NCAAB Sun Belt
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Sun Belt Conference Hoop Previews: 2007-08
EAST DIVISION: SUN BELT
Western Kentucky
Get your track shoes on! The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (22-11) are a young, run-and-gun team that averages 78 ppg and their key backcourt players return, so expect a running attack again. They don.5?t have a lot of height, so in essence this is a four-guard attack. Western Kentucky has a strong run-and-gun attack behind 6'-5" senior guard Courtney Lee (17 ppg), 5'-11" senior guard Tyrone Brazelton, senior guard Ty Rogers and senior Orlando Mendez-Valdez. The quartet led the team in scoring last year.
Fifth-year head coach Darrin Horn runs an uptempo attack that shot 47% from the field and averaged 78 ppg. Horn likes an up-tempo, pressing style. Notice they were 15-15 over the total, after going 16-11 "over" the total two years ago and 19-11 over three years ago! Up front they have average role players on the boards 6-9 sophomore Jeremy Evans and 6-10 sophomore A'Darius Pegues. Western Kentucky has a 70-67 win at Georgia under its belts as a +10 dog. They were expected to win the Sun Belt, but got upset in the tourney by Arkansas State, so they should have a chip on their shoulder for this season.
One guy who will see time is 6-5 freshman Steffphon Pettigrew, the Kentucky High School Player of the Year. He averaged 33 ppg and is a terrific long range shooter. This is one of the bigger benches in the Sun Belt, with 6'-7" senior Mike Walker and 6'-7" senior Boris Siakam helping the frontcourt. Western Kentucky was 8-6 SU/5-7 ATS on the road where they scored 78 ppg! They also had losses to Florida (101-68), Southern Illinois (75-70 as a favorite) and at Tennessee (93-79). They didn't fare well two years ago when stepping up in competition, either, losing 69-65 to Georgia, and 91-75 to Pacific.
They did lose just 86-81 to Arizona and beat Virginia 78-68 (though that was at home). Western Kentucky can score and should be the team to beat in the Sun Belt this season.
Overall, this is a deep, experienced team with excellent balance. They are the club to beat in the Sun Belt East.
South Alabama
South Alabama has really turned things around the last two years, though they have a new coach for this season. They had one of the most successful seasons in school history in 2005-06 (24-7), the biggest turnaround in the nation, then followed that with a stellar 20-12 season. The Jaguars finished the 2005-06 campaign with a 24-7 record and their first trip to the NCAA Tournament in eight years. They couldn't repeat it last season, with a tough OT upset-loss in the Sun Belt tourney to Middle Tennessee State.
However, Jaguar head coach John Pelphrey is gone, so Head Coach Ronnie Arrow returns to his roots this year for a second stint as head coach of South Alabama. He previously led the Jaguars from 1987-94, holding a 114-93 record during that span. Most recently, Arrow spent the last eight seasons as at Texas A&M Corpus Christi where he compiled a 134-91 mark and took the Islanders to their first NCAA Tournament in 2007. During the Islanders.5? first year in the Southland Conference, Arrow guided the team to a school-best 26-7 record, the conference championship and was named Coach of the Year.
South Alabama is a guard-oriented team and returns 6-5 senior Demetric Bennett (15 ppg) and senior Daon Merritt (13 ppg), their top two scorers. Up front there is excellent height with 6-7 junior Brandon Davis, who started 12 games last season. Three transfers will help the frontcourt in 6-7 junior Deandre Coleman, 6-5 junior swingman Dan Hayles and 6-9 junior Ron Douglass. South Alabama was 11-3 SU, 6-5 ATS at home and 7-7 SU, 5-7 ATS on the road.
South Alabama also has a pair of 6-9 twins for the 2007-08 campaign in Detroit, Mich., natives, Charles and Philip Tabet, both sophomores who saw some time as freshmen. Charles played in 19 games as a senior in high school and averaged 10.2 points per game, 9.5 rebounds a game and 3.4 blocks. He shot 52 percent from the field and was a 61 percent free throw shooter. They should be very good and will battle Western Kentucky for the Sun Belt title.
