MAC Sports Blog by VanDelay Sports

In my post nearly a week ago that looked at the MAC East vs. the MAC West games for 2008, I made it very clear that teams in the MAC East needed to post a stellar record against teams in the MAC West in order to maintain their much stronger RPI rankings and keep Kent State, Ohio & Akron alive for a potential at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. We have now completed 2 of the 6 cross-divisional games for each of the MAC’s 12 basketball programs and all I can say is so far, so good.

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Over the weekend, Ohio edged Ball State, Miami topped EMU, Kent State defeated WMU and BG knocked off NIU, but all four were home wins for these MAC East teams. Meanwhile, Akron fell @ CMU and Buffalo remained winless in the MAC losing @ Toledo. While the MAC East went 4-2, they went 0-2 on the road. In mid-week games, Ohio used a strong 2nd hald to crush CMU and Akron did the same to beat Toledo, while BG, Kent & Miami all scored road wins. Only Buffalo lost in midweek play as the Bulls fell at home to WMU in OT. A 5-1 midweek performance with a 2-1 home mark and 3-0 on the road.

Overall, with 12 games in the books and 24 remaining between the MAC East and MAC West in the regular season, the East holds a commanding 9-3 edge going 6-1 at home and 3-2 on the road. Meanwhile, Saturday features 6 MAC match-ups with MAC East teams on the road in 5 of those 6 games. Only Akron plays a home game as they host EMU. Ohio is @ NIU, Miami @ Ball State, Kent @ Toledo, NG @ WMU and Buffalo @ CMU.

Prediction time. The East is clearly the better division, but Akron has already disappointed with their loss @ CMU last weekend, and Ohio is notorious for blowing a road game or two against lesser competition. They already did so @ Bowling Green, and I see them doing the same @ NIU or @ EMU next week. Kent is tough, but Toledo is better than their record indicates. The East goes 3-3 this weekend with Miami, BG and Buffalo all falling. Expect Miami to lose in the final minute of the game while WMU handles BG by 4-8 points and UB continues to struggle. Kent State wins by 10 @ Toledo, Ohio sets the Bobcat faithful up for disappointment by winning @ NIU before losing to EMU this week, and Akron handles the Eagles with a strong 2nd-half run.

It’s MAC Basketball time and it appears that again this season the MAC East is going to be the power of the Mid-American Conference. While there have not been a lot of marquee wins in 2007 thus far, Ohio’s win @ Maryland last night inspired me to take a deeper dive into the MAC East teams to date in 2007.

Kent State 8-2 - The Golden Flashes have started strong at 8-2 with solid wins over George Mason, Illinois State and St. Louis. A loss at nationally-ranked Xavier should help in the RPI, but an opening loss @ Detroit will hurt. A amatch-up with #1 North Carolina will prove to be a test and a SOS boost.

Akron 6-2 - The Zips look a lot like the 2006-2007 team that fell short of the postseason despite the MAC’s top record and #1 seed in the MAC Tournament. Losing to perennial Big Dance participant Wintrop is not a bad loss at all, but Portland State, the other team that beat the Zips, does not exactly have the media clamoring over their NCAA Tournament pedigree. A win over Mountain West member Wyoming is solid.

Ohio 6-2 - Ohio has been up and down this season starting 2-0, dropping two close games on the road @ Holy Cross and @ Temple, then winning 4 straight including a win @ Maryland. Temple appears rather mediocre this season and Holy Cross is 7-1, but both will hurt the Bobcats resume. The wins over New Mexico State and Maryland are impressive and should help their RPI. Ohio has a visit to #3 Kansas coming up this weekend.

Miami 4-3 - Charlie Coles has the RedHawks doing what they do every season; playing a tough non-conference schedule and pulling off an upset or two. Miami already has solid wins over Mississippi State, Xavier and Indiana State and their SOS should be solid with losses to Louisville, USC and Dayton. The RedHawks still have games @ Illinois, @ #3 Kansas and @ Cincinnati remaining and should have the highest Strength of Schedule in the MAC this season.

Buffalo 5-4 - The UB Bulls pulled off a mild upset over Big East member USF and have losses to #17 Pittsburgh, and UConn which whould help the SOS and RPI. However, losses to mediocre Niagara and a poor Florida International will be killers in the RPI. UB still has @ Wyoming on the schedule before MAC games begin.

Bowling Green 4-4 - BG defeated in-state rival and Big East member Cincinnati which will help their SOS, but all of their 4 losses were to mediocre teams which will hurt in the RPI. BG has games with Missouri Valley Conference members Illinois State and Indiana State remaining before MAC play.

Overall, I think the standings are fairly accurate to date. BG and Buffalo will hold onto the 5th and 6th spots in the MAC East as Miami, Kent, Ohio and Akron will once again beat each other up for the MAC East title and #1 seed in the 2008 MAC Tournament.