September 01, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: American Conference

September 01, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The American Athletic Conference came out swinging in their first year of existence as UConn won the NCAA Tournament as a seven-seed. The conference will look much different than last year as last year's regular season and tournament champion Louisville leaves the conference as Tulsa, Tulane, and East Carolina join the fray.

Everything starts with UConn as they stunned nearly everyone to win the National Championship last year. Their top two scorers from last year in Shabazz Napier and DeAndre Daniels are now in the NBA, they will return guard Ryan Boatright and a host of big men that were role players off the bench. They prized recruit Daniel Hamilton incoming to aid in the losses of Napier and Daniels, but the guard play that helped this team win the whole shebang last year is gone. UConn should be an NCAA Tournament team again this year, but it will likely be as a nine or 10 seed.

SMU missed the NCAA Tournament last year, but showed a lot of promise and lost in the NIT final to Minnesota by two points. They would be the unquestioned favorite if Emmanuel Mudiay was joining the team, but is playing in China instead due to what's being called amateurism issues. SMU should still have have a solid team as Larry Brown is still the team's coach and the team's only loss from last year is Shawn Williams. SMU had a young team last year and were one of the best in the nation at not allowing points in the paint. Markus Kennedy was a beast down low, averaging 12.4 points and 7.1 rebounds per game as a freshman last year and the team has more of an intermediate presence with 6-6 Justin Martin coming in from Xavier. With Mudiay, SMU could have been a top-10 team, they are unlikely to be that good this year, but should be a solid top-20 program with their shear athleticism.

Memphis was one of the better offensive teams in the nation en route to a 24-10 season. They have a pair of big time transfers coming inn with former Vanderbilt guard Kendren Johnson and former Southern and Iowa State forward Calvin Godfrey. This should make Memphis the favorite in the conference as Shaq Goodwin and Austin Nichols were set to be a solid front line before the addition of Godfrey. Memphis is losing their top two scorers from last year in guards Joe Jackson and Michael Dixon Jr., but have 6-3 point guard Dominic Magee coming into the program. Head coach Josh Pastner has seen many of his teams fall short of expectations in his tenure in Memphis, but shouldn't this year. Memphis went eight deep last year and have a roster talented enough to be nine or ten deep this year.

Temple had the worst overall record in the conference last year at 9-22, but should be greatly improved this year. Head coach Fran Dunphy had led Temple to six straight NCAA Tournament appearances before the program amassed their lowest win total since the 1975-76 season last year. Temple was young and lacked depth last year, Though leading scorer Dalton Pepper is leaving the program along with big man Anthony Lee who decided to transfer to Ohio State, the team returns two players that averaged at least 15 points per game last season. Dunphy has yet to be able to develop big men Devontae Watson and Jimmy McDonnell, who are both going to be upperclassmen the year. If Temple is going to get back into postseason play, they need to ratchet up their defense which ranked 336th in the nation last year. Temple will not be a nine win team again this year, but their postseason hopes hinge on the development of Watson, McDonnell, and 6-8 freshman big man Obi Enechionyia.

Cincinnati split the regular season crown with Louisville last year, going 15-3 in conference and 27-7 overall, but should take the biggest fall of any team in the conference. Cincinnati was bounced in their first game of the NCAA Tournament by Harvard and have lost three of their starters from last year including All-American Sean Kilpatrick. With those departures, including Kilpatrick who filled up the box score last year with 20.1 points per game last year. Shaquille Thomas is the team's leading returning scorer at 6.8 points per game last season as Mick Cronen will need to look to his recruiting class to be a respectable team this year. Four of Cincinnati five recruits in the 2014 class were either power forwards or centers so they should either be loaded up front, but weak in the backcourt. With Tulane and East Carolina coming into the conference after ordinary seasons in lesser conferences and the South Florida program in disarray, Cincinnati will likely be in the middle of the conference standings, but will miss the big dance.

Tulsa was one of the best mid-major schools in the nation in Conference USA last year after a dismal 1-6 start. The made the field of 68 as a 13 seed, ending regular season play on a 20-6 run. Tulsa lost head coach Danny Manning to Wake Forest, but did well on the rebound, bringing in former Missouri and Miami head coach Frank Haith. Tulsa should be able to be towards the top of the conference this year despite the step-up in competition because if what they have returning from last year. Rashad Smith, James Woodard, and Shaquille Harrison where the team's top three scorers last season and will all be juniors this season. Tulsa is sort of in no man's land with their roster though because they have relatively no recruits incoming and stepping up competition-wise. They aren't good enough to hang with the likes of Memphis and SMU, but are light years ahead of Tulane and a South Florida team that went through a big debacle hiring a new coach. Expect Tulsa to be a 20 win team that is squarely on the bubble come Selection Sunday.

Houston and UCF should both finish towards the middle of the conference, but not be a threat for the big dance. Houston made a big splash by hiring Kalvin Sampson as their head coach, but the big recruits won't come until next year. They have six JUCO transfers on the way so their season could team could either be really good or remarkably bad so I will take the middle ground and put Houston in the NIT.

UCF was just 4-14 in the AAC last year but have a solid five man recruiting class incoming. Isaiah Sykes led the team in scoring and rebounding last year and is no longer with the team, but have an athletic team with a mix of talent returning. UCF should be a much improved free throw shooting team after shooting 61.4 percent as a team last year which will get this team to the 17 or 18 win territory.

The AAC did not get much respect from the selection committee last year as Louisville was a four-seed despite a 29-5 record and playing as well as any team in the nation down the stretch. Add SMU not making the big dance and the conference was more looked over than any other in the country. With UConn winning the NCAA Tournament, that should not happen again even without Louisville in the conference. The AAC should be able to get at least four teams into the field of 68 with a possibility of five or six.

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August 31, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: America East

August 31, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The America East has been one of the lousiest conferences in college basketball ever since Vermont stunned Syracuse in the 2005 NCAA Tournament. The conference champion has been either a 15 or 16 seed every year since 2007. The conference was stuck in the play-in game last year as Albany won the conference after finishing fourth in the conference in the regular season and the conference hopes to improve on that mark this year.

Vermont steamrolled the conference during the regular season, going 15-1 in conference, but went to the NIT after losing in the semifinals of the conference tournament. If any team was going to show well for the conference in the big dance last season, it was Vermont as they gave Duke all they could handle at Cameron Indoor, losing a 91-90 shootout. Though Vermont lost their top four scorers from last year, they should be in good shape since they went eight or nine deep last season and bring in shooting guard Brandon Hatton. Vermont losing their top four scorers and having a chance to win the conference should say how brutal this conference is.

Albany made the NCAA Tournament last year, but went just 9-7 in conference and 19-15 overall. The surprisingly held their own in the big dance, beating Mount St. Mary's in the play-in game and losing by 12 to Florida. Though making the big dance last season was an overachievment fir this team, they should be the favorites to win the conference this year. They have a deep recruiting class of five players with a nice mix of size and specialties. They have two of their top three scorers back but lose three of their six players that saw the majority of minutes so it's a little bit of a mixed bag to say the least. All in all though Albany should be in good shape to make another run at the NCAA Tournament.

Stony Brook won 20 or more games for the third straight season in 2013-14, but is still looking for the program's first trip to the NCAA Tournament. They should make it four straight 20 win seasons this year as both if their top scorers from last year are returning as juniors. Jameel Warney might be the best player in the conference, averaging 14.5 points and eight rebounds per game last season. They should be contending with Albany for the conference title. Though Steve Pikiell has yet to get this program to the NCAA Tournament, he turned a program that went 4-24 in his first season in 2005-06 into a perennial 20 win team, that's impressive.

Hartford had a very respectable season in 2013-14, going 17-16 and look to be this conference's dark horse. They have three guards transferring into the program and return top scorers Yolonzo Moore II and Mark Nwakamma. Their offense was brutal last year, ranking 300th in the nation in scoring and 348th in rebounding, but Wes Cole looks like a player that could change that. He shoot 42.9% from three last season but needs to be a more consistent scorer. If he can do so for a veteran team, Hartford could make some noise in the conference.

Maine was at the bottom of the conference last season, going 6-23 last season, but should be improved this season. They have an abundance of shooting guards and small forwards with Dimitry Akanda-Coronel and Zarko Valjarevic both averaging over 10 points per game last season. Maine would have likely been a team that could contend for a top-three spot in the conference has last year's leading scorer Xavier Pollard not transferred to Kent State. Instead Maine will likely be what Hartford was last year, hovering around .500.

Binghamton should also take strides forward this year after going 7-23 last year. Their top three scorers last year were either freshman or sophomores. Jordan Reed is one of the best players in the conference and averaged 15.4 points and 8.9 rebounds per game last season. Binghamton's weakness last year was shot selection as Yosef Yacob and Marlon Beck II both did a lot of the team's scoring, but both shot under 34-percent from the field. That led to Binghamton ranking 344th nationally in offensive scoring and 348th in shooting percentage. If they can sure that up and develop the five freshman they have coming in, they could be towards the middle of the conference.

UMass Lowell held their own in the conference last year, their first as a Division I basketball school, but has yet to win a non-conference game outside the conference against a fellow DI school. With a deep recruiting class on the way with four recruits and losing just one contributor from last season, they should be able to make a run at the conference's top-three this season. They must improve their scoring though, much like many teams in the conference, as they were 343rd nationally in offensive scoring and 342nd in shooting percent last season.

UMBC and New Hampshire were towards the bottom of the conference last year and should be again this year. The New Hampshire program is still trying to recover from a staff member being fired for voyeurism and went 6-24 with the controversy.

The American East has no real favorite in the conference and looks doomed to have the conference's tournament champion go to Dayton. The conference should be a dogfight with many teams going .500 in conference play.

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August 31, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: A10

August 31, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Atlantic 10 conference has slowly, but surly became a powerhouse conference in college basketball. After being typically a three-bid league for the first decade of the 2000's, they conference pushed across four teams in 2012, five in 2013, and a conference record six last tournament. Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski called out the conference last year saying they got too much love, but that did not stop Dayton from making the Elite Eight and adding Davidson to the conference.

