SB Nation - Miss Valley St Delta Devils

RPI WATCH: 11/23/09

BracketCat — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 01:00:13 -0000

Well, it's officially basketball season here at BOTC, so I'm going to try and get some basketball-related stuff on here on a more consistent basis. Big 12 Outlook will return after New Year's, but in the meantime, I need to resume the Big 12 previews and shift them into overdrive a little in order to make up for lost time.

The other thing I want to do is update you on all of our opponents on a daily basis. I'll look at how they performed in yesterday's games and maybe track the RPIs a little, too. The idea is to get a general picture, on a day-to-day basis, of how strong our non-conference schedule is, because I've seen some concern from various corners of late.

For a more detailed discussion, hit the jump. But here's a short preview: We did ourselves a lot of good in Puerto Rico.

Here's how our opponents have performed to date, in order to provide a baseline comparison and bring everyone up to speed. (After all, not everyone has been paying attention to hoops like I have, given our North-contending football team and what have you.)

Kansas State RPI = 28

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) = Dayton

Good Wins (RPI 51-100) = Loyola

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = none

Loyola (2-1) | RPI = 64: Loss at Kansas State (92-54), Win over Canisius (89-69), Win at Holy Cross (76-73)
Western Illinois (2-2) | RPI = 112: Loss at Arizona State (87-35), Loss at Kansas State (82-50), Win over Truman State (71-59), Win at Central Arkansas (56-46)
Boston (1-4) | RPI = 141: Loss at Iona (82-73), Loss to George Washington (69-59), Loss to Kansas State (80-70), Win over Indiana (71-67), Loss to No. 21 Georgia Tech (85-67)
Ole Miss (4-1) | RPI = 76: Win over UALR (92-64), Win over Alabama State (90-53), Win over Indiana (89-71), Win over Kansas State (86-74), Loss to No. 5 Villanova (79-67)
No. 18 Dayton (2-2) | RPI = 32: Win over Creighton (90-80), Win over No. 21 Georgia Tech (63-59), Loss to No. 5 Villanova (71-65), Loss to Kansas State (83-75)
IUPUI (4-1) | RPI = 75: Win at Drake (88-82), Win at Eastern Illinois (69-66), Win over Austin Peay (77-63), Loss at Auburn (80-65), Win over Georgia State (67-56)
Fort Hays State (2-0) | RPI = N/A (D-II): Win over Friends (82-46), Win over Central Christian College (85-66)
Washington State (3-0) | RPI = 140: Win over MVSU (94-66), Win over Eastern Washington (67-61), Win over IPFW (89-70)
Xavier (3-0) | RPI = 79: Win over Youngstown State (83-57), Win over Bowling Green (101-57), Win over Sacred Heart (105-65)
UNLV (3-0) | RPI = 1: Win over Pittsburg State (91-52), Win over Nevada (88-75), Win over Southern Illinois (78-69)
Alabama (2-1) | RPI = 186: Loss to Cornell (71-67), Win over Jackson State (86-69), Win over Providence (84-75)
UAPB (0-3) | RPI = 166: Loss at Colorado (88-72), Loss at Denver (75-56), Loss at UTEP (70-52)
Cleveland State (3-1) | RPI = 260: Loss at St. Bonaventure (72-62), Win over Wilmington (99-74), Win over Florida A&M (78-64), Win over Sam Houston State (80-65)
South Dakota (2-2) | RPI = N/A (D-I transition): Loss at Texas Tech (88-49), Loss to Oregon State (62-47), Win over TAMUCC (76-73), Win over Mayville State (99-67)
Missouri (2-0) | RPI = 280: Win over UT Martin (83-68), Win over UTPA (100-64)
Texas A&M (3-0) | RPI = 135: Win over Angelo State (88-69), Win at SMU (80-68), Win over Samford (68-49)
Colorado (3-0) | RPI = 128: Win over UAPB (88-72), Win over Coppin State (82-58), Win over Texas Southern (88-77)
No. 3 Texas (2-0) | RPI = 17: Win over UC Irvine (89-42), Win over Western Carolina (73-41)
Oklahoma State (3-0) | RPI = 21: Win over Seattle (86-64), Win over Southern (93-61), Win over North Texas (82-68)
Baylor (4-0) | RPI = 60: Win over Norfolk State (86-58), Win over Hartford (71-69), Win over Southern (61-45), Win over Hardin-Simmons (106-45)
No. 1 Kansas (3-0) | RPI = 46: Win over Hofstra (101-65), Win over Memphis (57-55), Win over Central Arkansas (94-44)
Nebraska (2-1) | RPI = 134: Win over SCUU (76-49), Loss at Saint Louis (69-55), Win over TCU (90-77)
Iowa State (4-0) | RPI = 188: Win over Idaho State (88-68), Win over Chicago State (72-50), Win at Drake (90-70), Win over MVSU (96-55)
No. 17 Oklahoma (2-1) | RPI = 65: Win over Mount St. Mary's (95-71), Win over UL Monroe (72-61), Loss at VCU (82-69)
Texas Tech (5-0) | RPI = 86: Win over South Dakota (88-49), Win over TAMUCC (66-59), Win over Oregon State (64-60), Win over Northwestern State (94-75), Win over Lamar (77-54)

My plan is to update this daily with the games are played the previous day, and I'll probably start looking at RPIs some time after Thanksgiving (they're pretty meaningless before that point due to the disparity in scheduling).

