Put Big Boy Pants On: Power Conference Members Should Elevate Sights

"Bullying builds character like nuclear waste creates superheroes. It's a rare occurrence and often does much more damage than endowment." - Zack W. Van

When big bullies are struck, they usually take their ball and go home. Why do so few power conference members play at in-state mid-major schools or even oppose them on a neutral court during the regular season? Why can't more big-name universities resemble Villanova with its longstanding tradition of competing in the Philly Big 5 honing the Wildcats' competitive edge for conference competition? How lame would the non-league slates be if not for ACC/Big Ten and Big 12/SEC made-for-ESPN extravaganzas?

In-state games against natural rivals, wherever they're played, are more revealing than most of the incessant mismatches in pre-conference competition. For instance, we've already got a clear picture that Virginia will be a power in the ACC again this season after the Cavaliers exhibited enough moxie to compete at VCU and win handily. Want to bet whether Boston College will be significantly improved from a year ago after the Eagles displayed sufficient basketballs despite a defeat against Massachusetts?

Elsewhere, power league members probably not bound for deep runs in postseason play, if advancing that far at all, after falling short at home or with home-state advantage against out-of-state low-majors include Arizona State (Lehigh), Auburn (Coastal Carolina), DePaul (Lehigh), Florida State (Northeastern), Georgia Tech (USC Upstate), Indiana (Eastern Washington), Kansas State (Texas Southern), Marquette (Nebraska-Omaha), Memphis (Stephen F. Austin), Miami FL (Eastern Kentucky and Green Bay), Michigan (NJIT), Michigan State (Texas Southern), Ole Miss (Charleston Southern), Mississippi State (Arkansas State and USC Upstate), Nebraska (Incarnate Word), North Carolina State (Wofford), Northwestern (Central Michigan), Purdue (North Florida and Gardner-Webb), Rutgers (Saint Francis PA), South Carolina (Akron), USC (Portland State and Army), Virginia Tech (Appalachian State), Wake Forest (Iona and Delaware State), Washington (Stony Brook) and Washington State (Idaho). What would the margin of defeat have been if the big boys had the intestinal fortitude to meet these mid-level opponents on the road?

Non-league schedules would be significantly more entertaining if skittish power league members weren't so condescending and be willing to oppose competent in-state low-majors such as Connecticut although the Huskies succumbed against visiting Yale. Ditto California (Cal State-Bakersfield), Clemson (Winthrop), Michigan (Eastern Michigan), Missouri (UMKC), Providence (Brown), Rutgers (Saint Peter's) and Virginia Tech (Radford) in their home-court setbacks. Instead of meeting natural rival Davids on the road to brace for conference play, they frequently tuck tail and run after checking out the following results thus far this century. The scores are sobering reminders for Goliaths venturing away from Philistine the reasons why haughty "big boys" frequently strive to only stay home and pick on out-of-state patsies to pad their records:

2014-15
Gonzaga 81, Washington State 66
Northern Iowa 56, Iowa 44

2013-14
UC Santa Barbara 72, California 65
George Washington 77, Maryland 75
Gonzaga 90, Washington State 74
Harvard 73, Boston College 58
Illinois State 69, DePaul 64
Long Beach State 72, Southern California 71
Southern Methodist 55, Texas A&M 52 (at Corpus Christi)
Southern Methodist 69, Texas Christian 61
Virginia Commonwealth 82, Virginia Tech 52

2012-13
Brown 69, Providence 68
Butler 88, Indiana 86 (OT)
Coastal Carolina 69, Clemson 46
Florida Gulf Coast 63, Miami (Fla.) 51
Green Bay 49, Marquette 47
La Salle 82, Penn State 57
La Salle 77, Villanova 74 (OT)
Middle Tennessee 56, Vanderbilt 52
Old Dominion 63, Virginia 61

2011-12
Cal Poly 42, Southern California 36
Colorado State 65, Colorado 64
Creighton 76, Nebraska 66
Drake 74, Iowa State 65
Holy Cross 86, Boston College 64
Northern Iowa 80, Iowa 60
Saint Joseph's 65, Penn State 47
Saint Joseph's 74, Villanova 58
Southern Mississippi 86, Mississippi 82
Temple 78, Villanova 67
Xavier 76, Cincinnati 53

2010-11
Central Florida 57, Florida 54
Central Florida 84, Miami (Fla.) 78
Central Florida 65, South Florida 59
Florida Atlantic 50, South Florida 42
Fordham 84, St. John's 81
Furman 91, South Carolina 75
Kennesaw State 80, Georgia Tech 63
Marshall 75, West Virginia 71
UNC Wilmington 81, Wake Forest 69
North Texas 92, Texas Tech 83 (OT)
Northern Iowa 60, Iowa State 54
Princeton 78, Rutgers 73 (OT)

