the pros, you should discover that most of their "conferences" are balanced. The reason they do it is because it makes it a lot easier to create a scheduling model they can keep using year after year. If one of the conferences (or divisions within a conference) becomes imbalanced, then that is when you start to see scheduling quirks pop up. If the P2s opt to create formal divisions within their conference or informal via "protected conference games," then they could want some sort of "balance" to make sure the numbers work (i.e. each team has the same number of protected opponents, etc.).