College Basketball Preview 2013-14: Projecting Mid-Major Conference Champions
By Nathan Giese
Gonzaga is still the best of the West Coast Conference. Image from sports-logos-screensavers.com
HoopsHabit continues its college basketball preview with the projections for the mid-major conference champions for the 2013-14 season.
In the 2013 season, the mid-majors had a sort of coming out party with Wichita State advancing to the Final Four and Florida Gulf Coast shocking the world with its electric play and wins in the NCAA tournament.
The landscape as a whole is shaken up with all the realigning among conferences both big and small. However, there are still more teams that nobody talks about as opposed to the ones that are heavily discussed. Those teams are mid-majors, where respect is both earned and hard to come by.
To kick things off, here are the 2013-14 mid-major conference champion projections:
America East:
Last season’s champion: Stony Brook
Projected Champion: Stony Brook
Mr. Do Everything for Stony Brook last season, Tommy Brenton, will be hard to replace, but sophomore standout Jameel Warney (12.4 points and 7.2 rebounds as a freshman) will help carry the Seawolves to another conference championship.
Atlantic Sun:
Last season’s champion: Mercer
Projected Champion: Florida Gulf Coast
Dunk City isn’t going to sneak up on anybody this season after their showing in the tournament last year, but Brett Comer and Chase Fieler have enough talent and electricity to make a return trip to the big dance.
Big Sky:
Last season’s champion: Montana
Projected Champion: Montana
Will Cherry is gone, but Montana had a successful season with Cherry injured most of last season anyway. Kareem Jamar is an underrated mid-major star who will now have the chance to prove his overall talents as the team leader.
Big South:
Last season’s champion: North: High Point; South: Charleston Southern
Projected Champion: Charleston Southern
The conference’s top backcourt is Charleston Southern’s Saah Nimley and Arlon Harper. Together they combined to average more than 30 points last season for the Buccaneers and will look to assert their dominance once again this season.
Big West:
Last season’s champion: Long Beach State
Projected Champion: Cal State Northridge
Not a sexy pick by any means, but the conference is down as a whole and former NBA star Reggie Theus comes in as the new coach for Cal State Northridge. Don’t be surprised to hear the Matadors name called throughout this season.
Colonial:
Last season’s champion: Northeastern
Projected Champion: Drexel
The Dragons entered last season as the Colonial favorites, but suffered a season full of injuries. Frantz Massenat is still a great player despite his quiet season last year. Look for him to make a huge impact this season.
Conference USA:
Last season’s champion: Memphis
Projected Champion: Louisiana Tech
Memphis is no longer in Conference USA, leaving the door wide open for a new program to become the conference staple. Louisiana Tech gets their first crack at it with conference Player of the Year favorite Raheem Appleby leading the way.
Horizon:
Last season’s champion: Valparaiso
Projected Champion: Oakland
Oakland comes in after a somewhat up-and-down couple of seasons in the Summit League after dominating for the majority of their stay. Travis Bader comes in on pace to break J.J. Redick’s NCAA record for career 3-pointers and Duke Mondy is one of the best defensive guards in the country.
Ivy League:
Last season’s champion: Harvard
Projected Champion: Harvard
Harvard made its mark last year by knocking off New Mexico is the round of 64 in last season’s NCAA tournament and the expectations this year are just as high. Sophomore Siyani Chambers will take on a bigger role after leading the league in assists last year as a freshman.
MAAC:
Last season’s champion: Niagara
Projected Champion: Manhattan
Manhattan suffered the loss of the conference’s top scorer George Beamon last season, causing their season to become lost early. Beamon returns to bolster the offense while Rhamel Brown looks to defend his MAAC Defensive Player of the Year crown.
MEAC:
Last season’s champion: Norfolk State
Projected Champion: Norfolk State
Bethune-Cookman eliminated Norfolk State in the conference tournament last season, causing an undefeated MEAC regular season record for the Spartans to result in very little. Pendarvis Williams will make sure that sort of upset doesn’t happen again this season.
