Southwestern Athletic Conference 2006-07 Preview
The Southwestern Athletic Conference doesn’t get much national publicity, but it seems poised for a very competitive campaign that should be well worth watching. There is hardly a prohibitive favorite, and several teams in the middle could be dark horses to contend for the title. There are some teams which almost seem difficult to pick in the second division of the standings.
At many levels of play below the high-major conferences, experience often counts for a great deal, and we should see that in the SWAC this season. All five preseason selections for the All-SWAC team are seniors, while several contenders sport starting lineups with mainly upperclassmen. One good example is Alcorn State, which starts four seniors and should be in the title hunt.
One pleasant development last season was the improvement of Arkansas-Pine Bluff, which had its best season in nearly a decade in going 8-10 in SWAC play. Defense was the key behind this surge, as the Golden Lions were the top defensive team in the conference last season. Should they keep that up and improve offensively, they could move into the first division and be one of the dark horses to contend.
There won’t be many easy outs in the conference this season, so the race for the top is likely to look a lot like the race for second place last season, when Southern ran away with the title and three games separated second from eighth place.
There isn’t much change at the top, as Byron Rimm takes over at Prairie View A&M as the only new head coach in the conference.
Preseason Awards
Player of the Year: Trey Johnson, Jackson State
Rookie of the Year: Grant Maxey, Jackson State
Defensive Player of the Year: Mickell Gladness, Alabama A&M
Primed to Break Out: Andrew Hayles, Alabama State
All-SWAC Team
William Byrd, Sr. F, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Michael Ford, Sr. F, Alabama A&M
Trey Johnson, Sr. G, Jackson State
Deforrest Riley-Smith, Sr. F, Southern
Delvin Thompson, Sr. G, Alcorn State
Jackson State (15-17, 10-8 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
Sr. G Trey Johnson (23.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.4 spg)
Jr. G Catraiva Givens (3.8 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.2 spg)
Sr. F Julius Young (9.1 ppg, 3.6 rpg)
Fr. F Grant Maxey
So. F-C Jeremy Caldwell (5.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg)
Schedule Highlights: A very challenging non-conference slate has just one home game on tap, December 18 against Tougaloo College. Among the road games are Alabama and Georgia Tech to start the season, Illinois-Chicago and Memphis to begin the Chicago Invitational (five games, also including Rutgers), Tulsa, and appearances in the Bay Classic Invitational (San Francisco) and Sun Bowl Tournament (at UTEP). They don’t get a break from road games once SWAC play starts, as five of the first seven are away from home.
Outlook: Johnson’s return gives them a star player who could help carry them to the title. He’ll have good help from Young on the wing and Maxey could be a nice player right away. If Caldwell improves and Maxey and other newcomers help on the boards, where they struggled last season, the frontcourt will do their part on this perimeter-oriented team. The main concern in the backcourt is the loss of starting guard Charlie White, who was expelled from the university after a September incident. They may not lose much in the starting lineup since Givens started 14 games last season, but they’ll need a newcomer to help off the bench.
Southern (19-13, 15-3 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
Jr. G Joe Holliday (junior college transfer)
So. G Steffon Wiley (4.2 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 1.1 apg)
Sr. F DeForrest Riley-Smith (10.9 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.5 apg)
So. F Chike Ekweozar (transfer from Utah Valley State)
Jr. F Ralph Hishaw (6.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.2 apg)
Schedule Highlights: A very challenging non-conference slate has just three home games and begins with road games at Georgia, Wisconsin and Oklahoma State. After participating in the South Padre Island Tournament, they head to Florida to play the defending national champions and later host Missouri. They also have a home-and-home with Louisiana Tech.
Outlook: The Jaguars lost several top players from last season, but they reload with one of the conference’s best in Riley-Smith, who should be even better now that they will count on him for more. Holliday figures to give them an instant impact in the backcourt, while Hishaw is a solid post player who should get better. They were near the bottom of the SWAC in scoring last season, so they know how to win without scoring a lot of points. If they can shoot (SWAC-best 43.8 percent last season) and defend like they did last season, while improving on their turnovers (only three SWAC teams had more), they’ll be right in the hunt.