Update: Got bored and added the RPIs around midnight. I'll save the analysis for tomorrow's edition.

MBB '09-'10 Game #4: ISU 96, MVSU 55

Mark Kieffer — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:41:41 -0000

This game wasn't much of a test for the Cyclones. The big thing I was looking for was how this team would play against an inferior opponent, and if they'd play down to the opponent's level. I would say that for about the first 10 minutes of the game, that the Cyclones did stoop to the Delta Devils' level, being down in the game by a couple of points.

Hilton was quiet. Students were on break, and there were more fans sitting in the upper section than the lower section, if you include the seats where Cyclone Alley normally sits. This was the first game that they announced over the PA that the people in the upper level could move to the lower level.

Once the fans moved down, the atmosphere got much better, and the Cyclones definitley had more of a bounce in their step. In College Athletics, I think it can be easy for a team to come out sluggish if the place is empty and/or the fans aren't into it. Having the lower bowl full, definitley helped, and then Gilstrap, Garrett, and Brackins took over the game, ending the 1st half on a 34-8 run.

Our star players really had their way in this one. Brackins was getting double and triple teamed often, but he they couldn't stop him. Gilstrap could so whatever he wanted with the ball: he was able to get open shots on the outside, and also was able to cut to the hoop to get in on an alley-oop or two.

Brackins had 28 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, and 3 steals in 29 minutes of play

Gilstrap had 21 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists in 25 minutes of play.

Garrett ran the floor nicely, and made some great passes in the lane. He had 6 points, 8 assists, 2 steals, and only turned the ball over 3 times. His ability to make smart decisions with the ball, and forcing multiple guys to close in on him, so he can kick it outside to Gilstrap, Lucca, Christopherson, Brackins, etc., is really helpful. Of course, it's also really helpful to have several guys that can turn that great pass into an assist by putting the ball in the hole. On this team, Garrett just needs to continue doing what he currently is. He's the 4th or 5th option on the floor, and that's alright. I also think he's doing much better on defense in forcing turnovers, but then again, he hasn't been facing the greatest of competition.

Two areas that this team could improve on is starting off the game more quickly, and also free throw shooting. Today, we shot 12/21 (57%) which isn't very good. Actually, on the year we are only shooting 63% from the line. When we play closer games against quality opponents, we'll need to hit those free throws.

All in all, this team rolled and it was nice to see them play at their level after a slow start. Up next is Tennessee State on Tuesday night. Hopefully we see more of the same and roll them by 40+ points as well.

Washington State 94, Miss. Valley State 66

Grady. — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 07:53:58 -0000

NCAA Basketball Stats

Cougar friends and family, we are gathered here to mourn the loss of a close friend.

Together, we were there for the birth in 2003. Saw it through some hard times and growing pains. Suffered through the blowout losses, and triumphed after the improbable upsets. And, in the end, our patience was rewarded, as we were taken to new heights and places we hadn't been in ages. It was a glorious era, filled with defense, halfcourt offense and games with final scores in the fifties.

But, now, it is all over.

Bennett ball was only six years old.

Here we sit tonight, after a game where the Cougars shot 46.9% - 30% from three-point range - and scored ninety-four points.

So while we remember the good times we had in the past, the time has come to move on.

Something tells me we aren't going to miss the five minute scoring droughts anyway.

Now let's talk about the game:

Starting Lineup: Yet again Bone went with Moore, Capers, Thompson, Lodwick and Casto. Normally I'd say that Abe Lodwick starting at the 4 is a recipe for trouble, but tonight he played his position well, even if the shots still aren't falling: 4 points, 6 offensive boards, 9 total rebounds and 2 assists. He did only play 16 minutes, sharing time with Koprivica, Motum and Enquist. All played well against the undersized Delta Devils, with the Cougars earning a substantial 46 to 20 rebounding advantage.

Outside of Lodwick, the other starters lived up to their hype, scoring in double figures and keeping the Cougar offense afloat throughout the night. Klay Thompson led all scorers with 20, Casto had 18, and 10 points each were scored by Capers and Moore. Reggie added six assists and a couple boards.

Quick Start: WSU jumped out to a 9-0 lead and MVSU never seriously threatened again. Defense was an issue for the Cougars, surrendering 66 points and a more problematic 12 three-pointers. Still, the Cougs were in control all evening and despite MVSU coming within nine again late in the second half, the Cougars ramped up the tempo and took a 17 point lead into halftime.

