I don't really buy into the hype that leagues going to 20 games is some huge roadblock to anything. There are 350+ division one teams. If you play in a crappy league and want an at-large, you need to schedule well outside of league play and win some, ideally on the road. Then you need to amass wins via dominating said crappy league. If you play in a good league you still need to schedule well outside of it, but you can afford to lose more.
Let me give some examples of teams inside RPI 75 last year: South Dakota St., New Mexico St., Murray St., Boise St., Northeastern, Vermont, Louisiana, Greensboro...Anybody see the pattern yet?
Get creative. Research sleeper teams like Neil Sullivan does. Be willing to go on the road to weird places. Be willing to schedule 2-for-1 games, play on neutral courts, and give up a buy game once in a while. Your league could help of course by pairing up good teams, allowing an open scheduling scheme, and/or scheduling league challenges where the top teams play each year. The A10 doesn't help at all IMO. Correct me if I'm wrong, but do we even have rules/suggestions about non-conference schedules like the SEC does for example?
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