Centenary

Jon Teitel's "Forgotten Legends" Series: Centenary Great Willie Jackson

Jon Teitel — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 09:16:42 -0800

In the latest installment in his "Forgotten Legends" interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with Centenary great Willie Jackson, the school's all-time leading scorer while also ranking second in rebounding. Aptly nicknamed "The Legend" by players when an assistant at his alma mater, Jackson is now the head coach at Loyola College Prep in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Jon Teitel: Your nickname is "Legend". Who gave it to you, and how do you like it?

Willie Jackson: The nickname was given to me by some of my players when I was an assistant coach at Centenary. I like it because it showed me that they respected what I had accomplished during my college career and what I tried to teach them.

JT: You went to Sibley HS, where you won 100 straight games over a 2-year span and won a state title in 1980. How were your teams able to be so dominant, and what did it mean to you to win a state title?

WJ: We practiced hard, played well as a team, and respected each others' skills on the basketball court. We grew up together and went to the same junior HS, so we knew each others strengths/weaknesses. Winning a state title felt GREAT! I knew that all the hard work that I had put in during my younger years had paid off. It was a very exciting time, as the whole town was behind our team. To this day, people still talk about that state championship team.

JT: In 1983 you led the conference in scoring (24 PPG) and rebounding (9.1 RPG), which has only been done by one other player since then (Florida Atlantic's Mike Bell). What was your secret to scoring, and what was your secret to rebounding?

WJ: My secret to scoring was being resilient, having a never-quit attitude, spending countless hours in the gym, and having teammates who relied on me to make shots. My size was also a factor, in that I was able to bring big guys out to the perimeter. I could also post up smaller guys, and if they played a zone then I would shoot the ball from deep. As for rebounding, I was tough, blocked out well, and was able to anticipate where the ball was going to go.

JT: You are the only three-time conference POY in Atlantic Sun history. Do you think anyone will ever match that feat, and how were you able to remain so consistent over the length of your career?

WJ: You have to remember that I played before they instituted the three-point line. I am sure that someone will match that feat because there are a lot of good basketball players in the conference who can play the game. However, it is going to have to be a four-year letterman who is consistent and remains injury-free. I was able to remain consistent because I was injury-free, and I had an attitude of doing my best every time that I hit the court.

JT: You are still the all-time leading scoring in Atlantic Sun history. Did you realize at the time how prolific a player you were?

WJ: I really did not, to be honest. A lot of people told me how great a player I was, but I was very humble about my talent and took it in stride.

JT: You finished your career as one of only 10 players in NCAA history with 2500+ points and 1000+ rebounds (Harry Kelly, Oscar Robertson, Elvin Hayes, Larry Bird, Michael Brooks, Dickie Hemric, Calvin Natt, Bill Bradley and Elgin Baylor). What does it mean to you to be in such prestigious company?

WJ: It is truly an honor to be among those names, as several of them are Hall of Famers, so I am extremely happy just to be mentioned in that company.

JT: In the summer of 1984 you were drafted in the 4th round by Houston (four spots behind Rick Carlisle). Were you thrilled to realize your dream of getting drafted or disappointed that you did not make the team?

WJ: I was excited to be drafted, but also disappointed that I did not make the team because I thought that I had a decent showing in camp. I can remember sitting in Coach Bill Fitch's office on the day I was cut. He told me that he was going to have to let me go because he needed veteran guards around the young big guys that he had (rookie center Hakeem Olajuwon and second-year center Ralph Sampson). It was a rainy, stormy day in Houston and I was flying home on Continental Airlines. I can remember praying to God to please not let me be cut and die all in the same day. Thank goodness only one of those two bad things came to pass!

JT: In 1989 you were inducted into the Louisiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Where does that rank among your career highlights?

WJ: We have a lot of great basketball players from the State of Louisiana. All you need to do is look at the list (which includes Joe Dumars, Karl Malone, Pete Maravich, Shaquille O'Neal, Robert Parish, Bob Pettit and Willis Reed). I was inducted in 1989 in my first go-round as a young man, but over the years I have grown to understand the significance of being inducted at such a young age. It ranks very high on my list of accomplishments.

