Conference Preview: Southland

Posted on October 28, 2015 by Chad

For the rest of our Preseason Coverage, CLICK HERE.

SOUTHLAND

Domination.  Webster’s defines the word as “supremacy or preeminance over another”.  The Southland Conference defines it as “Stephen F. Austin”.  Over the past three seasons, the Lumberjacks have gone 56-4 against Southland competition, winning three straight regular season titles and two straight conference tournament championships.  That is domination, pure and simple.  Last year, SFA rode their conference title into the NCAA tournament where they fell as a 12 seed in the Round of 64 to Utah, unable to match their 2014 appearance in the Round of 32.  The rest of the conference has simply been unable to catch the Lumberjacks.  This season a few teams will take their shots, but in the end the Lumberjacks appear to be head and shoulders stronger than the rest of the league again.

In addition to SFA’s NCAA tournament appearance, four other Southland teams received postseason invites last year, all to the CIT.  Sam Houston State, Northwestern State, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Incarnate Word all played in that event.  For Incarnate Word the postseason invite was of particular note, as the Cardinals were playing a full schedule of D1 basketball for the first time ever and were in only their second of four transitional years to full D1 membership and NCAA tournament eligibility.  UIW is one of a fairly large group of teams that could contend for second place behind SFA, joined by Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Northwestern State, Sam Houston State, Nicholls State and Houston Baptist.  Two teams that will likely not contend and, like Incarnate Word, will be ineligible for the Southland tournament are Abilene Christian and Central Arkansas.  Abilene Christian is also in its third of four transitional years, while Central Arkansas is on the APR postseason ban list for the second consecutive season.

Predicted Order of Finish

1.  Stephen F. Austin – Who else?  Four starters return, led by Thomas Walkup.  The only question for Brad Underwood’s team is size, but they should once again be among the elite mid-majors and post an overall record worthy of at-large consideration if things go bad in the conference tournament.

2.  Texas A&M-Corpus Christi – John Jordan is gone, but Hameed Ali returns after missing last season and four starters, led by Rashawn Thomas, are back from last year.  All the pieces are here to finish second.

3.  Nicholls State – Pretty much everyone is back from last year’s team, which featured a balanced scoring attack and a fair amount of depth.  The Colonels could be a surprise contender in the battle for second place.

4.  Sam Houston State – With four starters gone, the Bearkats might take a step back this season, but they were deep last year and with solid reserves moving into starting roles, there is no reason why they will not be among the league’s leaders again.

5.  Northwestern State – The Demons feature a high-octane offense that is always fun to watch, but have never quite figured out how to play defense.  Much of the same is expected this season as they will be led by Zeek Woodley and Jalan West, two players that each averaged over 20 points per game last year.

6.  Houston Baptist – The Huskies are headed in the right direction as they have the depth, experience and size to contend in the battle for second place.  Anthony Odusni and Colter Lasher will lead the way this season, plus a strong recruiting class will give their fans a lot to look forward to in the coming years.

7.  Incarnate Word – The Cardinals still have two more years before they are eligible for the Southland and NCAA tournaments, but continue to build their program in the right direction.  Even with Denzel Livingston’s 21+ points per game gone, a strong rotation of guards led by Kyle Hittle and Jontrell Walker will keep them in games all season long.

8.  McNeese State – The Cowboys will remain competitive this season despite losing three starters as Jamaya Burr should move into a leadership role outside and Craig McFerrin returns from an injury that cost him all of last season down low.

9.  Central Arkansas – The Bears are ineligible for postseason play for the second straight year due to their APR, but all is not lost.  They return all five starters from last season and are still young, with 5 sophomores holding key spots in their rotation.  This group of young players is led by Jordan Howard, who won conference Freshman of the Year last season.  Assuming they can get their APR issues resolved by next season, things could start getting interesting by then.

10.  New Orleans – The Privateers should be improved with four of their five starters back, but they need to address some significant defensive woes if they want to contend for the top 8 and a spot in the Southland tournament.

11.  Southeastern Louisiana – The Lions have a scoring punch in the backcourt with Zay Jackson, Joshua Filmore and JaMichael Hawkins, but there are some serious questions down low with three starters gone and not much size among the newcomers.

12.  Lamar – The Cardinals had a .500 record in Tic Price’s second year at the helm last season; however, a slip back in the standings is likely this year with their top three players gone.

13.  Abilene Christian – Four starters return from last season for the Wildcats, but the talent level is not here yet to be seriously competitive.  They do have two more seasons to get there though, as they remain ineligible for the Southland and NCAA tournaments this year and next.