St. Louis was the best team in the A10 during the regular season last year, but stumbled down the stretch, losing four of their last five games before the big dance including losses to Duquesne and St. Bonaventure. Add the fact that their entire starting five from last year has departed and St. Louis will see a significant drop from their 27-7 season in 2013-14. They have six freshman coming into the program, but it will likely take about two years for these relatively unheralded recruits to mesh as St. Louis would be overachieving this year if they make the NIT.

VCU was the second best team in the conference last year and should jump up a spot in the conference. Shaka Smart has built a consistent top-25 program that is predicated on getting steals and fast break points. While Smart's squad loses Juvonte Reddic and Final Four contributor Rob Brandenburg, they return leading scorer Treveon Graham and junior Melvin Johnson. Combine this with three four-star recruits with all of them being forwards between 6-7 and 6-9, VCU will likely win the A10, and may average even more than their nation-best 11.3 steals per game last season. A four or five seed is likely in the cards for VCU once again.

Dayton was last year's NCAA Tournament darling, but it may have been a little bit of fools gold for this year. Dayton beat in the 2014 big dance an inconsistent Ohio State team, a Syracuse team that was 3-5 coming into the game after starting the season 25-0, and a 10th-seeded Stanford to get to the Elite Eight. Dayton will have the best backcourt in the A10 this year with Jordan Sibert and Dyshawn Pierre back, but they lose their post presences Darren Oliver and Matt Kavanaugh. Dayton was good but not great in just about every facet of the game last year and will need to run better than anyone else in the conference if they want to live up to their lofty expectations this year. Steve McElvene will need to have his 6-11 frame out there early and often if Dayton wants to be a top-four team in the conference. Expect Dayton to return to the NCAA Tournament, but they likely will not improve much upon the 11-seed they received in last year's tournament.

UMass were more than just minutemen last season, getting ranked in the top-25 for the first time since 1997 and winning a game in the NCAA Tournament. UMass loses their leading scorer from last year in Chaz Williams, but returns just about everyone else. Though I feel it will be a non-issue, the media will be talking about Derrick Gordon coming out as gay in the offseason and was a starter for the team last year. He averaged 9.4 points and 3.5 rebounds per game last season and may need ti lead the team in scoring for UMass to have the success they did last year. UMass struggled down the stretch a little last season, finishing the season losing five of their last 10 games after starting the year 19-4. Expect UMass to fall a little, but not much being about an eight or a nine seed in the field of 68 this year.

George Washington and St. Joesph's both made the NCAA Tournament last year with experienced teams and will likely need a year to get back to the big dance. All of St. Joe's starters averaged at least 32 minutes per game last year with as nobody off the bench averaged more than three points per game. Three of those starters graduated, leaving this year's team in a world of hurt.

George Washington should be in better shape than St. Joe's as they were seven deep last year and are losing two of their five starters. Kethan Savage will be back for the team after missing the second half of the season due to injury. The losses of Maurice Creek and Isaiah Armwood will likely put George Washington in the NIT this year, but their four three-star recruits and a Patricio Garino recovered from injury, they could will their way into the NCAA Tournament bubble talk.

Richmond was a team that looked like they could make the NCAA Tournament last season, but closed out the season losing five of their last six games. The falloff was likely due to the injury of Cedrick Lindsay, who averaged 18.3 points and four assists per game before missing the final 12 games of his senior year with an injury. Fortunately for Richmond, they have a pair of great guards returning in Kendall Anthony and ShawnDre' Jones. Terry Allen showed some flashes in the low post and they have coming in Niagara transfer T.J. Kline to add another threat to the team. The loss of Lindsay was too much for Richmond to succeed last year and likely will again this year, so they will likely have a repeat of their 19-14 season from last year.

With a couple teams taking steps back in the conference, someone has to improve. LaSalle and Rhode Island look like those teams that could rise up the standings. LaSalle was unable to properly encore their Sweet 16 run in the 2013 NCAA Tournament last year, going 15-16. They lost star Ramon Galloway, but had four of their top five scorers return from that team as they were unable to close out close games. Most of those guys are gone, but Jerrell Wright is back for his senior year and is possibly the most lethal player in the conference. He s 6-8, has the talent to average nine or 10 rebounds per game, and has great touch on his jump shot. LaSalle also has incoming two big transfers in 6-5 Auburn guard Jordan Price and Georgia Southern 6-5 guard Cleon Roberts. Add 6-11 center Steve Zack into the fray and you have a team that could go from underachieving last year to out-punting their coverage this year.

Rhode Island was just 5-11 in the A10 last year and 14-18 overall, but has a team loaded with young talent that could have the tools to crash the big dance this season. They lose Xavier Munford from last year's team after he averaged 16.9 points and four rebounds per game last season, return E.C. Matthews after he averaged 14.2 points per game in 2013-14 as a freshman. Add JUCO transfer Earl Watson and ESPN top 100 player Jared Terrell to go with Jordan Hare returning to the team after taking a leave of absence from the team for personal reasons and you have one of the most improved teams in the nation. Rhose Island has not went dancing since 1999, but that could change in 2015.

St. Bonaventure is a little bit too far away from cracking the field of 68, but could go from the bottom portion of the conference to the middle of the A10. They have coming in a nice center in 6-10 center Jordan Tyson to go with a pair of JUCO guards in Iakeem Alston and Marcus Polsey. Seven-foot center Youssou Ndoye will make this team one no power conference team wants to play.

Fordham has been at the bottom of the barrel in the conference for many years and should be there again this year after going 2-14 in conference last season. Duquesne and George Mason were also at the bottom of the conference last season and should be there again this season, but George Mason has a decent frontcourt which could get George Mason to the middle of the pack. Davidson is the newcomer in the conference after going 15-1 in the SoCon last season. If there is one guarantee in this world, they will not be 15-1 in conference, especially after losing De'Mon Brooks and his 19 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. They should have a solid offense and bad defense, much like last year and will likely be in that 6-10 range in conference this season.

The A10 had the greatest year in the conference's history last year and is trying to follow it up this year. While six bids for the conference might be a little too much to expect, this conference has a boatload of solid team and will likely send three or four teams to the NCAA Tournament.

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Big XII

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MAC

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August 30, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: ACC

August 30, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The ACC has been one of the big winners in conference realignment and a conference that was strong last year gets a powerful addition in Louisville. With blue-bloods Duke and North Carolina clashing with the likes of Syracuse and Pittsburgh , the ACC should create some fireworks this year.

Virginia stunned the conference and won the ACC regular season and tournament. After losing by 35 points to Tennessee and UW-Green Bay, Virginia went 16-2 in conference and made the Sweet 16 in the big dance as a one-seed. Virginia succeeded last year through defense, ranking just 294th in the nation in points per game to go with the nation's best scoring defense. Head coach Tony Bennett had his team overachieve at an astronomical level last season and there is no way Virginia repeats as ACC Champions. Other than Joe Harris, just about everyone from last year's roster is back, but the ACC is significantly tougher this year and Virginia will likely be a team ranked between 15-20th in the nation.

Duke and North Carolina are the traditional powerhouses in the conference and have one of the greatest rivalries in all of sports. Duke had the better regular season of the two teams, but North Carolina last longer in the tournament after Duke was bounced early in the NCAA Tournament by Mercer.

Duke should have the better team in the regular season as they have incoming the top rated recruit by ESPN in the 2014 class in center Jahlil Okafor as well as the top point guard Tyus Jones. Justise Winslow and Grayson Allen should also see minutes coming off the bench for Rasheed Sulaimon and Andre Dawkins. If Amile Jefferson can play the role Ben Zubek did when Duke won the 2010 National Championship team, they have all the makings of an ACC Champion and a Final Four team.

North Carolina also has a good mix of recruits and veterans and should be a top-15 team this season. Roy Williams seems to like the versatile 6-6, 6-7ish forwards and brings in two with Theo Pinson and Justin Jackson. It might be hard for them to see minutes though with J.P. Tokoto coming back for his junior year and showing much improvement last season. Though the forwards will be key to this team they will live and die by the play of Marcus Paige. Paige averaged 17.5 points and 4.2 assists per game and typically scored 25 or 30 points when this team was firing on all cylinders, His ability should free up the floor for Nate Britt to be an efficient shooting guard and Kennedy Meeks to put all the tools together down low.

The teams that came over from the old Big East last season made a huge impact as Syracuse and Pittsburgh both made the NCAA tournament and won a game in the big dance while Notre Dame covered the spectrum in terms of roster issues. With Louisville now in the conference, conceivably all four could represent the ACC in the field of 68 this season.

Pittsburgh may have the worst team of the four as they lacked any true quality wins last season and have a weak recruiting class incoming. Couple that with Lamar Patterson and Talib Zanna no longer being with the team and Jamie Dixon's squad might miss the big dance for the second time since 2002. The good news for this team is forward Durand Johnson should be fully healthy after missing nearly all of ACC play and postseason play due to injury.

Louisville is the newcomer in the conference and bring a winning tradition. Louisville won the 2013 NCAA Tournament and won the American Athletic Conference last year before being ousted by Kentucky in the Sweet 16. Rick Pitino seems to do a great job of picking up good recruits that want to stay in the program for three or four years. He seems to have done it against with five four-star recruits according to ESPN and a three-star recruit. Louisville is losing a lot from last year with guards Russ Smith and Luke Hancock both departing, but this team should be excellent defensively and on the low block. Montrezl Harrell is back for his junior year after emerging the second half of last year. Chane Behannon being kicked off the team may have been a good thing for this team as he and Wayne Blackshear both picked up the slack. If Terry Rozier can be a backcourt force for the Cardinals, Rick Pitino should have another balanced team that can go 9-10 players deep.