Positives: The Cougars made nearly twice as many free throws (28) as MVSU attempted (15). The Cougs made 80 percent of their 35 attempts at the charity stripe. WSU also forced 21 turnovers and had the aforementioned dominating performance on the boards. The Cougars had 11 players score on the evening, four in double figures. (EDIT: Sweet fancy Moses look at that offensive rebounding dominance - who are we, U-dub? Oh yeah, and that free throw rate is phenomenal - everything I wanted to see last year, especially from Klay)

Negatives: Wazzu gave up 17 turnovers of their own, and occasionally struggled to score in the halfcourt. They shot poorly from behind the arc, making only six of 20 attempts. There were also some defensive lapses, with Cougars failing to close out on D'Angelo Jackson, who hit three of five from downtown. Tashan Newsome, MVSU's leading scorer, connected on five of ten shot attempts. The reserves for WSU struggled in the final minutes, however John Allen and Brock Motum connected on three-point shot attempts.

Redshirts burnt: Ken Bone played both Steven Bjornstad and guard Anthony Brown in relief, meaning that neither true freshman is eligible for a redshirt unless medical circumstances call for it. It was a questionable call considering that both players stand to get very limited playing time.

Player of the Game: DeAngelo Casto. In only 20 minutes, Casto was dominant: 18 points on 6 of 9 shooting, 4 offensive rebounds, 4 defensive rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, only 1 turnover and all 3 of the team's blocks. One can only wonder how lopsided the game might have been had Casto played a few more minutes.

Unsung Hero: How about Nikola Koprivica? Off the bench the Cougar senior had nine points, four rebounds and two assists against no turnovers. He made half of his shots and helped the Cougars regain their energy in transition late in the first half.

It was over when... Speaking of which, it was Koprivica's entrance into the game that helped spark the Cougars 8-0 run near the end of the first half after the Delta Devils had come within nine. Down by 17, MVSU would never threaten the Cougar lead again.

Play of the Game: There are a few candidates, but I have to go with Casto's back-to-back blocks on the same MVSU possession in the second half. It looked like after the first block, the second Devil shot would go up uncontested. But Casto snuffed out the shot, leading to a fast break opportunity for the Cougs.

Stat of the Game: Sharing is caring, and the Cougars assisted on 20 out of 30 made shots.

It has arrived!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MSVU visits the MAC

everydayezag — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:27:03 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Roberson - AP

Mark Few is all smiles as the 2009-2010 season is finally upon us.

Browse more photos »

I don't think there is any way to explain just how long this offseason has felt. After the tough loss to a truly incredible North Carolina team, Gonzaga fans were forced to endure one of the most dull, and at times upsetting, six months in recent memory. Directly after the loss, we were forced to deal with the Austin Daye draft watch, that led up to literally the last hour before a decision was required. This was followed by an AAU season that was far from captivating because of the scholarship situation that this program faces. Instead of rabidly following guys like Sam Dower and Anthony Marshall (I'm currently wiping the drool off of my computer now), we instead were forced to focus on guys that will not be making their decision until next year. However, when the Mississippi Valley St. Delta Devils arrive at the MAC tomorrow, the 2009-2010 season will begin, and so will a new era and generation of Gonzaga basketball. While I'm sure most of fans have turned their attention towards the upcoming game against Michigan St., I can assure that you Mark Few and the team have their sights solely set on the season opener.

As I write this preview, I can hardly contain my excitement knowing that the season is so close to finally getting started. However, as I did after the Alberta game, I will caution people that Mark Few will not show much in this game. I think we will get a better sense of the rotation and where each guys sits in the pecking order. With that said, I'd expect to see a very vanilla game plan and defensive scheme, as I am sure that the coaching staff does not want to give Tom Izzo any hint of the type of wrinkles and new aspects of the offense that we may see this season.

It will still be nice to see what some of these new guys can do against the best competition that any of them have ever faced (except for Elias of course). The two guys that I am most excited for are Grant and Andy. After being forced to red shirt last season, both of these guys figure to have an opportunity to contribute this season. With Andy, it will be interesting to see exactly where he seems to fit in the pecking order. I came away surprised by his limited minutes against Alberta, so it will be interesting to see if he is in fact the 4th option in the post. I don't see any situation in which Grant plays major minutes, but I think he will be important in giving Matt a break for about 5-8 minutes per game.

With nothing to lose, MSVU will come into this game and play with a high amount of energy and physicality. No one expects them to come into Spokane and win, and they will definitely use that as motivation. I'm sure they are hoping that this young team is looking ahead to Michigan St., and if that is indeed the case, then you better believe MVSU will make this a tough game. However, if Meech, Bouldin, and Gray can have this team focused on the Delta Devils, then we could see a tremendously efficient and impressive performance from the Zags.

I know that it's never good to look past any opponent, but there is no reason for Gonzaga to not completely dominate this game. With Elias and Rob, this team has a huge skill and height advantage in the post. Obviously, the back court of Meech, Bouldin, and Gray has the talent and athleticism to run MVSU out of the gym. Behind terrific performances by Elias Harris and Demetri Goodson, I except a 91-54 Gonzaga win.

BtB 2009-10 Southwestern Athletic Conference Preview

Chris Dobbertean — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:00:36 -0000

The first decade of the 21st century was not an easy one for the two Division I conferences populated by Historically Black Colleges and Universities. However, things were just a little bit easier for the MEAC than their SWAC counterparts.