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Season preview: Butler coach Chris Holtmann

Posted on October 27, 2015 by Jon Teitel

For the rest of our extensive Preseason Coverage – CLICK HERE

Last October Chris Holtmann was making the rapid adjustment from assistant coach to interim head coach after Butler head coach Brandon Miller was granted a medical leave of absence.  After winning 23 games, making it to the NCAA tourney, and taking Notre Dame to OT, we can only wonder how he is feeling this October now that he has a little better idea of what to expect.  He was 2013 Big South COY at Gardner-Webb, an assistant to his former teammate John Groce at Ohio, and an NAIA All-American guard at Taylor University.  HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Holtmann about the importance of transfers and what exactly is “the Butler Way”. 

holtmann

You were an NAIA All-American at Taylor University: how good a player were you back in the day, and how did you get into coaching? We had a really good team and my recognition was probably the result of our team’s success. I got into coaching after doing other things for a couple of years. I picked up a copy of John Wooden’s book “They Call Me Coach”, read it cover-to-cover in about 2 days, and that is when I knew that coaching could become my vocation.

1 of your teammates was John Groce, who you later became an assistant to at Ohio: what was Groce like as a teammate, and what makes him such a good coach? John has the highest level of attention to detail. He is a hard worker and 1 of those guys who you knew was going to become a coach even back during his playing days. He is successful because he is smart, thorough, and highly-detailed.

In 2010 you were named head coach at Gardner-Webb: why did you take the job? I had previously been at Gardner-Webb as an assistant. That year we were coming off of a really good season at Ohio. I was 38 years old and anxious to become a head coach. The job was appealing because of the challenge: you had the opportunity to show progress but I knew that it would take time. The fans and the administration there were so appreciative of our efforts as a staff: it was a really rewarding time in my career.

In 2013 you were named Big South COY: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It was very rewarding for me personally but I also hope it was rewarding for our entire staff. Those guys were recruiting the right players and working so hard for us to make strides so hopefully they took pride in that recognition too.

Last October you were named interim coach after Brandon Miller was granted a medical leave of absence: how difficult was it to make such a transition right before the season, and how were you able to make it work? It was difficult because of the situation but especially because of the timing. However, it was not as difficult as others on the outside might have thought because we had a quality group of guys. We had a veteran staff and a veteran team, which made it easier than anticipated.

What is “the Butler Way”, and what makes it so effective? The Butler Way demands commitment, denies selfishness, accepts reality, yet seeks improvement every day while putting the team above yourself. It is so effective because of the guys who embrace it. There has to be that belief in the locker room and everyone needs to truly value what it stands for.

In the 2015 NCAA tourney you had a 3-PT OT loss to Notre Dame: how close did you come to pulling off the upset, and what did your team learn from that game that you think can help you this year? I am not sure if we learned anything from a basketball standpoint that we had not learned before. I think we all realized how close we were to doing something special alongside guys who had invested so much in one another.

In April of 2014 PG Tyler Lewis transferred in from NC State, and in April of 2015 PG Kethan Savage transferred in from GW: do you think this is the start of a trend or just a happy coincidence?! This has been a trend/pattern at Butler for the last 15-20 years. We have had success with transfers as long as they fit who we are, so we will continue to recruit transfers who fit our program.

Your non-conference schedule includes games against Cincinnati/Tennessee/Purdue: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? It is tough to sit here in October and choose which games will be tougher than others. It is not just those 3 games: our entire non-conference schedule will give us a tough road before we even get to the Big East, which has really good teams from top to bottom. The 3 teams you mentioned are all quality programs. Maybe the only thing that is different about those games is that we have 1 at home, 1 on a neutral court, and 1 on the road!

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? We are still trying to figure out this team’s potential and then come as close as we can to meeting that potential. For us it is all about staying committed to daily improvement.

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Conference Preview: Southern

Posted on October 27, 2015 by Chad

For the rest of our Preseason Coverage, CLICK HERE.

SOUTHERN

The 2014-15 season was a banner one for the Wofford Terriers.  The team won a school record 28 games, including picking up a regular season victory at North Carolina State, rolled through the Southern Conference, only losing twice in conference play, and then followed it up by winning the SoCon tournament, with their only test coming in the finals against Furman, a team that was seeded 10th out of 10 teams yet made an incredible run to the conference tournament finals.  The Terriers then went on to the NCAA tournament where they fell in the Round of 64 as a 12 seed to Arkansas, 56-53.  Despite winning 22 games, Chattanooga did not get an NIT invite and did not play in any postseason tournaments.  The only other SoCon team to play in the postseason was the Mercer, which participated in the CBI.

