Colorado State will do its part to raise the Mountain West strength of schedule when the Rams play Big 12 power Kansas on Dec. 11 at Kansas City’s Sprint Center.
“We’re trying to build a nonconference resume that gets our strength of schedule up there so that if we’re good enough, we can compete for an at-large berth in the NCAA’s,” CSU coach Tim Miles said by phone Thursday.
A team’s strength of schedule is used to determine its RPI formula for postseason rankings.
The MWC placed a record four teams in the NCAA tournament, in part because of strong schedules and nonconference wins by New Mexico, UNLV and BYU.
While the neutral site won’t really be neutral for Kansas, CSU sophomore guard Dorian Green should attract his own cheering section for the Rams. Green played for Lawrence (Kan.) High School and turned down an invited walk-on bid from the Jayhawks.
CSU features a roster with an emphasis on talent from the midwest. Guard Jesse Carr (coming off a hip injury), Iowa State transfer guard Wes Eikmeier and sophomore forward Greg Smith have Nebraska connections.
“There’s no question it’s an important recruiting area for us,” said Miles.
Kansas annually plays one game in the Sprint Center (which recently hosted the Big 12 Tournament) and it has drawn national TV interest in the past.
Miles said the contract is a one-game deal.
Natalie Meisler: 303 954-1295 or nmeisler@denverpost.com.