Syracuse should have a solid season once again this year, but they will likely take a step back from last year. C.J, Fair, Tyler Ennis, and Jerami Grant are all now in the NBA and Syracuse's entire freshman class is made up of two recruits. Jim Boeheim is one of the best in college basketball at developing players over the course of four years and that will be key if the Orange want to be a top-25 team this year. Their triangle defense should be stout as Rakeem Christmas and DaJuan Coleman are both defensive specialists, but the offense will likely be just as suspect as last year, if not worse. Trevor Cooney has shown the ability to be able to pace an offense, but went ice cold down the stretch last season as the team lost six of their last nine games after starting 25-0. How Syracuse's season goes may hinge on freshman point guard Kaleb Joesph because the Orange could either be a fringe top-25 team or an NIT team based on his preference.

Notre Dame went 15-17 last season but should be vastly improved with the return of Jerian Grant. Grant averaged 19 points per game last season but only played 12 games last season because of academic issues. With Pat Connaughton and V.J. Beachem also returning, Notre Dame will likely be the ACC's most improved team and could be back in the NCAA Tournament.

NC State sneaked into the NCAA Tournament as a First Four team after heating up at the end of the year. NC State has been an up and down team in their three seasons under Mark Gottfried, but have went to the NCAA Tournament in all three of them. The loss of C.J. Warren and freshman forward Caleb Martin needing foot surgery could put this streak in jeopardy though. Martin was a highly touted recruit and Warren averaged nearly 25 points and seven rebounds per game last season. The Wolfpack have a nice recruiting class coming in, led by Abdul-Malik Abu. LSU transfer Ralston Turner and senior guard Desmond Lee will need to step up in the scoring department to get NC State in the tournament as it appears as though they will be on the bubble once again this season.

Both Miami and Florida State look to be getting better and appear to be bubble teams coming into the year. Florida State was solid out of conference last year, but went just 9-9 in the ACC, sending them to the NIT. Miami was a bit rough around all the edges last year going 17-16 after losing nearly every key player that allowed them to earn a two-seed in the 2013 NCAA Tournament. Both team have deep recruiting classes on the way and did not lose many players from last season.

Clemson has a respectable 23-13 season last year and made the NIT semifinal, but will likely not be able to duplicate that this year. K.J. McDaniels was the only player on last year's roster that averaged over 10 points per game and is now in the NBA. With no real notable recruits coming in, it will be up to the likes of Damarcus Harrison and Jordan Roper to pick up tons of minutes and points. Expect Clemson to be towards the bottom of the conference with Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech.

Three of the bottom five teams in the ACC last year have new coaches this season. Wake Forest hired Danny Manning, Virginia Tech lured in Buzz Williams, and Boston College hired former Ohio coach Jim Christian. All three will likely be in rebuilding mode this year, but if there is a team that could overachieve, it has to be Wake Forest. Manning took Tulsa from a team that was around .500 to the NCAA Tournament in two years. With all of the juniors on the roster, Wake Forest could get into the top-half of a tough ACC.

The ACC was weak last year, but should be back in full force this season. The way conference realignment has went, it would no be far fetched to see the ACC pumping eight or nine teams into the big dance consistently, much like the Big East did before last year's big breakaway.

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August 29, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Atlantic Sun

August 29, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Atlantic Sun has been reeking havoc in the NCAA Tournament the past couple seasons. In 2013, Florida Gulf Coast become the first 15-seed to ever make the Sweet 16 and last season Mercer knocked off Duke as a 14-seed. The conference will not be quite the same this year though as Mercer is moving to the Ohio Valley Conference.

With Mercer out of the conference, Florida Gulf Coast should be head and shoulders above the rest of the conference. FGCU is losing some of their backcourt from last season, but still have the high flyers that earned this school the nickname "Dunk City." Bernard Thompson averaged 15 points per game last year to lead the team while Chase Fieler did the dirty work, averaging 13.9 points and 7.4 rebounds per game last season. Nobody in the conference can come close to matching FGCU's athleticism and they should return to the big dance in 2015.

USC Upstate was topped by only FGCU and Mercer in the Atlantic Sun in the conference last season, but will be in for a big falloff this season. They currently only have nine players on their roster total and are losing two of their top three scorers from last season. If 6-11 sophomore center Michael Buchanan can develop, USC Upstate could squeak out a .500 record in conference. If he doesn't, they could lose 20 games this season.

North Florida will likely grab the reigns as the second best team in the conference as they had Dallas Moore lead the team in scoring last season as a freshman. North Florida lacks size, but Beau Beach is an athletic guy ho you would think would be a prototypical Florida Gulf Coast player. North Florida is an ok team that should place second in the conference by default with Mercer and East Tennessee out of the conference.

Lipscomb is in the same boat as North Florida, an ok team that will place high in the conference thanks to the departures in the conference. Both Lipscomb and North Florida went 10-8 in conference last season. With four players that averaged at least 13 points per game coming back from last season and the best recruiting class in the conference, Lipscomb should be a 20 win team this season that has a good chance to make the Atlantic Sun Tournament final against FGCU.

After that, the next best team returning to the conference from last season is 12-18 Jacksonville. Jarvis Hayward was their top scorer last year and transferred to UNC-Wilmington. Their next best scorer graduated so they will be stuck at the bottom of the conference with 20 game losers Stetson, Northern Kentucky, and Kennesaw State.

This conference should be completely lopsided to Florida Gulf Coast baring major injuries happening to Dunk City.

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August 29, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Big East

August 29, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The new look Big East did not have a solid first season, barley squeezing four team into the Big East after many years of getting seven or eight teams into the dance seemingly at will. With Creighton and Villanova being the top teams in the conference last year, the Big East could see the biggest change in the standings of any team in the country.

Villanova went 16-2 in conference last season with both losses coming at the hands of Creighton and the Fighting McDermotts. They were one of the most balanced teams in the nation last year and played both offense and defense effectively. Other than James Bell, the whole band is back together from last season including Darrun Hilliard II and Ryan Arcidiacono in the backcourt. Phil Booth and Mikal Bridges should both make an impact this year as freshman and make JayVaughn Pinkston all the more dangerous. Villanova will likely not go 29-5 like they did last season, but they should be atop the Big East once again.

Seton Hall was just 6-12 in the Big East last season, but should be significantly better this season. They finished the year with a stunning upset over Villanova in the Big East Tournament and have a talented bunch returning. Fuquan Edwin graduated with a lot of their starting cast, but Sterling Gibbs averaged over 13 points as a freshman and Seton Hall has one of the best recruiting classes in the nation coming in. Isaiah Whitehead was rated by ESPN as the second-best shooting guard in the nation and power forward Angel Delgado is one of the best in the class of 2014. Seton Hall could be this year's Nebraska, a team that struggles early due to their youth, but puts it all together towards the end if the season and sneaks into the tournament with a late season surge.

Georgetown underachieved greatly last season and finished the season out of the big dance after being ousted by 15-seed Florida Gulf Coast in 2013. With three recruits coming in rated as either four or five-star guys, it wold likely take effort for the Hoyas to miss the NCAA Tournament. That being said, John Thompson III has done a poor job of coaching since the Hoyas made the Final Four in 2007. Georgetown has been knocked out of the big dance by a team at least five seed-lines lower than them in each of their last five tournament trips dating back to 2008. What that means is expect a strong regular season from Georgetown and a disappointing postseason.

St. John's came close to making the big dance last year and should be able to make the field of 68 this year. They lost a lot of their role players from last year, but have all three of their top scorers from last year returning. D'Angelo Harrison should contend for player of the year honors after averaging 17.5 points and 4.9 rebounds a game as a junior. St. John's played better last year after battling through a gruesome non-conference schedule. Playing those tough teams should help this team make the big dance despite a sub-par recruiting class coming in. It is a major help that shot blocking machine Chris Obepka decided to return as well.

Providence and Creighton both made the NCAA Tournament last season thanks to senior leadership and likely won't be able to duplicate the feat this year. Both teams lost superstar scorers in Bryce Cotton for Providence and Doug McDermott for Creighton. Both have small, but talented recruiting classes coming in to try to replace senior-laden starting fives. Both look to be about two years away from contending for an NCAA Tournament bid, especially Creighton.

Xavier was able to defeat Creighton late in the season and make the NCAA Tournament as a First Four team. The Musketeers will likely be on the wrong side of bubble this year as they return some solid size with Matt Stainbrook and James Farr but lose leading scorer Semaj Christon to the NBA and Justin Martin to SMU. Xavier has incoming six recruits that are all either three or four star guys including shifty point guard Edmond Sumnar. Chris Mack always seems to have his teams overachieving so if Xavier can manage a .500 record in conference this year, they might be able to steal a tournament bid and set themselves up to be a top-25 team next year.

Marquette was one of the most disappointing teams in the nation last year, going 17-15 last season after being a preseason top-25 team and selected by the media to win the Big East. The program is currently in transition as Buzz Williams left the program for Virginia and Marquette hired Duke assistant Steve Wojciechowski to take his place. The team loses one of the top scorers in program history Davante' Gardner as well as Jamil Wilson, but saw freshman Deonte Burton and JaJuan Johnson show significant flashes at the end of the season. Williams did not play the freshman enough and Wojciechowski will need to do a better job of playing the best players in order to get the Golden Eagles back to the big dance. Marquette has local Wisconsin boy Sandy Cohen coming in and could be a match-up nightmare for the Big East with his freak athleticism and great shooting. Marquette had a down year last season after making three straight Sweet 16's, but should be back in the NCAA Tournament this year as long as the best players are on the floor for the Golden Eagles.

Butler should be better than their 4-14 conference record last year, but will likely need another year to rebuild after losing coach Scott Stevens to the Boston Celtics. DePaul is a joke of a college basketball school at this point and will be the worst team in the Big East once again.

Other than Villanova being at the top of the Big East and DePaul at the bottom, the conference will likely flip upside down. Expect three or four team to make the tournament this year, a far cry from what this conference was doing just two years ago.

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August 28, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Big Sky

August 28, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Big Sky saw the Weber State represent the conference admirably in the big dance last year, losing as a 16-seed to Arizona by just single-digits. With the rebirth of a Weber State program that has a history of high quality basketball, and the loss of coach Wayne Tinkle at Montana the Big Sky should look a little different than it has in recent years.

