2018-2019 Basketball Schedule

[spiderstudent17]

Here it is:

https://richmondspiders.com/schedule.aspx?schedule=295



`Non-Conference:

11/9 - Longwood
11/14 - St. Francis (NY)
11/16 - IUPUI
11/19 - Loyola Chicago*
11/21 - Boston College/Wyoming*
11/25 - Hampton
11/28 - at Georgetown
12/1 - Wake Forest
12/5 - Coppin State
12/15 - Oral Roberts
12/19 - Old Dominion
12/22 - High point**
12/29 - at South Alabama

* Fort Myers, Floria
** Game is played in Washington, DC

Conference:

1/6 - at Dayton
1/9 - Rhode Island
1/12 - at George Washington
1/16 - Duequesne
1/19 - at Davidson
1/23 - at Saint Joseph's
1/26 - St. Bonaventure
1/30 - at St. Louis
2/2 - La Salle
2/6 - George Mason
2/9 - George Washington
2/13 - at VCU
2/20 - Fordham
2/23 - at La Salle
2/27 - at George Mason
3/2 - VCU
3/6 - at UMASS
3/9 - Davidson
3/13-3-17 - A10 Championship

 

[MrTbone]

So the big hitters in non-con are Wake, Gtown, and either BC or Wyoming. We’re really pushing the envelope with our SOS.

 

[TD4Prez2004]

Why and where are we playing High Point in DC? Doesn't seem to be part of a tournament and makes for a pretty rough showcase unless we're just an under-card game.

 

[Rivercup]

So the big hitters in non-con are Wake, Gtown, and either BC or Wyoming. We’re really pushing the envelope with our SOS.

Loyola Chicago, the darlings of last year’s NCAA tourney.

 

[TD4Prez2004]

Well JOC has the where - will be at the 4,000 seat "St. Elizabeth's East Ent. and Sports Arena" in DC where the WNBA and G League teams play. Still not sure of the why. Over / under 500 people in attendance at the game?

 

[urmite]

I knew I heard of that place before
https://www.bizjournals.com/washing...ngress-heights-arena-books-first-college.html

 

[fan2011]

Mooney has heard loud and clear that he needs to win more. This schedule reflects that. I expect a similar outcome to last years Duquesne team.

 

[97spiderfan]

As I suspected, Mooney is playing the easiest OOC schedule possible in order to rack up wins in an effort to save his job. So much for playing a tough schedule to make your team better or to build a sound resume, nope, we develop our schedule so our coaches and assistant coaches can retain their jobs.

 

[97spiderfan]

Mooney has heard loud and clear that he needs to win more. This schedule reflects that. I expect a similar outcome to last years Duquesne team.

So instead of actually coaching better, recruiting better, or hiring more qualified assistant coaches, his strategy is to simply load up on an easy schedule to accomplish this goal. Are they any Quandrant 1 teams even on our OOC schedule.

 

[urmite]

Mooney has heard loud and clear that he needs to win more. This schedule reflects that. I expect a similar outcome to last years Duquesne team.

You mean the 8 games against teams worse than all A-10 teams except Fordham?

 

[spiderstudent17]

Mooney has heard loud and clear that he needs to win more. This schedule reflects that. I expect a similar outcome to last years Duquesne team.

As I suspected, Mooney is playing the easiest OOC schedule possible in order to rack up wins in an effort to save his job. So much for playing a tough schedule to make your team better or to build a sound resume, nope, we develop our schedule so our coaches and assistant coaches can retain their jobs.

This was my initial reaction to the schedule as well. This is not an NCAA tournament resume schedule. We play eight teams: Longwood, St Francis, IUPUI, Coppin St., Hampton, Southern Alabam, Oral Roberts, and High Point that had a 200+ RPI last year. The fact of the matter is this schedule was designed to give the impression that we are improving as a team - via record - so that Mooney doesn’t get fired.

However, this is a double edge sword. Yes, this schedule was created that we go 8-5 at the worst. However, if we have another .500 or below OOC record then Hardt might as well fire Mooney before conference play because it’s inexcusable for us to lose to more than half of these teams, even with a “young” team that Mooney always seems to have.

 

[spiderstudent17]

Are they any Quandrant 1 teams even on our OOC schedule.