JT: You currently work as head coach at Loyola College Prep in Shreveport, where you are the winningest coach in school history. What makes you such a great coach?

WJ: I instill in my players the importance of preparation, trust in your teammates, and having a winning attitude.

JT: When people look back on your career, how do you want to be remembered the most?

WJ: I want to be remembered as a good person, a winner, and someone who people could trust both on and off the court.

Jackson is also on Jon's list of best players in Summit League history.

Centenary: Willie Jackson (1984) 2535 PTS (#1), 1013 REB (#2), 205 STL (#2), 112 BLK (#1), 3-time conference POY

IPFW: Sean Gibson (1993) 1765 PTS (#1), 965 REB (#1), 137 STL (#5), 60.7 FG% (#1), conference POY

IUPUI: Carlos Knox (1998) 2556 PTS (#1), 204 STL (#1), 208 3PM (#3), 83.3 FT% (#5), 3-time All-American, national POY

North Dakota State: Ben Woodside (2009) 2315 PTS (#1), 640 AST (#2), 176 STL (#5), 228 3PM (#3), 82.4 FT% (#4), conference POY

Oakland: Carvin Melson (1973) 2408 PTS (#1), 1204 REB (#1), All-American

Oral Roberts: Caleb Green (2007) 2503 PTS (#3), 1189 REB (#2), 53.9 FG% (#4), 3-time All-American, 3-time conference POY

South Dakota State: Mark Tetzlaff (1985) 1931 PTS (#1), 1132 REB (#1), 60.7 FG% (#1), All-American, NCAA D-2 MOP

Southern Utah: Jeff Monaco (2001) 1568 PTS (#2), 547 AST (#1), 225 STL (#1), 256 3PM (#1), 87 FT% (#1), conference POY

Mo. Kansas City: Michael Watson (2004) 2488 PTS (#1), 357 AST (#3), 173 STL (#2), 391 3PM (#1), 79.9 FT% (#3)

Western Illinois: Joe Dykstra (1983) 2248 PTS (#1), 89 FT% (#1), 3-time All-American, 2-time conference POY

Summit League Tournament: Preview & Odds

Evan Dorey — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 17:58:43 -0800

This is one in a series of conference tournament previews, in which I run down all the teams involved, give a brief statistical review and present the log5 projections, using in-conference offensive and defensive efficiency. The basic log5 methodology comes from Bill James, and this is an area Ken Pomeroy has looked at in the past as well. I claim nothing new in the application, but obviously with slightly different methodologies, these numbers may differ from others you find. I don’t claim to be an expert on any particular conference, and I’m sure there are some mis-characterizations on some players I’ve seen sparingly at best, so please add your thoughts in the comments. Anyway, with no further ado, the preview follows below:

Summit League

The Summit League Tournament is a pretty simple 8-team affair, with all games in Sioux Falls, SD.

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	North Dakota St.	92.48%	83.64%	52.90%
2	Oral Roberts	88.37%	61.87%	31.48%
3	Oakland	81.52%	32.35%	12.02%
4	IUPUI	54.58%	7.58%	1.39%
5	Southern Utah	45.42%	5.50%	0.87%
6	IUPU Fort Wayne	18.48%	2.75%	0.41%
7	South Dakota St.	11.63%	3.04%	0.48%
8	Centenary	7.52%	3.28%	0.46%

North Dakota St. will be a team to watch for an upset in the NCAA tournament, but only if they can get by tough challenges from the winner of an ORU-Oakland semifinal.

#1 – North Dakota St. Bison (23-6, 16-2) ; Efficiency Margin: +0.172

Last NCAA Tournament bid: None

North Dakota St. is one of the best stories of the season, poised to make its NCAA Tournament debut in its first year of post-season eligibility, after redshirting a whole class of players to ensure they could play in this important season. The Bison have lost just once in their last 14, and took the conference title by a full two games. They’re the only team in the league that is highly ranked in both offense and defense, second in each category. North Dakota St. shoots the ball well, and has one of the country’s best turnover rates. It also plays an effective defensive style, as opponents take most of their shots inside, where the Bison have been best defensively. They’ve also been excellent rebounders and rarely commit fouls.

