SWAC Media Day Recap and Response

Posted on November 23, 2020 by David Griggs

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MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:

  1. Texas Southern
  2. Southern
  3. Prairie View A&M
  4. Jackson State
  5. Alcorn State
  6. Grambling
  7. Alabama State
  8. Alabama A&M
  9. Mississippi Valley State
  10. Arkansas Pine Bluff

 

COMMENTS FROM DAVID:

-Texas Southern is this year’s preseason favorite, which is a more familiar role for them than what their 3rd place finish was a year ago.  This year’s roster has some pretty good looking transfers who have played at several power conference schools, so experience should not be an issue

-Southern saw some huge improvements last season, which explains why they are getting so much preseason love this year.  With 3 starters back from a team that finished second last year it wouldn’t shock me at all to see them win the league this year.  They should be tough defensively so if some guys can step up and score they could be really dangerous.

-Prairie View will be relying heavily on a lot of transfer players and newcomers this year.  I was a little surprised to see them picked so high in the preseason poll.

-Jackson State adds some JUCO transfers to the three returning starters from a year ago, and I expect that they’ll finish in the top half of the league.

-Alcorn State will be rebuilding with a new head coach and just one starter back from a year ago.

-After being one of the worst teams in D1 for several years in a row, Grambling has managed a winning record each of the last three years, and with three starters back they seem poised to keep that trend going.

-Alabama A&M will be nowhere near the top of the league, but they are making a little bit of progress.  They won 8 games last year after failing to win more than 5 the previous three years.  With four starters back they could take another step forward this year and maybe get close to finishing in the top half of the standings.

-Alabama State seems to be going in the other direction.  Just one starter returns and they look to be rebuilding.

-Arkansas Pine Bluff and Mississippi Valley State probably have a better shot at the Centenary Award than they do at first place.

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Sun Belt Media Day Recap and Response

Posted on November 23, 2020 by David Griggs

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MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:

EAST

  1. Georgia State
  2. South Alabama
  3. Coastal Carolina
  4. Appalachian State
  5. Georgia Southern
  6. Troy

WEST

  1. Little Rock
  2. Louisiana
  3. UT Arlington
  4. Arkansas State
  5. Texas State
  6. UL Monroe

 

NOTES FROM DAVID:

-It is very hard to not be big on this Little Rock team.  All five starters are back from last year, and although they won 21 games you got the feeling like they could have won a few more.  Markquis Nowell is one of the better players in the conference and he’s got a pretty good supporting cast around him.  This is a Little Rock team that we will likely be seeing in the UTR Top 10 for much of the year.

-Georgia State is another team to keep an eye on with a lot of talent and experience coming back from a year ago.  They also have some guys that can light it up from the outside.

There appears to be a big drop off after those two.  Louisiana and South Alabama are the next two teams in each division.  Louisiana had a rough year last year, but with a very strong backcourt coming back along with some solid looking JUCO transfers they should improve by quite a bit.  South Alabama appears to be rebuilding with just one starter back and will have to rely on a lot of players who don’t have a lot of experience.

-Texas State has won 20+ games for three straight years, and while they did lose their best player as well as their head coach, it seems like they have enough pieces back to where they should be getting a little more love at media day than what they are getting.

-Coastal Carolina, UT Arlington, Coastal Carolina, and Arkansas State all appear to be destined to finish around the middle of the league.  DeVante Jones at Coastal Carolina is one of the better players in the league, but I don’t think they have quite enough pieces to keep pace with Georgia State and Little Rock.

-Georgia Southern has won 20+ games for an impressive three years in a row, but with so much gone from last year’s team they appear to be in complete rebuild mode this year.

-UL Monroe and Troy could be in for long seasons.

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Patriot League Preseason News and Notes

Posted on November 23, 2020 by David Griggs

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COMMENTS FROM DAVID:

-I could not find where the Patriot League had any sort of a media day.  I know that with the exception of Army and Navy none of the teams will be playing until a little bit later on, so that may have something to do with it.  Here are just a few thoughts on the league

-I think it’s a two horse race between Boston U (who won the tournament last year) and Colgate (who was the first place finishter).

