The larger slate of ACC conference games debuted this season was as inevitable as conference realignment in college basketball’s pursuit of the almighty dollar. The 20-game schedule allows for more high-quality games, which the conference in turn hypes to make its television rights more valuable; indeed, it’s likely no coincidence that the launch of the ACC Network coincided with this uptick in conference battles. And the ACC is not alone in this pursuit: The Big 10 currently plays 20 conference games as well, with most other so-called “major” conferences playing at least 18 amid rampant speculation that 20-game conference seasons could soon become the norm rather than the exception.
Fewer Non-Conference Games Makes Building the Bracket a Fool’s Errand