Players to watch:

5-11 SR Ben Woodside, 23.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 6.4 APG, 53.5 eFG% - Woodside had one of the biggest scoring games of the season when he put up 60 in a triple overtime loss to Stephen F. Austin, but don’t think he’s a one game wonder; Woodside has been one of the best scorers in the country over the course of the season. He’s an excellent shooter, 44% from behind the arc and 84% on the free throw line, and has put up one of the nation’s best assist rates, while rarely turning it over. He can potentially score 30 points in any game he plays, and should the Bison win the tourney, is the kind of player who could cause havoc for a higher-seeded NCAA opponent.

6-6 SR Brett Winkelman, 18.8 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 1.6 SPG, 55.7 eFG% - While Woodside is a great scoring guard, Winkleman is just as good inside, though he doesn’t take quite as many shots. Still, he’s a great shooter who can hit threes, while shooting well over 50% overall, and is the team’s leading rebounder. Like Woodside, he rarely turns the ball over, and there’s very few ways for the Bison to go wrong with these two players.

#2 – Oral Roberts Golden Eagles (16-14, 14-4) ; Efficiency Margin: +0.142

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2008 (1^st Round)

Oral Roberts has been the conference’s name program, claiming the last three tournament titles and the last four league championships, and will have a serious chance to earn the auto-bid, and while they should be favored make the final, they lost both regular season games against the Bison. The Eagles have had the conference’s best defense, holding opponents under 44% from inside the arc, and being strong rebounders. They’ve had a lot more problems with their own attack, struggling to make shots, especially from three-point range.

Players to watch:

5-11 JR Robert Jarvis, 17.4 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 48.6 eFG% - Jarvis takes a lot of shots and while his percentage hasn’t been great inside the arc, he’s made up for it with pretty solid outside shooting. He’s not too effective overall, and doesn’t do much besides score, but his role is large enough that he leads the team in scoring.

6-8 SR Marcus Lewis, 13.2 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 58.9 eFG% - Lewis is a good inside compliment to Jarvis, one of the conference’s best rebounders and a high percentage shooter. His free throw shooting is regrettable, however, just 50% from the stripe.

#3 – Oakland Golden Grizzlies (20-11, 13-5) ; Efficiency Margin: +0.100

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2005 (1^st Round)

Oakland made the NCAA Tournament four years ago by winning the Mid-Continent tournament as a long-shot, and while its odds are better in this year’s event, it will still be an upset if it could claim the bid. The Grizzlies enter the tournament on a seven game winning streak, and have had the Summit’s best offense by a fairly wide margin. Their 58% on two-pointers is a spectacular number, and they are also solid three-point shooters who rarely turn the ball over. Of course, with such a good offense, they would be closer to the leading pair of teams if they weren’t one of the conference’s worst defensive teams. Oakland forces very few turnovers, and is really vulnerable to the three-point shot, allowing opponents to shoot a lot of them and make a high percentage of those they shoot.

Players to watch:

6-11 SO Keith Benson, 14.4 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 2.4 BPG, 62.6 eFG% - Benson is one of the country’s most efficient players, an excellent big man who does a lot of things well: he’s a high percentage player inside, gets to the line a lot, and hits 69% once there, is an excellent rebounder and shot-blocker, and has committed just 30 turnovers all year. The Grizzlies should try and get the ball to him more often, since it rarely results in something negative.

6-3 SR Erik Kangas, 18.9 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 1.9 APG, 57.1 eFG% - Kangas takes most of his shots from three, and hits 42% of them, and he puts up enough to be the team’s leading scorer.

#4 – IUPUI Jaguars (16-13, 9-8) ; Efficiency Margin: -0.021

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2003 (1^st Round)

With three teams dominating the conference, there’s a serious drop-off as we begin to delve into the teams at and around the .500 mark. IUPUI has been right on the conference average in both offense and defense, and so a 9-9 record seems a perfect fit. The Jaguars have been the conference’s worst team at defending the three-point shot, allowing opponents to make over 41% of attempts, but have made up for that by rarely fouling and forcing a lot of turnovers. They’ve also been good at scoring inside, but are the conference’s worst free throw shooters.