Weber State was the best team in the conference all year last season, going 14-6 in the conference and 19-12 overall. The team will be without last year's leading scorer Davion Berry, but saw freshman Jeremy Senglin average 10.9 points per game last season. They also have the conference's defensive player of the year Joel Bolomboy returning for his junior year. He averaged 8.7 points per game to go with 11 rebounds per game, which was the third-best mark in the nation. He also shot 72.9 percent from the free throw line, a very high mark for a center. With a solid 6-8 recruit Zach Braxton coming in, nobody in the Big Sky will be able to match Weber State's combination of size and quickness as they should be the heavy favorites to win the conference.

Montana has reigned supreme in the conference recently, going to the NCAA Tournament three of the last five years. It will be tough for the program to reach that success again as former head coach Wayne Tinkle bolted for Oregon State. New head coach Travis DeCuire did all he could, but was unable to bring in a good recruiting class. The good news for Montana is they only lose only one senior and will have the services of Washington transfer Martin Bruenig to match Weber State's size. Their guard play won't be quite enough to knock off Weber State, but they should once again be the second-best team in the conference and could win 20 games.

Portland State has been consistently one of the best teams in the Big Sky and should be second or third in the conference this year. They were 11-9 in conference last season, and have their key scorers returning while many of last year's role players graduated. They landed a good recruit in shooting guard Iziahiah Sweeney to go with a that can stroke it with the best of them. Their lack of low post scoring will catch up to them against Montana and Weber State, but they should still have a chance at winning 20 games if they perform well out of conference.

If your looking for a team that could surprise, it's Eastern Washington. After going 10-10 in conference last season, they return all four of their players that averaged at least 10 points per game. They will be led once again by Tyler Harvey, who should be the front runner for conference player of the year. Harvey averaged 21.2 points per game and meshed well with point guard Drew Brandon. If all goes right for Eastern Washington, they could find themselves in the field of 68 thanks to the addition of the conference's best incoming freshman class.

The three Northern schools were in the middle of the pack last year and will likely stay put this year. Northern Arizona, North Colorado, and North Dakota all went either 12-8 or 119 in conference last year. All three were pretty stagnant in recruiting, but neither of the schools are losing much so they will be in sort of that no-man's land position again this year.

Sacramento State won't compete for the Big Sky title, but should be improved from last season. They were .500 in conference last year and should be better this year with a roster loaded with juniors. They also had a solid recruiting class and saw Mikh McKinney average 16.6 points and 4.6 assists per game last season as a sophomore. Other than Weber State being towards the top, this whole conference is wide open and Sacramento State is a team that needs to take advantage of that this year.

Montana State, Idaho State, and Southern Utah were the only teams out of the 11 in the conference that had a losing record. Montana State was 9-11 while Idaho State was 8-12 in conference last season. Both teams should be around the range, possibly a win or two worse in conference. Southern Utah was a complete train wreck at 2-27 overall last season and should be the worst team in the conference by a wide margin once again this year.

While Weber State should repeat as the conference champion, this conference is as open as any in the nation and will likely see its conference tournament champion be a 15 or 16-seed with everyone beating up on each other.

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August 28, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Big South

August 28, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Big South saw its conference champion get another 16-seed last year although Coastal Carolina gave a great effort against Virginia. The conference looks a little different with VMI moving to the SoCon but should not make a big difference in the conference.

After playing Virginia to 11 points in the NCAA Tournament last season, the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers should be the favorites to go back to the NCAA Tournament this season. With Elijah Wilson leading the team in scoring with 15.7 points per game as a freshman and all of their starters returning from last season, the Chanticleers should not only be able to return to the big dance, but be a pretty good seed if they make the field.

Radford won 20 games last season and should be able to use their CBI quarterfinal appearance to propel them to the second-spot in the conference. They are not losing a single contributor from last year and will have four players that averaged 10 or more points back from last season. 6-4 junior forward Javonte Green averaged 16.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per game last season and should be the favorite to be the player of the year in the Big South. They shot 47.8-percent as a team last year and can reach the 20 win plateau again this year if they repeat the feat.

High Point may have been the most forgettable regular season conference champion in the NCAA last season because of their 4-9 out of conference record last season. They went 12-4 in conference despite being outrebounded in many of the games they played. They have leading scoring and rebounder John Brown who averaged 19.5 points and 7.7 rebounds per game last season. the have two other double-digit scorers returning as their seniors were mainly role players last year. High Pointy may not be the regular season conference champion this year due to Coastal Carolina, but they are a better team than last year and should perform better in the non-conference to make the conference as a whole look better.

Winthrop had a 20 win season in 2013-14 and will likely be right around the mark again this year. They are not losing too many key pieces but will be down some of their role players from a year ago. Keon Johnson might be one of the most fascinating players in college basketball as he averaged 12.3 points per game while shooting threes at a 44.1 percentage as a freshman. Johnson is listed at 5-7 and actually shot below 40 percent from within the arch. Winthrop may not be where they were when current Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall was coaching the team, but has built a pretty steady program over the years.

Presbyterian was the worst team in the conference last season, going 2-14 in conference and 6-26 overall, but should be the most improved team in the conference this year. Every one of the players on their team last season was either a freshman or a sophomore aside from leading scorer Jordan Downing and have five incoming recruits. Presbyterian lacks size, but have enough quickness to hang with any team in the conference. Look for a big turnaround for this team as they may break .500 in the Big South.

Gardner-Webb could take the biggest dip in the conference after going 10-6 in conference last season, losing two players that averaged double-digit points per game and are replacing them with a recruiting class that lacks a dominant scorer. UNC-Asheville were also 10-6 in the Big South and will likely be in that range this year. UNC-Asheville made the NCAA Tournament in both 2011 and 2012 and saw Andrew Rowsey average over 20 point per game as a freshman. The only reason I do no have them over Coastal Carolina is the loss of leaders Jaron Lane and D.J. Cunningham.

Liberty managed to make the NCAA Tournament in 2013 with a losing record and had a poor 2013-14 going 11-21. Expect them to be at the bottom of the conference with Longwood. Campbell and Charleston Southern were both towards the bottom of the conference last year, but are young teams that look like they are taking some strides in the right direction.

Coastal Carolina should be the favorite in the conference with Winthrop and UNC-Asheville being their greatest competition. The Big South will not receive a good seed in the NCAA Tournament once again and will likely be on the fringe of the 15-16 seed range.

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August 27, 2014

2014-15 NCAA Basketball Preview: Big Ten

August 27, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Big Ten had a solid season last year, putting six teams into the NCAA Tournament with Wisconsin carrying the banner for the conference by making the Final Four. The Big Ten will look a little different this year as the conference expands to 14 teams as Rutgers and Maryland join the party.

Wisconsin is the runway favorite to win the conference after going to the Final Four last year. They team returns all of their key contributors other than Ben Brust. Frank Kaminsky is one of the most versatile big men in the nation and he has a backcourt of Josh Gasser and Treavon Jackson to help him out. Nigel Hayes was one of the best sixth-man contributors in the nation and should start this year. With Sam Dekker growing from 6-7 to 6-9 this summer, the Badgers should be the second-best team in the nation heading into the year only trailing Kentucky.

Michigan came an Andrew Harrison three-pointer away from possibly joining Wisconsin in the Final Four last year, but will be without a lot of their key pieces from last year's team. The return a solid backcourt with Caris LeVert and Derrick Walton, but are lacking experience in the low-post. With Jon Horford's transfer to Florida and Glenn Robinson III going to the NBA, Michigan will be relying heavily on recruits and bench players from last season. Michigan's rostered non-guards scored a combined 20 points last season. Michigan has a great freshman class coming in, highlighted by small forward Kameron Chatman, but the team will likely be a fringe top-25 team this season.

Nebraska was the big surprise in the conference last year, going 11-7 in conference and using their favorable home court to get enough big wins to make the field of 68. Nebraska should not be a surprise team this year and could be the best team in the conference not named Wisconsin. The have the most dynamic duo in the conference in Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields. Deverell Biggs had a promising start to his freshman year averaging nearly 10 points a game, but missed the second half of the season due to injury. With Biggs back along with just about every player back from last year, Nebraska could be a top-15 team this season.

Ohio State had an up-and-down season last year which ended with the Buckeyes being the victims of Dayton's Cinderella run. They lose four-year starter Aaron Craft, but reload with three fiver-star recruits including the best shooting guard in the class of 2014 D'Angelo Russell. If the Buckeyes find a consistent scorer, they will be right there with Nebraska for the race to be the second-best team in the conference.

There are three guarantees in life: death, taxes, and Tom Izzo having a solid Michigan State squad. The Spartans lose Adreian Payne, Gary Harris, and Keith Appling from a team that made the Elite Eight last season, but will find a way to keep trucking. Izzo somehow got the Spartans to 29 wins even with just about every player on the roster being injured at some point last season. Izzo never brings in the biggest recruits, but he somehow always turns them into gold, which will need to be the case this year if Michigan State wants to be a top-25 team. A healthy Branden Dawson is a must for Michigan State, but transfer Bryn Forbes should help the Spartans immensely. He averaged 15.4 points per game at Cleveland State as a freshman and has played with Denzel Valentine since he was in grade school. Expect Forbes to keep the Spartans a top-four team in the conference.

Minnesota did not make the big dance last season, but came close under Richard Pitino in his first year as the team's coach. Minnesota went on to win the NIT over SMU in a thriller and could crack the top-25 this year. Though Austin Hollins graduated, Andre still has a year left with the program and will join six other seniors on the squad this year. Minnesota needs Hollins and Malik Smith to be more efficient scores and should be able to do so with big men Elliot Elliason and Maverick Ahanmisi. Minnesota will likely still be towards the middle of the pack due to the strength of the Big Ten, but should be better out of conference,

Iowa will likely have the biggest drop off from last season. Iowa was a top-10 team in February last season, but lost seven of their last eight games to end the season, including a loss in Dayton to Tennessee. With Roy Deyvn Marble's 17 points per game gone and a team that did not have a reliable lineup to begin with, Fran McCaffery might be out if a job when Iowa finishes towards the bottom of the Big Ten.