-Boston U returns four starters from that team that played so well down the stretch, and will likely carry that momentum into this season.  They did lose their top scorer, but he was by no means the only person on the floor who could score.  They have a solid backcourt and are an experienced team

-Colgate is tasked with replacing two really solid frontcourt players, but they have enough pieces back to where they should once again compete for the top spot in the conference.  As deep as they were last year, they have guys that are more than capable of filling those roles this year and they once again look to have one of the best backcourts in the conference.

-I tihnk it’s a pretty big drop off after that.  Loyola MD could potentially be a sleeper team with four starters back, Lafayette could make some noise as well, and some people seem to think Navy could sneak up on some people.  Bucknell had been the class of the conference for a while, but they’ve had quite a drop off and still seem to be in the process of rebuilding.

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Southland Media Day Recap and Response

Posted on November 23, 2020 by David Griggs

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MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:

  1. Stephen F. Austin
  2. Abilene Christian
  3. Sam Houston State
  4. Nicholls
  5. Lamar
  6. McNeese
  7. Central Arkansas
  8. New Orleans
  9. TAMUCC
  10. Northwestern State
  11. Southeast Louisiana
  12. Incarnate Word
  13. Houston Baptist

 

COMMENTS FROM DAVID:

-Stephen F. Austin has been the class of the league for the past several years.  In fact the distance between them and the second-place team may be greater than any other league I can think of.  That may be the case again this year, but off-court issues over the offseason may hold them back some.  Only two starters are back, but they do appear to have some other players that can effectively step into bigger roles this year.

-I really like this Abilene Christian team, and think what they have done since moving up to D-1 is amazing.  It would not shock me at all to see them compete with SFA for a first-place finish this year.  They return four starters and some quality bench players from a team that won 20 games a year ago.  They have both balance and depth and are capable running away from the rest of the league (minus maybe SFA)

-Sam Houston State has just one starter back, but they are adding what appear to be some quality JUCO players that could contribute right away.

-Nicholls has been fun to watch the last few years and while they have not won any conference championships, they have shown quite a bit of progress.  They may take a step back this year though, with just two starters back and their top-three scorers gone from a year ago.

-Lamar had a rather unspectacular season last year, and appear to be destined to finish around the middle of the pack again this year.

-McNeese is another team that seems to be heading for the mix of the middle of the pack.  They do have a talented and experience backcourt that they will be depending on this year.

-Not a whole lot of love for Northwestern State at media day, which is kind of surprise.  They have improved quite a bit over the last three years, and with four starters back I expect that to continue into this season.  They arguably did lose their best player, but there seems to be enough coming back that I think they can improve on their win total from a year ago.

-Central Arkansas has four starters back, but this was a team that totally collapsed down the stretch last year, so it is hard to say whether or not they will improve with that experience.

-New Orleans struggled with injuries last year.  They do return a pretty solid backcourt and we should see some improvement from them if they are able to stay healthy.

-TAMUCC may be a bit of a dark horse.  They won just 14 games a year ago, but a lot of their losses came in close games and with their top-two scorers back along with some other experienced players we may see quite a bit of improvement out of them this year.

-SE LA, Incarnate Word, and Houston Baptist will likely all be in for a long season.

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Atlantic Sun News and Notes

Posted on November 23, 2020 by David Griggs

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COMMENTS FROM DAVID:

-So, if the Atlantic Sun had a Media Day, I apologize for not seeing it.  But, I didn’t see it.  So I’ll just share a few quick thoughts about the league…

-Lipscomb has been at or near the top of the league for the past several years and it appears to me that they will be again this year.  I don’t think they’re dangerous enough to be a serious threat to get out of the Round of 64 like I have in years past, but I do think they are one of the better teams in the league.

-Liberty was expected to do big things last year after making the Round of 32 the year before and returning most of their players.  They lost a lot from a year ago, but they will still likely be dangerous.

-North Florida is another team to keep an eye on despite losing most of their starters from a year ago.  Matt Driscoll has done a fantastic job as head coach and should be able to build them up again.