Players to watch:

6-7 JR Robert Glenn, 14.0 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.7 BPG, 61.7 eFG% - Glenn is one of the best forwards in the conference, an excellent percentage scorer inside who also asserts himself well on the boards and with shot-blocks.

6-7 JR Jon Avery, 9.1 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 67.7 eFG% - On most teams, Glenn would be the best field goal shooter, but Avery blows him away, at 68% from the floor. He doesn’t take as many shots as Glenn, but he’s a great second interior option.

#5 – Southern Utah Thunderbirds (10-19, 8-10) ; Efficiency Margin: -0.037

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2001 (1^st Round)

The Thunderbirds are the only team to beat the champions in North Dakota this season, and will get a chance to sweep them in the Dakotas if they win a tough opening round game with IUPUI. They’ve had an above-average defense despite letting opponents hit 54% on two-pointers, as they’ve done well on the defensive glass and caused a lot of trouble for opponents on the perimeter. They play a fairly slow, heavily inside-oriented offense, but are excellent shooters who are good behind the arc and absolutely brilliant from the free throw line, leading the nation by hitting more than 80% of their attempts.

Players to watch:

6-4 JR Davis Baker, 17.5 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 52.3 eFG% - Baker leads Southern Utah in scoring; he takes a lot of shots, and does a pretty good job of hitting them, making just enough to justify the high volume.

6-10 SR John Clifford, 9.8 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 62.6 eFG% - Clifford leads the Summit in rebounding, and while he’s not a really big scorer, he’s very effective inside when he does get chances.

#6 – IUPU Fort Wayne Mastodons (13-16, 8-10) ; Efficiency Margin: -0.041

Last NCAA Tournament bid: None

Fort Wayne had a solid finish to its second season in the Summit League, getting from a 3-8 conference record up to where it needed to make the tournament with a strong finish. It has been one of the country’s best teams at hitting three-pointers, over 40%, but most of its shots come from inside, where its percentage isn’t great and it struggles to get back its misses. The Mastodons have seen a similar pattern on the defensive end, stopping the outside shot well, but performing rather poorly inside.

Players to watch:

6-7 SR David Carson, 14.9 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 44.7 eFG% - Carson is Fort Wayne’s leading scorer, but hasn’t been a very efficient shooter. He does an good job at the free throw line, shooting just under 80%.

6-6 SO Deilvez Yearby, 8.9 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 49.3 eFG% - Yearby leads the team in rebounding, and is a good inside shooter who has found his scoring form of late, averaging 12 points a game over the month of February.

#7 – South Dakota St. Jackrabbits (12-19, 7-11) ; Efficiency Margin: -0.033

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2006 (2^nd Round)

The Jackrabbits haven’t made quite the splash of their northern counterparts, but they will make their Summit League tourney debut despite losing their last four games. South Dakota St. has actually had one of the conference’s better offenses, but its defense has been the worst of the tournament teams. It attempts a lot of threes, and makes a decent percentage, but does better from inside the arc. Defensively, though, the Jackrabbits are really vulnerable on two-pointers, and they force so few turnovers that opponents get a lot of chances at high-percentage shots.

Players to watch:

6-1 JR Garrett Callahan, 15.2 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 56.1 eFG% - The Jackrabbits’ leading scorer is the best three-point shooter on a team full of such shooters.

6-6 JR Kai Williams, 9.9 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 45.4 eFG% - Williams is a very good rebounder who shouldn’t be too much of an offensive focus, especially given his sub-30% three-point shooting. When he’s hot, he can be quite dangerous, but consistency has been a problem.

#8 – Centenary Gentlemen (8-22, 6-12) ; Efficiency Margin: -0.049

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2000 (1^st Round)

The Gentlemen seemed to be on course for a solid season on the last day of January, as they sat just above .500 in the league. They would not win again until the end of February, racking up an eight-game losing streak, and just managing to sneak into the tournament. Centenary actually has one of the better defenses in the conference, leading the league in forcing turnovers and holding opponents under wraps from behind the arc. It just hasn’t been good enough offensively, having a lot problems with its shooting from all areas of the floor.

