The beginning of July marks the start of any new league configuration for the men’s college basketball season.
Here’s where we are this July headed to the 2022-23 season. There will still be 32 conferences with 363 Division I teams; 352 will be eligible for the DI men’s basketball tournament and 363 will count in the NET rankings.
These are some of the most notable changes for this season:
1. Loyola Chicago moves from the Missouri Valley to the A-10: The Ramblers have skyrocketed in name recognition and this latest move continues the trend. Second-year coach Drew Valentine should have the Ramblers in the mix for a postseason berth yet again, even in the competitive A-10. The move by the A-10 was significant. The Ramblers get the A-10 into the Chicago market and ensure there are natural rivals with Midwest schools Saint Louis and Dayton.
2. Belmont and Murray State from the OVC to the MVC, UIC from the Horizon to the MVC: The Missouri Valley didn’t stand idle when it lost Loyola. They grabbed UIC to stay in Chicago, a must in a bus league and/or potential flights with multiple easy-access airports in the Chicagoland area. The Flames will need to up their game to compete at the top of the Valley, but it’s doable. The additions of Belmont and Murray State were massive moves and immediately could keep the Valley in play for multiple bids. Belmont and Murray State have historically battled in the OVC for the top spot. They surely will be in the mix near the top of the Valley with teams like Drake, Northern Iowa, Missouri State and Bradley, among others.
3. Bryant from NEC to America East: The Bulldogs made their first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament last season and will immediately compete near the top of the America East with Vermont. This was a move that made sense for both parties with Bryant able to bus within New England and New York to a majority of the schools.
4. Marshall, Old Dominion, Southern Miss from CUSA to Sun Belt, James Madison from CAA to Sun Belt: The Sun Belt will likely increase its seeding potential with the additions of Marshall, ODU, Southern Miss and JMU. All four schools have had their moments and should help with the strength of the Sun Belt.
5. Stony Brook from America East to CAA, NC A&T from Big South to CAA, Monmouth from MAAC to CAA, Hampton from Big South to CAA: This was a survival move for the Colonial. They had to add members but they did well in getting Stony Brook and Monmouth, which have both been very competitive in the America East and MAAC, respectively.
6. Austin Peay from OVC to ASUN: The Ohio Valley’s loss is again the ASUN’s gain. One year after Jacksonville State and Eastern Kentucky left the OVC for the ASUN, Austin Peay will follow its former conference foes. Austin Peay will still have its hands full with Bellarmine in the ASUN, but the league is getting a historically good program with the Governors.
Here’s a reminder for major moves after this season:
2023-24
- BYU from WCC to Big 12
- Cincinnati, Houston and UCF from American to Big 12
- Sam Houston State from the WAC to CUSA
- Liberty from ASUN to CUSA
- Florida Atlantic, Rice, UAB, UTSA, North Texas, Charlotte from CUSA to the American
- New Mexico State from WAC to CUSA
- Jacksonville State from ASUN to CUSA
2024-25
- USC and UCLA from Pac-12 to Big Ten
- Texas and Oklahoma from Big 12 to SEC
Here is the 2022-23 DI men’s basketball conference alignment, as of July 11.
AMERICA EAST (9)
- Binghamton
- Bryant
- Maine
- New Hampshire
- NJIT
- UAlbany
- UMass Lowell
- UMBC
- Vermont
AMERICAN ATHLETIC (11)
- Cincinnati
- East Carolina
- Houston
- Memphis
- SMU
- South Fla.
- Temple
- Tulane
- Tulsa
- UCF
- Wichita St.
ATLANTIC COAST (15)
- Boston College
- Clemson
- Duke
- Florida St.
- Georgia Tech
- Louisville
- Miami (FL)
- NC State
- North Carolina
- Notre Dame
- Pittsburgh
- Syracuse
- Virginia
- Virginia Tech
- Wake Forest
ASUN (14)
- Austin Peay
- *Bellarmine
- Central Ark.
- Eastern Ky.
- FGCU
- Jacksonville
- Jacksonville St.
- Kennesaw St.
- Liberty
- Lipscomb
- North Ala.
- North Florida
- Queens (NC)
- Stetson
ATLANTIC 10 (15)
- Davidson
- Dayton
- Duquesne
- Fordham
- George Mason
- George Washington
- La Salle
- Loyola Chicago
- UMass
- Rhode Island
- Richmond
- Saint Joseph’s
- Saint Louis
- St. Bonaventure
- VCU
BIG EAST (11)
- Butler
- Creighton
- DePaul
- Georgetown
- Marquette
- Providence
- St. John’s (NY)
- Seton Hall
- UConn
- Villanova
- Xavier
BIG SKY (10)
- Eastern Wash.
- Idaho
- Idaho St.
- Montana
- Montana St.
- Northern Ariz.
- Northern Colo.
- Portland St.
- Sacramento St.
- Weber St.
BIG SOUTH (10)
- Campbell
- Charleston So.
- Gardner-Webb
- High Point
- Longwood
- Presbyterian
- Radford
- UNC Asheville
- USC Upstate
- Winthrop
BIG TEN (14)
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Michigan St.
- Minnesota
- Nebraska
- Northwestern
- Ohio St.
- Penn St.
- Purdue
- Rutgers
- Wisconsin
BIG 12 (10)
- Baylor
- Iowa St.