Here’s how I see it:

Quadrant 1: Loyola- Chicago

Quadrant 2: Wake Forest, Georgetown, BC

Quadrant 3: ODU

Quadrant 4: Everyone else

 

[urmite]

Here’s how I see it:

Quadrant 1: Loyola- Chicago

Quadrant 2: Wake Forest, Georgetown, BC

Quadrant 3: ODU

Quadrant 4: Everyone else

Here is how I see it:
ULC Quad 1 (14, cutoff 50)
GT Quad 2 (161, cutoff for quad 1 135)
ODU Quad 2 (74, cutoff 75)
BC/Wyoming Quad 2 (94/100, cutoff 100)
Wake Quad 4 (162, cutoff for quad 3 160)
Rest Quad 4

not that this year's RPI = last year's RPI

 

[Ferrum Spider]

Fml I have a wedding 3/2. Weak.

 

[MolivaManiac]

Does this schedule require something like a 25-6 record to be in the At Large conversation on Selection Sunday? Is that about it?

 

[urmite]

I was going to say 8-5, 16-2 for 24-7...but we may need the one game push.

 

[VT4700]

I can see why some of you might be bothered by the OOC schedule, but I don't have a problem with it this year. Maybe if we scheduled OOC games like this every year I would, but we usually play a pretty good OOC schedule. Maybe more tougher teams would better prepare us for conference play, but gaining confidence by having a few more wins can go a long way toward making a team better prepared as well. And there are still enough games against A-10 type teams to get us ready with Loyola, BC or Wyoming, Gtown, and Wake being a nice 4 out of 5 game stretch right in the middle of our OOC.

If the A-10 has a good year, we will have plenty of chances to get some quality wins. If the A-10 does not have a good year, then a bunch of good OOC wins would not make up for the conference being down anyway. In other words, as usual, conference games will be the key, and who knows, maybe at the end of the year some of these quad 4 looking teams might end up a little better than they appear right now.

 

[spiderstudent17]

I was going to say 8-5, 16-2 for 24-7...but we may need the one game push.

I agree with 24-7 overall record but, in my opinion, with this schedule we can’t go worse than 10-3 in OOC with none of the losses coming from those 200+ RPI teams. If we then manage to go 14-4 in conference a 24-7 record would have us in conversation for at large bid but it’s still not certain. But yes, this is a weak OOC schedule to say the least and anything less than 10 wins is a disappointment and anything less than 7 wins should be an immediate firing of Mooney.

 

[VT4700]

Does this schedule require something like a 25-6 record to be in the At Large conversation on Selection Sunday? Is that about it?

It depends on who we would beat. I can see a 9-4 OOC record and a 14-4 A10 record giving us a chance at 23-8 going into the A10 tourney IF we have enough good wins. But, if we lose to the good teams OOC and do not beat any of the top A10 teams, than 23-8 would look pretty bad without any real key wins. Not any different than going 7-6 against a better OOC schedule and still needing to go about 14-4 IC with good wins.

Remember, just a few years ago we went 7-6 OOC and 12-6 IC and were the first team left out of the tourney after losing in the A-10 tourney to finish 19-13. We had a chance because of good A-10 wins, not good OOC wins. That is why I say the A-10 having a good year and IC wins are more important than OOC.

 

[VT4700]

I agree with 24-7 overall record but, in my opinion, with this schedule we can’t go worse than 10-3 in OOC with none of the losses coming from those 200+ RPI teams. If we then manage to go 14-4 in conference a 24-7 record would have us in conversation for at large bid but it’s still not certain. But yes, this is a weak OOC schedule to say the least and anything less than 10 wins is a disappointment and anything less than 7 wins should be an immediate firing of Mooney.

It is never good to lose to 200+ teams, but I would rather go 10-3 OOC with key wins and a bad 200+ loss out there than 10-3 OOC with no key wins and no bad losses. More often than not, the good wins are better for you than the lack of bad losses, and you have to enough good wins to even be considered.

 

[kneepadmckinney]

I've resigned myself to the fact that everyone is going to complain about everything. I like seeing Richmond win basketball games, so hopefully I'll get to see more of that this year. When February rolls around, if I find myself obsessively checking the resumes of other teams from the MWC or the AAC or St. Mary's or wherever else, then that means we've at least put ourselves in the conversation. I'd take that over last year all day every day. I don't give a crap if it is High Point in Southeast DC.