Twenty MEAC and SWAC teams appeared in the ten tournaments held in the '00s. These twenty appearances resulted in only two tourney wins, and only one of those occurred in the First Round proper (Hampton of the MEAC over Iowa State in 2001). The other was a 72-57 win for the MEAC's Florida A&M over Lehigh in the 2004 Opening Round. As the Pirates and Rattlers both fell at the next hurdle, HBCUs combined to go 2-20 in the NCAAs during the '00s.

Unlike the '90s, when the two conferences combined to go 2-18 in the NCAAs, the SWAC didn't manage a single win in NCAA play in the first decade of the new millennium. (Southern drubbed Georgia Tech by 15 in a 1993 first rounder in Tucson.) The two leagues didn't even get bids in 1991, as they both lost play-in games that the NCAA doesn't consider to be part of Tournament play. Which brings us to the biggest obstacle these two leagues face at the moment, the Opening Round that the NCAA does happen to consider official.

While Alabama State and Hampton (a 15 seed) were lucky enough to avoid the inaugural edition in 2001, every subsequent tournament opener has featured one, but not both, HBCU entrants. Even if the result is the 70-29 drubbing Mississippi Valley State took at the hands of UCLA in 2008, the selection committee is careful to not put both the MEAC and SWAC champs in Dayton. Both leagues have made four appearances. And while the MEAC has managed to win one of their four games, the SWAC has never moved a team past Dayton. So that's the biggest challenge for whomever wins the SWAC, avoiding that Tuesday night date.

It won't be easy, as SWAC teams typically play the toughest non-conference schedules in the country and take their lumps doing so. That results in low RPIs that only get lower during the conference season. In other words, it's not a problem that's easily fixed. More on the ten teams who will try to buck the trend after the jump.

First, here's a look at the final SWAC standings from last season.

Southwestern Athletic Conference Standings

(updated 3.17.2009 at 10:47 PM EDT)

	Conf		Overall
	W	L	W	L
Alabama St. Hornets	16	2	22	9
Jackson St. Tigers	15	3	18	15
Prairie View Panthers	12	6	17	16
Ark.-Pine Bluff Golden Lions	11	7	13	18
Southern U. Jaguars	8	10	8	23
Texas Southern Tigers	7	11	7	25
Miss Valley St Delta Devils	7	11	7	25
Alabama A&M Bulldogs	6	12	8	19
Grambling St. Tigers	4	14	6	23
Alcorn St. Braves	4	14	6	25

Now here are my picks for the 2009-10 season, presented in reverse order.

Alcorn State (last NCAA: 2002) The Braves only won two D-I games last season, all in the league. They'll have trouble improving on that number, as they also lost four starters from a season ago, starting with experienced forwards Anthony Ford (10.6 ppg, 4.7 rpg) and Jarvis Williams (9.7 ppg, 3.8 rpg). Second year coach Larry Smith should have had leading scorer Troy Jackson back for his senior year, but he and his 20 points per game left for Europe. That means 6-3 guard Jonathan Boyd (9.8 ppg) is the only major contributor back from a year ago. Considering that Alcorn already had defensive woes, the offense is now a major worry, as the newcomers will all have to contribute immediately. The schedule, as you'd expect is going to be rough. For starters, Central Michiganwill be the only non-SWAC team to make the trip to Alcorn this year. The Braves also play at Ohio State in the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament, before they head to Albany to face the hosts, Robert Morris, and Detroit in one of the "subregionals" for that event.

Texas Southern (last NCAA: 2003) The Tigers had a rough season in '08-09, going 0-14 out of the SWAC, then only managing seven wins in the league. Things may not get any better for coach Tony Harvey in his second season in charge, as he lost his second and third leading scorers, Matthew Miller and Jacques Jones (also the team's leading rebounder). Leading scorer DeAndre Hall, a 6-6 guard who isn't afraid to go inside, and 6-7 forward Ricky Boyles (7.5 ppg, 5 rpg) are the only two returnees who saw significant action last year. The schedule is typically brutal, as Idaho is the only Non-SWAC Division I school who will visit the H&PE Arena this year. As an aside, it's really sad that the first Google result for the Tigers isn't the TSU page varsity team, but the club team.

Grambling State (last NCAA: None) The Tigers will play with a heavy heart, as JC transfer Henry White died 12 days after a becoming ill after a conditioning drill. He was only 21. Head coach Rick Duckett, who was heading into his second year with the program, was forced out. One of his former assistants, Bobby Washington, Jr., has a very difficult job in replacing him this season. Like TSU, this group of Tigers also lost a lot last season, though they did manage to beat OVC champ Morehead State out of the league, and they'll be without three starters from last time around. The starting backcourt, 6-0 Ariece Perkins (11.3 ppg, 3.9 apg) and 5-8 Donald Qualls (10 ppg, 2.1 apg), is back, however. The frontcourt is going to be thin and inexperienced, however, as only three players are listed as forwards, and only 6-9 senior George Akpele (1.8 ppg) featured last season. Short-timers Centenary are the only non-SWAC D-I school who will play at Grambling this season.

