Only one MAC rivalry game (BG-Toledo) to end the regular season. That used to be a hallmark for the league having ALL rivalry games to end the season. A great way to kick off MAC Tournament week.

WTF???


MAC Announces 2021-22 Men's Basketball Conference Schedule


CLEVELAND, Ohio - The Mid-American Conference has announced the 2021-22 MAC Men's Basketball conference schedule.

The conference season is set to tip-off on Tuesday, December 28th with a full slate of MACtion. MAC Men's Basketball teams will play 20-games over 10-weeks (10 home, 10 away).

The men's basketball regular season will conclude on Friday, March 4th with the top eight teams in the conference moving on to Cleveland’s Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse for the MAC Men’s Basketball Tournament on March 10-12. MAC Men’s Quarterfinal games will be available on ESPN3 or ESPN+, while Semifinal action will air on CBS Sports Network. The Men’s Basketball Championship game will be televised live on Saturday, March 12th on ESPN2 (Time TBD).

The conference office will release a full men’s basketball television schedule in October.


Tuesday, December 28
Akron at Bowling Green
Miami at Buffalo
Ball State at Northern Illinois
Central Michigan at Kent State
Eastern Michigan at Ohio
Western Michigan at Toledo

Saturday, January 1
Bowling Green at Ball State
Buffalo at Eastern Michigan
Ohio at Western Michigan
Central Michigan at Miami
Northern Illinois at Akron
Toledo at Kent State

Tuesday, January 4
Buffalo at Northern Illinois
Kent State at Ball State
Miami at Bowling Green
Ohio at Akron
Eastern Michigan at Western Michigan
Toledo at Central Michigan

Saturday, January 8
Akron at Miami
Bowling Green at Buffalo
Kent State at Ohio
Ball State at Eastern Michigan
Northern Illinois at Toledo
Western Michigan at Central Michigan

Tuesday, January 11
Bowling Green at Ohio
Buffalo at Western Michigan
Ball State at Akron
Central Michigan at Eastern Michigan
Northern Illinois at Kent State
Toledo at Miami

Saturday, January 15
Akron at Kent State
Buffalo at Ball State
Miami at Western Michigan
Ohio at Central Michigan
Eastern Michigan at Northern Illinois
Toledo at Bowling Green

Tuesday, January 18
Bowling Green at Northern Illinois
Kent State at Eastern Michigan
Ohio at Miami
Ball State at Toledo
Central Michigan at Buffalo
Western Michigan at Akron

Saturday, January 22
Bowling Green at Western Michigan
Kent State at Buffalo
Ball State at Central Michigan
Eastern Michigan at Akron
Northern Illinois at Miami
Toledo at Ohio

Tuesday, January 25
Akron at Central Michigan
Buffalo at Toledo
Miami at Ball State
Eastern Michigan at Bowling Green
Northern Illinois at Ohio
Western Michigan at Kent State

Saturday, January 29
Akron at Toledo
Kent State at Bowling Green
Miami at Eastern Michigan
Ohio at Buffalo
Central Michigan at Northern Illinois
Western Michigan at Ball State

Tuesday, February 1
Bowling Green at Central Michigan
Buffalo at Akron
Kent State at Miami
Ball State at Ohio
Northern Illinois at Western Michigan
Toledo at Eastern Michigan

Saturday, February 5
Buffalo at Central Michigan
Miami at Akron
Eastern Michigan at Kent State
Northern Illinois at Bowling Green
Toledo at Ball State
Western Michigan at Ohio

Tuesday, February 8
Akron at Northern Illinois
Bowling Green at Kent State
Ohio at Toledo
Central Michigan at Ball State
Eastern Michigan at Buffalo
Western Michigan at Miami

Saturday, February 12
Bowling Green at Miami
Kent State at Akron
Ohio at Eastern Michigan
Ball State at Buffalo
Central Michigan at Western Michigan
Toledo at Northern Illinois

Tuesday, February 15
Akron at Western Michigan
Buffalo at Bowling Green
Kent State at Toledo
Miami at Ohio
Eastern Michigan at Central Michigan
Northern Illinois at Ball State

Saturday, February 19
Akron at Eastern Michigan
Miami at Northern Illinois
Ohio at Kent State
Ball State at Bowling Green
Central Michigan at Toledo
Western Michigan at Buffalo

Tuesday, February 22
Bowling Green at Akron
Buffalo at Miami
Ball State at Kent State
Central Michigan at Ohio
Northern Illinois at Eastern Michigan
Toledo at Western Michigan

Saturday, February 26
Akron at Ohio
Kent State at Central Michigan
Miami at Toledo
Eastern Michigan at Ball State
Northern Illinois at Buffalo
Western Michigan at Bowling Green

Tuesday, March 1
Akron at Ball State
Kent State at Northern Illinois
Miami at Central Michigan
Ohio at Bowling Green
Toledo at Buffalo
Western Michigan at Eastern Michigan

Friday, March 4
Bowling Green at Toledo
Buffalo at Kent State
Ohio at Northern Illinois
Ball State at Western Michigan
Central Michigan at Akron
Eastern Michigan at Miami

I don't have any inside information, of course, but that sounds suspiciously like advice from their media partners that spreading the rivalry games through the conference schedule is better, either for getting games picked for cable or else better for streaming numbers for some reason.

Looks like the Wagon Wheel will be settled by the 12th of February (for those who only count it on FB and MBB).

That final weekend is also the start of spring break at some schools. The CMU game is the one game a year where WMU students may (emphasizing may) show up. Better to have it in the middle of the season.

Bet UT wanted a big crowd for senior night. UT BG is seldom the last game


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

UB only gets Akron and Ohio once. The 2 teams we’ve been building a good rivalry with they deny us the first year of the new expanded conference schedule. I knew dropping divisions was a bad idea.

There is time to get it right, not this season. The adjustment is to have protect rivalries and geographic proximity balanced with estimate teams strength to protect the best teams strength of schedule for post season bids and seeding. Not a simple feat but would hope that is the goal with multiple post season NIT bids etc.

(08-28-2021 09:29 PM)NickleCity Wrote:  UB only gets Akron and Ohio once. The 2 teams we’ve been building a good rivalry with they deny us the first year of the new expanded conference schedule. I knew dropping divisions was a bad idea.

That's broken. Finish top two, you should get to play the bottom two only once next season. Toledo and Buffalo should each only have one game against CMU and Northern Illinois.

I see that doing it [1,2]/[11,12], [3,4]/[9,10], [5,6]/[7,8] without adjustment leaves only one Battle of the Bricks game, but fixing that should not leave the #2 2020/21 conference finisher so far from the target.

If they give every school a chance to claim a protected rival, and do the minimum adjustment needed to protect those, Miami at #7 would swap with Bowling Green at #6, and everything else looks like it would work.

As stated, that's spring break weekend.