Illinois will likely take Iowa's spot towards the top of the conference. They were awful to begin conference play last year, going 3-10 and sitting in last place in late February. The won four of their last five games in conference though to salvage their season to get a strong bid into the NIT. Two of those wins were against top-18 teams including a big one on the road at Michigan State. While the team loses their best scorer in Rayvonte Rice and biggest low-post presence in Nnanne Egwu, their young guys stepped up in expanded roles at the end of last season. Kendrick Nunn scored at least 10 points in six of the team's final seven games in conference. Leron Black should be able to take Egwu's spot in the low post and Illinois could be a team that sneaks into the NCAA Tournament much like Nebraska did last season.

Rutgers is new to the conference and should be greeted by a massive butt kicking from everyone else in conference. They went 12-21 in the American last season and ended the season by getting thrashed by Louisville 92-31. I give Johnny Manziel going five years sober a better chance than Rutgers contending in the Big Ten.

Maryland should fair a bit better as they have not made the big dance since 2010, but have been above .500 in every year. They have a stacked recruiting class including three four-star recruits and five-star recruit Romelo Trimble. They have two 7-0 centers coming in and if either of them can develop and take some pressure of Dez Wells, Maryland could make a run at an NCAA Tournament bid.

Penn State and Northwestern both showed a lot of improvement towards the end of last year, but are just not quite there yet. The Big Ten might be the toughest conference in the nation and they just do not have the recruits to make a run to the NCAA Tournament. It would not be surprising to see one or both teams in the NIT and both should still be better than Purdue.

Indiana is a team that many think will improve from last year's 17-15 disappointment, but I don't see it. They have big time recruits James Blackmon Jr. and Robert Johnson coming in, but Yogi Ferrell is too much of a me-first player to allow Indiana to succeed. It's a shame because Stanford Robinson and Troy Williams looked good in their trip to Canada. It's tough for Indiana to win though when Ferrell is shooting 2-for-15 no matter how much talent is around him.

The Big Ten will likely be the best conference in the nation with Wisconsin as it's anchor. While not every can go dancing, much of the Big Ten will be. It would not be surprising if the Big Ten pushes seven or even eight teams into the tournament, although they will not get three teams into the Elite Eight like they did last season.

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August 27, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Big West

August 27, 2014/ Greg Peterson

To say the Big West did not receive the greatest representation in the 2014 NCAA Tournament would be an understatement. Though the conference as a whole was soft, Cal Poly made the big dance with a 13-19 record after winning the conference tournament. The Big West has some decent teams this year and should have a team with a winning record make the field of 68 this season.

UC Irvine was the Big West regular season champions last season with a 13-3 conference record and should be the favorites to repeat this year. UC Irvine may have the tallest team in the nation thanks to 7-6 center Mamadou Ndaiye, who was a freshman last year after moving to the US from Senegal. Though he is obviously a force, freshman Luke Nelson might have been the best player on the team last year, leading the Anteaters in scoring after coming over from France. We continue our tour of countries on this team with sophomore Ionnis Dimakopoulos, who barley saw the court last season. If Ndaiye and Dimakopoulos are are able to play together with Nelson and Alex Young in the backcourt, they should take the conference by storm and could upset some power conference teams along the way.

After UC Irvine, there are a couple teams that are closely bunched together to be the number two team in the conference. UC Santa Barbara and Hawaii both won 20-plus games last season, and have solid teams returning.

UC Santa Barbara have Alan Williams returning after he averaged 21.3 points and 11.5 rebound per game last season. The man is a load at 6-8, 280-pounds and should be the favorite over Mamadou Ndaiye for conference player of the year. John Green showed flashes at the point as a freshman, but played in just three games as a freshman. If he is fully healthy, with the team losing none of it's critical parts from last season, they should be the number two team in the conference.

Hawaii struggled a bit in conference going 9-7, but went 11-3 out of conference thanks to a dynamic offensive attack. Though the team loses three-point scoring machine Christian Standhardinger, they return versatile big man Isaac Fotu and another great shooter in Garrett Nevels. Hawaii was one of the most efficient scoring teams in the nation and one of the best from three-point land. If Nevels can grab a few more rebounds and at least put up a decent fight against Alan Williams and Mamadou Ndaiye, Hawaii could sneak up on UC Santa Barbara and UC Irvine for the conference crown.

Long Beach State had the third-best conference record last season, going 10-6 in the Big West and have a nice recruiting class coming in. Mike Caffey and UCLA transfer Tyler Lamb both averaged over 15 points per game last season. They lack the size of the UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara, but have the most athletic team in the conference. If they can get into a tack meet with these teams, they have a legitimate shot to win the conference despite a 15-17 record last season.

After these four teams, the quality in the conference takes a substantial dip. Cal Poly made the field of 68 last season and actually won in their First Four game, but went 14-20 last season and 6-10 in conference. They have most of their roster coming back from last year, but will be without top scorer from last year Chris Eversley. They will likely by .500 this season.

After Cal Poly,Cal State Northridge and Cal State Fullerton seem to round out that second-tier of Big West teams. Both teams have good recruits coming in and some decent size, but do not play enough defense to shut down the top teams in the conference. After that, UC Riverside and UC Davis are complete non-factors.

The Big West might be the most top-heavy team in college basketball. UC Irvine should be the favorites with their size, but UC Santa Barbara, Long Beach State, and Hawaii are all solid teams and should make the conference one of the most competitive in the nation.

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August 22, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Big XII

August 22, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Big XII had the highest percentage of teams from a conference make the NCAA Tournament last season as seven of their ten member went dancing. Despite all of the conference realignment the past few years, the Big XII has a chance to be the toughest conference top-to-bottom in the nation this season.

You can take it to the bank that Kansas will win the regular season conference title as they have won each of the past 10. Kansas always seems to challenge themselves in the non-conference slate and will so again this year as they will play Kentucky in the highly anticipated champions classic. While they won't play as tough of a schedule as last year, Florida, Georgetown, and UNLV are all tough opponents.

Just about any other program not named Kentucky would have been crippled by losing by losing two of the top three players taken in the draft like they did with Andrew Wiggins and Joel Emiid. They Jayhawks should absorb the blow well though as Frank Mason and Connor Frankamp in their backcourt. They also have top recruit Cliff Anderson to fill in for Joel Embiid and return plenty of role guys like Perry Ellis and Wayne Selden Jr. Nobody has taken the conference crown from the Jayhawks the past ten years, why start now?

Though everyone else is clearly behind Kansas, Iowa State and Kansas State should both be loaded this year. Iowa State had a team good enough to go to the Final Four last year until Georges Niang went down with a leg injury. Fred Hoiberg is bringing the Hilton Magic back to Ames as well as underrated point guard Clay Cluster. Though the losses of Melvin Ejim and Deandre Kane hurt, Naz Long showed he is a clutch player by hitting game winning threes against Oklahoma State twice. Matt Thomas and Dustin Houge also showed a lot as role players last year. Expect the Cyclones to overachieve this year and be in the top three in the Big XII.

Kansas State saw Marcus Foster have a breakout freshman year, averaging 15.5 points per game. He will have the services of forward Thomas Gipson once again to form a stout low-post with Nino Williams. Foster will likely need to put the team on his back if Kansas State is going to elevate from that eight-nine seed range, but he is the ultimate grinder and has shown flashes of another Kansas State great, Jacob Pullen.

Red River rivals Oklahoma and Texas were both in the middle of the Big XII last season and have young teams that could vie to crack the conference's top-three this season. Oklahoma was stunned in their opening game of the NCAA Tournament by North Dakota State, but have the main pieces from a team that was seventh in the nation in points per game last season. Buddy Hield had a stellar sophomore season that saw his field goal percentage jump from under 40 percent to 44.5 percent. Hield scored 16.8 points per game and took the pressure off freshman point guard Jordan Woodard. If Ryan Spangler and Isaiah Cousins can fill out the backcourt and help Hield in the scoring department, Oklahoma could be a team that battles its way to a spot in the AP Top-10.

Texas was able to out-muscle their opponents last year, ranking fourth in the nation in rebounds per game. Much like Oklahoma, they have a young team and are returning the lion share of their pieces from a season ago. Jonathon Holmes led the team in scoring despite playing just 24.2 minutes per game last season and pair up really well with Cameron Ridley down on the block. Isiah Taylor and Javon Felix is one of the fastest guard duos in the nation and should force teams to pick their poison on whether they get beat by their stellar guard play or their physical big men. With prized recruit Myles Turner bringing his 7-foot frame to Austin, the Longhorns should be a force in the Big XII.

The middle to middle-bottom of the Big XII could see a bit of the shakeup as Oklahoma State and Baylor have lost a lot from last season. Both teams struggled at the beginning of conference play after being top-10 teams, but pulled themselves together to make the NCAA Tournament. Oklahoma State's offense will not be in the top-20 like it was last year with Marcus Smart. Oklahoma State was 0-3 while Marcus Smart was suspended last year and now the team will need to replace both he and Markell Brown.

Baylor is also losing the bulk of it's scoring with Brady Heslip, Cory Jefferson and Isaiah Austin all gone. The bright spot for this team is that Rico Gathers played well at the end of he season and Will Cherry will still be the point guard. Baylor will not get a six-seed in the big dance like last season, but unlike Oklahoma State, they have a chance to return to the NCAA Tournament.

West Virginia and Texas Tech both had a bumpy ride in the non-conference slate, but had solid showings in Big XII play. They looked like a team that could make a serious run this season until Eron Harris decided to transfer to Michigan State and Terry Henderson transferred to NC State. West Virginia fortunately still has the services of Juwan Staten, who averaged 18.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 5.9 assists per game last season running the point. Bob Huggins is bringing in a pretty good recruiting class incoming and they should be better than the 17-16 record they posted last year, although a trip to the big dance might be asking too much of them.

Texas Tech was just 14-18 last season in their first year with Tubby Smith and should continue to improve. The team will be without their two leading scorers from last year, but the team was very balanced and has a pretty good recruiting class on the way. Texas Tech should essentially be what West Virginia was last season and could make a trip to the NCAA Tournament next season if this young team gels together.