And not for nothing, but folks on here complain about the schedule every year, and more often than not, what looks like a bad schedule ends up being pretty decent numbers-wise.

 

[spiderstudent17]

It is never good to lose to 200+ teams, but I would rather go 10-3 OOC with key wins and a bad 200+ loss out there than 10-3 OOC with no key wins and no bad losses. More often than not, the good wins are better for you than the lack of bad losses, and you have to enough good wins to even be considered.

Having very bad losses will hurt you more than having good wins will help you. No team on our schedule would be considered a very good win (very good wins would help more than very bad losses would hurt) but we do have several very bad teams. Maybe Loyola would be considered a very good win if they excel this year.

The best we can hope for is to not lose to any of those really bad teams and then beat a Wake Forest, ODU, BC, and Georgetown and hope they exceed expectations in conference play and their other OOC games. There are no eye-catching wins we can have with this schedule, but if we can avoid any bad losses and win at least 2 of the 5 against Loyola, BC/Wyoming, ODU, Wake Forest, and Georgetown then we go into conference play neutral in terms of at large consideration. This would be better than the past few years in which we have gone into conference play virtually eliminated from at-large contention.

 

[LongTimeLurkerFirstTimePoster]

I've resigned myself to the fact that everyone is going to complain about everything. I like seeing Richmond win basketball games, so hopefully I'll get to see more of that this year. When February rolls around, if I find myself obsessively checking the resumes of other teams from the MWC or the AAC or St. Mary's or wherever else, then that means we've at least put ourselves in the conversation. I'd take that over last year all day every day. I don't give a crap if it is High Point in Southeast DC.

And not for nothing, but folks on here complain about the schedule every year, and more often than not, what looks like a bad schedule ends up being pretty decent numbers-wise.

KP Mc...two years ago, Spider97 said that whoever made the OOC schedule deserved to be fired..It turned out to be a pretty strong schedule...

Why don't we actually play the games and see what happens?

Or read this, and find out why a Final 4 participant has to be a division 2 team

https://www.cbssports.com/college-b...were-wrongly-afraid-to-schedule-the-ramblers/

 

[Spider2020]

I agree the OOC is weak. How much of that is Mooney, and how much is that we were awful last year, and good teams don't want us tanking their SOS? I'm not sure

 

[spider23]

This is crap, no direction - a rudderless ship.
I was reading some of the contributors to the Xavier newsletter that many coaches from different levels contribute to. Most mention that their program philosophy is to schedule up - some say play anyone, anywhere, etc. Basic philosophy is to be the best, play the best. That is what recruits want. Unfortunately we are somehow at a point where we need to schedule down and gain confidence. This is bad and getting worse I fear. Unless the three headed monster (Gilly, Golden and Sherod) are all first team A10 players, it could get UGLY this season. And as someone has pointed out on other threads: "When the going gets tough, check Mooney's underpants"

 

[ur2K]

As long as kids and their families show up for the minor league experience at the RC, does who we play really matter?

 

[fan2011]

At large was not in the cards this year, not after khwan and buck left. This is probably the easiest ooc under mooney. People care a lot about wins, look at all the praise Duquesne was getting last year after going 9-3 against the easiest schedule in the country. I wish the schedule was tougher and the team was better, but at least we will win more games this year.

 

[LongTimeLurkerFirstTimePoster]

I agree the OOC is weak. How much of that is Mooney, and how much is that we were awful last year, and good teams don't want us tanking their SOS? I'm not sure

if you're premise is true, then how come teams won't schedule Loyola?

And next year when the p5 moves to 20 game league schedules, it is only going to get worse.

 

[GKiller]

I haven't argued schedules in past - except for the lack of 13 ooc games - b/c I don't think it was ever warranted, in fact we've had some good ones. But no sugarcoating this years, its weakest I can recall.

We know all the reasons for it they are obvious. Still too weak imo. We used to virtually always take a P5 buy game on road. Granted those are harder to find nowadays with larger conf schedules but doubt we even tried.

Plus this year (and next) were years we were previously targeting to have a stronger OOC. No longer. Hopefully next year it is but right now looking at the schedule was just reality smacking us right in the face.

