
THERE is more than one route to success in college basketball. Anyone who has been watching West Virginia this season and last realizes you can win with different coaching philosophies.
John Beilein's octopus 1-3-1 zone defense has become Bob Huggins' tough man-to-man that forces an opponent to one side of the floor. Offensively, Beilein's backdoor cuts have turned into a Huggins' crash course in attacking the rim.
Well, the former and current Mountaineer coaches are different in another way, too. They approach scheduling with different philosophies.
Beilein didn't mind going on the road to test the mettle of his team, even against a lesser opponent, to face hostile crowds in foreign conditions. However, he liked easier home schedules than Huggins does.
Huggins doesn't want "buy" games - those where, say, a Winthrop comes in for a $70,000 guarantee with no return date - against the likes of Maryland-Eastern Shore or Savannah State.
"You need 'buy' games," Huggins said last week, "but what we've always tried to do is schedule those teams that are at the top of their conferences, or at least projected to be at the top. That bodes well for your RPI."
WVU Deputy Athletic Director Mike Parsons works with the basketball coaches on scheduling, and he sees the different philosophies.
"It's not that one is right or wrong," Parsons said. "They're just different. Each coach has the opportunity to put his own stamp on the schedule, and work with the opportunities that come to us through the (Big East) conference and television."
Parsons said basketball coaches, in general, bring most buy games to the table through their contacts or friendships. He pointed out that Huggins "is so well-connected, when he's out on the road recruiting he makes an agreement to play somebody ... I think Bob is probably more involved in picking up most teams than most coaches are."
Huggins likes neutral-site games that would be attractive for television - like last Wednesday's romp past Auburn in the inaugural SEC/Big East Invitational in Birmingham.
Those games have great impact on Ratings Percentage Index numbers, too.
"I think Bob is more in tune than most with what affects an RPI rating," Parsons said. "Obviously, in his past (at Cincinnati), he's been very successful at managing that."
What Huggins' philosophy likely means is better opposition in early season home dates - and maybe larger crowds at the WVU Coliseum. Perennial NCAA Tournament participant Winthrop was a good example.
"I'd just as soon have home games that are a buy in like Winthrop that will tell you a little bit more about your team," he said.
Huggins would like to play his old Cincinnati rival Xavier and have neighboring mid-major Mid-American Conference teams come to Morgantown. He also will schedule some teams from major conferences that aren't contenders in their leagues, but will help WVU in the RPI.
Ole Miss, which has a home-and-home with WVU (starting next season in Oxford), is an example of that. The Rebels may not be Southeastern Conference contenders, but since a team's RPI includes a 25-percent factor based on opponents' opponents, WVU benefits because Ole Miss plays Florida, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Tennessee and LSU.
Continuing a long series with Duquesne and adding Xavier can help WVU because the Dukes and Musketeers play in the respected Atlantic 10 Conference, which usually ranks in the top 10 among the 31 Division I leagues.
Huggins had little input into this season's schedule. Parsons said there still are games left over from deals made during the Beilein years for 2008-09.
There are three more seasons on a new Duquesne contract that started with Saturday night's Mountaineer home win.
Radford plays one more time at WVU to finish a 2-for-1. The Marshall-WVU series at the Charleston Civic Center will continue, of course.
WVU will return a 2006-07 game to The Citadel, a series forged by Beilein and Citadel AD and St. Albans native Les Robinson.
However, the game won't be played on The Citadel post in 6,000-seat McAlister Field House, but at the 13,600-seat North Charleston (S.C.) Coliseum.
Huggins has scheduled the home-and-home with Ole Miss and has WVU in the eight-team Las Vegas Shootout (one home date for marquee teams, then off to Vegas for the semifinals and final) with Kentucky, Kansas State, Iowa, Longwood, Delaware State, Southeast Missouri and Oakland (Mich.).
The expansion of the Big East schedule from 16 to 18 games crimps what a coach can do outside the league, so West Virginia has only four games to schedule for next season.
With WVU scheduled to play on the road against Duquesne, The Citadel and Ole Miss, Huggins no doubt will be looking for home dates. If they're from low-major conferences, they'll be from among the better teams in those leagues.
The last three Cincinnati non-conference schedules Huggins made offer an example of what he wants - Vanderbilt, Coppin State, Clemson, Middle Tennessee, Jackson State, Murray State, Holy Cross, Valparaiso, LaSalle, Dayton, Detroit, Northwestern State, Ohio.
It's a good cross-section. He wants other teams that might win 20 games and have decent RPIs after finishing high in their respective conferences.
Will WVU have to pay more to get better buy games? Yes. Will it do so? Yes. West Virginia won the NIT title last season.
It might have gotten into the NCAA again had the Mountaineers' non-league strength of schedule not ranked No. 271.
That meant RIP in the RPI.
Contact Sports Editor Jack Bogaczyk at ja...@dailymail.com or 348-7949.