Busting Brackets
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Southland Basketball Tournament: Sam Houston State looking for first title this decade

By Daniel Benjamin

HONOLULU, HI - DECEMBER 23: The Stephen F. Austin bench celebrates after scoring during the second half of the Diamond Head Classic NCAA college basketball game at Stan Sheriff Center on December 23, 2016 in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photo by Darryl Oumi/Getty Images)
HONOLULU, HI - DECEMBER 23: The Stephen F. Austin bench celebrates after scoring during the second half of the Diamond Head Classic NCAA college basketball game at Stan Sheriff Center on December 23, 2016 in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photo by Darryl Oumi/Getty Images) /
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DALLAS, TX – MARCH 15: Leon Gilmore III
DALLAS, TX – MARCH 15: Leon Gilmore III /

Contenders and Bracketology

Top Contender: Abilene Christian

The Wildcats are the favorites to claim the conference tournament crown, per Team Rankings, despite dropping both of their games against Sam Houston State. But ACU is fantastic on the defensive end, ranking 16th in the country in defensive rating. The Wildcats, who are allowing just 63.1 points a game, are very good at guarding the 3-point line and creating turnovers.

Offensively, Abilene Christian thrives in transition, although they are also a very good shooting team. The Wildcats are shooting 47.3% from the field and 38.8% from beyond the arc. They also protect the ball well.

Senior forward Jaren Lewis leads a veteran Abilene squad in both scoring and rebounding.  ACU uses a nine-man rotation but they suffered huge losses with the dismissal of 6-foot-9 center Jalone Friday and 6-foot-5 wing B.J. Maxwell. Still, the Wildcats have won six of seven with five of the wins coming by double-digits. They also have a plus-11 point differential which tops the conference.

Other Contenders: Sam Houston St. SE Louisiana

Sam Houston State: The Bearkats are a very good shooting team who shares the ball extremely well. The Kats, who rank 18th in the nation in assists, leads the conference in 3-point percentage at 39.7% while knocking down the second most triples (184). Overall, they are 41st in the country in 3-point shooting (294) and 65th in 3-point accuracy (36.9%). SHSU also is second in the conference in both field goal and free throw percentage.

Delaney along with Mitchell and Josh Delaney, who is Cameron’s brother, leads a guard-oriented offense. SHSU is solid defensively as the Kats are limiting opponents to 42.9% from the field and 33.6% from the 3-point line. The Bearkats also turn their opponents over a lot.

Southeastern Louisiana: Can the Lions produce enough offense? That is the biggest question heading into the tournament. SE Louisiana ranks 305th in the country in the scoring at 67.1 a game, however, the Lions have increased their scoring by four points a game during conference play to 71.6 as they are shooting 46.3% from the field as well as 37.0% from the 3-point line. Turnovers have been a huge problem for them as they are averaging 16.3 a game.

The Lions have been staunch defensively all season as they defend the three-point line well and defend the 3-point line.

Veal and Greenwood are the conference’s best inside/outside combo and if they are playing at their best, the Lions will be an extremely tough out. SE Louisiana has won 12 of its last 15 games.

 Biggest Sleeper: Lamar

Lamar is the most well-balanced team and is currently playing their best basketball of the season. The Cardinals have won eight straight games which include victories over Sam Houston State, Houston Baptist, and Corpus Christi.

Garth leads four players averaging double-figures and six players who are contributing at least nine points. Josh Nzeakor is one of the conference’s best inside players and is an excellent offensive rebounder. Jordan Hunter and Davion Buster along with Garth are averaging at least 1.5 three-pointers a game.

Lamar ranks in the nation in both offensive and defensive ranking as the Cardinals get to free throw line frequently and they don’t foul a lot.

Bracketology

The Southland Conference has had considerable success in the NCAA Tournament throughout the years, posting a 16-42 record. Stephen F. Austin is the last program to earn a Tournament victory which occurred in 2014.

SFA was a 14 seed in each of their last two NCAA Tournament appears although the Lumberjacks were a 12th seed in 2014 and 2015. New Orleans was a first four participant in 2017.

Southland is ranked 30th among all conferences. However, the conference is a combined 191-207 for a .480 winning percentage which ranks 23rd best. Five teams currently have 16 wins and just two squads have fewer than 10 victories. SHSU and ACU are likely 15 seeds if they earn the conference’s lone bid. Any other champion will most likely receive a 16 seed.