Southern Illinois (sillyjordan)
Are they going to be good or suck?
The Salukis should again be near the top of the East. Although they lost some key pieces, many of the lost minutes can be filled internally.
What they lost
The Salukis lost Conference Player of the Year, PG, Phillip Reinhold. Reinhold averaged almost 21 points per game. Starting SG, Robert Fuller, has also moved on.
Key returning players
Replacing the lost backcourt production will be key for the Salukis. Assuming the rape charges do not stick, Lawrence Virgil will likely take over the starting PG duties and should do well. Frederick Fuller should be in the running for this edition of Conference Player of the Year.
Additional Note
A saluki is known as the Royal Dog of Egypt. It gets its name from the town of Suluk, Libya.
Creighton (terps21234)
Are they going to be good or suck?
The Bluejays may get a little bloodied this season. With only six returning players and no seniors, this recruiting class will be very important. A key for Creighton will be getting as many wins in non-conference as possible.
What they lost
The Bluejays lost six to graduation. The trio of Charles Anderson, James Banks, and Bob Cedeno accounted for over 40 points per game.
Key returning players
With most of their production having moved on to the ranks of the unemployed, there will be plenty of opportunity for playing time and for the backups from last year to take center stage.
Additional Note
A terrapin is not vicious at all. They eat mostly periwinkle snails. A bluejay is much more vicious, as they will peck your freakin eye out.
Evansville (goblue120)
Are they going to be good or suck?
The Purple Aces should take a big step up this season and be in the postseason mix. With good recruiting, goblue has turned this team around in short order. With only two Sim AI assbags remaining, next season should be even better. The Aces will have a hard time in non-conference with a very tough schedule, but should be a force come conference time.
What they lost
The Aces lost Nathaniel Babb, who averaged 6 points per game. Whoop-de-do.
Key returning players
With virtually all of their production back from last season, there will be a lot of experience in the lineup. Richard Eisenhart will be among the leading scorers, as he averaged 13 ppg last season and should go up a bit this season.
Additional Note
Evansville was originally called “McGary’s Landing”, after the city’s founder, Hugh McGary. McGary renamed the town “Evansville”, after Colonel Bob Evans, in order to attract more settlers. Apparently, McGary thought the settlers would be attracted by Thanksgiving dinner every day and delicious breakfast sausage. Brilliant.
Bradley (bredden18)
Are they going to be good or suck?
The Braves should be near the top of the East. Like Southern Illinois, the Braves lost some key production but are hoping that the void can be filled internally.
What they lost
The Braves lost their best player, Cameron Tone, who averaged nearly 18 ppg. Starting SF, Robert Howard has also moved on to graduate school at MIT.
Key returning players
The Braves will be looking for solid production from Harold Hartman in the low post. Maurice Jagger and james Perkins will be splitting the PG duties, so they will be heavily relied upon to replace Tone.
Gardner-Webb (daveredden50)
Are they going to be good or suck?
The Runnin’ Bulldogs return six key players from their national tournament team last season. With six newcomers, there will be a lack of depth. This should be managed pretty well, though, as many of the minutes will be used by the top six as the Bulldogs will benefit from the extra minutes that can be played with the zone defense. Lack of depth down low will be a problem.
What they lost
The Bulldogs lose six, including first team All-Conference player Travis Byrnes, who averaged 21 ppg. Along with Byrnes, the Bulldogs lost senior C, Clinton Morrison.
Key returning players
Although no returning player was a major scorer last season, there should be enough offensive firepower on the team. Al Rankin will be a primary scorer down low, and there are several returning players that could make an impact on the perimeter.
Additional Note
Spud Webb actually went to NC State. What a slap in the face!!!
Western Kentucky (westcoast22)
Are they going to be good or suck?
The Hilltoppers are very similar to the Bulldogs in that they lost six players, but return some very nice pieces. Depth will be a concern as well, as they do not have the advantage of masking their lack of depth by playing zone defense. The roster for the Hilltoppers is more balanced, though, so it will only be necessary to fill the backup spots.
What they lost
The Hilltoppers lose six, including All-Conference players Shawn LaCoste, Anthony Wells, and Maximo Romano. Now that Anthony Wells no longer has to worry about basketball, he is free to spend his time on his first love – monster trucks.
Key returning players
Additional Note
Northern Iowa (jesseerdmann)
Are they going to be good or suck?
The Panthers have a good chance to surprise and challenge for the West Division. They are a team that returns eleven players. They should improve a lot over the course of the year as the sophomores get more PT and better IQs.
What they lost
All-Conference PF, James Osborne, and his 13.6 ppg, have moved on. He has joined the Arena League in hopes of becoming the next Kurt Warner.
Key returning players
Fred Mick should be beastly this season. He should get a touch on every possession and shut other teams down on the low post.
Additional Note
I’m losing all creativity.
Wichita State (twiddlebug)
Are they going to be good or suck?
Wow, they are going to suck. The Shockers return a couple of good offensive players, but this is a team that may set a record for most points scored against. The good news is that our newest coach to the conference, twiddlebug, will have this program turned around in no time, just like goblue and jesseerdmann have with their squads.
What they lost
There were a couple ugly offseason incidents that occurred this offseason, resulting in three players no longer being with the team. Bo Chin and Peter Endo are currently awaiting trial as the ringleaders of an international sex trafficking ring. They are set to go on trial in March and will likely be looking at upwards of fifty years in prison. Ronald Ptaszynski was pecked in the eye by a bluejay and then eaten by a terrapin.
Key returning players
Daniel Arrey should be able to fill it up. Russo and Lheureux should be serviceable players as well.
Additional Note
The long term success of the Shockers will hinge on whether or not twiddlebug can stay away from the Rolla girls and his calculus text book for enough time to make the team competitive.
Don’t worry about the limit of a function as x approaches infinity. Instead, worry about your team rebounding rating.
If you find yourself doing logarithmic differentiation, such as D{x(2x+3)}, realize that is doing nothing for the Shockers.