Florida Atlantic
The first campaign as a member of the Sun Belt Conference for Florida Atlantic men's basketball was a pleasant surprise. The Owls (16-15, 15-10 ATS) went 10-8 in the Sun Belt, the third-most conference wins as a first-year Sun Belt member and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament before falling to Western Kentucky. "We accomplished a lot of things," Head Coach Rex Walters said. "We made great strides, but we have so much further we can go." They get their chance in Year 2, and have 4 starters back.
Guard DeAndre Rice is gone, their leading scorer, but 6-8 junior Carlos Monroe earned Second-Team All-Sun Belt honors. Monroe was the only SBC player to finish the season in the top-six in scoring (3rd, 18.4) and rebounding (2nd, 9.4). He also led the Belt in field goal percentage at 59.7 and was sixth in offensive rebounding (2.63). Seniors 6-8 Jeff Parmer (9.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and 6-6 Derrick Simmons anchor a terrific front line. Parmer ranked 15th in rebounding (5.5), 12th in field goal percentage (47.8) and 12th in blocks (0.80).
A key newcomer might be 5-11 junior G Carderro Nwoji, a fine backcourt player. Junior Paul Graham finished 15th in scoring (14.1), sixth in assists per game (3.31) and seventh in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.32). FAU finished with a winning record for the second-consecutive season, the first time the program has achieved that feat since moving to the Division I level and first time since the team had three-consecutive winning seasons from 1989-90 to 1991-92. And what a home court edge: Florida Atlantic was 11-2 SU, 7-3 ATS at home! They should be very good again and were 11-6 ATS as a dog.
Middle Tennessee State
The Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders (14-17) have won 19, 16, 15 and 14 games the last four seasons under sixth-year coach Kermit Davis. This looks like a decent season with 3 starters back. This team has good balance, too. The offense will revolve around junior guard Kevin Kanaskie, who led the team with 12.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game. Throw in 6-7 sophomore Desmond Yates (10.9 ppg), and the Blue Raiders have their top two scorers back.
Middle Tennessee is a slow down team, averaging just 62 ppg, which is why they were 18-11 under the total. One concern is they lost their top two frontcourt players in 6'-10" senior Kyle Young and 6'-9" senior Tim Blue. There are really no big guys to step in to replace them, unless 6-10 sophomore Theryn Hudson can do it. Possibly Jay Ivey, a 6-foot-8, 225-pound center from Owensboro Catholic, can get more time.
The backcourt also has top juniors Nigel Johnson and Calvin O'Neil, so the backcourt looks to be the strength of the team. Middle Tennessee State was 7-6 SU/5-6 ATS at home, 7-7 SU/6-7 ATS on the road, which is unusual. They are almost as mediocre at home as on the road! This is a guard-oriented offense and slow-down defensive team that could approach the .500 mark, but they should also struggle against tall frontcourts.
Florida International
This team has gone 8-21, 5-22, 13-17, 8-20 and 12-17 the last five seasons. They improved last season under coach Sergio Rouco, who begins his fourth season. Despite averaging just 66 ppg, Florida International is 16-8, 15-9 and 10-9 "over" the total the last three years. They lose only one senior starter. The offense revolves around 6'-6" junior Alex Galindo, who led the Panthers with 13.9 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.
This was a small team, and bigger teams hurt them on the boards. Florida International was a money-burning 7-14 ATS last year! However, this season they add 7-foot Russell Hicks, a transfer from Pepperdine, and 6-11 Badara Ndiaye, a former JC player. 6-2 junior shooting guard Ken White comes over from Texas A&M, so there are some interesting faces on this team.
There is plenty of returning guard play, with senior starter Chris Fuller (10.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg), and depth with sophomore Erick Nsangou and 5-foot-9 senior Michael James. 6-5 junior Marlon Bright are going to have to step up as the frontcourt needs help. Florida International was 9-4 SU/2-6 ATS at home but 3-12 SU, 5-8 ATS on the road. In fact, this team is 8-46 SU, 19-27 ATS the last four years on the road. This looks to be another losing season.
