According to several sources throughout the league, the American Athletic Conference is looking for a way to upgrade its rankings in basketball with an expansion blueprint focused primarily on Wichita State, but also including other higher profile basketball schools such as Dayton and Virginia Commonwealth.
offiicials at some member schools, including UConn, felt that the American needed to increase its basketball profile. Talks about adding affiliated members in basketball, but not football, continued, reportedly with discussions taking place at the Presidential level.
https://tmgcollegesports.com/2017/03...upgrade-hoops/