College Basketball Roundup: Part 3

Conference USA:

Headline: This is yet another conference that has seen an absolute bloodbath to open conference play. This one might be one of the wildest yet. Liberty, Mid Tenn State and Western Kentucky were unanimously voted as the top 3 teams in preseason but have opened conference play a combined 4-10. Needless to say this conference is wide open. Louisiana Tech, Sam Houston and New Mexico State currently lead the way with each holding a 3-1 conference record. Louisiana Tech performed well in non-conference play including a headline win over Will Wade’s McNeese State squad. All of Louisiana Tech’s 6 losses are by 9 points or less and on the road. Sam Houston challenged themselves out of conference which leaves them with a worse record but prepared them for league play. New Mexico State actually is coached by Sam Houston’s former coach, and after a rough start the Aggies have gained momentum in conference play. Still, Liberty and Western Kentucky are the ones to watch in this league since they carry the most upside.

Surprise(s): New Mexico State was 8th out of 9 teams in the preseason poll entering the year so not much was expected of them this year during their total rebuild, but as mentioned above they’ve gained momentum in conference play. Jacksonville State was projected dead last in preseason but the Gamecocks have shown they’re going to be just as competitive as everyone else, they’re solidly in the middle of the league currently, putting themselves in position if they can get hot late.

Disappointment(s): Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders – MTSU tied Liberty for 1st in the preseason poll but they haven’t come close to that. They’re the only winless team in conference play and have completely capsized in an 8 game losing streak to Division 1 teams.

Horizon League:

Headline: The Horizon is yet another extremely competitive conference. The Oakland Golden Grizzlies are on top of the standings at 7-2, but it’s not a huge gap to 9th place Robert Morris who’s 4-5 in league play. Parity is the name of the game. This tournament is going to be a wild one to see if it will be won by an upstart such as Youngstown State, Green Bay or the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons, or by a program that has consistent conference tournament success like Northern Kentucky, Wright State or Cleveland State.

Surprise(s): Green Bay Phoenix – Green Bay has risen like the Phoenix through the conference standings…ok I’ll see myself out now. Being serious head coach Sundance Wicks took their program over at an absolute low point and they were picked to finish last in the conference, instead Green Bay is currently 2nd in the standings and clearly one of the best teams in the horizon. Purdue Fort Wayne gets a shout-out as well, the Mastodons looked fantastic in non-conference play but they’ve slid in recent weeks.

Disappointment(s): Milwaukee Panthers – Milwaukee was expected to take a step forward this year and be one of the top challengers for the Horizon championship, but so far they have a losing record and are toward the bottom of the standings. The Panthers are still in it, however, they can turn it around at any point and emerge from the pack. Detroit also gets a shout-out because they are currently 0-20…poor Titans.

Ivy League:

Headline: The Ivy League isn’t just smart kids this year, this conference is quietly one of the best in the country. The conference is led by Princeton who is coming off the quietest sweet 16 run by a 15 seed in tournament history. The Tigers have been an absolute wagon this year, they’re currently 15-1 and could even threaten an at large bid if they keep it rolling until the conference tournament. The Tigers aren’t alone, Cornell has an electric offense that has led them to a 13-3 start, Yale was the preseason favorite, has lost some tight games but is undefeated in Ivy League play also. Harvard has a good team, and Penn has a win over Villanova. Very fun league.

Surprise(s): Princeton – Yes, Princeton was picked to finish 2nd this year so it’s not like they came out of nowhere, but still they lost their best player from last year’s sweet 16 squad so no one expected them to look even better. What an awesome year for Princeton.

Disappointment(s): Brown Bears – Brown was picked to finish 4th in preseason and make Ivy Madness but instead they’ve struggled to a 5-13 record so far this year.

MAAC:

Headline: Are the Peacocks back?? 🦚 St Peter’s had a retooling year last season due to the coaching change following their program changing elite 8 run. That run completely changed the Peacocks program and brand, now they’re looking to return to the tournament. They’re once again led by a tough defense that has them tied for the conference lead. Quinnipiac and Fairfield have other ideas though. The Quinnipiac Bobcats are currently 14-4 and tied for the conference lead, while the Fairfield Stags are one of the hottest teams in the country. Fairfield opened the season losing their first 6 games to D1 foes, but are 11-1 since. Quick shout-out to

Surprise(s): St Peter’s mentioned above was picked to finish 10th in the conference but how about the Niagara Purple Eagles? They are led by one of the most interesting coaches in the country in Greg Paulus. His name might ring a bell, he was a star PG at Duke and when he graduated he decided to go to Syracuse as a grad transfer, switch to football and play QB! Now he’s a head coach, what a life he’s had. Niagara is currently 4th in the standings after being picked 9th in preseason.

Disappointment(s): The preseason Top 4 – wow they really missed on this preseason ranking. Rider was projected to win the conference but is struggling at 5-13, 2-5 in conference play. Iona led by last year’s tournament hero Tobin Anderson is retooling in his first year with an 8-10 (3-4) record , the Canisius Golden Griffins were picked 3rd but are 7-11 (2-6) and preseason #4 the Siena Saints have completely tanked to a 3-15 record which is stunning for a traditionally strong program.

MEAC:

Headline: Last year the Howard Bison broke a long stranglehold Norfolk State and NC Central had on this league, will a new challenger step up? Or will the Spartans and Eagles retake the crown? Both Norfolk State and NC Central look solid once again with 2-1 conference records plus winning records overall. They are coached by two of them most underrated coaches in the country. The new challenger is a massive surprise, the Delaware State Hornets. Delaware State has long been a struggling program but this year they’re last remaining unbeaten team in conference play, and are 10-9 overall. This is already the first time they’ve hit 10 wins in a season since 2016-17. The Hornets last finished .500 in 2014 and last had a winning record in 2009.

Surprise(s): Delaware State Hornets – As mentioned above, Delaware State hasn’t had expectations in some time. They were picked 6th out of 8 programs in the preseason poll this year. This is one of the reasons I wanted to do this series, to bring attention to some of the best stories in the sport that’s gone under the radar, and this is one of the best.

Disappointment(s): Howard Bison – Howard was the favorite to win the conference in preseason but a tough non-conference schedule has bled into a slow start to conference play. The Bison still have time to turn it around however!