This season, Wofford does not look like they will be strong enough to repeat last season’s huge success, but the Terriers should still be good enough to compete for the conference title.  The offseason losses of Karl Cochrane and Lee Skinner, arguably their two best players, will be tough to compensate for.  Chattanooga, despite needing to adjust to new head coach Matt McCall, is the pick to take the conference title.  However, the SoCon appears to be fairly wide open, as UNC Greensboro, East Tennessee State, Furman and Western Carolina all could be in the mix.  Mercer will be one team taking a big step backwards — though the Bears’ success last year was a surprise, so they should not be easily counted out.

Predicted Order of Finish

1. Chattanooga – The Mocs are led by three returning double-digit scorers including Casey Jones (no jokes will be made about him driving the “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” train).  If they can come together under new head coach Matt McCall now that Will Wade has moved to VCU, they could be dancing.

2.  Wofford – Despite losing their top two players, the Terriers had depth last season and should be right back in contention this year.  They will be led by the backcourt trio of Spencer Collins, Eric Garcia and Justin Gordon.

3.  UNC Greensboro – Eight of the Spartans’ top nine players return from last season’s squad including guards Tevon Saddler and Diante Baldwin plus forward Kayel Locke and big man R.J. White.  All four of them averaged double-digits in scoring last year, and with the experience they have now gained, this team could be right in the mix this year.

4.  East Tennessee State – Murry Bartow is gone after 12 years in Johnson City, but even though his dismissal was a shock, the Bucs may have scored with the hiring of Steve Forbes.  Forbes put in time as an assistant to Bruce Pearl and to Gregg Marshall and has the pedigree to do some great things.  His first team lacks its top two scorers from last year, but does return A.J. Merriweather and Lester Wilson, plus adds in a strong group of newcomers led by Cincinnati transfer Ge’Lawn Guyn.

5.  Furman – The Paladins went 5-13 in conference regular season play last season, dead last in the standings.  They then rode their 10 seed to three straight upset victories, knocking off Chattanooga and Mercer on the way, before falling by 3 to Wofford in the SoCon title game.  All five starters from the team that finally clicked at the end of the season are back, led by guard Stephen Croone.  A 10th place finish will not happen again this time around, but a return to the title game is a distinct possibility.

6.  Western Carolina – The Catamounts return three double-digit scorers from last season, but will still have to find a way to make up for the loss of James Sinclair’s 19+ points per game.  They will need their newcomers to provide depth if they want any chance at contending.

7.  VMI – It appears that Q.J. Peterson will be back this season, and he is one of the most explosive scorers in the country.  If new head coach Dan Earl can improve the defense and get the team to accept his style, the Keydets could be a tough team to beat all season.

8.  Samford – Darius Jones-Gibson and Christen Cunningham form a strong duo in the backcourt, but the Bulldogs will need their newcomers to shine down low if they want to avoid another losing season.

9.  Mercer – The Bears exceeded expectations last season, but with three starters gone from that team and no frontcourt to speak of, it could be a long season.

10.  The Citadel – Exactly how The Citadel was able to steal head coach Duggar Baucom away from VMI is a bit of a mystery, but may prove to be one of the best moves in the school’s basketball history.  It will take time, but once Baucom has his crazy-fast, high-scoring system in place, the Bulldogs could finally have a shot at that elusive first-ever NCAA Tournament bid.  Until then, however, don’t expect much — especially not this year.

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Season preview: Pitt assistant coach Brandin Knight

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Jon Teitel

For the rest of our extensive Preseason Coverage – CLICK HERE

It is always nice to have an assistant coach whose retired jersey is hanging in the rafters of your own arena.  Brandin Knight has spent almost a decade on Coach Jamie Dixon’s staff, and before that he spent 4 years as a player for Coach Dixon that resulted in a pair of trips to the Sweet 16.  He was the 2002 Big East co-POY and still holds the school record for career AST/STL.  HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Knight about winning a CBI title and having an All-American brother.

knight

You played for Coach Jamie Dixon and now work as 1 of his assistants: what makes him such a great coach, and what is the most important thing that you ever learned from him? His attention to detail in every aspect of the job.  He is very organized at game-planning, office stuff, etc.

