Breaking down Stanford men’s basketball’s 2021-22 non-conference schedule
At the end of August, Stanford men’s basketball announced their 2021-22 non-conference schedule. In case you missed it, the non-conference schedule is as follows:
November 9th (Tuesday) vs. Tarleton State; November 12th (Friday) at Santa Clara; November 15th (Monday) vs. San Jose State; November 17th (Wednesday) vs. Valparaiso; November 20th (Saturday) at Baylor; November 23rd (Tuesday) vs. North Carolina A&T; December 16th (Thursday) vs. Dartmouth; December 19th (Sunday) vs. Texas in Las Vegas.
December 22nd (Wednesday) through December 25th (Saturday) is the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu against Wyoming, Liberty/Northern Iowa, and a third opponent who will be determined by the bracket.
Also peppered in the schedule during this time are two Pac-12 games: November 28th (Sunday) at Colorado and December 12th (Sunday) vs. Oregon.
Tarleton State is new to the Division I level, joining the WAC in 2020. In their inaugural Division I season, they went 10-10 overall and 5-7 in conference play. That’s honestly pretty good for a first year at the DI level. However, there’s still no reason to expect this game to be close. Stanford honestly should defeat them by 20+ points.
Santa Clara went 12-8 last year and 4-5 in the WCC. Stanford should once again win by double digits, but being a road game, you just never know. Santa Clara humiliated Cal in their last home game against a Pac-12 opponent back in the fall of 2019 by a final score of 71-52. So, they aren’t afraid of Pac-12 teams coming into their home building. However, the Cal team that Santa Clara beat was really more like a mid-tier WCC team. So in that vein, it’s not a fair comparison.
San Jose State went 5-16 overall last year and 3-13 in the Pac-12. Sadly, the Spartans are usually an easy win in men’s hoops, so there’s no reason to expect something other than a Cardinal victory in this one. If San Jose State manages to not lose by double digits, I’ll be shocked.
Valparaiso went 10-18 overall last year and 7-11 in the Missouri Valley Conference. The MVC is one of the better mid-major conferences in the country, so they’re certainly not a conference to take lightly. That said, Valparaiso isn’t one of the premier teams in the MVC, so Stanford should once again cruise to a double-digit win at Maples.
Baylor is a whole different beast from the previous teams mentioned. They are the defending NCAA champions, ending Gonzaga’s quest for an undefeated season by routing them 86-70 in the national championship game. Even with juniors Davion Mitchell (Sacramento Kings) and Jarred Butler (Utah Jazz) leaving for the NBA, Baylor still has a formidable team and will not be an easy team to beat in Waco. This will be the Cardinal’s first real test of the season and chance to pick up a signature win for their NCAA tournament resume.
North Carolina A&T went 11-10 overall and 7-1 in the Big South last year. Stanford dominated them 78-46 last year on the road. So with a game this time at Maples, Stanford should win with just as much ease if not more.
Dartmouth didn’t compete last season as the Ivy League decided not to have a 2020-21 season due to the pandemic so it’s a bit hard to project how good Dartmouth will be from that standpoint. However, in the 2019-20 season, the Big Green didn’t do so hot, going 12-17 overall and 5-9 in the Ivy League. Stanford should win easily over their Ivy Plus brethren.
Texas is never an easy team to beat. They always recruit well and have competitive teams. Last season was no exception as Texas went 19-8 overall and 11-6 in the Big XII, which was good enough for a #3 seed in the NCAA tournament. The Longhorns’ season ended with an early tournament exit, losing 53-52 to #14 seed Abilene Christian. Given that this game will be a neutral site game in Las Vegas, the opportunity for Stanford to win is definitely there. If the Cardinal find a way to win this game, it will definitely be a significant boost to their NCAA tournament resume.
Lastly, when looking at the Diamond Head Classic, Stanford’s schedule doesn’t shape up to be too bad. Wyoming went 14-11 overall and 7-9 in the Mountain West last season, so the Cardinal should win that matchup.
Up next will be either Liberty or Northern Iowa. Liberty went a very impressive 23-6 overall and 11-2 in the ASUN last year, so they’re no slouch. Northern Iowa has had some good teams over the years in the Missouri Valley Conference and evolved into a classic March Madness darling of sorts. Last year though, they went 10-15 overall and 7-11 in the MWC, so they aren’t that intimidating of an opponent. I would expect Stanford to face Liberty after beating Wyoming, but you never know.
Assuming Stanford plays in the championship game on Christmas Day, BYU are the odds-on favorite to be there waiting with South Florida, Vanderbilt, and Hawaii being the other possibilities. Facing BYU would be kinda fun as Stanford alum Nick Robinson is on staff there. BYU went 20-7 overall and 11-2 in the WCC, losing 73-62 to UCLA in the first round of the NCAA tournament. A Stanford/BYU game at a neutral site would honestly be a toss-up and a chance for both teams to pick up a signature non-conference win. If Stanford can beat the Cougars and more broadly win the Diamond Head Classic, they’ll definitely improve their NCAA tournament resume.
When looking at the Cardinal’s non-conference schedule as a whole, it’s pretty friendly. They should start 4-0 before heading into Waco to face Baylor. Playing Texas in Las Vegas won’t be easy, but being a neutral site game, the chance to steal a win is definitely there. And then looking at the Diamond Head Classic, Stanford has a great chance to go 3-0 and win the tournament. If Stanford can find a way to win at Colorado and hold serve at home against Oregon in their first two Pac-12 games, they should be sitting in a pretty spot heading into the new year.