-Stetson is someone that our colleague Chad seems to like, and while it sounds crazy (and while I hate to ever admit that Chad might had a point), they do return all five starters, they do add some new talent on top of that, and they made a huge improvement last season that could continue in to this season.

-Bellarmine begins their transition this year!!  This was a top ten D2 program that should have little trouble being competitive right away.  They aren’t eligible for the NCAA Tournament, but we could be seeing them in the CIT this year (if it is played).

-Gulf Coast is another team that we could see hosting a conference tournament game in the quarterfinals.

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SoCon Media Day Recap and Response

Posted on November 23, 2020 by David Griggs

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MEDIA DAY PRESEASON COACHES’ POLL:

  1. UNC Greensboro
  2. Furman
  3. East Tennessee State
  4. Mercer
  5. Wofford
  6. Western Carolina
  7. Chattanooga
  8. Samford
  9. VMI
  10. The Citadel

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON MEDIA POLL:

  1. Furman
  2. UNC Greensboro
  3. East Tennessee State
  4. Mercer
  5. Wofford
  6. Western Carolina
  7. Chattanooga
  8. Samford
  9. VMI
  10. The Citadel

 

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL CONFERENCE TEAM:

-Ledarrius Brewer – JR, G – East Tennessee State
-Ty Brewer – JR, F – East Tennessee State
-Mike Bothwell – JR, G – Furman
-Noah Gurley – JR, F – Furman
-Clay Mounce – SR, F – Furman
-Ross Cummings – SR, G – Mercer
-Jeff Gary – JR, G – Mercer
-Isaiah Miller – SR, G – UNC Greensboro
-David Jean-Baptiste – SR, G – Chattanooga
-Mason Faulkner – SR, G – Western Carolina
-Storm Murphy – SR, G – Wofford

 

COMMENTS FROM DAVID:

-I am a huge fan of this Furman team.  Like, really big.  Like, not only is this a potential at-large team, I think it is a potential top-25 team.  Four starters are back from a team that won 25 games a year ago and finished the regular season winning 10 of their last 11 with the only loss being at East Tennessee State before losing in the conference tournament.  Coach Bob Richey has done a phenomenal job with this program, and he probably has his best team yet this year.  They have a frontcourt that I would put up against almost anyone, and a solid backcourt as well.  This is gonna be a fun team to watch!

-UNC Greensboro won 23 games a year ago despite being plagued with injuries.  Only two starters are back, but this is a team that goes deep into its bench so the have a lot of solid pieces who can step up this year, including Isaiah Miller, who is one of the best guards in the conference.  This is another team that I think has the potential to land inside the bubble.

-East Tennessee State won the conference last year, won 30 games, and would have probably been seeded inside the bubble on the 11-line had we had the NCAA Tournament.  Unfortunately they never got that opportunity, and virtually everyone from last year’s team is gone, including all five starters and the head coach.  While they are in complete rebuilding mode they do have some solid transfer players who could make an impact right away.

-Mercer has three starters back from a team that saw quite a bit of improvement this year, but lost what were probably their two best players to graduation, so it is hard to imagine them finishing near the top of the league.

-Western Carolina did not get a whole lot of love at Media Day, but they are probably worth paying attention to.  They won 19 games last year after winning just 7 the year before, and while they did lose who was seemingly their best player they still have some good pieces coming back, including Mason Faulkner, who is one of the better guards in the league.

-Wofford seems to still be adjusting to life without Coach Mike Young and the great teams that they had a few years ago.  They have three starters back from a .500-ish team last year, and once again look to be a middle-of-the-league-.500-ish team this year.

-Chattanooga has just one starter back and appears to be in rebuilding mode.  They had their best season in several years last year, but have gone through an overhaul of the roster and will rely heavily on transfer players this year.

-Samford is starting completely over with a new head coach in Bucky McMillan and very few returning players.  They had seemed to be improving as a program up until last season and it was kind of a surprise that they struggled as much as they did.

-VMI and The Citadel are rivals who will likely be fighting it out for a 9th place finish in the league.  Both teams have a fair amount of returning players and should be more experienced, but given how much they struggled last year I am not sure if that is a good thing.

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