Mark those Big Ten calendars

Ready for Washington and UCLA to open Big Ten conference play? Yeah, it’ll take some getting used to.

Like The Field of 68 live streaming a media day event. We’ll be at several this fall, including the Summit League on Oct. 8. It all starts at 10 am ET. Watch it on Twitter/X or YouTube.

Let’s get to Thursday’s news.

1. Big Ten hoops, from coast to coast, starting on Dec. 3

Fun fact: Big Ten basketball begins before Big Ten football season ends.

Big Ten play starts Dec. 3 with a trio of matchups of compelling matchups. New Michigan coach Dusty May takes the Wolverines to Wisconsin, while the other two games are on the West Coast (?). Yeah, it felt wrong to type, but it’s correct. Washington plays at UCLA, while Oregon travels to USC.

It’s all part of the Big Ten schedule release that dropped on Thursday. It’s every matchup of the new 20-game conference schedule, which includes three home-and-away matchups, then seven home games and seven road games as one-off matchups.

Another factor in the Big Ten schedule is that teams will be playing all seven days of the week, including Mondays. Minnesota at Indiana on Dec. 9 in the first edition, while Ohio State at Minnesota and Wisconsin at Rutgers (both on Monday, Jan. 6) is the first league doubleheader.

For those who follow preseason polls, there are three near-consensus top 25 teams in Indiana, Purdue, and Rutgers. The Boilermakers play both teams twice, while Indiana doesn’t travel to play Rutgers. Interestingly, none of these three programs play at USC or UCLA but will be at Oregon and Washington.

That’s important because the LA schools can compete for a top-half spot, but they will have to travel to the other three teams and not get a chance to host them.

Tom Izzo and Michigan State play at the LA schools at the beginning of February. On the bright side, the Spartans only host Purdue and Indiana while playing at Rutgers. They host Michigan in the regular-season finale, ending what, on paper, is a tough stretch to the season.

OK, you want an overall schedule view. Well, here you go, courtesy of Matt Eisenberg:

Considering most analysts agree the predicated Big Ten finish is up in the aur, the schedules seem fairly balanced. None of the likely preseason contenders (Indiana, Purdue, Michigan State, UCLA, Illinois, Rutgers, Michigan or Ohio State) have a clear advantage.

This could present an opportunity for another Big Ten program (Oregon, perhaps?) to fly under the radar and surprise everyone.

Just be sure you’re keeping tabs on the schedule. Lots of games to watch.

2. NC State still basking in Final Four run

NC State coach Kevin Keatts enjoyed one of the all-time heaters last spring when he went from life on the hot seat to life as a Final Four coach.

As he noted during a team press event on Thursday, he’s still enjoying that feat for a few more days. Next week? It’s all business.

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