Players to watch:

6-1 SR Nick Stallings, 15.0 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 49.0 eFG% - Stallings leads the Gents in both scoring and rebounding, and is a excellent three-point shooter, at nearly 40%. He’s faced some foul trouble in recent games, fouling out of two of his last three.

5-10 JR Chase Adams, 14.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 4.6 APG, 2.7 SPG, 53.0 eFG% - Adams is a great ball-handling guard, putting up a very good assist rate, leading the league in steals and rarely turning the ball over. Like Stallings, he’s also had some recent foul trouble, fouling out of his last two.

My statistical all-Summit League team:

North Dakota St. SR G Ben Woodside, 23.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 6.4 APG, 53.5 eFG%

Oakland SR G Erik Kangas, 18.9 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 1.9 APG, 57.1 eFG%

Centenary JR G Chase Adams, 14.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 4.6 APG, 2.7 SPG, 53.0 eFG%

North Dakota St. SR F Brett Winkelman, 18.8 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 1.6 SPG, 55.7 eFG%

Oakland SO C Keith Benson, 14.4 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 2.4 BPG, 62.6 eFG%

Summit League Tournament: Seeds Announced

Press Release — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 23:25:16 -0800

The Summit League tournament seeds are as follows:

1. North Dakota State (16-2)
2. Oral Roberts (14-4)
3. Oakland (13-5)
4. IUPUI (9-9)
5. Southern Utah (8-10) - got tiebreak over IPFW because of 1-1 record vs. NDSU while IPFW went 0-2)
6. IPFW (8-10)
7. South Dakota State (7-11)
8. Centenary (6-12) - got tiebreak over WIU because of 1-1 record vs. Oakland while WIU went 0-2

Note: SUU/IPFW and CC/WIU tiebreakers were determined based on records against highest seeded team in descending order.

Summit League Basketball Preview: 08-09

CHN — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 07:05:07 -0800

Conference Rank: 25th

10 year average: 26th

Summit Conference Page

All-Summit Team
Pos.	Player	Team	Yr.

G	Robert Jarvis	Oral Roberts	Sr
G	Ben Woodside	North Dakota St	Sr
G	Johnathon Jones	Oakland	Jr
F	Derick Nelson	Oakland	Sr
F	Brett Winkelman	North Dakota St	Sr
CHN Award Winners		Returning Leaders
Mid-Major All-Americans Robert Jarvis Ben Woodside		Points: Ben Woodside 20.7 Rebounds: Ben Winkelman 8.3 Assists: Johnathon Jones (Oak) 6.0

Summit Standings
Nat'l	Team	League	Tourney

118	North Dakota St	Summit	1	NCAA
136	Oakland	Summit	2
152	Oral Roberts**	Summit	3
207	IUPUI	Summit	4
224	Southern Utah	Summit	5
255	IPFW	Summit	6
271	UMKC	Summit	7
287	Centenary	Summit	8
314	South Dakota St	Summit	9
316	Western Illinois	Summit	10

*Click on links for full Top 144 team preview

** returning conference champion

Poll: Who Do You Think Will Win the Summit?

Other Summit Content

Head Coach Q&A's

Ron Hunter: IUPUI

Other

Rise & Fall: Summit

State of '08: Louisiana

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 08:17:35 -0700

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Duke or Carolina? BC or UMASS? Gonzaga or Washington.. or Washington State? What is the best program in each state? While there's not much competition in Hawaii.. there are great debates to be had in loaded regions like California, North Carolina, and Texas. The State of '08 is a ranking of every program in every state.. based mostly on recent success (the last five years) mixed in with subjective factors such as conference prestige, historical success, and overall program direction.

Up today: Louisiana. For more info, check out the State of '08 introduction.

LOUISIANA

LSU - There's not much to say here, because LSU is by far and away the top program in the state. The Tigers made the Final Four in 2006, though have quickly descended since then.

LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE - The Ragin' Cajuns were one of the best mid-majors from 2000 to 2005, which included 3 NCAA Tournament trips and 2 NITs. In 2007, the program was cited for rule violations, and the past three seasons haven't been up to the former standards. Last year's crew did show some promise though with an 11-7 Sun Belt record.

