ESON's Top 40 Games This Season

[Phantom Warrior]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/insider/story/_/id/13723066/ranking-top-40-games-2015-2016-college-basketball-season

Only BE conference game is Nova vs. GTown. Others involving Nova, GTown, and Xavier are all non-conference. Still, about a half dozen of the 40 involve BE teams. List obviously filled with Kentucky, Duke, Kansas, and UNC.

[MU/Panther]

I can't read it because you need the insider feed, but how can a list really be done for basketball. :( College basketball is still a regional sport until we get to March.

[IWB]

Here is the breakdown.....

ESPN: 32 (Includes ESPN2)
CBS: 5
FS1: 1
BTN: 1
AXS: 1 - Not sure what this is, but it is a battle for Atlatis game

[MU/Panther]

Here is the breakdown.....

ESPN: 32 (Includes ESPN2)
CBS: 5
FS1: 1
BTN: 1
AXS: 1 - Not sure what this is, but it is a battle for Atlatis game

What a joke that list is. College basketball is a regional sport until March, so everyone has different leagues they like watching. That being said, one game on FS1. How about anything on CBSSN or NBCSN?

[MU/Panther]

1. Kentucky Wildcats vs. Duke Blue Devils (Champions Classic)
2. Kentucky at Kansas Jayhawks
3. North Carolina Tar Heels at Duke
4. Maryland Terrapins at North Carolina
5. Louisville Cardinals at Kentucky
6. Kansas at Iowa State Cyclones
7. Indiana Hoosiers at Duke
8. Kansas vs. Michigan State Spartans (Champions Classic)
9. Kentucky at LSU Tigers
10. Duke at North Carolina
11. Arizona Wildcats at Gonzaga Bulldogs
12. Villanova Wildcats at Virginia Cavaliers
13. California Golden Bears at Virginia
14. Maryland at Michigan State
15. Arizona at Cal
16. Michigan State at Michigan Wolverines
17. Georgetown Hoyas at Maryland
18. Villanova Wildcats vs. Oklahoma Sooners
19. North Carolina at Virginia
20. Virginia at Duke
21. Maryland vs. UConn Huskies (Jimmy V Classic)
22. Duke at Louisville
23. Indiana vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
24. Kentucky at Vanderbilt Commodores
25. Villanova at Georgetown
26. Utah Utes at Wichita State Shockers
27. Oklahoma at Kansas
28. North Carolina at Texas Longhorns
29. Kansas at San Diego State Aztecs
30. Gonzaga at SMU Mustangs
31. Wisconsin Badgers at Syracuse Orange
32. Michigan vs. UConn (Battle 4 Atlantis)
33. UCLA Bruins at Arizona
34. SMU at UConn
35. Louisville at Michigan State
36. North Carolina at Syracuse
37. Xavier Musketeers at Michigan
38. Wisconsin at Oklahoma
39. Virginia vs. West Virginia Mountaineers (Jimmy V Classic)
40. UC Irvine Anteaters at UCF Knights :rolleyes:

[IWB]

What a joke that list is. College basketball is a regional sport until March, so everyone has different leagues they like watching. That being said, one game on FS1. How about anything on CBSSN or NBCSN?

Yes, a couple of the CBS ones were CBSSN, I just didn't separate just like I didn't with ESPN/ESPN2.

[Alan Bykowski, "brewcity77"]

Hilarious that every game in the top-10 has at least one of Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina, or Kansas. If you include the flavor of the minute Maryland, 21 of the 40 games includes at least one of those five teams. Hmm...think maybe someone at ESPN has an agenda if they are pushing people to watch those same 5 teams over and over again?

[MU/Panther]

OU-Villanova didn't make the list, but could be a Final Four preview?
http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/108667/who-knows-why-oklahoma-villanova-might-be-a-final-four-preview

[Goose85]

Hilarious that every game in the top-10 has at least one of Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina, or Kansas. If you include the flavor of the minute Maryland, 21 of the 40 games includes at least one of those five teams. Hmm...think maybe someone at ESPN has an agenda if they are pushing people to watch those same 5 teams over and over again?

College hoops has changed with the one and done environment. Fans no longer know the players on the top teams from year to year.
What fans do recognize from year to year is Kentucky and Cal, Duke and Coach K, UNC and Roy and Kansas and Self.

Until the season gets going, the best bet is Kentucky / Duke / UNC / Kansas will normally be good no matter who they lose, so I guess it is a safe bet to push those programs on us. I'd guess ratings tells them to do that.

I look forward to LSU and MU, with Simmons and Ellenson, but only fans that really follow recruiting will know two top frosh and potential lottery picks will be playing in that game.

[Jimmy Lemke]

Here is the breakdown.....

ESPN: 32 (Includes ESPN2)
CBS: 5
FS1: 1
BTN: 1
AXS: 1 - Not sure what this is, but it is a battle for Atlantis game

This just highlights for me why I want to be away from ESPN as fast as possible. We're a mid-major league, so obviously we're not going to have your TV deal, but damn it if I wouldn't do quite a bit to get the Horizon League onto NBC Sports or CBS Sports ASAP. I'm tired of being...what...the 10th conference on ESPN? That has TV rights to a lot more than college basketball?

Milwaukee's got THREE national television games this season, and one of them could get optioned down to ESPN3. I don't get why we'd re-up with them.

I thoroughly enjoy FS1's productions. Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery? That should be the Final Four team.