This conference has two guarantees, Kansas being at the top and TCU at the bottom. The Big XII should be the toughest conference from top-to-bottom in the nation this year as they will likely push six teams in the field of 68. There is little separating teams two through five in the conference and should make for an exciting season.

August 22, 2014

NCAA College Basketball Preview 2014-15: Colonial Conference

August 22, 2014/ Greg Peterson

Over the past ten years, the Colonial has done what few conferences have been able to, get two different teams into the Final Four. That's a feat not even the Pac-12 has pulled off (though UCLA made multiple Final Four trips.) With that said, this is s conference trying to find its identity as George Mason, Old Dominion, and VCU has left the conference over the past few years.

Delaware won the conference in both the regular season and postseason last season, earning a 13-seed for their hard work. They had three players on the team that averaged at least 18 points per game, but all three of them graduated. With their top four scorers and best low-post players from last year gone without any big time recruits to fill those shoes, Delaware will go from first in the conference to the back of the pack.

William & Mary won 20 games last season and made it to the Coloniel Tournament Final before being denied their first ever NCAA Tournament bid. While they are losing three of their top four scorers from last year, they have the potential player of the year in Marcus Thornton. Thornton averaged 18.7 point per game as a junior and will likely need to up it further if William & Mary wants to be out of the group of four original college basketball teams that have never been to the NCAA Tournament.

Towson was the second best team in the conference during the regular season, going 13-3. In 2012-13 they had the biggest turnaround of any team in Division I college basketball history, going from 1-31 to 18-13. After going 25-11 last year, Towson could find themselves winning a single-digit amount of games this season. Much of their team from last year is going including double-double machine Jerrelle Benimon, who averaged 18.7 points and 11.2 rebounds while leading the team in assists. He was essentially a mid-major Joakim Noah only with a better shooting touch, It will likely take several years before Towson can become a solid year-in, year-out basketball team. The good news is, they are getting Hampton recruit Jervon Pressley in after he has an injury-riddled 2013-14 season.

The favorite in the conference could be a team that has yet to play a single game as a member of the Colonel in Elon. Elon is coming over from the Southern Conference and had a solid 18-14 record last season. Elon has the best incoming recruiting class of any team in the conference and have the best big man in the conference in 6-10 Lucas Troutman. Troutman averaged 15.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game last season despite averaging 29 minutes per game. If he can stay out of foul trouble, it could be Elon's conference to lose.

Northeastern went just 11-20 last year, but might be returning the best team of anyone in the conference. They have Scott Eatherton coming off a year which he averaged 15.9 points and 10.2 rebounds for a team that pulled a stunning upset over Georgetown in the non-conference slate. The only player this team lost from last year averaged 1.3 points per game last year so Northeastern has itself set up to make a run at its first NCAA Tournament bid since 1991.

Drexel was towards the middle of the pack last year in the conference and will likely remain there this year. They lose their top two scorers from last year, but will have Damion Lee healthy after he played in just five games last season. Senior big man Kazembe Abif should also be good to goat the start of the season after he missed half of last year due to injury as well. Along with a sizable recruiting class of four player, expect Drexel to be either third or fourth in the conference.

Hofstra was the second-worst team in the conference last season but should take some big strides forward. The pick-and-roll combo of Dion Nesmith and Jamall Robinson will be hard to guard is this team looks to improve upon the 17-48 record they have earned the past two years. Next year like be the year Hofstra breaks through, but they could be right around .500 in the conference this season.

James Madison is in the same boat as Hofstra after going 6-10 in conference last season. James Madison has two of their top three scorers from last season coming back and would have all three has Charles Cooke not transferred to Dayton.

Expect UNC-Wilmington and Charleston to be at the bottom of the conference. UNC-Wilmington just can;t recruit and Charleston is in massive turmoil after Doug Wojcik was fired a few weeks ago for verbally abusing his players.

A conference that was once the envy of mid-major college basketball is now one of the weakest conferences in the nation. It would not be surprising if the winner of the conference has to play in Dayton in the big dance, a far cry from the Final Four appearances George Mason and VCU made in 2006 and 2011.

August 21, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Conference USA

August 21, 2014/ Greg Peterson

Conference USA got caught in no mans land last year, having perhaps the biggest disparity between the top of the conference and the bottom of any conference in the nation. The top four teams in the conference went 13-3 in Conference USA while the bottom four teams had at least 20 total loses.

The best team in the conference record-wise was Southern Mississippi who went 29-7 last year, yet missed the NCAA Tournament due to a lack of wins in the RPI top-50. They and fellow Conference USA member Louisiana Tech become just the third and fourth teams in NCAA Basketball history to miss the NCAA Tournament with 27 wins.

Both teams should be towards the top of the conference once again. Louisiana Tech is losing some of their role players from last season, but have incoming a good freshman class. They had one of the top 15 offenses in the nation last year with a way above average defense so if Alex Hamilton and Raheem Appleby can be the backcourt they were last year, Louisiana Tech could be looking at another 25 win season. Keep in mind this team upset Oklahoma on the road last season.

Southern Mississippi is losing a bit more off their team from last year with three starters leaving the team. They also coach Donnie Tyndall to Tennessee, hiring former Nebraska and UTEP head coach Doc Sadler to fill the void. Sadler has a nice group of recruits coming in, headlined by shooting guard Kevin Holland to make up for the scoring they are losing from the departures of Neil Watson and Daveon Boardingham. With the team's top three scorers from last season gone along with the coach, expect Southern Mississippi to slip to middle of the pack or worse before reemerging in a year or two.

Tulsa was another one of the 13-3 teams in conference last season and made the NCAA Tournament as a 13-seed. After starting the year 1-6, the finished the season 20-7. Tulsa was a team full of sophomore last season and has the vast majority of their playmakers coming back and would be the favorites to win the conference, if they didn't move to the American Athletic Conference. They join Tulane in leaving the conference as Western Kentucky will take their place in Conference USA.

Their departure should help UTEP perhaps be the favorite in the conference this season. The Minors went 12-4 in conference last season and have big man Vince Hunter still coming into his own. As a freshman, Hunter averaged 12.3 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. UTEP will have five seniors on the roster this season and three three-star recruits incoming. Tim Floyd has kept this ship together despite a gambling ring that saw UTEP have to dismiss three players last season. Expect UTEP to be in the mix for a trip to the NCAA Tournament year-in and year-out.

Middle Tennessee was the forgotten team that went 13-3 in conference last season and are coming off a 2012-13 season that saw the program make the big dance as an at-large bid. Middle Tennessee is losing just about every big contributor from last year and will have just two seniors on the roster this season. Middle Tennessee is likely going to be at the bottom of the conference this season and it will likely take two years for the program to reload.

UAB should see the biggest increase in production of any team in the conference. They were 7-9 in conference last season, but managed to land big-time recruit William Lee, who had offers from like likes of SMU, Alabama, and Wichita State. He will help a team that ranked second nationally in rebounds per game last season. Though UAB is losing their top scorer from last year and will have just two seniors on the team this year, they have recruited will an have a team that' hard to matchup with athletically. UAB should be in the top-three of the conference this season.

There will likely be a long jam of team hovering between 8-8 and 7-9 this season after the stealth bomber teams. Charlotte, East Carolina, and Florida International are all solid teams that are doing well in recruiting, but just don't have the firepower to keep up with the athleticism and size of UTEP and UAB.

This conference getting multiple tournament bids may hinge on Old Dominion. In their first year in the conference, they 18-18 overall and went to the CBI semifinals. The team is losing just one senior from last year's team and went .500 despite being just 323rd in the nation in scoring offense. Old Dominion is just two years removed from a 5-25 season, but was a perennial power in the Colonial Conference before making the jump to CUSA.

Conference USA will not be as top heavy this year as it was last year, which will likely keep the league at one bid. Whoever gets the bid will likely get a good seed as CUSA looks like it will be around the 10th best conference in the nation with the majority of teams in the league having enough talent to go to the NIT as an at-large. UTEP looks like the favorite to win the conference but UAB and Old Dominion will likely nip at their heels.

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August 21, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Horizon

August 21, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Horizon League is guaranteed to have a different team represent in the the NCAA Tournament as reigning Horizon League Tournament champion UW-Milwaukee is ineligible for this year's postseason due to low APR scores.

UW-Green Bay was the conference's strongest team last season going 24-7 overall including a huge win over Virginia and a three-point loss to Wisconsin. Green Bay was second in the nation in blocks last season, but is losing versatile 7-1 center Alec Brown who could both block shots and make three-pointers at an efficient rate. Other than Brown the rest of last year's team is back including shifty guard Kiefer Sykes. Sykes might be the best mid-major point guard in the nation and is tougher than his "official" 5-11, 175-pound frame would indicate. While beating an NCAA Tournament one-seed won't happen for Green Bay again this year, they could have the best record in the conference again and push fir an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.

The trendy pick to win the conference this season is Cleveland State, who was second in the conference at 12-4. While Cleveland State should break .500 in the Horizon League, they will not have the success they had last year when they won 21 games. Bryn Forbes averaged 15.6 points per game last season as a freshman, but is transferring to Michigan State. Trey Lewis and Anton Gandy had solid sophomore season's in 2013-14 and will play a key role in the development of point guard Josh Mitchell, who looks like a younger version of Keifer Sykes.

Wright State was the preseason pick to win the conference last year, but finished third with a 21-15 record overall. They will likely be towards the back of the pack this year as they had balanced scoring among their starting five last year, but is losing nearly all of their starting five from last year. Wright State should be a force in two years the way they are recruiting, but is currently in rebuilding mode.

Valparaiso is a young team with potential, but will need another year before they contend for the conference title. Alec Peters looks to be a future conference player of the year candidate after averaging 12.7 and 4.8 rebounds per game as a freshman. There are just too many freshman and sophomores on the roster for Valparaiso to make a big run this year though they should still hover around .500 in the conference.

