College Basketball season will tip-off in earnest on Monday. For many local programs, this will be a season full of changes. From new head coaches, conference affiliation changes and more.

New Coaches

Cincinnati and Xavier Women’s Basketball teams have new head coaches this year. Cincinnati will be led by Katrina Merriweather. She’s a Cincinnati alumnus who previously coached at Wright State and Memphis. Merriweather was a graduate assistant with UC in the 2001-02 season. Helping lead the team to its first NCAA Tournament win.

Xavier Women’s Basketball will be led by Billi Chambers. She joins Xavier after a decade leading Iona’s women’s team. Coaching the team to NCAA Tournament appearances in 2016 and last season. Chambers and Merriweather are now tasked with making their programs tournament contenders.

Xavier and Cincinnati have struggled in recent seasons. The Cincinnati Bearcats are going into this season after three-consecutive losing seasons. A sudden change in fortunes after former head coach Michelle Clark-Heard began her UC tenure with two-consecutive winning seasons. Last year, Cincinnati had their worst conference record since the 2010-11 season. The Xavier Musketeers haven’t had a winning season since 2015-16. Xavier hasn’t been to the NCAA Tournament since 2011. The Musketeers were winless in Big East Conference play last season.

New Conferences

Cincinnati and Thomas More Basketball are heading into the first season in their respective new conferences. Cincinnati is going into the Big 12 Conference’s basketball gauntlet. Thomas More will have their first season in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. Along with having their first season as an NCAA Division II program. These conference changes will present a challenge for both schools.

Thomas More’s challenge will be continuing a roughly decade long run of success in women’s basketball. TMU’s women’s team won national championships in 2016, 2019 and 2022. Dominating in their last seasons as an NCAA Division III program. Then dominating throughout their tenure as an NAIA program. Now TMU will strive to succeed against the highest level of competition they’ve faced to date.

Cincinnati is navigating through the growing pains of being in the Big 12. Their football program is still in search of their first conference win as a Big 12 school. While trying to snap a six-game losing streak. UC’s football struggles add to the local anticipation for basketball season. As UC’s basketball teams strive to avoid the kind of struggles their football team is enduring. That will be a tall task for UC’s men’s and women’s basketball teams. With UC set to compete in one of the toughest conferences in college basketball.

A changing postseason path for Northern Kentucky

The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) recently announced a significant change. Which will affect who gets invited to NIT. Since 2006, conference’s regular season champions that weren’t selected for the NCAA Tournament; got an automatic bid to the NIT. That won’t be the case this season and in the foreseeable future. Instead, the top two teams from the six major conferences left out of the NCAA Tournament will get automatic bids to the NIT. Those teams will also get a guaranteed first round home game. Regardless of those major conference teams overall records.

This change could significantly affect Northern Kentucky’s postseason hopes. For them and their fellow Horizon League schools. Winning the regular season or conference tournament title is typically the only routes into postseason tournaments. In recent years, the Horizon League regular season champion didn’t win the conference tournament. NKU has advanced to the NCAA Tournament through winning the Horizon League Tournament; after losing the conference’s regular season title three times.

It will still be possible for mid-major regular season champions to be invited to the NIT. Perhaps this could lead to the NCAA Tournament expanding. An idea that has been floating around since it expanded to 68 teams in 2011. The NIT’s changes are the latest showcase of the NCAA coddling power conferences. Doing so this time at the potential expense of mid major teams. The NIT’s organizers are also trying to fend off a postseason tournament being proposed by Fox Sports. Which would feature teams from major conferences they have broadcasting rights for.

The Miller’s

After starting this article discussing Xavier and Cincinnati’s new women’s basketball head coaches. We conclude by delving into both school’s returning men’s basketball head coaches. Xavier Men’s Basketball head coach Sean Miller is eager to build on his successful return to the program. After getting the program to the NCAA’s sweet 16 last season. Xavier heads into this season with many new players to get acquainted with.

Souley Boum, Jack Nunge, Adam Kunkel and Colby Jones have graduated. Zach Freemantle and Jerome Hunter are sidelined indefinitely by injuries. As for new players, Xavier has three international players. Lazar Djokovic, Sasa Ciani and Gytis Nemeiksa. Ciani and Djokovic are two of Xavier’s six freshman players.

Roster concerns are also part of the chatter surrounding Cincinnati Men’s Basketball. Aziz Bandaogo and Jamille Reynolds’ transfers to UC have faced issues with the NCAA. Bandaogo and Reynolds were declared ineligible by the NCAA to play this season. Cincinnati Men’s Basketball head coach Wes Miller has appealed the NCAA’s decision. Meanwhile, Cincinnati has roster continuity and an impressive freshman class. Cincinnati’s is striving to showcase continuing improvements in Wes Miller’s third season as head coach. As the Bearcats hope to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019.