NORTHWESTERN STATE - Mike McConathy has done a great job in a decade at Northwestern State. In 2001 & 2006, the Demons made the Big Dance, and you might remember their epic 2006 win over Iowa in the First Round. Even last year when the team seemed to struggle, NSU still managed to upset SFA to make the Southland Championship game.

TULANE - The Wave haven't made a dent on the national scene since 2000, when they won 20 games and knocked off 6 Top 100 teams. To put that in perspective, in the last five seasons, Tulane has only beaten 6 Top 100 teams. Last year the Wave did knock off big-name programs like Georgia, Auburn, and LSU, something that most schools in the state couldn't accomplish.

LOUISIANA TECH - Last year's Bulldogs were extremely inexperienced and struggled to a brutal 6-24 record. This year's group should show substantial improvement, and will push for .500 in league play. Last year aside, La Tech has had decent success over the last decade, with scattered Top 150 and Top 100 finishes. The program's 7th NCAA Tourney trip will have to wait a couple more years.

6. NEW ORLEANS - Joe Pasternack did a nice job in his first season, leading UNO to upset road wins over BCS teams like NC State and Colorado, and finishing 8-10 in league play. This was the program's best season since making a surprise run to the Sun Belt finals in 2004.

7. SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA - SELU made its lone NCAA Tournament in 2005. In the past three seasons though, the Lions have merely hovered around .500 in SLC play. They did knock off in-state SLC rivals McNeese & Nicholls State all four times last year.

8. SOUTHERN - Since 2003, Southern has finished .500 or better every season in the SWAC. In 2006, Rob Spivery led the Jags to the NCAA Tournament in his first season at the helm.

9. MCNEESE STATE - In 2001 & 2002, McNeese enjoyed back to back postseason trips, reaching the NIT and then the NCAAs. Once 2004 got underway, there's been little success and not even one season above 200th in the RPI. This year should be similar to last with a middle of the road Southland record expected. The Cowboys did have a nice road upset of Lousiana-Lafayette last season.

10. LOUISIANA-MONROE - The Warhawks (nee Indians) haven't had much success on the basketball court in about 25 years. Outside of a surprising 2002 campaign (98 RPI), ULM hasn't sniffed the postseason in the past decade. Moving to the Sun Belt Conference a couple years ago has yet to reap any major rewards.

11. NICHOLLS STATE - From 2002 to 2005, Nicholls somehow managed to only average 2 D1 wins a year. The past couple years have been better, but nothing to write home about.

12. CENTENARY - In 2005 & 2006, Centenary was easily one of the worst programs in the country. They won a combined 5 D1 combines in that span. Last year was somewhat of an improvement with an RPI of 283, and this year's team might creep up into the 250 range.

13. GRAMBLING STATE - After an embarrassing 2000 campaign in which the Tigers went winless, Grambling has hovered around .500 in SWAC play for most of the decade. Then again, the SWAC is the country's worst conference, so .500 in league play isn't a big accomplishment. Grambling hasn't won a non-conference game against a D1 team since 2005.

Last: Kentucky - Next: Maryland

State of '08: The Introduction (& State list/links)

Turnarounds: 31 Teams to Watch: Part Four

Raphielle Johnson — Mon, 19 May 2008 07:49:33 -0700

With the off-season now upon us and the spring signing period well under way, this is a good opportunity to attempt to forecast some of the teams who could make the jump next season. Is there a team out there like this past season’s Drake Bulldogs, who went from ninth place to a dominating run through the Missouri Valley? Or how about Arizona State, a team that went from dead last in the Pac-10 to fifth place and could have the makings of a conference title run this season? With one pick for each conference, here are 31 teams you should keep an eye on next season.

Part Four

SEC: South Carolina

2007-08 Record: 14-18 (5-11)

There hasn’t been a whole lot of optimism around the Gamecock basketball program since a group led by Renaldo Balkman won its second straight Postseason NIT title a couple years back. But into the desk left open by the retired Dave Odom slides Darrin Horn, who led Western Kentucky to four straight twenty-win seasons and a Sweet 16 this past season. Given what we saw from the likes of Courtney Lee and Tyrone Brazelton during the Tournament, maybe Horn can add a little more to the game of Devan Downey and unleash some of the athletic talent in the South Carolina frontcourt. While it would be far-fetched to expect the Gamecocks to win the SEC East, look for them to make a return to postseason play next year.