Youngstown State could surprise some people in the conference last season. They were very relent on their starting five to score last season with four players averaging over 10 points per game. They lost top scorer from last year Kendrick Perry, who averaged 21.3 points per game last season, but saw sophomore center Bobby Hain developer into a solid low-post threat. Marcus Keene showed flashes of greatness as a freshman last year and will be running the point for the Penguins this year. Youngstown State could easily be the second-best team in the conference this year and make it to the NCAA Tournament if UW-Green Bay stumbles in the conference tournament again.

The rest of the conference should be a non-factor. UW-Milwaukee was 7-9 in conference last season despite making the NCAA Tournament and saw a lot of last year's team graduate. Add in the postseason ban and they have all the makings of a 20 loss team.

Oakland lost 20 games last season with Travis Bader becoming the all-time Division I three-point scoring king. With Bader gone, Oakland could win as few as five games this season. Detroit is still recovering from the loss of Ray McCollum Jr., though the addition of Colorado transfer Chris Jenkins could get this team around the 20 win range this season. Illinois-Chicago was 1-15 in-conference and 6-25 overall, the whole program needs a massive overhaul.

UW-Green Bay should be the team to beat once again, but the conference aside from that could experience a big shake-up from last year. The Horizon League is not the same without Butler, but if Green Bay continue to build it's program, they might be able to get that stealth bomber team that brings the conference national publicity.

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August 20, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Ivy

August 20, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Ivy League has seen the smart kids from Harvard dominate, winning the last three league titles after not going to the NCAA Tournament since 1946. The Ivy League is the only conference in the nation that does not have a conference tournament, so the best record in-conference during the regular season receives the automatic bid to the big dance.

Harvard should win the conference for a fourth-straight year baring something unforeseen happening. Wesley Saunders is a 6-5 match-up nightmare who can play guard or forward, has great range, ball handling, and strength.h to pose problems. The team also has two more 10-plus point per game players returning from last season. Tommy Amaker is building a juggernaut at Harvard and could deliver another 25-plus win season.

While nobody compares to Harvard in the conference, there are some other solid teams in the conference. Yale finished second in the conference and made the CIT, going all the way to the tournament final before falling to Murray State. Justin Searrs averaged 16.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game last season to highlight a team that sees every one of their key parts returning from last season. If Yale had a tougher non-conference schedule, they would be able to make a legitimate run at an at-large bid.

Princeton had a solid 21-9 record last season, taking third in the conference. They might take a small dip, but should still have a solid team. They have Hans Brase will give Princeton a good low-post presence, but the loss of T.J. Brey will string, He averaged 18 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game last season Princeton has perhaps the best recruiting class of any mid-major team coming in and will likely be the favorites to win the Ivy next season.

Columbia should be tough as well as they are not losing a single meaningful senior from last season's team. Alex Rosenberg averaged 16 points per game last season and might be the second-best player in the conference behind Wesley Saunders. The conference is just a little too tough for them to go dancing for the first time since 1968, but they could make some noise out of conference and beat a few of the power conference foes they face.

Brown will likely be a team that is .500 in-conference but do quit spring a few non-conference upsets. Though they lose their top scorer from last season's team, everyone else is coming back and Brown has an under-the-radar recruiting class coming in.

Dartmouth, Pennsylvania, and Cornell were the bottom three teams in the conference last season and should remain there. All three are not losing many seniors and all should be improved from last year, but lost to the likes of Yale and Harvard in recruiting.

Top to bottom, the Ivy League could be one of the most competitive conferences at the top in the nation. Harvard will likely be going back to the field of 68, but of they hit a skid and Yale or Princeton take the bid, the Ivy will still be well represented.

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August 20, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: MAAC

August 20, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The new-look MAAC had a great season in 2013-14 with five teams winning 20 games or more. Manhattan gave Louisville all they could handle in the NCAA Tournament and Iona lost by one point to Louisiana Tech in the NIT.

Manhattan won the MAAC Tournament last season, going an impressive 25-8 just three years removed from a 6-25 season. The team is only losing two seniors, but unfortunate it was the team's top two scorers. The team caught a break as head coach Steve Massiello was set to leave the program for South Florida, but had lied about his degree and returned to Manhattan. With a good recruiting class on the way, they should be in the upper half of the conference.

Iona won the conference during the regular season at 17-3 in the MAAC and 22-11 overall. They are just two year removed from receiving an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament and have many of the key pieces returning from their dynamic offense. A.J. English averaged 17.2 points per game as a sophomore and David Laury averaged 14 points and 8.3 rebounds last season. They had the fourth-best offense in the nation last year in terms of points per game at 83.5 and should have the best record in conference again this year with five incoming freshman.

Quinnipiac played over their heads last year winning 20 games and going 14-6 last season after going 15-16 the year before in the NEC. They led the nation in rebounds per game with 45.5 per game despite not having great size on their team. They had two players average a double-double last season with Ousmane Drame returning after averaging 13.7 points and 10.5 rebounds per game last season. With five freshman on the way, Quinnipiac could be the second best team in the conference to Siena.

That brings us to Siena ran the MAAC, making three straight NCAA Tournament trips from 2008-10, winning two games in the big dance. After going 8-24 in 2012-13, Siena won 21 games last season going all the way to the CBI Final, losing to Fresno State. The team did not lost a single contributing senior so Siena could have a chance at a 27 or 28 win season with a paper-thin non-conference schedule. The experience they gained last season should carry Siena to the NCAA Tournament.

Rider should be towards the top of the conference this year despite going 9-11 in the MAAC last season and losing both of their top scorers from last season. Rider has the best recruiting class in the conference incoming thanks to former NBA star Donyell Marshall being an assistant coach on the team. Rider has the best size of any team in the MAAC and with many of the teams in conference lacking a true big man, they could jump to the top of the conference.

Canisius went 21-13 last season, winning 14 games in the conference last season, but my vie for dead last in the MAAC. Coach's kid Billy Baron graduated after averaging 24.2 points, 5.2 assists, and 4.9 rebounds per game last season. Canisius is essentially the mid-major version of Creighton as they are losing Doug McDermott. The good news for Canisius, Niagara could be winless this year as they went 7-26 last season and lost Antoine Mason, who averaged 25.6 points per game last season.

St. Peter's is a team on the rise with losing just one senior and a team that was 14-17 last season. Marvin Dominique made a huge impact for the team after transferring from Fordham averaging 16.6 points and 8.9 rebounds per game last season. If Desi Washington can step up and take a leadership role on the team, they could be a team that climbs up the conference standings.

The MAAC has been a solid mid-major the past few seasons and should be once again this season. This will not be a two bid league barring a minor miracle, but whether it's Siena, St. Peter's, Iona, or another team that wins the conference, the MAAC should show well in the big dance once again.

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August 19, 2014

2014-15 NCAA Basketball Preview: MAC

August 19, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The MAC has been the Rodney Dangerfield of mid-major conferences, they always have a conference with two or three teams that can pull a big upset yet nobody takes note of them.

Last year Toledo was the class of the conference going 14-4 in the MAC and 27-7 overall. Toledo had been a .500 team in recent years before 2013-14 and look to be a team on the rise under coach Todd Kowalczyk. Other than Rian Pearson, all of Toledo's big contributors are returning including Julius Brown who averaged 14.9 points and six assists per game. Considering Toledo was another win or two in conference away from being on the bubble last year, Toledo could contend for an at-large bid if they can get through their easy non-conference slate with two or three losses.

Western Michigan tied with Toledo for the regular season conference title and waxed Toledo in the MAC Tournament final. They made the tournament as a 14-seed with two players averaging over 16 points per game. Both of them have left the team but the rest of the team is back. With a solid recruiting class including two 6-10 centers, they should be below Toledo, but still a top-three team in the conference.

Akron has been towards the top of the conference year in and year out for several years and should be once again this year. Demetrius Treadwell led the team in scoring last season as a senior, but the rest of the team is returning. They have recruited well in recent years and will likely notch another 20 win season this year.

Ohio made the Sweet 16 in 2012 and have won at least 24 each of the last three seasons, developing themselves as a mid-major power. It's unlikely they will do it a fourth straight year as they are losing the their leading scorer and most experienced player Nick Kellogg. The team is in transition with their coach as well as former North Dakota State head coach Saul Phillips is taking over the program after Jim Christian bolted for Boston College.

Ohio has a bit of an intriguing player coming in with Kenny Kaminski transferring from Michigan State. Kaminski was a solid rotation player for Tom Izzo so the sky is the roof for him in a MAC Conference that no longer has a dominating big man with Zeke Marshall no longer at Akron. If he can be a second scoring option to former JUCO transfer Maurice Ndour, who averaged 13.8 points and seven rebounds per game last year, the Bobcats might have the best frontcourt in the MAC.

Eastern Michigan has not been to the NCAA Tournament since 1998, but is a battle tested team. They played one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the nation and still managed 22 wins. Playing the likes of Kentucky, Duke, and Syracuse last year should make this veteran team a contender for the conference title in 2014-15.

Continuing on this loaded conference, Buffalo won the Eastern region of the conference going 13-5 in the MAC and 19-10 overall. There is no way they will duplicate this as both of their top scorers from last season are gone and the rest of the conference is very strong. Buffalo could go from first to worse this season.

Kent State has a young team and a nice recruiting class coming in. They will not contend for the conference crown, but will be a team that break .500 in the MAC this season and could make a run at an NCAA Tournament bid for 2016. Miami (OH) is in the same situation and should be in the middle of the conference before making a serious run in 2016.

While Central Michigan has star prospect DaRohn Scott coming in, they were 3-15 in conference last year and need a few years to rebuild the program. Bowling Green and Ball State are both program in disarray and should be toward the bottom of the league again.

Northern Illinois had one of the most boring years ever last year, finishing 15-17. The Huskies are easily forgotten about due to their lack star-power and bad offense. That might change this year as they return jist about everyone fron last year's tean. Dontel Highsmith led the team in scoring average as a freshman, but missed every game in the 2014 calender year due to a torn ACL he suffered against Iowa State. Take Highsmith out of the equation and Northern Illinois did not have a single player average double-figures last year.

