With Chicago college basketball on the rise, can an in-season city event happen? Here's why it's tricky
CHICAGO - In Rogers Park, Loyola head men's basketball coach Drew Valentine didn't waste a second.
When asked about in-city games, he pulled the KenPom rankings almost immediately on his phone. It took less than a minute to justify why teams to the north and south of the Ramblers should play Loyola.
"The game could do something for your resume," Valentine said. "I mean, we're at worst a Quad 2 game for you."
Valentine isn't wrong. This season, men's college basketball around Chicago is enjoying success in late 2024. Imagining the excitement around exciting programs playing each other at exciting times would be a dream for Chicago.
But, even though it should be that simple, it isn't.
"I know they probably won't come in here," Valentine said. "But if we did it on a neutral site or if we come to you, we're at least the Quad 2 game."
Basketball and the city of Chicago are pretty synonymous with each other.
It's akin to a disdain for ketchup on hot dogs, deep dish pizza and The Bean. When it comes to Chicago basketball players, Michael Jordan comes to mind, sure. But the list of basketball players from the Windy City is lengthy as it is talented.
This year, especially, is a good time to note this upswing.
DePaul has matched its season win total from last season. Northwestern is aiming for a third-straight NCAA Tournament berth. Loyola is aiming a return to the dance in Valentine's fourth season. UIC has a new head coach who's looking to inject life into the program.
"I know this is a big basketball town," Northwestern head coach Chris Collins said last week. "We're in basketball season now."
With basketball season in full effect, UIC head coach Rob Ehsan brought up an interesting idea: an in-season Chicago tournament.
Other teams compete in these in-season tournaments. They're called MTEs, or Multiple Team Events, which often times play at neutral sites like the Bahamas, Daytona Beach or other warmer areas around the Thanksgiving holiday.
"It would great for all of us to play in some kind of classic," Ehsan said. "It would generate more excitement. If we did it in the right venue you could probably get an amazing environment."
Hosting one in Chicago is a good idea. Hosting one with these established programs and programs on the upswing is a no-brainer.
However, it's easier said than done. The common denominator of why it's difficult to achieve is because of the scheduling commitments at hand.
"The scheduling piece is a tough dynamic. They were doing it in Indiana, now that's been disbanded because scheduling is really hard," Collins said. "In theory, it's a really good idea. It's just: how do you put it together."
Collins would know.
As the Big Ten expanded this season, adding Washington, Oregon, USC and UCLA, that meant a 20-game conference schedule that begins in December when Northwestern hosts Illinois.
Chris Holtmann at DePaul would know, too. When he was the head coach at Butler, his Bulldogs participated in the Crossroads Classic MTE, which is now known as the Indy Classic.
That event included Notre Dame, Butler, Indiana and Purdue, and was something Holtmann called a great event. Doing it in Chicago would be an option to explore.
"It's something you look at," Holtmann said. "You know how scheduling works. We're making headway on next year's schedule, so fitting it all in can be challenging at times but it's definitely something we can look at."
However, there needs to be a desire to play. Northwestern hasn't played Loyola-Chicago since the 1996-1997 season.
It's easy to understand why there isn't a desire to play each Loyola. For a team like Northwestern, losing to the Ramblers might be perceived as a blotch on an NCAA Tournament resume.
It's part of the politics that come with scheduling with March Madness in mind.
Part of the reason why the Indy Classic works is because of the participating teams. Butler, Indiana, Purdue and Notre Dame are all perceived as men's basketball powers, either past or present. Losing to those teams isn't a detractor for any resume.
Would losing to Loyola be devastating for Northwestern? No, and Valentine explained it perfectly with the KenPom rankings, which rate and rank teams based on variables like efficiency, luck and strength of schedule.
"I think if we were somewhere in the 200 range, you could say, 'what does that game do for us if you're Northwestern or DePaul?'" Valentine said. "But the fact that we're 74 on KenPom – we're 65th in the net rankings right now – I think that would let you know we're at worst the Quad 2 game for you."
But, it's difficult to anticipate what the NCAA selection committee can think or how they evaluate certain resumes. Especially considering Loyola, who isn't far removed from a move from the Missouri Valley Conference to the Atlantic-10.
On the other hand, Loyola has been to a Final Four in the past decade.
A Chicago in-season college basketball tournament might happen one day. Perhaps after the dust settles from conference realignments. Northwestern has always made a point of playing in-state opponents. NU plays DePaul later in December.
Whatever happens, Loyola wants to be included. When that happens, Loyola will be waiting for the call.
"We've got a huge appetite for it," Valentine said. "There's a lot of value for DePaul and Northwestern to try to play us."