One of my projects this summer was to write about a proposed relegation system in college basketball. In my system, the top teams from regional mid-majors would filter up into the Tier 1 conferences by winning their regular season title. The worst teams from the upper conferences would be relegated to the mid-majors (Tiers 2-4). When I wrote about the southeastern region, little did I know that Memphis would actually be promoted (in the guise of Kentucky). Not only did the Wildcats hire Memphis’ coach, but John Calipari brought along his recruiting class and perhaps some Memphis stationary as well (but don’t ask him about the stationary because he was not aware that was a misdeed.) Memphis either needed to be promoted to a power school or have something like this happen. Now, the Conference USA odds are a bit more even. Let’s take a spin through the conference to note some of the fantasy worthy players.
East Carolina Pirates Assists can be a hard category to spotlight in college basketball. There are generally only a handful of point guards who accumulate enough assists to make a major dent in the category on their own. The Pirates’ PG Brock Young is one such player. The 5-foot-11 field general led the conference with 7.6 apg and managed to score 10.6 ppg despite hitting just 38.1% of his shots from the floor. Young had ten games of double-digit assists, including a season high 14 in a rare conference win over Rice. F Darrius Morrow showed some promise in his freshman season. He provided 9.7 ppg and a team-leading 6.7 rpg with five double-doubles. The four-player recruiting class is led by 6-foot-5 wing Wakefield Ellison who could help with scoring from the initial tip.
Houston Cougars The Cougars have the best backcourt in the conference and one of the better two-man units in college basketball. Aubrey Coleman is Conference USA’s best fantasy player. In his first year at Houston, the 6-foot-4 guard provided 19.4 ppg and 8.2 rpg. He added 2.3 spg and scored in double digits in all but two games (one of which he got hurt after seven minutes). G Kelvin Lewis isn’t quite the window cleaner that his backcourt mate is, but Lewis provided 18.0 ppg and was the team’s best threat from the perimeter (2.8 3pg). Lewis hoisted 252 three-point attempts and made 36.9%. There isn’t a lot of talent returning in the frontcourt, so plenty of hope is being placed on three newcomers: Maurice McNeal, freshmen Kirk Van Slyke and Kendrick Washington. Of the three, Washington might have the highest upside because he could clean up the glass at 6-foot-7, 270 lbs.
Marshall Thundering Herd Prior to last season, Marshall seemed ready to take the next step up on the backs of a nice transfer class. The Thundering Herd had a rather meek season and bowed out of the Conference USA tournament against Rice. The majority of the squad returns. Ex-Boilermaker G Chris Lutz is the team’s leading returning scorer at 10.7 ppg. The 6-foot-3 guard took the majority of his shots from beyond the arc and hit more threes (37.4%) than he did two-point shots (35.4%). PG Damier Pitts is a good bet to be the best fantasy player on the squad. As a freshman, Pitts provided 9.7 ppg and 3.2 apg. He scored in the twenties twice, but also scored six or less points 11 times. F Tyler Wilkerson, a Lafayette transfer, will lead the frontcourt. He averaged 10.4 ppg, 6.2 rpg, and 1.6 bpg.
Memphis Tigers Calipari may have stolen across the Kentucky state line, leaving a trail of incriminations and another abandoned Final Four appearance, but his presence (if not his wake) will be felt for the next generation of Tigers. While the team lost its top four scorers, there is still plenty of talent on the roster. One might start with G/F Wesley Witherspoon, the conference’s reigning Sixth Player of the Year. Witherspoon averaged just 4.0 ppg and 2.2 rpg, but he should be in for a lot more minutes in 2009-10. Witherspoon may start in the frontcourt with Will Coleman and Pierre Henderson-Niles. Coleman is a 6-foot-9 juco transfer who should anchor the Tiger defense. The backcourt of former Blue Devil Elliot Williams,Doneal Mack and Roburt Sallie should be solid. Williams gave Duke some pep last year. Rice Owls In recent years, Rice has not been much of a factor in the Conference USA standings. Former Cal coach Ben Braun may have the team headed in the right direction. They have plenty of returning players and a nice recruiting class coming in. Of the players coming back, C Trey Stanton might be the most noteworthy, if only because of the C before his name. The 6-foot-10 former-Midshipman provided 8.3 ppg and 5.0 rpg. F Lucas Kuipers is the team’s leading returning scorer at 8.8 ppg, but missed half the season after breaking his wrist in practice. F Arsalan Kazemi leads the freshmen. The 6-foot-8 power forward from Iran should help on the boards.