Mississippi Valley State (last NCAA: 2008) Much like Southern, all seven of MVSU's wins came in the league last year. Three of the Delta Devils starters from a year ago are back, though leading scorer and rebounder Eric Petty (12.6 ppg, 8.3 rpg) and second-leading scorer Dwayne Harmason (11 ppg) are gone. 6-7 swingman Shannon Behling (10.4 ppg, 5.3 rpg) will attract the most attention on the team this season, but 6-8 F/C Amos Studivant (2.8 ppg, 2.6 rpg) will have to be more productive for head coach Sean Woods, yet another SWAC bench boss who's entering his second season. The Delta Devils will play in the low/mid-major half of the Chicago Invitational, where they'll open with Liberty before facing either Kennesaw State or Tennessee State.

Alabama A&M (last NCAA: 2005) The Bulldogs will struggle to improve on their eight wins of a season ago, as Van Pettaway was already going to be down two-thirds of his starting frontcourt because of graduation. Then, the team's leading scorer and point guard, Trant Simpson (16.1 ppg), left because of personal issues. However, there is hope, as 6-3 guard Evan Hilton, who averaged 12 points and 5 boards a game in '07-08, returns to the squad after missing last year with a knee injury. Another 6-3 guard, Cornelius Hester, is also back. He's the team's leading returning scorer, as he managed 12 points a contest last year. 6-5 sophomore swingman Casey Cantey should also see a lot more time this season after putting up over 8 points and grabbing nearly 4 boards a game. The big question for Pettaway is who will run the offense. The answer may very well be redshirt freshman Marcus Lee. Auburn will actually play A&M in Huntsville, but off campus at the Von Braun Center.

Alabama State (last NCAA: 2009) The Hornets won both the SWAC regular season and tournament crowns last season, but they'll struggle to repeat, as they lost all five starters from a year ago, including defensive force and all-time All-Name selection Chief Kickingstallionsims. Three key reserves from last season, guards Tremaine Butler, Menji Mundadi, and Ivory White, will see a lot more action this time around. Newcomers Chris Duncan and Adrian Spellman and redshirt freshman Jordan Jefferson will have to take over in the frontcourt, while junior A.J. Spencer should take over the point. The Acadome won't see a non-SWAC D-I school this season.

Southern (last NCAA: 2006) Rob Spivery's Jaguars lost four starters from a year ago, including his three top scorers, so they'll struggle to match the 8 wins they earned (all in the conference) in '08-09. The one returning starter is 6-6 forward Douglas Scott, who is one of the best rebounders in the conference (7.2 a game, alongside 6.8 ppg). Spivery also has three reserves who could be ready to contribute more this time around--6-6 forwards Earnest Jones (5.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg) and Julius Ingram (5.4 ppg. 3.1 rpg) and 6-5 swingman Jazz Williams (5.1 ppg). Wofford transfer Norm Nixon could fill the Jags' gap at the point. Southern will face the Terriers in the low-/mid-major flight of the Las Vegas Invitational over Thanksgiving weekend. They'll then face a transitional D1 team, Presbyterian or Seattle, in their second game there.

Prairie View A&M (last NCAA: 1998) Byron Rimm's squad is actually in really good shape for this campaign. The Panthers lost only one starter from a season ago, guard Derek Johnson (9.9 ppg). 6-7 forward Darrell Hugee (12 ppg, 7.3 rpg) is the only returning frontcourt player with significant experience, but as last year's league Newcomer of the Year, he's a great building block. The backcourt, featuring 5-8 Michael Griffin (9.6 ppg), Chris Jones (9.1 ppg), Tim Meadows (9 ppg), and Dorian McDaniel (7.7 ppg), will make a difference in this league. Schedule-wise, transitional D-I member Florida Gulf Coast is the only non-SWAC D-I school who will visit the Panthers this season.

Jackson State (last NCAA: 2007) The Tigers bring back three starters, led by 6-7 F Grant Maxey (16.4 ppg, 6.7 rpg); however, Darrion Griffin (14.8 ppg) is going to be missed in the backcourt and center Jeremy Caldwell (11.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg) won't be easily replaced. 7-2 Jemarious Sykes could've been an interesting addition to Tevester Anderson's squad, but he didn't enroll. 6-10 JC transfer Gertavian Blake and 6-1 freshman Raymond Gregory are aboard though, and they'll join Maxey and swingman Garrison Johnson (10.7 ppg) to form one of the better frontcourts in the league. Sophomore Rod Melvin bears watching in his second year running the point. Two Southland teams, defending champions Stephen F. Austin and Southeastern Louisiana, visit Jackson State this season. The Tigers will play in the low-/mid-major flight of the Christmas week Las Vegas Classic, where they'll face Wagner, then either Chicago State or Eastern Washington.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff (last NCAA: None) The Lions biggest losses off a team that won 11 league games and beat SMU in Dallas were reserves Rickey Parks and Eric Brooks. That means all five starters, led by point guard Terrance Calvin (12 ppg), are back. Calvin's main point of improvement this season has to be ball control, as his assists-to-turnover ratio of 1-to-1 will attest to. The biggest obstacle for the Lions is their schedule. George Ivory's squad opens with a 14 game road trip, as their entire non-conference schedule and their first three league games will be played away from Pine Bluff.