Alabama A&M (13-13, 11-7 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
So. G Evan Hilton (5.5 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.2 apg)
Sr. G Johnnie Brown
Jr. G-F Kudus Ogbara (1.7 ppg, 1.3 rpg)
Sr. F Michael Ford (15.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 2.0 apg, 1.5 spg)
Jr. C Mickell Gladness (3.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.0 bpg)
Schedule Highlights: The Bulldogs open up in the BCA Classic, then four of the next five games are at home against non-Division I schools. After that, they hit the road for three tough ones: Nebraska, Mississippi and Vanderbilt. They also host Winston-Salem State in mid-February. In SWAC play, five of the first seven games are in Huntsville, giving the Bulldogs a chance to get some early momentum.
Outlook: There isn’t much size, but the Bulldogs have good personnel to play at high speeds. The question is if the backcourt experience will be enough, as the only senior who figures to start (Brown) didn’t play a lot last season. Ford is one of the conference’s best, while Gladness could blossom into one of the best post players and especially at the defensive end. Hilton had a good freshman season and must build on it to give them the leadership they need on the perimeter. It’s unlikely that they’ll lead the SWAC in scoring again, but they’re a good bet to force the most turnovers. If they defend like they did last season, they should have a chance at the title.
Alcorn State (13-16, 8-10 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
So. G Carl Landry (6.9 ppg, 1.9 rpg in 14 games)
Sr. G Delvin Thompson (17.2 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.7 spg)
Sr. G-F Clifton Douglas (11.4 ppg, 2.9 rpg)
Sr. F James Kendrick (4.5 ppg, 2.6 rpg)
Sr. C Juan Wyatt (9.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg)
Schedule Highlights: The Braves open the season in the 2K Sports Classic at Texas, where they play the host Longhorns and then either Chicago State or St. Bonaventure. Other schedule details were not available at press time.
Outlook: The Braves have the kind of veteran core that could make them a sleeper, led by one of the conference’s best players in Thompson. He leads a solid perimeter unit, although Landry is a bit unproven at the point. Douglas can score and will play off Thompson. They have some good size inside, though the Braves were out-rebounded last season. They’ll need to improve on that and take better care of the ball, as only one SWAC team turned the ball over more.
Alabama State (12-18, 10-8 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
Jr. G T.J. Jackson (junior college transfer)
Sr. G Dustin Richmond (5.2 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 2.3 apg)
So. G Andrew Hayles (8.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg)
Jr. F Richard Lott (7.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg)
Jr. F Miguel Morton (3.0 ppg, 2.7 rpg)
Schedule Highlights: The non-conference slate includes three home games, one of which is part of an in-season home-and-home with Georgia State. Notable road games include Southern Miss and Mississippi State, while they will also be in the Price Cutter Classic at Missouri State (playing the Bears and Santa Clara) and the Dr. Pepper Shootout at Southern Conference contender Chattanooga.
Outlook: The Hornets don’t have a star, but they have several capable of becoming good players. Hayles was the best freshman in the conference last season and should lead the backcourt, which last season led a team that struggled to shoot the ball from long range. The frontcourt picture isn’t clear aside from Lott, although they had a positive rebounding margin last season. If Lott gets some help inside from players like Morton and newcomers contribute on the perimeter, the Hornets have a chance to contend.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff (13-16, 8-10 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
Jr. G Phillip Brooks (3.3 ppg, 1.6 rpg in 19 games)
So. G Larry Williams (7.4 ppg, 2.1 rpg)
Sr. G V’Angelo Smith (7.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg)
Sr. F William Byrd (11.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.8 apg, 2.1 bpg)
Sr. F-C Jarvis Gunter (7.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.6 apg, 1.8 bpg)
Schedule Highlights: Schedule not available at press time.
Outlook: The Golden Lions found that defense was the key to success last season, so the next step is to improve on an offense that scored fewer points than all but one team and shot below 41 percent from the field. Improving on their negative rebounding margin would help, and the experience of Byrd and Gunter should help in that respect. There are no stars on the perimeter, which is always important at this level, but there is some experience and that could make up for some of that. Williams could blossom after a good freshman season and become the best player on that unit.
