Jump to content

Sunbelt Wrap-up

UNTLifer

By UNTLifer
in Mean Green Basketball

 Share

Recommended Posts

UNTLifer Grand Master

UNTLifer

Posted
Posted

Tim MacMahon: Sun Belt sees star-crossed season ending

03/10/2003

Tim MacMahon

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — This was supposed to be the season the Sun Belt broke its streak of being a one-bid league.

So said Louisiana-Lafayette coach Jesse Evans at the league’s preseason media days, the implication being his Ragin’ Cajuns and two-time defending champ Western Kentucky would both be good enough to earn an at-large invite to the Big Dance.

Imagine Evans’ embarrassment in having to explain the his team’s immediate exit from the Sun Belt Tournament, the result of Denver’s upset of the West’s top seed Saturday.

"Rustiness was definitely a factor," Evans said, referring to the long layoff his team had because of its first-round bye.

Funny, the rest of the Sun Belt’s No. 1 seeds over the last 20 years somehow overcame the lengthy rest to win at least one game.

But it’s fitting that the Ragin’ Cajuns ruined the possibility of a rematch of last season’s title game with Western Kentucky — this time in the Hilltoppers’ house. This season certainly hasn’t unfolded as planned for the Sun Belt.

Louisiana-Lafayette’s 20-win campaign is symbolic of the season as a whole for the Sun Belt. There are plenty of positives to point to, but there is a strong sense of letdown.

The league’s Sagarin rating (14) and RPI (15) are better than last season’s. But with Western Kentucky ranked in the preseason and nine teams returning at least four starters, the Sun Belt expected to create a significant buzz in early March. The league hasn’t, however, done anything to distinguish itself from other middle-of-the-road mid-major leagues.

"We made a good year out of what could be a great year," Sun Belt commissioner Wright Waters said.

There were several preseason signs that the Sun Belt would be star-crossed this season.

Western Kentucky star center Chris Marcus wasn’t recovered from the ankle injury that led him to withdraw from the NBA Draft. He ended up limping through limited minutes in four December games before heeding the advice of doctors to shut it down for a while. (To make matters worse, junior forward/center Todor Pandov suffered a season-ending knee injury in the Hilltoppers’ season-opening loss at top-ranked Arizona.)

Some of the best players on two of the league’s better teams — center Michael Southall of Louisiana-Lafayette and forward James Moore and center Chris Jackson of New Mexico State — were ineligible until the second semester because of grades. Florida International forward Taurance Johnson, a budding star like Southall, was suspended and eventually dismissed from the team.

And sadly, other stars joined Marcus as seniors whose college careers ended on tragic notes. North Texas swingman Chris Davis narrowly missed becoming the school’s all-time leading scorer, as he suffered through the Mean Green’s collapse after running mate Leonard Hopkins went down with a broken foot. New Orleans forward Hector Romero, the league’s reigning player of the year, tore his ACL and was forced to watch the last couple of weeks from the bench.

With its top competition eliminated, it would be anti-climactic to watch Western Kentucky win its third consecutive Sun Belt Tournament title. But that’s exactly what the league needs. The Hilltoppers, who have a nation-long 37-game home winning streak, will sell out E.A. Diddle Arena, making a very positive impact on the Sun Belt’s image to a nationwide TV audience.

Western Kentucky, which has managed to win 22 games in a season that has disappointed its diehards, is also the only team in the league that has a legitimate shot to be a tourney sleeper. But the Hilltoppers, a smallish team that could use a boost of athleticism, won’t be going anywhere in my brackets.

Assuming its one and done in the Big Dance, the Sun Belt certainly shouldn’t be ashamed of its season. It just would have been nice to take a big step forward.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing


  • Tell a friend

    Love GoMeanGreen.com? Tell a friend!

  • What's going on Mean Green?

    1. 24

      Who was playing QB at your first CFB game?

      If I recall correctly... We had terrible completing passes in the flats... Hard dose of reality after 2013
      golfingomez in Mean Green Football
    2. 14

      Great Osobor transferring to Washington with big NIL deals ($2 million)

      Tell that to the students that are paying for most of the non-tier one athletic programs. I keep hearing about all this money that athletics generates, without prefacing that statement with the fact that the vast majority of programs do not come close to break even. Most non B10 or SEC programs are losing a lot of money.
      GrandGreen in Mean Green Basketball
    3. 14

      Great Osobor transferring to Washington with big NIL deals ($2 million)

      I'm not against it.
      Censored by Laurie in Mean Green Basketball
    4. 14

      Great Osobor transferring to Washington with big NIL deals ($2 million)

      Money and numbers are difficult for some people….
      • 1
      • Upvote
      Andrew in Mean Green Basketball
    5. 0

      House vs NCAA settlement getting closer; step toward stability?

      https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/40140633/charlie-baker-hopes-ncaa-settlement-creates-stability-schools The plaintiffs sought damages in the billions. The potential settlement would involve the NCAA paying more than $2.7 billion and agreeing to a new revenue-sharing model that could shift as much as $20 million annually to athletes. The costs associated with the settlement, along with the possibility of uncapping scholarships, could result in schools that max out those options seeing a budget hit of more than $35 million annually, according to multiple athletic directors who spoke to ESPN. Still, Baker said there was broad support for the move, which would provide some much-needed clarity and a framework for a sustainable business model for college sports. "You can invest in your athletes, you can invest in your programs, you can invest in your future, and have some idea about what the ground is going to be like underneath you," he said. "I think it creates a lot of stability and clarity for schools, and it makes it possible for all of us to start thinking about what the next act really will look like instead of feeling like you're just waiting for the next shoe to drop." Several coaches and athletic directors who heard the pitch were enthusiastic about the idea of bringing athlete compensation in-house, rather than allocating it to NIL collectives that have only a tangential relationship with a school's athletics department. In most cases, according to several coaches, a revenue-sharing model that sends $5-10 million per year to football players would likely be in the same ballpark as what most schools are already spending via NIL on roster building.
      NT80 in Mean Green Football

  • Popular Contributors

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      15,386
    • Most Online
      1,865
    FairfieldFan
    Newest Member
    FairfieldFan
    Joined

WE BELIEVE IN THE MEAN GREEN!

News

Recruiting

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. Please review our full Privacy Policy before using our site.