Despite their long journey to start the season, UAPB is my pick to win the SWAC. They'll hold the league's auto bid in my 2009-10 Final Preseason Bracket, which I will release on November 9. Unfortunately, I think they'll end up in the Opening Round Game, mostly as a result of not winning enough early in the year. Now, to wrap up this preview, here is my preseason All-SWAC team, featuring the best returning players from last season.

Preseason All-SWAC Team

Player of the Year: Grant Maxey, 6-7 F, Sr. (Jackson State)

Remainder of the Team
Terrance Calvin, 6-2 G, Sr. (Arkansas-Pine Bluff)
Darnell Hugee, 6-7 F, Sr. (Prairie View A&M)
Garrison Johnson, 6-6 F, Sr. (Jackson State)
Shannon Behling, 6-7 F, Sr. (Mississippi Valley State)

Poll

Who is your pick to win the SWAC this season?

Alabama A&M

0 votes

Alabama State

0 votes

Alcorn State

0 votes

Arkansas-Pine Bluff

0 votes

Grambling State

0 votes

Jackson State

2 votes

Mississippi Valley State

1 votes

Prairie View A&M

0 votes

Southern

1 votes

Texas Southern

0 votes

4 votes | Poll has closed

Mississippi Valley State 65, Kentucky 88: Post Mortem

Truzenzuzex — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 23:41:16 -0000

A big thanks to Mississippi Valley State and Unforgettable Sean Woods for coming into Rupp Arena and giving the Wildcats a game. It was pretty much over midway through the second half, but the MVSU players hustled and played hard in the style of Rick Pitino, pressing and shooting the three. The three was good to MVSU, as it kept them close in the first half.

This game went pretty much as I expected. The 'Cats were noticably dull and unmotivated after the disappointment of last night, to nobody's surprise. I really don't know how many valid conclusions can be drawn from this game, but I continue to be impressed by DeAndre Liggins. Jodie Meeks found his shooting eye again, but other than that, it's really hard to take much away. But for what they are worth, here are my thoughts:

Positives:

DeAndre Liggins -- He played an uneven game, but he demonstrated why he was such a highly coveted recruit with his passing and running the break. His effort today was inconsistent and marred by typical freshman bad decisions, but his net impact on the team was a very big positive.
Landon Sloan -- I thought Sloan played well, overall. I was surprised to see him in the game so early, but he performed pretty well.
Josh Harrellson -- I thought Harrellson played well, especially on defense.
Perry Stevenson -- Stevenson was solid if unspectacular. I think he must have had 3 or 4 blocks and pulled down many rebounds.
Consistent effort to get the ball into the post. I liked that. It wasn't always successful, but I appreciated the effort.
Turnovers -- MVSU is a quick, pressure team, and we mostly handled it very well.
Free throw shooting -- We continue to shoot from the line very well.

Negatives:

Continued discordant offense -- I just saw too much weirdness in this offense, I can't quite put my finger on it.
Patrick Patterson's post position -- Patterson continues to post up weakly, which accounted for a number of failed entry passes.
Darius Miller -- Darius lacks any semblance of confidence. He badly needs a break to rebuild it.
Michael Porter -- Porter had a poor game and turned the ball over a lot. He also got beat of the dribble too much. Broken record.
Rebounding -- UK allowed far too many offensive rebounds for my taste.
Offensive execution -- Too many three point shots for facing a team that was giving away too much size.
Three point defense -- MVSU rained threes on us.

Other observations:

Did Gillispie ever get up off the bench?
He starts Galloway both halves for about 2 minutes each. Why?
This team looks rudderless to me.
The team looked a bit fatigued to me. 5 games in eight days is a lot.

That's about all I have for now. Your observations are welcome

Iowa State 77, Mississippi Valley State 59

CrossCyed — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 21:06:49 -0000

Well, for about 30 minutes of that game, I thought we were in serious danger of losing to Mississippi freaking Valley freaking State.

The first half, the threes were simply not dropping for Iowa State, which isn't a good thing when you're struggling to get your inside game going. Of course, MVSU hasn't shown they can defend any shots, especially twos, all year, so the itchy trigger finger from behind the arc had me a bit confused. Of course, the amount of three pointers we take is a fundamental difference between the coaching staff and myself.

Our defense wasn't a big issue today. Allow 59 points and you should win every time (and McDermott is something like 20-0 at ISU when allowing fewer than 60 points....that should happen).

The offense, however, will live and freakin die by the three point basket. Just under half of our shots (24 of 53) were from behind the arc. Somehow, some way, we hit 11 3's, seven of which came in the second half.

This team is going to be frustrating to watch all year long. We'll lose games we shouldn't. We'll likely win games that we shouldn't.