In the 2002 NCAA tourney you scored 18 PTS in a 5-PT OT loss to Kent State: could you have ever imagined that Antonio Gates (22 PTS) would later become 1 of the best tight ends in NFL history?! Gates was very hard to guard: he was so physical and relentless at getting to the rim. The best football players are often former basketball players, especially at the skill positions like RB/WR. He had great hands and great ball skills, which were great tools that translated to the football field.

In 2002 you were named Big East co-POY and you remain the school’s leader in career AST/STL: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor, and what is your secret for being a great PG? My most favorite award was for the Most Improved Player because I went from someone who was “not good enough” to 1 of the best players in the league. As a PG you have to be an extension of your coach and command the attention of the defense whether you are a scorer or passer. You have to understand time/score/possession.

In the 2003 NCAA tourney you had 16 PTS/11 AST in a 3-PT loss to Marquette: where does Dwyane Wade rank among the best college players you have ever seen? He is probably #1. We played Carmelo Anthony twice that year but Dwyane was so hard to guard because he has always been able to make tough shots.

In the 2012 CBI title game, MVP Lamar Patterson scored 14 PTS in a 6-PT win over Washington State: what did it mean to you to win a title? We had a rocky season but it helped give us confidence going into the next year and allowed Lamar to emerge as our team leader.

You and your older brother Brevin are 1 of only a handful of brothers in D-1 basketball history to each be named All-American (joining Jim/John Paxson, Harvey/Horace Grant, etc.): how proud are you of your brother’s success? I am very proud of the both of us, especially because neither of us was highly regarded coming out of high school. Our college coaches took chances on us when our biggest offers were from schools like Penn/Princeton. Brevin played a huge part in Stanford’s turnaround, just like I played a big part in Pitt’s turnaround.

In the 2015 NIT you had a 6-PT loss to GW: what do you think your team learned from that game that can help them this year? Our maturity level has grown a bit. We had sophomores playing a majority of our minutes last year and now they know that every possession matters. Nothing is given to you: you need the will to win. Losing on our home floor in the NIT was tough to swallow and we lost too many home games last year, so we have to bring it every night on every possession.

You have several transfer players on your roster: what is the key to integrating players from other schools into your own system? Since they are older kids with good attitudes it has made our jobs easier. We have to break down some old habits both good and bad, but they were all good players in their own right. Now we have to bring them up to speed on how we do things: it has been a good transition.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? We want to win championships. We need to prepare to be the best team in the country. I like to win and I hope I am getting the message across that we have to do whatever it takes. We have to be special every day, which will help us have a special year

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Conference Preview: Patriot League

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Chad

For the rest of our Preseason Coverage, CLICK HERE.

PATRIOT LEAGUE

The dictionary definition of parity should have a picture of the 2014-15 Patriot League standings next to it.  At times last season it looked like any of the ten teams in the conference could win the regular season title.  60% of the league ended up finishing the season within two games of each other, from 3rd place down to 8th.  Bucknell ended up taking the regular season title by a game over Colgate.  Even though the higher seeds got to host the conference tournament games, Bucknell and Colgate were upended in their semifinals, and 4th-seeded Lafayette ended up defeating 6th-seeded American in the finals to take the automatic bid and a 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament (where they promptly lost by 41 points to Villanova).  Bucknell, as the regular season champion, received an invite to the NIT.  No other Patriot League team played in a postseason tournament.

This year, we may be in store for more of the same.  Heading into the season, no less than five teams appear to be serious contenders for the league title.  Bucknell is the pick to repeat, but Lehigh, Boston University, Loyola, and Army should all be in the hunt.  For Army, which returns virtually its entire lineup from a team that was expected to contend last season and ended up finishing dead last in the conference standings, this season could be about redemption.  And if the Cadets can redeem themselves and finish at or near the top of the standings, they might finally break through to make their first ever NCAA tournament appearance.

Predicted Order of Finish

1.  Bucknell – The Bison are the pick to win the league with almost everyone back from last year’s regular season champions including leading scorer Chris Hass.  The team should have depth as well with solid sixth man Zach Thomas leading the way.  They will have to succeed with a new head coach, however, as Nathan Davis takes over now that Dave Paulsen has moved on to George Mason.

2.  Lehigh – The Mountain Hawks have conference Rookie of the Year Kahron Ross in the backcourt and conference Player of the Year Tim Kempton down low.  The four returning starters  gained tons of good experience last season, and with a deep bench returning as well, appear to have all the pieces needed to contend.