Northern Illinois is a very balanced team with great defense though. Teams scored over 70 points on them just four times in conference play which included three games that went to overtime. If 6-foot-7 wing Darrell Bowie can become a more assertive scorer. They also have a pair of brothers in Aaric and Aaron Armstead that could up the play of this squad.

With Northern Illinois averaging just 62.2 points per game and shooting nearly 39-percent as a team, any jump in those numbers coupled with their defense would put the program on the fast-track to a possible tournament bid in 2016 after this young team takes their licks this year with another .500 record. Not bad for a team that set an NCAA record for least points in a half with four in a game against Eastern Michigan in 2013.

Toledo and Akron should run the conference this season as Ohio is taking a step back. The MAC will be a one-bid league once again unless Toledo goes nuts in the regular season and loses in the MAC Tournament final, but as long as one of the top teams in the conference get the bid to the field of 68, the MAC should have a chance to show well in the tournament.

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August 19, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: MEAC

August 19, 2014/ Greg Peterson

In 2012, the MEAC had one of its own pull off one of the most stunning upsets in NCAA Basketball history. Norfolk State shocked Missouri as a 15-seed in the NCAA Tournament. The conference has not been able to further that success as North Carolina A&T was in the First Four in 2013 and NC Central got a bad draw as a 14-seed in the 2014 NCAA Tournament, losing to Iowa State.

NC Central rolled through the MEAC last season going 15-1 in conference and 28-5 overall during the regular season, including a win at NC State. Though nearly half the team will be seniors this season, they are losing six players from last year's team including Jeremy Ingram. Ingram averaged 20.8 points per game last season, dropping 37 at Wichita State and 29 at NC State. The team has only three recruits incoming to replace this production loss with none of them being highly touted guys so NC Central will likely be a middle of the pack team in the MEAC this year and a last place team two years from now.

Norkfolk State had a solid year last season going 19-15 and pulled that historic upset over Missouri in 2012, but have close to nobody from that squad remaining. they are losing eight seniors from last year and did not have a single freshman on the roster last year so they will need to take a few years to rebuild.

Morgan State is also losing many of their big contributors from last year, but should be still towards the top of the conference. They went 10-6 in the MEAC last season and have the best coach in the conference in Todd Bozeman. Look for his son Blake to be a contender for conference player of the year.

The favorite in the conference by process of elimination is Hampton. Hampton had a good showing in the CBI, losing by four points to Penn State in the first round. They went 18-13 overall and 13-3 overall last season with a roster made up mostly by sophomores. The Jervon Pressley injury last season might have been a blessing in disguise as he transferred to Towson and his replacements now have some experience to build off of.

Both Florida A&M and Savannah State had solid seasons in MEAC and will probably remain in the middle of the pack in the conference. Both are losing lots of seniors from last year's team, but have recruited well the past few years to be able to cope with the losses.

With so may teams losing tons of seniors, Coppin State could go from 7-9 to the second best team in the conference behind Hampton. They had just one senior on the roster last season and have a very balanced scoring attack. They have the deepest stable of forwards in the league and could make the NCAA Tournament if they can find one true leader as right now they do not have a dominant scorer.

Delaware State is pretty much a carbon copy of Coppin State, but a bit less experienced. They will likely be a team above .500 in the conference this year and contend for the conference next season. Howard should be able to improve from their 8-25 season last year with much of that team being freshman. Much like Delaware State, next year will be their year.

With all of the top team's in the conference, Hampton might run away with the title while every other team in the conference hovers around .500. Look for Hampton to make the NCAA Tournament while everyone else in conference just tries to build an identity for next year.

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August 18, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Missouri Valley

August 18, 2014/ Greg Peterson

The Missouri Valley was the most lopsided conference in college basketball last season. Wichita State knifed through the conference undefeated en route to a 34-0 regular season while Indiana State was the next best team in the conference, earning a six-seed in the NIT.

Wichita State should have a hammerlock on the conference once again as they return Ron Baker, Fred VanVleet, and Tekele Cotton. They will be without Cleanthony Early and a couple other role players from last season, but the nuts and bolts from last season's team is intact and the Shockers should be a top 10 team again this season. Wichita State made the Final Four in 2013 and could have done the same in 2014 had they not gotten unlucky and drew Kentucky in the one-eight match-up.

After the Shockers, it's a pick'em as to who will be the second best team in the conference. Indiana State was the second best team in the conference with a Missouri Valley record of 12-6, but are losing four key seniors from last year's team. Missouri State will likely leapfrog them because only one of the four seniors they are losing contributed heavy minutes last year. They also have Marcus Marshall healthy again after he played in just 12 games. He averaged 14.3 points and shot 39.6 percent from three as a sophomore last season.

Northern Iowa should be the team that takes the biggest step forward from last year. They are losing no key contributors and the team had six freshman on the roster last year. With those guys a year older and Seth Tuttle bringing his 15.4 points and eight rebounds per game back from last year. Northern Iowa could jump from 16-15 last season to being in the running for an NCAA Tournament bid.

Illinois State is in the same boat as Northern Iowa bringing back their entire roster from last year when they went 18-16. The team is very balanced with three players scoring between 13.5 and 10 points per game. They will also have Michael Middlebrooks healthy after he showed flashes of being a dominant low post player in the four games he played last season.

Evansville could be a top-four team in the conference this year after being the second-worst team in the conference last year with a 6-12 conference record. Like Illinois State and Northern Iowa, all of their key parts from last year are back including D.J Balentine, who averaged 22.8 points per game as a sophomore last season.

Southern Illinois went 9-9 last season in the Missouri Valley and will likely have a similar season this year. They lose leading scorer Desmar Jackson, but have five recruits incoming including power forward Jordan Carolina. This is still an undersized team and will not be able to hit enough threes to offset their disadvantage on the boards.

Bradley went 7-11 in conference last year and could be even worse this year as their losing most of their contributors to graduation. Drake and Loyola look to be a ways away from being .500 programs as well.

Wichita State should win the conference again and could go undefeated in conference once again. The Missouri Valley likely will have many teams that could reach the NIT, but not quite get in the discussion for an at-large NCAA bid. Evansville might be the conference's best hope of a second bid with Balentine's ability to take over a game.

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August 18, 2014

NCAA Basketball Preview 2014-15: Mountain West

August 18, 2014/ Greg Peterson

After putting nine total teams into the NCAA Tournament over the past two NCAA Tournaments, the Mountain West had a down year putting just two teams into the big dance. Although both teams were high seeds with New Mexico being a seven-seed and San Diego State being a four-seed, they had just two NCAA Tournament wins to their credit.

San Diego State carried the torch for the conference last year, winning the conference crown and making the Sweet 16. Steve Fisher has taken a program that never won an NCAA Tournament game until 2011 and made them a college basketball power, making each of the last five NCAA Tournaments. Though the team is losing Xavier Thames to the NBA, just about everyone else from last year is back.

Dwayne Polee II began the season in Steve Fisher's doghouse, but made the most of his opportunities and become the team's x-factor towards the end of the season. He averaged 8.5 points in under 18 minutes a game last season and has great versatility to go with his 6-7 frame. The team also has three ESPN Top 100 recruits incoming and forward junior forward Winston Shepard. The Aztecs allowed just 57 points per game last season, good for second in the nation, and may have the deepest stable of forwards in the nation aside from Kentucky.

New Mexico had a nice season last year going 27-7 and winning the Mountain West Tournament for a third straight year, but fell short in the NCAA Tournament again, losing to Stanford in their only game in the big dance. With Cameron Bairstow, Kendall Williams, and Alex Kirk all gone from last year's team, they are highly unlikely to make another NCAA Tournament run. New Mexico has five recruits incoming that are mainly middle-tier players so they will likely need a two year rebuild to get back to being a Mountain West power.

Both UNLV and Boise State took major steps back after making the NCAA Tournament in 2013, going 20-13 and 21-13 respectively. Both should be significantly improved as each team lost only one real contributor to graduation.

Boise State has three of their top four scorers returning including guards Mickey Thompson and Derrick Marks. Boise State has a major size disadvantage so they need 6-9 center David Wacker and 6-10 power forward Kevin Allen to provide key minutes if the Broncos want to return to the NCAA Tournament.

UNLV had plenty of size thanks to UConn transfer Roscoe Smith. Smith averaging nearly 11 points and 11 rebounds per game last season to go with Khem Birch. Both those guys are gone Mensingall signs point to Bryce Dejean-Jones having to step up big. UNLV has a nice incoming recruiting class but when a team loses two double-double machines like Birch and Smith and didn't make the big dance with them, then what's to expect this year will reverse that?

Utah State is a team trending in the right direction, but will be without their top two scorers from last year so they won't be a factor in 2014-15. Stu Morrell is a heck of a coach and should have Utah State in the NCAA Tournament discussion in 2015-16. Nevada is in the same boat too, going 15-17 overall last year, but 10-8 in conference. Losing Deonte Burton should have Nevada crippled this year, but Nevada could make the Mountain West a juggernaut in two years.

Wyoming is a team that could surprise a lot of people this season. They held the fourth longest winning streak to enter the 2012-13 season before falling apart with five teams going to the 2013 NCAA Tournament. They followed that up with an 18-15 season last year. Larry Nance Jr. averaged 15.4 points and 8.6 rebounds as a junior last season and could contend with Roscoe Smith and Khem Birch for player of the year in the conference. There is a reason why Wyoming gave head coach Larry Shyatt a five-year extension during the offseason and he might deliver this program their second NCAA Tournament birth since 1988.

Fresno State went 21-18 last season and will likely be around the 20 win range again this year. They have some good recruits coming in and Marvelle Harris returning, but are without leading scorer Tyler Johnson from last season. Colorado State and Air Force have work to do just to break .500 and San Jose State is so bad they don't deserve to have a basketball team in this good of a conference.

San Diego State will likely plow through the conference while the Mountain West finds itself in that two or three bid range. New Mexico will likely be right in that number four slot in the conference while Wyoming has the best chance of being that third team from the Mountain West to go dancing. The Mountain West may not scratch across five teams into the field of 68 like they did in 2013, but they are proving that they can be a top eight conference year in and year out.

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