With all the attention that the ACC, Big 12, Pac-12, and other divisions are getting, Conference USA is always expected to be under-the-radar. However, it is arguable that teams in this conference are pretty competitive with each other, especially this year.
There’s UAB (CUSA’s consistent powerhouse squad) Marshall’s offensive firepower, Rice’s one-man show with Marcus Evans, and Middle Tennessee’s duo of Giddy Potts and Reggie Upshaw. There’s simply a lot to be seen in this conference.
Allow us to preview each team and see how well they’d do this season. Read on!
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UAB Blazers
2015 Record: 16-2
Predicted Record: 15-3
There are two key losses prior to the start of the season: coach Jerrod Haase, who’s with Stanford now, and the graduated Robert Brown. Despite that, though, especially Brown, their best scorer and most prolific shooter, the Blazers are still projected to once again lead the conference standings.
Assuming the scoring duties will be forwards Nick Norton, Chris Cokley and William Lee, expect those three ball-hustlers to average around 12-15 per game this season. Lee, who at 6’9 is smaller than most big men he’s facing, averaged three blocks last year. He’ll continue being the team’s rim protector.
The new guys will be freshman Nate Darling and Southern Illinois transferee Deion Lavender. They’ll look to bolster the Blazers’ outside shooting.
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
2015 Record: 13-5
Predicted Record: 10-8
A handful of players from the previous year have either left or moved on, with the biggest being graduated forwards Darnell Harris and Perrin Buford. Because of that, we will, see more opportunities for Giddy Potts and Reggie Upshaw (not that they didn’t have it before). Look for the two to continue being 1A and 1B in the Blue Raiders’ scoring.
Harris and Buford’s place in the rotation, meanwhile, will be replaced by Arkansas transferee JaCorey Williams and Brandon Walters. At 6’10, 265lbs, Walters should be able to add a good presence in the team’s interior defense.
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
2015 Record: 8-10
Predicted Record: 11-7
The Hilltoppers weren’t able to bring in any highly-touted recruits this year. New coach Rick Stansbury, however, did an amazing job bringing in an amazing set of transferees. It’s arguably one of the best in years.
Headlining that list is Que Johnson, the talented forward from Washington State. He should emerge as the Hilltoppers’ leading offensive weapon, and even be a contender for the All-CUSA team.
The team’s rotation will likely include last year’s key scorer Justin Johnson, Tennessee transferees Willie Carmichael and Jabari McGhee, and Providence transferee Junior Lomomba.
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
2015 Record: 12-6
Predicted Record: 12-6
With point guard and number one offense catalyst Alex Hamilton gone, there’s just one guy to assume as to who’ll takeover the scoring load: Erik McCree. The power forward arguably has the best low post game in the whole conference, and could also hit an occasional three. He should be able to land a spot in the All-CUSA team this year.
Head coach Erik Konkol loaded up in the four position this year, adding true freshman Oliver Powell and Miami transferee Omar Sherman. Along with McCree, the two will provide a big threat to anyone driving to the Bulldogs’ paint area.
As for Hamilton’s position, it’ll be taken over by Derric Jean. We’ll project him to be a good replacement since he has shown last year what he could do, despite playing limited minutes.
Marshall Thundering Herd
2015 Record: 12-6
Predicted Record: 9-9
Marshall will once again enter the year as one of the conference’s most exciting teams. Last year, their offense was on high gear, ranking third in the nation with 86 points per game. There won’t be any difference this season, and we’ll continue seeing coach Dan D’Antoni’s small ball system reign in Marshall’s play.
The loss of leading scorer James Kelly to graduation is huge, but for a team with plenty of shooters in a three-pointer-happy offense, a new scorer can easily emerge in no time. Jon Elmore and Ryan Taylor are the projected guys to that. Expect the two to get 16-18 points per game this season.
In case you’re wondering, yes, Dan is current Houston Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni’s brother. Run and gun offense definitely runs in the family.
Rice Owls
2015 Record: 7-11
Predicted Record: 8-10
It will be really interesting to see how well Marcus Evans could do now that he has a better feel for the college game. Will he continue being a monster or will it be a sophomore slump?
For now, we’ll project him to finish the season as of the conference’s top scorers. He recorded 21.5 points per game last year, and he should be able to average in the 20-23 range this year. Evans will also take over a lot of the play making duties with Max Guercy gone, and he’ll now partner with Egor Koulechov in the back court full-time. The two will be headaches for the opposing guards.
