The previous year's OOC schedule did not go well at all, so I felt like despite our late season improvement, we needed to show we could win games in the RPI top 100 before we tried running a gauntlet. A half dozen games against teams in the top 100 was about the right amount, it let us focus on those games and put forth maximum effort. It's high risk when you only have a few games that matter, but the kids answer the bell. I think the OOC schedule built confidence and they were ready for Duke on NYE as a result.