Mississippi Valley State (9-19, 9-9 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
Sr. G Tychicus Snow (8.0 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 2.4 apg)
Jr. G Stanford Speech (10.5 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.2 apg)
Jr. G-F Carl Lucas (4.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg in 18 games)
Sr. F Kadrian Bryant (7.9 ppg, 5.8 rpg)
Sr. F-C Jeffrey Price (8.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg)
Schedule Highlights: The only home games in a very tough non-conference slate are consecutive outings against McNeese State (part of a home-and-home this season) and Central Arkansas in December. The tough road slate looks like this: Mississippi, Creighton, Kentucky, USC, and in the Hispanic College Fund Classic, they take on Ohio Valley contender Samford, LSU and Horizon League contender Wright State. The Delta Devils will need to win some early games in conference play to have some momentum before a four-game road stretch starting in late January.
Outlook: The Delta Devils have a good core of players that return, giving them one of the most experienced starting lineups in the conference. They fell apart after a 6-1 start in SWAC play, so reversing that will certainly help. Speech looks like the best player, while Snow has to be a good floor leader and Bryant and Price are capable inside players. No team forced fewer turnovers than the Delta Devils last season, so the road to defensive improvement (opponents shot over 48 percent against them last season) will come from good halfcourt defense. They’ll need it since they were last in the conference in scoring last season and don’t look primed to make a big jump in that category this season.
Grambling State (14-13, 11-7 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
Fr. G Andre Southern
Jr. G Andre Ratliff (12.4 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.7 apg)
Sr. F Anthony Williams (10.0 ppg, 4.8 rpg)
Jr. F Martez Stephens (2.3 ppg, 3.6 rpg)
Jr. F-C John Dorsey (3.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg)
Schedule Highlights: The Tigers have two non-conference home games on tap, including their season opener against Texas College. They’ll hit the road to take on Conference USA contender Houston, TCU, Baylor, Dayton, and Texas A&M. They don’t get much of a break from the road once SWAC play begins, as four of the first six are on the road.
Outlook: Scoring machine Brion Rush is gone, and while there is some experience among the group that remains, there are question marks even though they learned to play without Rush after he got hurt last season. Ratliff is the clear leader along with Williams, but the frontcourt has big questions as Stephens and Dorsey must get better if they are to have a positive rebounding margin again. Newcomers will need to contribute, with Southern looking like the one most ready to do so.
Texas Southern (8-22, 6-12 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
Sr. G Courtenay Brown (6.2 ppg, 1.7 rpg)
Jr. G Dominique White (junior college transfer)
Sr. F Leonta Matthews (9.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg)
Jr. F Jacques Jones (8.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.8 apg)
Sr. F Christopher Moore (12.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.8 apg)
Schedule Highlights: A non-conference slate loaded with guarantee games has just four contests at home, only one of which is against a Division I school (Texas-Arlington). Notable opponents include Oklahoma State, Baylor, Alabama, Texas, Connecticut and Iowa. In SWAC play, their first three games and five of the first seven are on the road.
Outlook: The Tigers have serious questions at the worst possible positions – the perimeter – after losing four guards. It could be a blessing since those guards were part of the team that led the SWAC in turnovers. White is a capable floor leader and should start right away, while Brown is the only other known quantity. Moore, Jones and Matthews form a solid frontcourt that should certainly improve on their negative rebounding margin last season.
Prairie View A&M (5-24, 2-16 SWAC)
Projected Starters:
Sr. G Jared Ellison (4.2 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 1.9 apg)
Jr. G Andy Genao (junior college transfer)
Sr. G-F Chris Gaines (8.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg)
Sr. F Clifford Franks (5.7 ppg, 4.4 rpg)
Jr. F Thomas Morgan (junior college transfer)
Schedule Highlights: Schedule not available at press time.
Outlook: Get your program, Panther fans: new head coach Byron Rimm changed the roster up in a big way once he got the job in the spring, adding mainly junior college transfers. By season’s end, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the starting lineup consisted entirely of newcomers save for Gaines, the best of the holdovers. The Panthers probably won’t finish fifth in scoring again, which isn’t good since they were near the bottom in most other statistical categories last season.
Conference Outlook
Jackson State may be the favorites heading into the season, but they are by no means prohibitive. Several teams picked right behind them could contend, and there are reasons to think each one could come out on top. Even teams picked in the second division, like Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Mississippi Valley State, will be tough outs and could certainly finish higher than they are picked. Most of these teams will have a tough non-conference schedule, so come January they will be ready to take on their conference foes. Experience will be a big factor, as much as talent, so teams who have veterans have one more thing going for them.