2009-10
Colorado State 77, Colorado 62
Creighton 67, Nebraska 61
Green Bay 88, Wisconsin 84 (OT)
Long Beach State 79, UCLA 68
Northern Iowa 67, Iowa 50
Portland State 88, Oregon 81
Rhode Island 86, Providence 82
Temple 45, Penn State 42
Temple 75, Villanova 65
Tulsa 86, Oklahoma State 65
Wofford 68, South Carolina 61
Xavier 83, Cincinnati 79 (2OT)

2008-09
College of Charleston 82, South Carolina 80 (OT)
Davidson 72, North Carolina State 67
Drake 60, Iowa 43
Lamar 85, Texas Tech 79
Southern Mississippi 78, Mississippi 59
Texas-El Paso 96, Texas Tech 78
Western Kentucky 68, Louisville 54

2007-08
Charlotte 63, Wake Forest 59
Creighton 74, Nebraska 62
Drake 79, Iowa State 44
East Carolina 75, North Carolina State 69
Old Dominion 72, Virginia Tech 69
Rhode Island 77, Providence 60
Richmond 52, Virginia Tech 49
Saint Joseph's 79, Penn State 67
Sam Houston State 56, Texas Tech 54
Tulane 68, Louisiana State 63
Xavier 64, Cincinnati 59

2006-07
Bradley 78, DePaul 58
Butler 60, Indiana 55
Butler 71, Notre Dame 69
Drake 75, Iowa 59
Gonzaga 97, Washington 77
Indiana State 89, Purdue 70
Northern Iowa 70, Iowa State 57
Ohio University 79, Cincinnati 66

2005-06
UC Davis 64, Stanford 58
Colorado State 83, Colorado 82
Creighton 70, Nebraska 44
Evansville 75, Purdue 69
George Washington 78, Maryland 70
Gonzaga 67, Washington State 53
Indiana State 72, Indiana 67
Marshall 58, West Virginia 52
Northern Iowa 67, Iowa 63 (OT)
Old Dominion 58, Virginia Tech 55
Portland 80, Oregon 72
Rhode Island 77, Providence 69
Xavier 73, Cincinnati 71 (OT)

2004-05
Bradley 63, DePaul 53
George Washington 101, Maryland 92
Gonzaga 99, Washington 87
Marshall 59, West Virginia 55
Northern Iowa 99, Iowa State 82
Santa Clara 86, Stanford 76
Temple 53, Villanova 52
Virginia Military 72, Virginia Tech 68

2003-04
Creighton 61, Nebraska 54
Gonzaga 95, Washington State 58
Illinois-Chicago 90, Northwestern 71
Northern Iowa 77, Iowa 66
North Texas 73, Baylor 69
Rhode Island 89, Providence 79
Temple 67, Penn State 56
Xavier 71, Cincinnati 69

2002-03
Dayton 75, Cincinnati 69
Florida Atlantic 74, Miami (Fla.) 73
Gonzaga 95, Washington 89 (OT)
Holy Cross 71, Boston College 70
Penn 62, Penn State 37
Penn 72, Villanova 58
Saint Joseph's 92, Villanova 75
William & Mary 60, Virginia Tech 52

2001-02
Butler 66, Indiana 64
Creighton 76, Nebraska 70
Drake 72, Iowa State 58
Fresno State 65, Southern California 58
Georgia State 83, Georgia 78
Gonzaga 67, Washington State 44
Marshall 81, West Virginia 79 (OT)
Northern Iowa 78, Iowa 76
Old Dominion 55, Virginia Tech 46
Penn 75, Villanova 74
Pepperdine 78, Southern California 77
Portland 79, Oregon 78
Rice 75, Baylor 60
Temple 75, Penn State 63
Temple 63, Villanova 57
Texas-Pan American 72, Baylor 66

2000-01
UC Irvine 56, California 52
Duquesne 71, Pittsburgh 70
Fordham 68, St. John's 67
Gonzaga 86, Washington 74
Indiana State 59, Indiana 58
Oakland 97, Michigan 90
Wichita State 76, Kansas State 66

1999-00
Colorado State 79, Colorado 57
Creighton 89, Nebraska 72
Drake 48, Iowa State 44
George Washington 74, Maryland 69
Gonzaga 76, Washington 66
Gonzaga 73, Washington State 63
Long Beach State 76, Southern California 66
North Texas 91, Texas A&M 88
Saint Louis 75, Missouri 72
Temple 69, Villanova 66
Xavier 66, Cincinnati 64