For all of the posts in this series, visit the 2017-18 Non-Conference Scheduling Hub.

Ranking The Teams

Given the positions of Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, and BYU in the four-year table, the WCC is not your average mid-major league. But while no league member ranks in the bottom 120 nationally, the conference would be helped by the emergence of the middle tier. Getting a fourth or fifth team into the top 100 nationally on a consistent basis would do wonders for the WCC’s at-large hopes, particularly for teams outside of the top three.

Ranking The Schedules

The average WCC schedule ranks at the very bottom of Division I in two categories and right near it in the other two. But when just one team, Gonzaga, consistently ranks among the top 100, and the other nine find themselves outside of the top 200 almost unanimously across the board, that shouldn’t be a surprise. The only two teams that join the Bulldogs in the top 200 in any of the four categories—Saint Mary’s and Portland in the Maximum Strength table, due to the quality present at the top of their respective bracketed tournaments.

*Denotes team will participate in a bracketed tournament. Reminder: Known Score = known matchups only; Average Score = known games+average of potential bracketed matchups; Maximum Score = known games+games against best potential bracketed matchups; Minimum Score = known games+games against worst potential bracketed matchups

Who Over- And Under-Scheduled?

With so many weak non-conference slates, it also shouldn’t be a shock that the WCC ranks near the bottom of D1 in terms of scheduling gaps. Somehow, Portland, the only over-scheduler of the bunch—while owning the lowest gap of all 10—despite the Pilots’ participation in the Phil Knight Invitational. But all that discrepancy really tells you about is the awfulness of the remainder of UP’s non-league slate. Surprisingly, Gonzaga under-scheduled by the lowest amount—as the fourth-ranked team in the four-year standings lined up the 41st-best average schedule, again with an assist from the PK80.

However, BYU and Saint Mary’s, the WCC’s other at-large threats, under-scheduled themselves by 180-plus spots. That’s not ideal.

The resumption of the BYU-Utah series after a one-year hiatus means the Cougars join Gonzaga, who hosts Creighton, in welcoming a Power 7 team to campus this season. However, Portland will play North Carolina in its backyard as part of the Phil Knight Invitational, and that event provides the Pilots with the prospect of further power league games at the Rose Quarter.

While the 10 WCC teams average seven home games each (good for the fifth-highest total of the 25 mid-major leagues), there’s an uneven distribution of those contests that roughly mirrors the team rankings at the top of the page.

Of the 115 known non-conference games on WCC dockets for 2017-18, 66 will come against the West’s five other Division I conferences. There’s a fairly good national mix among the rest, even if seven leagues are all but absent. A total of nine games against non-D1 opponents is an impressive feat for a Western league, but again these are distributed unevenly with the conference’s have-nots needing to schedule these matchups to fill their home slates.

The WCC’s home/away split resembles that of a Power 7 conference, particularly when you look at the 42 home games scheduled against teams from outside of the top 200 of the four-year ranking. However, the number of road games scheduled against teams from that same group illustrates how difficult it is to avoid those contests while attempting to build a more regional schedule. Sometimes you just have to hit the road to take on a Big Sky or Big West team when you’re situated on the Left Coast.

Team-By-Team Breakdown

Teams are listed in order of their Average Schedule Strength National Ranking. Numbers in parentheses are opponent’s Team Score Ranking. Logos via SportsLogos.net.

41. Gonzaga Bulldogs

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 3 wins (San Diego State, Florida (N), Washington) and 0 losses

Even with Creighton visiting Spokane, most of Gonzaga’s 2017 home schedule looks like, well, that of power conference team. And that’s appropriate for the squad that topped KenPom’s table last year—but the Bulldogs will be reloading after that historic season. Mark Few’s squad will face many challenges away from home, but the pair of true road games against an improved San Diego State squad and a Washington outfit going through a coaching transition likely won’t be the most difficult. Nope. Instead, four neutral-site contests provide the bulk of the heft on the Zags’ schedule—thanks to the Phil Knight Invitational and its potential games with Florida or Stanford, then likely one of Duke, Butler, or Texas, and and a Jimmy V Classic clash with 2016 National Champ Villanova.

206. Portland Pilots

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 1 win (@San José State) and 2 losses (Portland State, @Cal State Fullerton)

Three games against Power 7 foes in the Phil Knight Invitational is probably not what Terry Porter wanted after an 11-win season. However, the Pilots are left with no choice but to attempt to take flight against the likes of North Carolina, Michigan State, and local rivals Oregon. Combine the seven true home games, all against beatable opponents, with those three PK80 showdowns and Portland will only be left making flight plans for three contests. With all that considered, the Pilots should again log seven non-league wins before encountering the turbulence of WCC play.

219. Saint Mary’s Gaels

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 3 wins (@Dayton, San José State, UC Irvine) and 0 losses

After last season’s 29-win campaign, Randy Bennett’s Gaels are poised to challenge reloading Gonzaga for the WCC title. And this collection of 12 games is not too bad for a team that national powers are reluctant to schedule. And while there’s one Power 7 road game, a trip to East Bay rival California won’t intimidate Saint Mary’s, particularly after the Golden Bears’ tumultuous coaching change. Several potential mid-major league champs visit Moraga, while the Wooden Legacy’s field includes no fewer than four potential NCAA teams. The Gaels’ quarterfinal matchup with Ivy favorite Harvard looms particularly large for the potential NCAA seeding hopes of both.

