Wichita State Basketball: A Quick Glance Behind and a Long Road Ahead
By Eric Hogan
A Look Ahead at the 2018 American Athletic Conference Schedule
If you are a Shocker fan you might want to stock up on Tums, Rolaids, Gas-X, or whatever other acid reducer you may prefer. It’s going to be a rough ride for the Shockers. To give you an idea of just how tough their new conference is, I will compare the AAC to the Missouri Valley.
The American can currently boast having 8 teams in the top 100 RPI. The Missouri Valley has three. The American also has four teams at or near the top 50 in RPI, and two in the top 25 – the MVC has just one at 49, and Northern Iowa has lost three games in a row so they will be plummeting.
To say that Wichita State has stepped up to a tougher conference is an understatement to say the least. Since its inception in 2013-2014, the conference already has a National Champ in UConn, and regularly sends three or more teams to the Big Dance, as well as having multiple ranked teams throughout the years. The Missouri Valley rarely sends a second team unless Wichita State gets in as an at-large bid due to not winning their conference tournament.