A contrast in OOC scheduling: volleyball vs. basketball

[Plebe]

It's interesting to me that elite women's D-I volleyball teams play much tougher nonconference schedules than elite WCBB teams:

	% of OOC schedule vs. top 10 (poll)​	% of OOC schedule vs. top 25 (poll)​	% of OOC scheudle vs. top 75 (RPI)^​
Volleyball top 10 (AVCA poll)	26% (24 out of 94)​	40% (38 out of 94)​	68% (64 out of 94)​
Basketball top 10 (AP poll)	11% (14 out of 123)​	24% (30 out of 123)​	45% (55 out of 123)​
			^ 2019 season-ending RPI used for basketball here.​

Some notes:

• The NCAA volleyball committee incentivizes better OOC scheduling as part of its "adjusted" RPI. Teams get a bonus for playing 50% of their nonconference schedule against the RPI top 75. I would love to see a similar incentive in effect for WCBB.
  
  
• Volleyball's "standard" OOC season is much shorter and more compressed than basketball's. WCBB has about 8 weeks before most conferences begin play, with most teams playing 10-14 OOC contests. By contrast, VB has about 3-1/2 weeks of OOC play with most teams playing 8-12 OOC contests.
  
  
• This shorter timeline means the tougher scheduling in VB comes across even more acutely because there are more marquee matchups compressed into a shorter period (and that doesn't even take into account that several of the WCBB marquee matchups take place in January and February).

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

It's interesting to me that elite women's D-I volleyball teams play much tougher nonconference schedules than elite WCBB teams:

	% of OOC schedule vs. top 10 (poll)​	% of OOC schedule vs. top 25 (poll)​	% of OOC scheudle vs. top 75 (RPI)^​
Volleyball top 10 (AVCA poll)	26% (24 out of 94)​	40% (38 out of 94)​	68% (64 out of 94)​
Basketball top 10 (AP poll)	11% (14 out of 123)​	24% (30 out of 123)​	45% (55 out of 123)​
			^ 2019 season-ending RPI used for basketball here.​

Some notes:

• The NCAA volleyball committee incentivizes better OOC scheduling as part of its "adjusted" RPI. Teams get a bonus for playing 50% of their nonconference schedule against the RPI top 75. I would love to see a similar incentive in effect for WCBB.
  
  
• Volleyball's "standard" OOC season is much shorter and more compressed than basketball's. WCBB has about 8 weeks before most conferences begin play, with most teams playing 10-14 OOC contests. By contrast, VB has about 3-1/2 weeks of OOC play with most teams playing 8-12 OOC contests.
  
  
• This shorter timeline means the tougher scheduling in VB comes across even more acutely because there are more marquee matchups compressed into a shorter period (and that doesn't even take into account that several of the WCBB marquee matchups take place in January and February).

Good point on the "elite". And UConn does add quite a bit to the Basketball I would think.

That said, I think there are factors that affect the volleyball tendency, and it is limited quite a bit to the elite. Arizona has a generally passable volleyball team, and they have not ever played a good team OOC (probably slight exaggeration).

Factors include the limited time frame to prepare for upcoming tough conference games, the availability of some top matches promoted by TV / sponsors within limited number of OOC games, and the compression of the OOC in terms of tournaments, etc.

 

[nwhoopfan]

I love all the showdowns between top teams early in the volleyball season. Usually quite a few matches between Big 10 and Pac 12 teams, with the all important bragging rights on the line.

 

[bballnut90]

It's interesting to me that elite women's D-I volleyball teams play much tougher nonconference schedules than elite WCBB teams:

	% of OOC schedule vs. top 10 (poll)​	% of OOC schedule vs. top 25 (poll)​	% of OOC scheudle vs. top 75 (RPI)^​
Volleyball top 10 (AVCA poll)	26% (24 out of 94)​	40% (38 out of 94)​	68% (64 out of 94)​
Basketball top 10 (AP poll)	11% (14 out of 123)​	24% (30 out of 123)​	45% (55 out of 123)​
			^ 2019 season-ending RPI used for basketball here.​

Some notes:

• The NCAA volleyball committee incentivizes better OOC scheduling as part of its "adjusted" RPI. Teams get a bonus for playing 50% of their nonconference schedule against the RPI top 75. I would love to see a similar incentive in effect for WCBB.
  
  
• Volleyball's "standard" OOC season is much shorter and more compressed than basketball's. WCBB has about 8 weeks before most conferences begin play, with most teams playing 10-14 OOC contests. By contrast, VB has about 3-1/2 weeks of OOC play with most teams playing 8-12 OOC contests.
  
  
• This shorter timeline means the tougher scheduling in VB comes across even more acutely because there are more marquee matchups compressed into a shorter period (and that doesn't even take into account that several of the WCBB marquee matchups take place in January and February).

One thing I love about volleyball is it seems like there's a marquee match up taking place every week. Last night we had #1 @ #3, tomorrow we have #6 @ #7.

 

[Plebe]

One thing I love about volleyball is it seems like there's a marquee match up taking place every week. Last night we had #1 @ #3, tomorrow we have #6 @ #7.

It's more understandably so in conference play, with so many of the top teams concentrated in 2 or 3 conferences.

To me the more remarkable contrast with basketball is the volume and frequency of marquee OOC matchups in the very short period before conference play in the major conferences begins in late September.