Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Southland Conference Preview

FOR A COMPLETE PREVIEW OF THE 2009-2010 SEASON, CLICK HERE

The Southland Conference, despite not getting much publicity nationally, featured one of the best races in the entire country last season. East Division champ Stephen F. Austin ended up winning the title, going 13-3, while Nicholls State and West Division champion went 12-4. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi finished 11-5. Five of the eight games between these four teams were decided by five points or fewer. Texas-Arlington was the only other team to finish above .500, going 9-7, while Texas-San Antonio finished 8-8. Stephen F. Austin loses several key players, but the Southland will still have plenty of quality teams and should have another tight race.

East Division
1. Nicholls State: Anatoly Bose is one of the league's best frontcourt players, and Freshman of the Year Fred Hunter also returns.
2. Southeastern Louisiana: The Lions will be led by center Patrick Sullivan, who has a chance to become an all-conference performer.
3. Stephen F. Austin: The defending champs lose Matt Kingsley and Josh Alexander, but Eric Bell and Eddie Williams will lead the way.
4. Northwestern State: A solid defensive team, the Demons have a solid inside-outside duo in Damon Jones and William Mosley.
5. McNeese State: The Cowboys struggled down the stretch a year ago, but Diego Kapelan hopes to get them to the SLC Tournament.
6. Central Arkansas: Still in their transition to Division-I, the Bears will likely struggle again to become competitive in the conference.

West Division
1. Sam Houston State: As the league favorites, the Bearkats will be led by the best backcourt in the conference, Corey Allmond and Ashton Mitchell.
2. Texas-San Antonio: The Roadrunners fell one game short of the NCAA Tournament, but defensive menace Devin Gibson could change that.
3. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi: The Islanders have the league's best player in swingman Kevin Palmer, who can carry them to a bid.
4. Texas-Arlington: Don't count out the Mavericks -- they have an outstanding guard duo in Marquez Haynes and Brandon Long.
5. Texas State: The Bobcats have one of the more exciting offenses in the country, and John Rybak and Cameron Johnson are solid.
6. Lamar: After going through an injury-plagued season, the Cardinals will hope to use their size and depth to make a run in the league

Player of the Year: Kevin Palmer, G/F, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

All-Conference Team:
G- Marquez Haynes, Texas-Arlington
G- Corey Allmond, Sam Houston State
G- Ashton Mitchell, Sam Houston State
G/F- Kevin Palmer, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 
G/F- Anatoly Bose, Nicholls State 

Second Team:
G- Devin Gibson, Texas-San Antonio
G- Omar Johnson, Texas-San Antonio
G- Brandon Long, Texas-Arlington
C- William Mosley, Northwestern State 
C- Patrick Sullivan, Southeastern Louisiana 

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