Big 12 Basketball Schedule to Expand to 20 Conference Games Next Season
Oklahoma State’s schedule next season might have gotten a bit more difficult.
Beginning next season, the Big 12 will move from 18 conference games to 20 for each team. The change makes sense, considering the conference has increased from 10 members to 16 over the past two years.
Bill Self revealed the news in a conversation with Andy Katz on Monday, where he discussed storylines surrounding Kansas going into next season. Kansas looks to be a contender in the conference again in 2025, but the Jayhawks are only one of the many threats in the 16-team league.
Although Oklahoma and Texas will be in the SEC next season, the Big 12’s additions from the Pac-12 could make an instant impact. As if the conference was not already one of the nation’s best, Arizona comes into the Big 12 after earning a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament last season.
The Wildcats’ addition sets the Big 12 up for another year of giants competing at the top. Three of the eight highest-seeded teams from the 2024 NCAA Tournament will be in the conference next season, with no other conference having more than two.
Although the size of the conference will not allow for as many matchups against the same team, every team having the likes of Arizona, Houston and others on their schedule could make for one of the most entertaining Big 12 slates in years. At OSU, Steve Lutz will not have to deal with the round-robin schedule of the past, but the severity of the schedule is now up to chance (and the schedule makers).
Assuming every team plays each conference opponent once, that would mean OSU plays five teams twice. There is likely to be a mix of good and bad for every team in those five matchups, but the variance could have a small, yet significant, impact on the standings.
In any case, the Cowboys will need to play at their highest level throughout the Big 12 slate next season to return to the NCAA Tournament.
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IVAN WHITE
Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.