NCAA Basketball: 10 mid-majors to watch for ahead of 2021 offseason

South Alabama Jaguars

• 2020-21 record: 17-11 overall, 10-7 Sun Belt
• Key returners: Jamal West (5.7 ppg)
• Key additions: Greg Parham (VMI, 18.4 ppg), Lance Thomas (Memphis, 2.1 ppg), Diante Smith (TCU, 1.5 ppg), Javon Franklin (Auburn, 1.3 ppg), Tyrell Jones (Auburn, 3.3 ppg), Charles Manning, Jr. (LSU, 4.2 ppg), Jay Jay Chandler (Texas A&M, 8.2 ppg), Tyler Shirley (three-star SF)

Few teams will undergo as radical of an identity change as South Alabama.  After winning 20 games in 2019-20, the Jaguars suffered few missteps in following up that showing in Richie Riley’s third season, finishing third in the East Division in the Sun Belt and maintaining the fifth-best overall winning percentage of any team in the conference.

Among the most notable performances of the year were three wins over eventual Sun Belt champions Appalachian State and a nine-point loss at Auburn.  The Jaguars’ success can largely be attributed to the trio of Michael Flowers, Tyreke Locure, and John Pettway – all three of whom averaged double-digits while playing at least 34 minutes a game last season, with Flowers leading the way behind 21.0 points per game.

But now, all three are gone – and then some.  In total, eight different Jaguars from last season’s roster have decided to enter the transfer portal – including Flowers (Washington State), Locure (UAB), and Pettway (undecided).  Despite the substantial turnover, however, the Jaguars may actually, bizarrely, be as good – if not better – next year, on paper, at the very least.

While eight players have opted to leave the program, at least seven players in the transfer portal have decided to join South Alabama – six of whom reign from Power 5 institutions, while the seventh, Greg Parham, was one of the deadliest scorers in the nation last year, pouring in double-digits in 22 games last season, including a streak of seven tilts where he logged over 22 points in each performance.  In addition, Parham led the team in both assists (4.04) and steals (1.08) per game.

Time will tell if the conglomerate of talent can ultimately mesh together from the get-go, but Riley’s assortment of P5 pedigree – spearheaded by a terrifying offensive talent in Parham – has all the ingredients to catapult South Alabama to the forefront of the Sun Belt, and, potentially, the Jaguars’ first conference title since 2006 and NCAA Tournament bid since 2008.