Fan2011, can you determine using last year numbers, b/c it's all we have right now, where this released OOC would have ranked in last year's non-conf SOS? Gotta be really low. And that's with Loyola-CHI having a # that I can't see them duplicating this season.

Hey I'll be rooting the Spiders on no matter what but look there were only 3 unknowns left on the schedule...and they came back with the murderers row of Coppin State, High Point and S. Alabama. No offense to those teams, but guess I got my hopes up for 1 real legitimate test of the remaining 3 given what we already knew.

At least we got 13 games, there's at least 1 improvement!

 

[fan2011]

Does this schedule require something like a 25-6 record to be in the At Large conversation on Selection Sunday? Is that about it?

I would guess 10+ wins OOC, first place A10 regular season, and making A10 semifinals would be required. Even that might not be enough if the A10 is weaker this year, the autobid may be required.

 

[fan2011]

So instead of actually coaching better, recruiting better, or hiring more qualified assistant coaches, his strategy is to simply load up on an easy schedule to accomplish this goal. Are they any Quandrant 1 teams even on our OOC schedule.

I think the easier path to winning more games is to schedule easier teams (better coaching/recruiting is harder). I don't think this type of scheduling is good for the long term health of the program or post-season aspirations, but using wins as a metric for success incentivizes it.

 

[whampas]

If Hardt is watching closely and gives a damn, he sees what's going on. I hope it doesn't sit well with him. If wins go south, and I'm betting they do, this schedule will blow Mooney up.

 

[spiderstudent17]

If Hardt is watching closely and gives a damn, he sees what's going on. I hope it doesn't sit well with him. If wins go south, and I'm betting they do, this schedule will blow Mooney up.

Exactly my thoughts. Mooney is walking a fine line with this schedule. Sure, the opportunity presents itself to have more wins and show “improvement” but if we have a subpar record with this non conference schedule, then the decision for Hardt to fire Mooney should be an easy one.

 

[spider23]

As a contrast, the other team I root for (which is in a non P6 conference) lost its two top scorers, and is playing Duke in game one, and another top 25ish team game two. Even though they will be young.

 

[MolivaManiac]

I don't think this type of scheduling is good for the long term health of the program or post-season aspirations

...nor ticket revenue, concessions or merch sales.

 

[PhillySpider]

I don’t have a huge problem with the schedule. The notion that it’s not really possible to get at-large consideration with this schedule short of going 25-6 is true but irrelevant. There is near zero reason to think we are of at-large caliber, so we needn’t worry about that. As with every year, some of the expectations around here are just way out of line IMHO. We were a bad team, we took some personnel hits, we have marginal recruits (certainly til proven otherwise). We are rebuilding (again? Still? ) and it’s a schedule for a down team that trying to build up. That’s who we are. Let’s not kid ourselves.

And yes, it may mask how good we aren’t with a decent win total, but that isnt bad. Build up the kids before they get tossed in the fire. And it will get Mooney fired if we put up a 6-7 OOC record and that’s good.

 

[spider23]

And it will get Mooney fired if we put up a 6-7 OOC record and that’s good.

True Dat. I hope anyway.

 

[MolivaManiac]

I don’t have a huge problem with the schedule. The notion that it’s not really possible to get at-large consideration with this schedule short of going 25-6 is true but irrelevant. There is near zero reason to think we are of at-large caliber, so we needn’t worry about that. As with every year, some of the expectations around here are just way out of line IMHO.

Oh, I was under no illusions that this was an NCAA team. I just think it's interesting that the staff has apparently capitulated on that matter, as well.

 

[MrTbone]

I have never complained about the OOC schedule before. I’m not even complaining about this one, we had virtually no shot at any kind of at large bid so OOC schedule is kinda moot.

It’s just painful that our 3 “prime” games are against bottom dwellers in the ACC and BE. Unless Loyola rolls over last year’s magic, it’s conceivable we won’t have a single game against a ranked team OOC.

Tough to get excited about it.

 

[ChoppinBroccoli]

At large was not in the cards this year, not after khwan and buck left. This is probably the easiest ooc under mooney. People care a lot about wins, look at all the praise Duquesne was getting last year after going 9-3 against the easiest schedule in the country. I wish the schedule was tougher and the team was better, but at least we will win more games this year.

I thought Georgetown had the easiest OOC in the country? (Alas, we were on it)