MAC:
Last season’s champion: East: Akron; West: Western Michigan
Projected Champion: Buffalo
Buffalo had a disappointing 2012-13 campaign, but they have the luxury of Akron and Ohio both losing most of their production from the previous two years. Jarrod Oldham, Javon McCrea and Will Regan (a Virginia transfer now eligible to play) make a formidable trio to help new coach Bobby Hurley win early.
Missouri Valley:
Last season’s champion: Creighton
Projected Champion: Wichita State
Creighton may have gotten all the attention last season, but most don’t realize that Wichita State nearly won the Missouri Valley regular season crown last year. Creighton is now in the new Big East and the Shockers are the favorites being led by conference Player of the Year favorite Cleanthony Early.
Northeast:
Last season’s champion: Wagner
Projected Champion: LIU Brooklyn
LIU Brooklyn has won three consecutive Northeast Conference tournament championships and are ready for a fourth. Julian Boyd missed most of last season with an ACL injury and is primed to take over as the leader for the Blackbirds once again.
Ohio Valley:
Last season’s champion: Belmont
Projected Champion: Eastern Kentucky
Belmont returns only two starters and Murray State no longer has Isaiah Canaan, meaning a new champion is likely this year. Eastern Kentucky has a great duo in Glenn Cosey and Corey Walden, who combined to average more than 28 points per game for the Colonels last season.
Patriot:
Last season’s champion: Bucknell
Projected Champion: Boston University
Coming over from the America East conference, Boston U. has a team ready to take over the conference. Led by D.J. Irving, the Terriers have the team to make a splash in the Patriot League.
Southern:
Last season’s champion: North: Elon; South: Davidson
Projected Champion: Davidson
It’s no longer just “the school that Stephen Curry” went to. Davidson is a legitimate program and deserves to be treated as such. De’Mon Brooks (13.7 points, 6.2 rebounds per game last season) has what it takes to lead the Wildcats back to another NCAA tournament appearance.
Southland:
Last season’s champion: Stephen F. Austin
Projected Champion: Oral Roberts
The addition of Western Illinois transfer Obi Emegano should not be overlooked here. Losing Warren Niles (18.4 ppg) and Dame Bell-Holter (9.4 ppg) leaves a gap in offensive production, but the Golden Eagles always have a solid team behind them and will return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2008.
Summit League:
Last season’s champions: South Dakota State
Projected Champions: North Dakota State
In what should be a great three-team battle between two-time defending champion South Dakota State, North Dakota State and Denver, the Bison have the most returning fire power. Taylor Braun and Marshall Bjorklund are two of the best players in the conference and lead all five starters back from the previous season. Expect a battle between those three teams, though, as this one could shift on a dime.
Sun Belt:
Last season’s champion: Middle Tennessee
Projected Champion: Western Kentucky
Two-time defending Sun Belt tournament champion Western Kentucky is in line for a three-peat. The guard-forward combo of T.J. Price and George Flint have the Hilltoppers primed for another Sun Belt championship.
SWAC:
Last season’s champion: Texas Southern
Projected Champion: Southern
Southern, as some of you may remember, gave Gonzaga a scare in the round of 64 last season, helping to put their name back on the map. Another 23-10 finish is in the cards for the Jaguars again this season.
WAC:
Last season’s champion: Louisiana Tech
Projected Champion: New Mexico State
Last season’s champion, Louisiana Tech, and runner-up Denver have both moved onto difference conferences, opening the door for New Mexico State for another run at the conference championship. Daniel Mullings, preseason WAC Player of the Year, is poised for a breakout season in the completely overhauled WAC.
WCC:
Last season’s champion: Gonzaga
Projected Champion: Gonzaga
Kelly Olynyk and Elias Harris take most of last season’s offensive production with them, but Gonzaga is still the top dog in the WCC. Kevin Pangos and Gary Bell Jr. have the talent to pick up most of the slack Olynyk and Harris leave behind. They won’t be the top ranked team in the country anytime soon, but Gonzaga is still the cream of the crop in the mid-majors.
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