Troy
Troy is off a lousy 13-17 season and loses 3 starters. The problem was defense, allowing 76 ppg and 44.7% shooting by opponents. They lack height and lose their top three rebounders. Senior guard O'Darien Bassett is back after leading the team with 15.1 points per contest. They are a team of extremes, going 7-5 at home but 3-11 on the road!
So who steps up? They need more from 6-6 senior guard Justin Jonus and senior PG 6-2 Jerome Odem, both who came off the bench last season, along with sophomore G Brandon Hazzard. Troy was not expected to be good the last two years, and the Trojans posted marks of 6-9 and 8-10 in league play. Not bad, but after losing so much, they are expected to struggle mightily this season. They still play far better at home than on the road, a trend to look for again this season.
WEST DIVISION: SUN BELT
North Texas
After being a .500 team in each of the previous two years, North Texas exploded last season while advancing to the Big Dance after winning the Sun Belt title. Veteran leadership was the key for the Mean Green (23-11 SU, 14-12 ATS), with 2 seniors and 3 juniors leading the way. The bad news is that the backcourt loses its two seniors in 6-5 Calvin Watson (15.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg) and 6-4 Kendrick Davis (13.2 ppg). Despite being the second highest scoring team in the Sun Belt, averaging over 77 ppg, North Texas was 14-10 under the total.
North Texas earned its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since the 1987-88 season with an 83-75 win over Arkansas State in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament Championship. For this season, there are still three seniors, two in the frontcourt, that will make them a winning team again. Seniors 6-8 Quincy Williams (10.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg) and 6-9, 245-pound Keith Wooden run the break and crash the boards.
As a junior, Williams ranked third in the conference in field goal percentage at 57.6 percent, and collected six double-doubles, including four in a seven game span in the stretch run of conference play. Wooden will anchor the Mean Green post once again. The Kansas native boasted the top field goal percentage (52.5 percent) among all newcomers in the Sun Belt Conference last season. Wooden racked up 31 blocks on the year, which ties for the 10th most in program history. Wooden finished eighth in the conference in blocks per game and ranked 16th in the Sun Belt and second on the team with 5.5 rebounds per game.
The backcourt has senior PG Ben Bell and 6-4 sophomore Collin Mangrum. It had been a long time since coach Johnny Jones had cut down a net in celebration of a tournament crown, not since the early '80s when he was a player and then an assistant coach under Dale Brown at LSU. The 23 wins was the most ever by a North Texas team. They have the type of high-powered, attacking offense that is fun to watch. The only time they stepped up in competition, they lost 76-57 at Nebraska. But with so much returning talent, they will be a Sun Belt force again.
Arkansas State
Dickey Nutt's team suffered through a lot of injuries two years ago while stumbling through a 12-18 season, but they turned things around last year in an 18-15 campaign while making it to the Sun Belt championship game. A loss to North Texas, 83-75, in that contest only whets the Indians appetite for this season. With only two starter gone and their top three scorers back, Arkansas State will be in the hunt for the Sun Belt title again.
The backcourt has an excellent one-two punch in 5'-10" senior shooting guard Adrian Banks and sophomore point guard Ryan Wedel. Banks led the Indians in scoring with 21 points per game, and he's also a strong rebounder (4.4 rpg). Wedel was the Kansas High School Player of the Year and excelled as a freshman for Arkansas State, with 10.7 ppg. The frontcourt has 6-6 junior Shawn Morgan (6 ppg, 4.8 rpg), a high energy player, plus 6-6 junior newcomer Yima Chia-Kur and 6-8 junior Larry Handy.
There is also very good depth, with role players like forward 6-7 Abayomi Ajasin, a big body who can rebound. Freshman G Logan Nutt, the coach's son, joins the team a very good, quick player.