3.  Army – The Black Knights will have tons of scoring with all five starters back including Kyle Wilson, Tanner Plomb and Dylan Cox.  If they can improve on the defensive end, their first dance ticket may finally be waiting.

4.  Boston University – The Terriers return six players that averaged 8 or more points per game last season, led by Cedric Hankerson.  They appear poised to among the group of teams making a run at the conference title.

5.  Loyola – The Greyhounds have depth and experience, and will be welcoming back Jarred Jones who missed almost all of last season due to injury.  His return should help improve the team’s defense and could turn them into a surprise contender.

6.  American – Jesse Reed is back, but John Schoof and Pee Wee Gardner are not.  The Eagles will need their newcomers to fill in the gaps if they want any shot at contending.

7.  Lafayette – The good news is that the combination of Nick Lindner and Bryce Scott provides the Leopards with the foundations of a very solid backcourt.  The bad news is that with three starters gone, they are extremely thin down low — probably too thin to return to the Big Dance.

8.  Holy Cross – The Crusaders welcome Bill Carmody in as their new head coach, and he will be bringing with him the Princeton-style offense.  Carmody should be able to build the team into a contender, but it will take him a few years to get the sytem and the right players in place.

9.  Navy – The Midshipmen may be in for a long season with the top two scorers from a 19 loss team gone.

10.  Colgate – The Red Raiders do return senior guard Austin Tillotson, but the rest of the starters are gone and no returning reserve averaged more than 3 points per game last year.

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Season preview: Murray State SR SF Jeffery Moss

Posted on October 25, 2015 by Jon Teitel

For the rest of our extensive Preseason Coverage – CLICK HERE

Murray State has been playing basketball for well over a half-century, but each of its 5 winningest seasons have occurred during the past 2 decades under a quartet of coaches (Billy Kennedy/Steve Prohm/Mark Gottfried/Mick Cronin).  Brand-new Racers head coach Matt McMahon will try to continue building the legacy this year, but after losing each of the team’s top-3 scorers from last year he will have to depend on seniors such as Jeffery Moss.  Fortunately, Moss finished last season as the best FT shooter on the team and was also 1 of the top 3-PT shooters in the conference.  HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Jeffery about playing for a new coach and turning 22.

moss

In January 2014 you tied a school record by making all 14 of your FTs in a win over Tennessee-Martin: what is your secret for making FTs? You just have to take your time and focus on the basket.

A few weeks later you made your 1st 8 shots en route to a career-high 31 PTS (7-9 3PM) in a win over Tennessee Tech: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? I guess you could say that. I credit my teammates for setting good screens for me and my PG for finding me, then I just knocked down my shots.

In the 2014 CIT title game you scored 9 PTS in an 8-PT win over Yale: what did it mean to you to win a title? It felt really good. We only had 1 senior (Dexter Fields) and we wanted to win it for him so that he could go out as a champion.  We came together and did it for him.

Last year your 48.7 3P% was #5 in the OVC: what is the key to making shots from behind the arc? You just need to get up reps every day during practice and get in the gym outside of practice. It also helps if both you and your teammates have confidence in you.

In the 2013 OVC tourney you scored 5 PTS in a 2-PT OT loss to Belmont, and in the 2015 OVC tourney you scored 12 PTS in a 1-PT loss to Belmont: how sick are you of seeing the Bruins every March?! We just had letdowns as a team and it cost us both times, so you have to give credit to Belmont.

In the 2015 NIT you scored 12 PTS in a 3-PT loss to ODU: how close did you come to winning the game, and what did you learn from that game that you think will help you this year? I learned that you have to play all 40 minutes. Anything is possible in the final seconds…as we learned when we lost on a buzzer-beater from half-court.

You have a new coach this year in Matt McMahon: how difficult has the transition been, and what is he like so far? It has been easy for the returning players.  He has coached me for the past few years as an assistant and is easy to play for: we just go out and play our hardest.

You lost each of your top-3 scorers from last year (Cameron Payne/Jarvis Williams/TJ Sapp): how much pressure is there on you to be a leader this year? I do not feel any pressure at all. I played with those guys for 2 years and I was the 1 to give them advice when they were here, so I just need to step up and help our guys out by being more vocal.

You turned 22 last weekend: what did you do for the big day? We had an off-day, but I just went to the gym and then rested up for practice on Monday.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? As a team we want to get better every day, win our division, and then try to get over the hump by winning the OVC tourney and making it to the NCAA tourney.

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