Hopefully, Jamie Vanderbeken and Justin Hamilton can team up to provide some post support down low, as we've been faring pretty badly in the paint for a team that has, in Craig Brackins, a pretty good threat under the basket. In an ideal world, we could get 10 points a game from each of those guys.

Hamilton is intriguing in that you can see he's got potential. Maybe he'll find a game where it clicks, because I've ben impressed by his positioning and movement on the block all year, as well as his defense. If he continues to improve, he'll be a valuable post player, hopefully sooner rather than later.

Hopefully, we can figure out how to balance our offense sometime soon. The Northern Iowa game will be a very tough game for this team (McDermott is 0-7 versus the MVC at ISU, 49-48 in his career), and could have an impact on such a young team. A loss at UNI wouldn't be a killer (to what, our CBI hopes?), but we have to prove that we can beat them. I don't care that it's his alma mater or the fact that it's the last team he coached. We're sure as hell not paying our coaching staff to lose to UNI. Hopefully, that has stopped.

Expanding on that defense

Nuss — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 02:49:49 -0000

Grady did a great job breaking down just how it is that this team is playing so well defensively. It's pretty much the sole reason that this team, after dipping to No. 2 yesterday, is back up to No. 1 in the Ken Pomeroy ratings today.

(Yes, I know ... small sample size, computer rankings are dumb this early in the year, blah, blah, blah ... just let me have my fun, OK?)

It's tempting to say that the defense has just been a simple reflection of the competition, but that would be far too simplistic. Mississippi Valley State has played four games this year. Check out their offensive efficiency in each (what's efficiency?):

Date	Opponent	Result	Pace	Eff.
Fri Nov 14	Arizona St. (s) (sr)	L, 80-64	65	97.7
Sat Nov 15	Washington St. (s) (sr)	L, 76-25	64	39.2
Mon Nov 17	Oklahoma (s) (sr)	L, 94-53	77	68.5
Tue Nov 18	James Madison (s) (sr)	L, 62-54	66	81.4

See those numbers? MVSU has played at a pace around 65 three times this year, and only once has it been so thoroughly dominated -- and that includes a game against a supposedly top 25 team.

Now, check out Fairleigh Dickinson:

Date	Opponent	Result	Pace	Eff.
Fri Nov 14	Pittsburgh (s) (sr)	L, 86-63	68	92.4
Tue Nov 18	Washington St. (s) (sr)	L, 55-33	63	52.1

In case you didn't know, Pittsburgh -- who we may yet get to see up close and personal -- is the No. 6 team in the country. The game was played at a higher pace, but not so much so as to assume that it caused the significantly higher efficiency.

Simply put, the Cougs have dominated their opponents on the defensive end in a way two Top 25 teams could not. That is nothing short of amazing in my book; I really thought it was the defense that would take a while to come around with all the new guys. But that clearly has not been the case.

The offense is a bit of a different story. Yes, we put up some huge numbers against MVSU, but so did everyone else. And we didn't even approach Pitt's offensive efficiency numbers against FDU. So that will bear some watching as we move toward that Mississippi State game. But Tony Bennett has to be pretty happy right now that he can wait a little bit for the offense to come around because the defense is playing so well.

Baynes, Forrest shine in rout of Mississippi Valley State

Grady. — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 21:54:05 -0000

Fresh off their improbable back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances, there were a lot of prognosticators who thought the Cougs would have trouble maintaining their success this season.

So far, so good.

Aron Baynes scored 14 points and Caleb Forrest matched his career high with 13 as Washington State annihilated Mississippi Valley State, 76-25.

The 25 points allowed are the fewest by WSU in the shot clock era. That stat breaks the record set last year when the Cougars held the same Delta Devils to 26 points in a 71-26 blowout at the Spokane Arena.

Don't be surprised if you have a hard time telling the difference so far between this year's team and last year's. Despite the losses of Derrick Low, Kyle Weaver, and Robbie Cowgill, WSU continues to be dominant on both ends of the floor.

The Cougars held MVSU to 16.7% shooting and held them scoreless for the first 11:32 of the game. During that time WSU opened up a 28-0 lead, and never let up. The Cougars registered eight blocks, including four from freshman DeAngelo Casto and three from redshirt frosh Charlie Enquist. The Cougs only allowed 11 points in the first half, matching the number of MVSU team fouls. Only four Delta Devils scored in the game.

Equally impressive was the Cougar offense. WSU shot 55.3% from the floor, including 46.2% from the new three point line, which is exactly one foot farther from the bucket than last season. Nikola Koprivica, a 14% 3-point shooter last year, went 2 for 3 from behind the arc. Aron Baynes dominated the paint, going 6 for 8 from the field en route to 14 points and five rebounds. Forrest added 13 on a 4 for 8 effort and Daven Harmeling added nine for WSU.

CougCenter player of the game: Aron Baynes. The slimmed down big man looked dominant in the first regular season game of the year, leading all scorers with 14 and playing solid low-post defense on the other end of the court.