Notice that Arkansas State was 11-2 SU at home (8-3 ATS), and just 5-10 SU, 7-7 ATS on the road. They will be a favorite to return to the Sun Belt title game.
Louisiana-Monroe
Louisiana-Monroe used a tremendous home court advantage to go 18-14 overall and 12-8 in the Sun Belt, their first season of Sun Belt play. This team was 14-0 SU, 10-0 against the spread at home, but 2-13 SU, 4-10 ATS on the road. Talk about a team of extremes! Monroe.5?s head coach Orlando Early was named District 8 Coach of the Year by National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). Would you believe there was only ONE senior on the whole roster? So all 5 starters return.
Center Darien Bynum was the only senior on the Warhawks roster, and he was a role player averaging just 13 minutes per game. ULM finished with four players averaging in double-figures. Junior guard Tony Hooper led the team in scoring (15.4 ppg). He teams with three senior guards in this 4-guard attack in 6-3 Jordan Payne (12.4 ppg), 6-3 Jonas Brown (12.3 ppg), and Lance Brasher. Up front, 6-7 junior Afam Nweke returns after leading the team in rebounding (6.9 rpg).
Coach Early guided the Warhawks to their best season since 2001-02 when ULM finished 20-12 overall, 15-5 in the Southland Conference. ULM also posted its fourth undefeated record at home with a 14-0 mark in only Early's second season at the helm of the Warhawks. Monroe finished averaging 9.0 made three-pointers per contest, the second-highest mark in the Sun Belt Conference.
The Warhawks also averaged 72.0 points a game for 2006-07 to 65.0 in 2005-06. Monroe finished the 2007 Sun Belt Conference Tournament with a 77-71 overtime loss to No. 5-seed and eventual Tournament Champion North Texas at the Cajundome in Lafayette, La. Don't be surprised if they are again one of the better teams in the Sun Belt with a terrific coach and so much experience returning.
New Orleans
Coach Monte Towe had his team in the Sun Belt championship game four years ago, but the Privateers slipped to 13-17, 10-19 and 13-17 the last three seasons. So Towe was out last year and Brent "Buzz" Williams replaced him, going 13-17. But he.5?s gone, too, so 30-year old Joe Pasternik is their third coach in three years!
In the meantime, the new coach has to make do this season without much height. He does have an ace guard in Sun Belt Player of the Year Bo McCalebb, a senior, who led the Privateers as a junior with 24.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per contest. He was the leading scorer and rebounder, even at 6-feet tall. McCalebb and the backcourt will lead the way again, with senior guard James Parlow (13.1 ppg) and senior PG Shaun Reynolds. This program has liked an uptempo game, averaging 73 ppg and going 18-9 over the total.
The frontcourt lacks height and experience. 6-10 senior center Ben Elias only played 16 minutes per game, and they will look for more from sophomore 6-foot-8 David Jackson. Jackson finished his prep career at Rincon High School where he averaged 17.9 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists. He also tallied 108 blocks (3.9 per game) which was the most in the state of Arizona during the prep season. He additionally shot 57 percent from the field and 82 percent from the line. New Orleans was 8-5 SU/6-5 ATS at home, but 5-9 SU/6-6 ATS on the road. They are 6-22 on the road the last two seasons.
Louisiana-Lafayette
The Louisiana-Lafayette Rajin' Cajuns (9-21 SU, 12-13 ATS) suffered through another losing season, their second in a row. They used to be a 20-win team, but haven.5?t played well under third-year coach Robert Lee. They are 21-31 ATS under him. They lose only one senior starter, but need to improve on the road where they went 2-14.
The problem is height, as they run a 4-guard lineup and have little rebounding strength. Senior guard David Dees is back after leading the team in scoring with 17 points per contest. He was also the second leading rebounder with 5.3 per game. 6-5 sophomore Elijah Millsap is following in the footsteps of his brother, who was a rebounding force for four years with the Cajuns, now in the NBA. This Millsap shares a lot in common with Paul: he can play! Elijah had 12.4 points and 7.3 rebounds as a freshman.