SMU Mustangs Just as the Mustangs hit the bottom of the Conference USA standings, they featured plenty of players worth fantasy attention. Freshman G Paul McCoy led the team in scoring with 13.4 ppg and added 4.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, and 1.6 spg. He had his best game against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on New Year’s Eve with 32 points, seven boards, and five steals. McCoy is complemented in backcourt by 6-foot-1 Derek Williams who provided 12.7 ppg and 3.5 apg. Williams also hit 32 points once in the regular season finale against Houston. F Mouhammed Faye leads the frontcourt and averaged 9.6 ppg and 5.2 rpg. One name to keep an eye on is G Rodney Clinkscales who averaged 19.2 ppg and 2.6 3pg for Dodge City Community College last season.
outhern Mississippi Golden Eagles If I were prone to using euphemisms, I would say that there are plenty of opportunities for new Golden Eagles to step up. Of course, one might say that also means that Southern Miss will be without many of its recognizable names (Jeremy Wise was a fantasy find). The top returning scorer is junior R.L. Horton who averaged 12.7 ppg and 2.7 3pg. Horton will need to create more of his own shots and may need to lead the offense. He will be complemented by fourth year junior Sai’Quon Stone who missed the majority of last season with a broken foot. Stone averaged 10.3 ppg as a freshman in 2006-07, but has seen his scoring average dip in the last two years. Senior F Andre Stephens is the team’s leading returning rebounder at 4.8 rpg. He may be helped by juco transfers Gary Flowers and Josimar Ayarza.
Tulane Green Wave Despite a gaping hole in their frontcourt, the Green Wave should have solid guard play. Kevin Sims returns after leading the team in scoring at 13.0 ppg. The 5-foot-10 Jackson, Mississippi native doled out 4.0 apg and hit 1.6 3pg on a career best 40.8% from long distance. He scored at least 20 points seven times. G Kris Richard was the defensive ying to Sims’ yang. The 6-foot-5 guard nabbed 1.9 spg, which was good for fourth in conference. He added 10.7 ppg and 4.0 rpg. Despite his defensive tenacity, Richard only fouled out once. F Asim McQueen provided 7.4 ppg and 5.4 rpg with a pair of double-doubles in his first year as a starter. F Terrance Beasley, of no relation to Michael, is the jewel of the recruiting class. The 6-foot-6 small forward is particularly good on the fast break.
Tulsa Golden Hurricane As if losing their coach and recruiting class weren’t enough loss of face for Memphis, they aren’t even favored in Conference USA this year. That’s because the Golden Hurricane return their two studs in C Jerome Jordan and G Ben Uzoh. Jordan, a seven-footer from Jamaica, averaged 13.8 ppg and 8.6 rpg, which were solid upticks from a nice sophomore season. His blocks fell from 3.7 bpg in 2007-08 to 2.5 bpg, but he managed to swat away ten shots in two Conference USA tournament games. Uzoh, a combo guard, provided 14.0 ppg, 4.9 rpg, and 3.6 apg. He shot just 43.8% from the field after hitting 48.8% of shots as a junior. Freshman PG Donte Medder may relieve Uzoh of some his passing duties and is a name to keep in the back of your mind.
UAB Blazers The downside of having a senior laden team is that it leads to a rebuilding project for the near term future. Coach Mike Davis’ team is only returning three players, none of whom were full time starters. In fact F Howard Crawford and G Aaron Johnson split time starting at a wing position. The 6-foot-8 Crawford provided 7.9 ppg in 21.5 mpg and converted 51.9% of his shots. Johnson only scored more than ten points once (11 points against Southern Mississippi in the Conference USA tournament). The legion of newcomers includes freshman F Ovie Soko who should fill one of the frontcourt spots. PG Heath Gameren who comes to UAB from Australia via junior college should start at the point.
UCF Knights When a team loses a volume shooter like the Knights did in Jermaine Taylor, other people have to step up. The Knights, unlike the Blazers, have something left in the chamber. G A.J. Rompza had a solid freshman campaign and was on the all-conference freshman team. The 5-foot-9 Chicago native led the team in assists at 5.2 apg, but hopefully worked on his shot in the offseason after making just 29.5% of his shots. The similarly initialed F A.J. Tyler provided 7.1 ppg including double-digits in two of his last three games. Keith Clanton might not have the most recognizable name of the recruiting class (that would belong to Marcus Jordan), but the 6-foot-8 power forward should be an impact player in the conference.
UTEP Miners Like the Knights, the Miners have graduated their signature player (Stefon Jackson), but coach Tony Barbee’s team has plenty of returning talent. We can start with F Arnett Moultrie who as a freshman provided 8.8 ppg and 8.2 rpg. The 6-foot-11 sophomore scored in double-digits in six of his last seven games and provided six double-doubles in his first season. G Randy Culpepper might inherit a few more shots and he was no slouch when it came to scoring (17.5 ppg). The junior scored a season high 35 points in the season’s second game last year and averaged 17.7 ppg in the team’s CBI finals loss against Oregon State. A pair of juco transfers may help UTEP as well. G Myron Strong spent his freshman season at San Francisco and last year at Southwest Tennessee Community College. As a freshman, Strong averaged 10.0 ppg, 3.1 apg, and 1.7 spg. Strong’s teammate at STCC F Jeremy Williams scored 15.1 ppg last year.