Lots of great contributors, though, for WSU last night. Bud Nameck gave his player of the game award to Forrest and the WSUCougars.com basketball blog gave the nod to Marcus Capers (6 points, 6 assists).

CougCenter play of the game: Aron Baynes dunks viciously on a MVSU player who shall remain nameless because 1) I didn't see his number and 2) he really doesn't need further embarrassment.

Now for my notes:

Look who's starting: Nuss was dead on with yesterday's starting lineup, which featured Taylor Rochestie, Klay Thompson, Nikola Koprivica, Daven Harmeling and Aron Baynes. Overall playing time was very balanced for the Cougars, who wanted to give their freshmen some much-needed experience. Ryan Bailey was the only player on the court who played less than ten minutes.

Witherill in, Harthun out: The most surprising move of the night came when Tony inserted freshman Nick Witherill into the lineup. Witherill was expected to redshirt this year, while Mike Harthun, a much more highly-recruited guard out of Oregon, was expected to get playing time. It looks like now it will be Harthun getting the redshirt, while Witherill will be used as another option at guard. It appears that neither will be a part of the regular rotation this season.

While it's a surprise that Harthun may not play this year, it's not a total shock. One of the things I like about Harthun is that he's an honest guy. Here's his own writing from the official athletics blog earlier this month:

The season up to this point has been a humbling experience to say the least. For me it has been a difficult transition from high school, but I look forward to the challenges that it brings each day. In high school I was the best or second best player on the team behind Kyle Singler (currently at Duke). Now on this team I am far from that, but I like it that way. It gives me new goals and things to work on each day in practice. Also I have no choice, but to improve when I am playing against the high level of competition that I am. Right now I am trying to slow down a bit and enjoy the game like I should be doing.

The theme behind this statement, and his whole post (scroll down to 11/7 on the blog to read it), is that it's a big transition from high school to college. And he's exactly right. The transition is strange enough for those of us who don't play sports - I can't imagine what it is like with all the added pressure of having to perform on the court. He's also a bit apprehensive about all the course work with college (who isn't?), so giving him a redshirt will give him the opportunity to spread out his classes and decrease some of the workload there.

I'm still surprised about the redshirt, because in the exhibition game I saw Harthun and he has a ton of promise. At this point I would say he has more raw talent than Witherill. The difference is that Harthun just needs to slow things down and play his game. I think it goes without saying that he will eventually settle in just fine at WSU and be a key contributor down the road. But for now, I think he'll get some benefit out of the redshirt. The reason I'm not a huge fan of the decision is that I think Witherill could benefit just as much from an extra year.

However, both Witherill and Harthun are excellent players and vital to the future of the program. A couple of years from now when they are both helping the Cougs to victory, we'll probably forget about the whole redshirt thing that's going on now. In addition, we'll probably be pretty happy to get five whole years out of Harthun.

Poor MVSU: Mississippi Valley State played #15 Arizona State pretty hard on Friday night, losing by only 16 points. They were also a tournament team last year. That's why I can't imagine anything more demoralizing than a round of applause from the ZZU CRU after Dwayne Harmason made the first bucket for the Devils with 8:28 left to play in the first half.

Klay Thompson, still a key to success. Thompson continues to have the green light to shoot when he's open. He scored eight last night on 3 of 7 shooting. Some of the shots were still suspect in their selection, but as the season progresses expect Klay to get smarter about his opportunities. Thompson is going to have to replace the scoring of Derrick Low if the Cougars are going to succeed this year, and he's off to a great start. I don't think it's a stretch to say that he may even lead the team in scoring this year.

The students aren't going to be happy: A lot of grumblings already out of the resized student section last night, especially with a baseline section that was mostly empty - a few splotches of paying customers here and there. Expect it to get worse when the later-arriving students are shut out of the Gonzaga game on Dec. 6th 10th.

Brief opponent capsule: MVSU

Grady. — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 18:02:08 -0000

Nuss has the game thread for you later on, but if you just can't wait, here's some fun facts about Mississippi Valley State courtesy of the athletic department:

ABOUT THE DELTA DEVILS:
• The Delta Devils are led by first year head coach Sean Woods, who headed to MVSU after a stint at TCU.
• The defending 2008 SWAC Tournament champions, the Delta Devils are led by a returning senior class of Michael Clark, Eric Petty and Dwayne Harmason.
• Clark, the team's top returning scorer, averaged 7.8 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.
• Petty added 6.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, while Harmason led the team with 2.8 assists and was second in steals (1.0 spg).
• Last season MVSU finished the season 17-16 and fell to UCLA in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

AGAINST THE DELTA DEVILS:
• WSU beat Mississippi Valley State 71-26 in the first meeting between the schools last season on Nov. 24, in Spokane as part of the Cougar Hispanic College Fund Challenge.
• The Delta Devils' 26 points is the fewest surrendered by a Cougar team since beating Idaho 48-23 Jan. 23, 1948. It is also the fewest points WSU has given up in the shot clock era.
• The Cougars held MVSU to nine points in the second half.
• Caleb Forrest scored a career-high 13 points.