UTEP Miners
2015 Record: 10-8
Predicted Record: 8-10
The Miners’ core of all-around point guard Dominic Artis, shooter Omega Harris, classic forward Terry Winn, and the 7’1 Matt Williams looks really good. It’s pretty balanced, and all will interchange games in leading the team in overall production.
However, it’s hard seeing them topping the conference with all the talent they’ll have to face. UTEP’s lack in depth in almost all positions makes them an average team in the CUSA.
Old Dominion Monarchs
2015 Record: 12-6
Predicted Record: 7-11
The upcoming season isn’t looking good for the Monarchs. Their best player, the guy that carried them for the past couple of years, Trey Freeman, has moved on. They simply relied on the dynamic guard too much. It’s a loss that’s going to a leave a mark, a mark that’ll have this team ranking towards the bottom of the standings.
Junior forward Brandan Stith will pick up the scoring duties, and he’ll probably average a good double-double this year, but putting the ball in the basket will likely be a weakness for ODU moving forward.
Defensively, they still have the pieces to be competitive. They should finish having the conference’s best D, reminiscent of last year, when they only allowed 61.6 points per game (7th in the nation).
Charlotte 49ers
2015 Record: 9-9
Predicted Record: 5-13
Charlotte has nine new guys on their roster, but it’ll still be about their three deadly guards – Braxton Ogbueze, Andrien White, and Jon Davis – who collectively made 6.2 threes per game last year. The trio will continue being the main offensive weapon for the team.
Unfortunately for the 49ers, the three shooters are all they have. They are quite thin in other positions and areas. When they’re super on, they’ll shoot the lights out and beat other teams, when they’re not or at least average, expect another loss. With that, we see this team finishing the year with an unpleasant record.
Florida Atlantic Owls
2015 Record: 5-13
Predicted Record: 6-12
Like Charlotte, Florida Atlantic also did a lot in the summer, bringing in eight new faces to the team.
Point guard Nick Rutherford, who had a great freshman year, should have an increased load on offense, and he’ll again partner with Adonis Filer in the back court, one of the team’s key scorers last season. The main man on the paint, Ronald Delph, is projected to have a bigger production. With the starting PG now more experienced, he should have a great opportunity to do just that.
North Texas Mean Green
2015 Record: 7-11
Predicted Record: 4-14
The good news for North Texas is they’ll have their top three scorers from last season back – Jeremy Combs, J-Mychal Reese, and Deckie Johnson. All averaged 14 or more points last season and they’ll look to do the same this year. The bad news is their post presence is still suspect, which is always significant to a team’s success.
Sophomore big man Rickey Brice is their most intriguing player, since many are regarding the kid to be CUSA’s future star center. He only got 13.6 minutes per game last season, and he was able to show us some flashes. We’re projecting Brice to give North Texas around 10 points, seven rebounds, three blocks this season.
Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles
2015 Record: 5-13
Predicted Record: 5-13
Now that Kourtlin Jackson’s scoring and shooting ability is gone, the Golden Eagles will be turning to Khari Price and Eddie Davis III.
Davis was only able to suit up for nine games last year, he’s now back full-time. Price, meanwhile, had balanced stats last season – 9.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 4.5 assists – expect him to increase all those numbers. Look for forward Raheem Watts, who’ll be in his final year, to also have good closing season.
Florida International Panthers
2015 Record: 7-11
Predicted Record: 3-15
The Panthers didn’t bring in a single freshman this year, relying more on transfers, which they did an okay job on.
Head coach Anthony Evans is probably aiming to be college basketball’s Milwaukee Bucks with all the size he has added to the core. With Michael Kessens, Jay Harvey, Richard Bivens, and junior Hassan Hussein, this team now has four guys that are 6’9. They’re good anchors for an intimidating interior defense.
With size and big men depth now addressed decently, they should probably focus on perimeter and outside shooting. Last season, they were one of CUSA’s worst three-point shooting teams, only averaging 5.6 threes per game.
Donte McGill, their projected leading scorer for the second straight year, has a big responsibility on offense. He should average around 18-20 points and add a couple of more assists to his numbers – he only had 1.3 assists per game in 2015.
UTSA Roadrunners
2015 Record: 3-15
Predicted Record: 2-16
Two wins sounds harsh, but considering that they lost two of their leading scorers from last year, Ryan Bowie and Christian Wilson, it seems fair. The duo combined for 37-plus points per game last season (UTSA averaged 72.4 ppg).
The new scoring partners for the team will be J.R. Harris and Gino Littles – Harris was their third scorer last year, but he shot an awful 35-percent from the field, while Littles can be a decent point guard at best.
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