Southern: College of Charleston

2007-08 Record: 16-17 (9-11)

It’s tough when you’re in the same division as Davidson, but for the Cougars to finish below .500 in conference play last season had to be a disappointment for Bobby Cremins and his staff. Four players, led by Tony White Jr., averaged double figures in scoring and they’ll all be back in 2008-09. Davidson will still be the odds-on favorite to win the Southern Conference, but don’t expect Charleston to simply roll over for the Wildcats. And the scary thing is that they may be even better the following season.

Southland: Nicholls State

2007-08 Record: 10-21 (5-11)

The Colonels are another team that suffered due to its lack of experience last season. But with Adonis Gray being the lone departure, look for Nicholls to repay some of the teams who took advantage of their youth this past season. Head coach J.P. Piper should have a full complement of players at his disposal next season, including three signed recruits and Michael Czepil for an entire season. And given the fact that they’re in the division opposite Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston State, the Colonels can make a run at a division title.

SWAC: Southern

2007-08 Record: 11-19 (9-9)

Head coach Rob Spivery loses two seniors from last season’s team, Geri Guillory and Joe Holliday, but his top three scorers will all be back in Baton Rouge. Chris Davis led the Jaguars in scoring at fifteen per game, and look for Barry Honore and Steffon Wiley to increase their production in order to become better compliments to Davis on the offensive end. The key in the SWAC, like the MEAC, is to not get buried by those “guarantee games” that many of the member schools have to play for the sake of their athletic department’s finances. I think Southern will have enough returning experience to make sure they don’t suffer that kind of letdown next season.

Summit: Centenary

2007-08 Record: 10-21 (4-14)

The Centenary Gents struggled mightily at times last season, and if not for South Dakota State they would have finished last in the conference. They only lose one senior from last season’s squad, and he (Iman Shokouhizadeh) averaged a mere four minutes per game. Three players averaged double figures in scoring, led by Tyrone Hamilton and Nick Stallings. They’ll both be back, and will be focal points as head coach Rob Flaska looks to move Centenary to the top half of the Summit League, if not win the automatic bid itself.

Sun Belt: Denver

2007-08 Record: 11-19 (7-11)

The Pioneers will have quite the task this season as their location doesn’t even remotely fit into the geographical footprint of the rest of the Sun Belt. But second-year head coach Joe Scott should be more familiar with his roster and each player’s strengths and weaknesses. The Pioneers lose four seniors, most notably David Kummer and Adam Tanner, but I think they can improve their standing within the West Division thanks to key losses incurred by other teams within the division. A full off-season in the system that Scott wants to run should also help with the completion of the coaching transition.

West Coast: Portland

2007-08 Record: 9-22 (3-11)

Personally, I thought that the Pilots should have performed better than their 3-11 record within the WCC. But with their only senior loss being Sherrard Watson, I think this could be the year in which Portland get to the middle of the pack in the WCC. Nik Raivio, who led the team in scoring last season, will be back along with fellow guard Taishi Ito and forward Rob Smeulders. Look for head coach Eric Reveno to have a vastly improved team in his third season at the helm.

WAC: Louisiana Tech

2007-08 Record: 6-24 (3-13)

Kerry Rupp heads into his second year in Ruston with a lot of young players returning after getting a taste of the “hard knock life” in 2007-08. Add to this group LSU transfer Magnum Rolle combined with other WAC teams losing some key contributors and you may have a team that can move up to the middle of the conference standings in 2008-09. In regards to competing for the conference title, that may be a little premature at this stage. But the cupboard certainly won’t be bare for the Bulldogs in 2008-09.

Part One: ACC, Big East, Big Ten etc

Part Two: Big 12, CUSA, etc

Part Three: MVC, MWC, Pac-10, etc

Mid-Con Becomes Summit League

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 15 May 2007 09:28:37 -0700