As Wolverine noted, it’s about the Benjamins. For the big school (happy donors and boosters see the team beat the St Mary’s School for the Blind 120-0, more donations) and for the little school (ass-kicking fee). Everyone’s happy.
The outcome is fairly certain in football - big boys win 99.9% of the time, see Appalachian State vs. Michigan for the exception. But in basketball, there’s often considerably more parity - you have six studs on your team, you can run with just about anyone.