Senior Guard Maurice Barksdale missed last season with a wrist injury and could provide backcourt depth and experience. 6-7 sophomore La'Tyan Gary is a newcomer who could help out on the glass, along with 6-6 freshman Chris Gradnigo. The frontcourt lacks a proven big man, though. Up front they have some role players in 6-8 250-pound sophomore Courtney Wallace (14 minutes per game) and 6-9 Abray Milson. L-Lafayette was 7-7 SU/5-7 ATS at home, but 2-14 SU/7-6 ATS on the road. Over the last three seasons this team is 39-12 SU/20-19 ATS at home. But it looks like another struggling, rebuilding season.
Arkansas-Little Rock
The good news is they lose only one starter. The bad news is he was their top player, in 6-8 senior Rashad Jones-Jennings (12 ppg, 13 rpg), who was a force up front and led the team in rebounds for two straight years. He won't be easy to replace. Little Rock is off a 13-17 season that started promising, before losing 9 of their final 14 games.
Arkansas Little Rock will miss Jones-Jennings, as only 6-6 junior Lekheythan Malone (8 ppg, 4 rpg) and 6-8 senior Rashad Moss return up front, and both were role players. Moss has the potential to be better, as two years ago he earned National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Second Team All-Region II and First Team Bi-State West All-Conference honors after averaging 19.3 points and 8.7 rebounds per game for Northern Oklahoma. 6-7 JC transfer Shane Edwards could see a lot of time and help out on the glass.
Another pair of newcomers is 6-6 junior Brandon Patterson and 6-7 soph Mike Smith, who were at Ole Miss and sat out last season. So the backcourt will have to carry the load this season. A pair of guards who finished second and third in scoring return in senior Terrance Akins (12.3 ppg) and 6-5 junior DeAndre Eggins (11.4 ppg). The Trojans also have guard soph Steven Moore, who played in a reserve role. The offense struggled on the road, averaging 63 ppg, where the Trojans were 5-11 SU, 6-8 ATS. With all the rebounding muscle lost, it looks like another losing season.
Denver
Boy, did the bottom fall out for the Denver Pioneers (4-25)! Incredibly, they had lost only one starter on a 16-15 team, but it was their best player in 6'-10" Yemi Nicholson (20 ppg, 11 rpg). And they missed him terribly, failing to win a single road game (0-15 SU, 4-9 ATS away from home). Head coach Terry Carroll was let go so Joe Scott is the new coach, the former Princeton coach who likes a slow down, defensive style. With leading rebounder Antonio Porch gone, this looks like another long season.
The guard play will have to carry the load, with sophomore Tyler Bullock (11 ppg) and 6-4 junior Joseph Jackson (7.4 ppg) the leading returning scorers. Bullock started all 30 games and was second on the team and 29th in the SBC with 11.1 points per game while shooting 44.0 percent from the field (107-of-243), and his 47 assists were third on the team.
The guy to watch might be six-foot-eight senior center Adam Tanner, who was been hot from beyond the arc late in the season. In a six game stretch, he drilled 13-of-18 three-pointers (72.2 percent). Tanner was sidelined during the first month of Denver's season but found his comfort zone in February, averaging 10.1 points and scoring double digits in four times. On Feb. 15 against North Texas, Tanner established a new career high with 21 points, going five-for-eight from three-point range.
Also keep an eye on 6-5 sophomore guard Nate Rohnert. Rohnert, averaged jusr 12.6 minutes per game, but was named All-Colorado by the Rocky Mountain News during his senior season in high school. He was second in the state that year in scoring at 22.9 points per game. Rohnert, a 6-foot-5 guard led Chaparral to 23-2 record, which included reaching the 2006 CHSSA 5A Men's "Great 8." Denver is 3-27 SU, 7-18 ATS on the road the last two seasons! Denver goes on long road trips when playing in the Sun Belt, and it's not surprising they are weak on the road, though 35-17 SU/25-17 ATS at home the last four seasons. Don't look for a lot of scoring with coach Scott running the show now!
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