The Big 12 conference is absolutely loaded ahead of the 2024-25 college basketball season. While three of the new league members – Colorado, Utah, and Arizona State – aren’t big needle movers on the hardwood, the addition of Arizona adds yet another top five caliber team to a conference already projected to have four teams ranked in the top 10: Kansas, Baylor, Houston, and Iowa State.
That, combined with projected improvements at BYU, Kansas State, West Virginia, Cincinnati, and Oklahoma State, could make this the deepest and most talent rich league in all of college basketball.
The Big 12 revealed conference matchups on Thursday, although times and TV data will come later. Still, this gives us a great look at how things will play out in conference play starting in late December and running up until a loaded final slate of games on March 8th.
Here are three key takeaways from Thursday’s Big 12 schedule reveal:
Arizona given cushy start
The Big 12 is so deep and talent-rich it’s hard to call any of the conference schedules ‘easy’, but it is also clear the league’s most promising newcomer – Tommy Lloyd’s Arizona Wildcats – were given a bit of a gift in the early part of conference play.
Arizona opens league play at home against TCU on December 30th before starting road play on January 4th at Cincinnati and January 7th at West Virginia. They play at home against Central Florida on January 11th before finally facing one of the top teams in the league, Baylor, on January 14th at home.
All in all Arizona’s road slate of Big 12 games is pretty cushy until mid February – then the rubber hits the road. The Wildcats close with road games at Kansas State, Baylor, Iowa State, and Kansas between February 11th and March 8th. That gauntlet will give us a great picture of what Lloyd’s team is made of.
Wednesday night is party night
A lot of college basketball leagues are pivoting to hosting marquee games on Friday in an effort to corner the sports market while avoiding NFL Sundays and the crowded Saturday slates.
While the Big 12 is not one of those leagues, avoiding Friday games altogether, the conference did make a concerted effort to schedule a lot of marquee matchups on Wednesdays.
Kansas hosts Arizona State on January 8th and then goes on the road to face Iowa State the following Wednesday, January 15th. That same day Utah plays at TCU, Cincinnati at Colorado, and West Virginia goes to Houston.
The next Wednesday, January 22nd, Kansas and Kansas State both go on the road in Texas to face TCU and Baylor, respectively, and the final Wednesday of the month features Oklahoma State at Kansas State, TCU at Texas Tech, and Houston in Morgantown returning the favor against West Virginia.
Going out with a bang
Saturday, March 8th is the final day of the regular season, and the Big 12 ensured all eyes would be on them with an incredibly loaded slate of games.
All 16 teams will be in action, with some of the biggest brands in the league facing off in a day that could have widespread ramifications not only in the conference standings, but in the top 25 and seeding for the NCAA Tournament.
Arizona plays at Kansas, Iowa State is at Kansas State, and Houston is at Baylor in the three most notable games between six teams all projected to be inside the top 25, five who could reasonably begin the season in the top ten.
March 8th also features a rivalry game between Utah and BYU in Provo and a fun matchup between TCU and Colorado, finishing up the regular season on a very high note.