Welcome to Around the A-Sun. A daily blog about Atlantic Sun Conference Basketball. While conference play is just getting under way, the Atlantic Sun has already made noise on the national stage in non-conference play in many ways. The A-Sun scored wins against Auburn twice, Mississippi State, Wake Forest, Florida, Wyoming and Georgia Tech. Jacksonville University led by Cliff Warren had two of those victories beating both Auburn and Florida in impressive fashion. Additionally ETSU scored a huge victory at Dayton, ending their long home win streak. In all the A-Sun was 38-65 in non-conference play in the months of November and December against D-1 opposition.
In terms of conference play each team played two conference games sometime in the month of December and for the most part the results were as expected. The most surprising upset in conference during the month of December was when Eddie Payne and his USC-Upstate Spartans went and beat ETSU by 1 point. Daily at the bottom of each blog you will see updated A-Sun standings and if you would like to know the most up to date information on who is in the lead you can do that at the bottom of this blog.
As January has begun and 10 of the 12 A-Sun teams have now played 4 conference games we are now beginning to get a feel for how the conference is shaping up. Campbell this year is the lone school without a travel partner, as they will be moving on to the Big South next year. Additionally you will find some news and notes at the bottom of each blog as well, which will provide you with information on certain teams, players, coaches and other important information as I see fit. Otherwise, enjoy the blog and please spread the word throughout College Basketball, Mid-Major Basketball and the Atlantic Sun Conference!
News and Notes (1/6/11)
- Belmont HC Rick Byrd became just the 5th active D-1 HC with 500 wins at Stetson on 1/5. He joins Mike Krzyzewski (Duke), Jim Boeheim (Syracuse), Jim Calhoun (UConn), and Dave Bike (Sacred Heart) as the only active coaches with 500 wins, Congrats!
- With one of the youngest line ups in the A-Sun 11th year Stetson HC has picked up two impressive conference wins already on his early slate with a Win @ North Florida, and a Home victory against pre-season favorite Lipscomb, to go along with his opening night victory at Wake Forest!
- Lipscomb features the trio of Adnan Hodzic, Josh Slater and Jordan Burgason once again this season. Both Hodzic and Slater were named to the Bleacher Report All Mid-Major Team
- While 4th year transitioning school FGCU is 0-4 early on in A-Sun play, Dave Balza and his Eagles have promising talent still around in Michigan transfer Reed Baker, along with Anthony Banks and newcomer Marlon Rivera.
- Campbell is a team who had a strong non conference season, however they have lost the last 3 games in A-Sun play after beating USC Upstate. Campbell does boast the conferences most experienced back court in Junard Hartley and Lorne Merthie.
- Kennesaw State is a team who has struggled in all facets of the basketball season thus far under HC Tony Ingle. After beating Georgia Tech early in the non-conference season there haven't been many positives after that. With a 3-11 record and winless on the road, many expected returnees Markeith Cummings, Spencer Dixon, Matt Heramb and LaDaris Green to have a greater impact. Kennesaw State travels to Campbell for a Friday Night Game of the Week on CSS.
- With 6 of the next 8 games for the Mercer Bears on the road, now is the time for HC Bob Hoffman and his team to see what they are made of. Only 4-11 thus far and another team without a road on the slate yet, it is time for Mercer to wake up. After losing both James Florence and Daniel Emerson to graduation, they have had to count on Jeff Smith, Brian Mills and Brandon Moore to be their contributors. Those guys weren't exactly the go to guys last year and they have had to get used to going from role players to guys who Coach Hoffman depends on, on a nightly basis. Should be interesting to keep tabs on the Mercer Bears, considering they are hosting the A-Sun Champions for the next 3 years.
- USC-Upstate has probably had the toughest time making the transition to Division 1 over the last couple years. With their 7 footer Nick Schneiders no longer a Spartan, they have had to rely on other contributors to provide a spark. While the Spartans are only 2-12 and are another A-Sun team without a road victory, they do hold an impressive win against Lipscomb in conference play, and are 2-1 at the newly renovated G.B. Hodge Center in Spartanburg, SC. The Spartans have 4 of the next 6 games at the Hodge Center, and should be able to get some things accomplished in their last year in transition.
- The Bucs of ETSU are a team who are used to many things in the A-Sun, mainly championships, however getting upset by the USC-Upstate Spartans isn't one of them. While ETSU does hold one loss in conference play already, they have an undefeated record on their home floor thus far. Big contributor Tommy Hubbard is likely out for the season and Curtis Wilkinson has been used off and on for Coach Murray Bartow. They are using a 7 to 8 man rotation, as Mike Smith is back this year after using a medical redshirt last year.
- The University of North Florida Ospreys who enter their second year under HC Matthew Driscoll are looking to improve in many ways. While the Ospreys only boast a 5-9 record, they played 4 Top 25 teams in non-conference play, including Kansas State, Purdue, Texas and Missouri and they became the first team in the history of the A-Sun to win 3 game pre-season tournaments in consecutive years. Last year they won the Southern Miss Christmas Classic and this year during Thanksgiving they won a tournament in Cancun, which featured Morgan State, Prairie View A&M, Missouri and Wyoming.
- The JU Dolphins have probably been the most surprising team thus far in the A-Sun considering who graduated and the production they should have lost. However, HC Cliff Warren has done a great job re-tooling for yet another run at an A-Sun Championship and postseason play. With LSU transfer Delwan Graham, and Seniors Ayron Hardy and Travis Cohn leading the way the Dolphins of JU have posted impressive victories against Auburn and Florida and are the only team besides Belmont who remains undefeated in conference play. With a trip to Nashville on the horizon, this should be a good test for a young Dolphin squad who is looking to surprise many in the A-Sun.
A-Sun Standings
1. Belmont 4-0 (12-3)
2. Jacksonville 3-0 (9-3)
3. Lipscomb 3-1 (8-5)
4. ETSU 3-1 (8-7)
5. North Florida 2-1 (5-9)
6. Stetson 2-2 (4-10)
7. Campbell 1-3 (7-6)
8. Mercer 1-3 (4-11)
9. Kennesaw State 1-3 (3-11)
10. USC Upstate 1-3 (2-12)
11. FGCU 0-4 (3-10)
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