230. Pepperdine Waves

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 2 wins (Cal Poly, Weber State) and 3 loss (Belmont, @Long Beach State, @Montana)

Marty Wilson’s Waves crashed to a total of nine wins last season—a gnarly wipeout after a pair of 18-victory campaigns. it didn’t help that Pepperdine won just four non-league games last fall, with none of those coming after November 22nd. While two of the Waves’ victims return to this year’s schedule, Pepperdine plays both Cal Poly and Weber State on the road—along with OVC power Belmont and a pair of power conference foes as part of the Legends Classic. On the plus side, Firestone Fieldhouse will host that event’s subregional, and if the Waves can win that title, they might put themselves on course to crest again.

234. BYU Cougars

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 4 wins (Princeton, Utah State (N), Weber State, Idaho State) and 2 losses (Utah Valley, UT Arlington)

Not only is Utah back on the Cougars’ schedule, but there are plenty of matchups with potential 2018 NCAA teams, both of the major conference (the Utes, Alabama) and mid-major (UT Arlington, Illinois State, Texas Southern, Princeton, Weber State) varieties. Plus, you can bet Dave Rose’s team will be traveling to Orem with revenge on their minds after losing to Utah Valley for the first time last season.

276. Pacific Tigers

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 1 win (Wyoming) and 1 loss (@Nevada)

The Tigers won just 11 games in Damon Stoudamire’s first season, with six of those victories coming outside of WCC play. Improving upon that non-conference victory total is going to be difficult, even with seven home games, as Mountain West favorite Nevada and an likely-improved UNLV squad visit Stockton, while road trips at potential NCAA squads Stanford and Arizona State await, as does an always tricky trip to Wyoming‘s altitude and a home-and-home with Big West Tournament champion UC Davis.

I’m fairly certain that with three games scheduled against UC campuses, two featuring Arkansas-hyphen-location, and the visit from UNLV that Pacific leads the nation in non-conference games against city-modified schools.

279. San Diego Toreros

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 3 wins (@Northern Arizona, UC Santa Barbara, @North Texas) and 2 losses (@San Diego State, New Mexico State)

The Toreros bumped their overall win total up by four games (from nine to 13) in Lamont Smith’s second season with a two-win improvement coming before WCC play tipped off. It’s possible this season’s non-league win total improves upon the seven victories of a year ago, even if USD has to visit Grand Canyon (as part of an exempt event), New Mexico State, and Colorado. Six of the seven home games are definitely winnable, while SDSU lost on its last trip to Jenny Craig Pavilion.

296. Loyola Marymount Lions

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 3 wins (Portland State, @Cal State Northridge, Incarnate Word) and 2 losses (Boise State, UT Arlington)

Now that I’ve discussed the three WCC teams with NCAA hopes, it’s time to look at one of the teams that struggles in their collective shadow. The days of Hank Gathers and Bo Kimble are long gone, even if they’ll never be forgotten, at LMU. Last season’s win total of 15—the highest for the Lions since a 21-win 2012-13 campaign—illustrates that Mike Dunlap still has a long way to go in terms of bringing the glory days of the late 80s back to Westchester. Now one of this league’s have-nots, the Lions struggled to build a five-game home slate. Plus, they’ll play a pair of Pac-12 road games and visit dangerous UT Arlington and Boise State squads before jumping into WCC play in late December.

But with three Cal State schools, two UC campuses, and UT Arlington on its slate, LMU at least managed to make Pacific’s run at the city-modified matchups title a real race, earning a share of the crown.

304. San Francisco Dons

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 2 wins (@UC Santa Barbara, Sacramento State (N)) and 1 loss (@Eastern Washington)

The Dons would love to become fixtures in the WCC’s first division following a 20-win campaign and CBI quarterfinal berth in Kyle Smith’s first season. And USF started that campaign well, winning 10 of its 13 non-conference games, including a runner-up finish at the Diamond Head Classic. And with nine home games and a meeting with A 10 bottom-feeder Duquesne at the Las Vegas Classic on tap this season, San Francisco should hit that total again. However, picking up an 11th win will be difficult, considering it will have to come against either Nevada, Arizona State, or Stanford away from War Memorial.

334. Santa Clara Broncos

Record against returning opponents from 2016-17: 2 wins (Northern Arizona, @Valparaiso) and 1 loss (@San José State)

Herb Sendek’s Broncos also aim to contend after a 17-16 season ended with SCU pushing Gonzaga in the WCC semifinals. And Santa Clara should be able to at least improve upon last fall’s 6-7 non-league mark, thanks to eight home games and a trip to the mid-major heavy Great Alaska Shootout. While a road game at possible Final Four contender USC is the biggest hurdle on the Broncos’ slate, home games with Nevada and Valparaiso and a potential meeting with CAA heavy College of Charleston in Alaska might also keep SCU from heading into WCC play with a winning record.

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