Dave Gavitt Games (Big Ten vs. Big East): First matchup out

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SelectionSunday

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The first of the 8 games leaked out, per a tweet from CBS' Jon Rothstein. In a somewhat odd matchup (read: mismatch), Nebraska will play @ Villanova.
 



If we play in it, hoping we get Providence (if Kris Dunn returns to the Friars) or Xavier (Mr. Macura) at Williams Arena.

Unlikely we'd play Butler because we're in the same exempt tournament, ditto for Miami-Florida in the ACC Challenge.
 

Have to imagine the top 8 B1G teams from last year get games. I wouldn't expect we get a game.

Edit: I guess Nebraska got a game so scratch that.
 


MadtownGopher said:
Have to imagine the top 8 B1G teams from last year get games. I wouldn't expect we get a game.

Edit: I guess Nebraska got a game so scratch that.
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Each team is guaranteed 4 games over 8 years, I think that's the main stipulation.
 

SelectionSunday said:
The first of the 8 games leaked out, per a tweet from CBS' Jon Rothstein. In a somewhat odd matchup (read: mismatch), Nebraska will play @ Villanova.
Click to expand...

That is an awful matchup. Who is making these pairings?
 


4 Home / 4 Road

SelectionSunday said:
So assuming Rutgers is playing on the road ("most likely a bus trip") in the Gavitt Tipoff, as reported, if the Gophers are part of it the odds are better that it'll be at Williams Arena than on the road.

Tentative Home Teams (2 of 8)
Villanova
Big East/Eastern Team (will host Rutgers)

Tentative Road Teams (2 of 8)
Nebraska
Rutgers
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Is there any guarantee that each conference hosts 4 games each year?
 





Gophers out of Gavitt Tipoff?

This guy from the Creighton White & Blue Review is usually a pretty good source for Big East basketball, and he's speculating the Gophers will not be part of the Gavitt Tipoff this season due to scheduling conflicts.

The Puerto Rico Tip-Off starts on Nov. 19, so he's probably right. The Gavitt Tipoff games will be played Nov. 17-19, so I doubt the Gophers would schedule a game on the 17th before heading to Puerto Rico.

https://twitter.com/wildjays/status/588581361667080193
 

I have seen quite a bit of chatter saying one of the matchups will be Xavier at Michigan.
 





The response of St. John's fans sound a lot like us when the B1G-ACC matchups are announced.
 

Ski U Mah Gopher said:
The response of St. John's fans sound a lot like us when the B1G-ACC matchups are announced.
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Yep. And we'll likely have the same response when we find out the Gophers will host their usual ACC bottom-feeder like Boston College, Georgia Tech, or Virginia Tech! Not that I'm complaining. ... we're not going to get a top-tier ACC opponent until we prove we deserve one.
 

Rothstein also tweeted out Illinois at Providence and Creighton at Indiana as other matchups for the event. If Xavier at Michigan ends up happening and is the marquee game, consider me slightly underwhelmed.
 


Kind of get the feeling these games are going to seem more like normal non-conference games instead of a conference vs conference series like the B1G/ACC. The match ups are pretty bad and so many of the B1G teams aren't even in it since the Big East is so small.
 


Horrible slate this year for the Gavitt Tip-Off games. If you wanted to come out like a lamb, you got it. Not one of the B1G's top-3 programs over the past decade is participating. All 3 of the expansion teams (2/3 of which are already becoming perennial B1G bottom feeders). And of course they managed to sneak PSU in there as well. Certainly the B1G didn't get any favors with these matchups, to act like this is some sort of representative sample of the B1G compared to the Big East is foolish. Couldn't they have done a better job of making sure scheduling conflicts were avoided so they could make the most attractive matchups? The ones they ended up with, it's a very disappointing group of games compared to what it could have been.
 

They got 4 of the 8 right

Now that we know the 8 home and visiting teams, I think they got 4 of the 8 matchups right:

Georgetown @ Maryland (both will be good & no-brainer because of proximity & recent history of not playing)
Illinois @ Providence (both should be in the hunt for a NCAA bid)
Rutgers @ Saint John's (location, location, location, and neither expected to be much next season)
DePaul @ Penn State (both likely to be basement dwellers)

I would have lined up the other 4 games this way:

Iowa @ Villanova (Hawkeyes best available road team of the remaining B1G participants)
Xavier @ Indiana (Hoosiers deserve a better opponent more than UM does)
Creighton @ Michigan (both are good programs coming off sub-par seasons)
Nebraska @ Marquette (Warriors will be improved, but deserve 'Huskers as foe more than it does Iowa)

The one matchup just can't figure out why is Nebraska-Villanova. 'Nova deserves better than that.
 

the lineup

I don't see a full list anywhere, I think this is it:

Iowa at Marquette
DePaul at Penn State
Xavier at Michigan
Creighton at Indiana
Rutgers at St. John’s
Illinois at Providence
Nebraska at Villanova
Georgetown at Maryland

Feels like a much more informal event than the Big 10/ACC, which is fine. Just get together and play some games. Makes sense 1/3rd of the teams combined from both conferences aren't playing.
 

Ope3 said:
I don't see a full list anywhere, I think this is it:

Iowa at Marquette
DePaul at Penn State
Xavier at Michigan
Creighton at Indiana
Rutgers at St. John’s
Illinois at Providence
Nebraska at Villanova
Georgetown at Maryland

Feels like a much more informal event than the Big 10/ACC, which is fine. Just get together and play some games. Makes sense 1/3rd of the teams combined from both conferences aren't playing.
Click to expand...

Yep. those are the correct matchups. Illinois-Providence has a chance to be a sneaky-good game.
 

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