- Kansas
- Kansas St.
- Oklahoma
- Oklahoma St.
- TCU
- Texas
- Texas Tech
- West Virginia
BIG WEST (11)
- Cal Poly
- CSU Bakersfield
- Cal St. Fullerton
- CSUN
- Hawaii
- Long Beach St.
- UC Davis
- UC Irvine
- UC Riverside
- *UC San Diego
- UC Santa Barbara
COLONIAL (13)
- College of Charleston
- Delaware
- Drexel
- Elon
- Hampton
- Hofstra
- Monmouth
- N.C. A&T
- Northeastern
- Stony Brook
- Towson
- UNCW
- William & Mary
CONFERENCE USA (11)
- Charlotte
- FIU
- Fla. Atlantic
- Louisiana Tech
- Middle Tenn.
- North Texas
- Rice
- UAB
- UTEP
- UTSA
- Western Ky.
HORIZON (11)
- Cleveland St.
- Detroit
- Green Bay
- IUPUI
- Milwaukee
- Northern Ky.
- Oakland
- Purdue Fort Wayne
- Robert Morris
- Wright St.
- Youngstown St.
IVY (8)
- Brown
- Columbia
- Cornell
- Dartmouth
- Harvard
- Penn
- Princeton
- Yale
METRO ATLANTIC (11)
- Canisius
- Fairfield
- Iona
- Manhattan
- Marist
- Mt. St. Mary’s
- Niagara
- Quinnipiac
- Rider
- Saint Peter’s
- Siena
MID-AMERICAN (12)
- Akron
- Ball St.
- Bowling Green
- Buffalo
- Central Mich.
- Eastern Mich.
- Kent St.
- Miami (OH)
- Northern Ill.
- Ohio
- Toledo
- Western Mich.
MID-EASTERN (8)
- Coppin St.
- Delaware St.
- Howard
- Morgan St.
- Norfolk St.
- N.C. Central
- South Carolina St.
- UMES
MISSOURI VALLEY (12)
- Belmont
- Bradley
- Drake
- Evansville
- Illinois St.
- Indiana St.
- Missouri St.
- Murray St.
- Southern Ill.
- UIC
- UNI
- Valparaiso
MOUNTAIN WEST (11)
- Air Force
- Boise St.
- Colorado St.
- Fresno St.
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- San Diego St.
- San Jose St.
- UNLV
- Utah St.
- Wyoming
NORTHEAST (9)
- Central Conn. St.
- Fairleigh Dickinson
- Long Island
- *Merrimack
- Sacred Heart
- St. Francis Brooklyn
- Saint Francis (PA)
- *Stonehill
- Wagner
OHIO VALLEY (10)
- Eastern Ill.
- Lindenwood
- Little Rock
- Morehead St.
- SIUE
- Southeast Mo. St.
- *Southern Ind.
- Tennessee St.
- Tennessee Tech
- UT Martin
PAC-12 (12)
- Arizona
- Arizona St.
- California
- Colorado
- Oregon
- Oregon St.
- Southern California
- Stanford
- UCLA
- Utah
- Washington
- Washington St.
PATRIOT (10)
- American
- Army West Point
- Boston U.
- Bucknell
- Colgate
- Holy Cross
- Lafayette
- Lehigh
- Loyola Maryland
- Navy
SOUTHEASTERN (14)
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Auburn
- Florida
- Georgia
- Kentucky
- LSU
- Mississippi St.
- Missouri
- Ole Miss
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas A&M
- Vanderbilt
SOUTHERN (10)
- Chattanooga
- Citadel
- ETSU
- Furman
- Mercer
- Samford
- UNC Greensboro
- VMI
- Western Caro.
- Wofford
SOUTHLAND (10)
- Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
- Houston Baptist
- Lamar
- McNeese
- New Orleans
- Nicholls St.
- Northwestern St.
- Southeastern La.
- *Texas A&M-Commerce
- UIW
SOUTHWESTERN (12)
- Alabama A&M
- Alabama St.
- Alcorn St.
- Ark.-Pine Bluff
- Bethune-Cookman
- Florida A&M
- Grambling
- Jackson St.
- Mississippi Val.
- Prairie View
- Southern U.
- Texas Southern
SUMMIT (10)
- Denver
- Kansas City
- North Dakota
- North Dakota St.
- Omaha
- Oral Roberts
- South Dakota
- South Dakota St.
- *St. Thomas (Minn.)
- Western Ill.
SUN BELT (14)
- Appalachian St.
- Arkansas St.
- Coastal Carolina
- Ga. Southern
- Georgia St.
- James Madison
- UL Monroe
- Louisiana
- Marshall
- Old Dominion
- South Alabama
- Southern Miss.
- Texas St.
- Troy
WEST COAST (10)
- BYU
- Gonzaga
- LMU (CA)
- Pacific
- Pepperdine
- Portland
- Saint Mary’s (CA)
- San Diego
- San Francisco
- Santa Clara
WESTERN ATHLETIC (13)
- Abilene Christian
- California Baptist
- Grand Canyon
- New Mexico St.
- Sam Houston St.
- Seattle U
- Southern Utah
- SFA
- *Tarleton St.
- UT Arlington
- *Utah Tech
- Utah Valley
- UTRGV
INDEPENDENT (2)
*-Ineligible for postseason