Texas-Arlington

Daily Conference Poll: Who Will Win the Southland?

Shawn Siegel — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 11:25:58 -0500

Southland Basketball Preview: 08-09

CHN — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 10:17:58 -0500

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Conference Rank: 21st

10 year average: 27th

All-Southland Team
Pos.	Player	Team	Yr.

G	Devin Gibson	Texas-SA	So
G	Josh Alexander	SFA	Sr
G	Kenny Dawkins	Lamar	Sr
F	Anthony Vereen	Texas-Arlington	Sr
F	Matt Kingsley	SFA	Sr
CHN Award Winners		Returning Leaders
Mid-Major All-Americans Josh Alexander Devin Gibson		Points: Josh Alexander 16.0 Rebounds: Brandon Bush (Tex St) 7.2 Assists: Eric Bell (SFA) 5.7

Southland Standings
Nat'l	Team	League	Tourney

84	Stephen F. Austin	Southland	1	NCAA
133	Lamar	Southland	2
150	Texas Arlington**	Southland	3
187	Sam Houston St	Southland	4
230	McNeese State	Southland	5
242	Northwestern St	Southland	6
250	Texas San Anton	Southland	7
257	SE Louisiana	Southland	8
272	TAMU CC	Southland	9
277	Texas State	Southland	10
294	Nicholls State	Southland	11
312	Central Arkansas	Southland	12

*Click on links for full Top 144 team preview

** returning conference champion

Poll: Who Do You Think Will Win the Southland? (soon)

Other SLC Content

Conference Media/Coaches Poll

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Rise & Fall: Southland

State of 08: Texas

State of '08: Texas

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 21:15:15 -0400

Duke or Carolina? BC or UMASS? Gonzaga or Washington.. or Washington State? What is the best program in each state? While there's not much competition in Hawaii.. there are great debates to be had in loaded regions like California, North Carolina, and Texas. The State of '08 is a ranking of every program in every state.. based mostly on recent success (the last five years) mixed in with subjective factors such as conference prestige, historical success, and overall program direction.

For more info, check out the State of '08 introduction.

TEXAS

TEXAS - Easy one here. Texas has made ten straight NCAA Tournaments under Rick Barnes, and have reached the Sweet Sixteen or better fives times.

TEXAS A&M - From 1988 to 2004, A&M was a horrendous BCS program that managed justt one NIT appearance. But thanks to Billy Gillispie, A&M has won at least 20 games and made the postseason in four straight seasons. The future of the program is a bit less certain under Mark Turgeon.

TEXAS TECH - In Bob Knight's six full seasons, the Red Raiders made 4 NCAA Tournaments and reached the NIT semifinals. Last year's team was destined to miss the postseason regardless of who the coach was, and its hard to project what type of coach Pat Knight will be.

BAYLOR - Scott Drew took over a broken program at the start of the 03-04 season, but has managed to turn things around. Last year the team won 21 games and reached the Big Dance. Many pundits expect a Top 25 squad this year. Not bad considering the 21-53 record from '04 to '07.

UTEP - Since 2004, a year after Billy Gillispied took over, UTEP has made two NCAA Tournaments and the CBI. The Niners should once again make a postseason push (probably NIT or CBI) in 2009.

6. HOUSTON - Its been over 15 years since Houston last made the NCAA Tournament, but Tom Penders teams have been consistently competitive. His four teams have all won at least 9 games in Conference USA, and 3 made the postseason (2 NITS and the CBI last year).

7. NORTH TEXAS - Johnny Jones has quietly transformed UNT from a consistent loser into a consistent winner. The Mean Green made the Big Dance in 2007 after rolling through the Sun Belt Tournament, and were solid last year, going 17-11 against D1 teams. Once again in 2008, North Texas should be dangerous in league play.

8. SAM HOUSTON STATE - Last year's Bearkats fizzled out after a great start, and late-season SLC tournament success has been hard to come by recently. But overall, this has been the most consistently solid SLC team over the last decade, and one of the only league teams capable of knocking off big-name non-conference opponents.

9. RICE - The program finally parted ways with 16-year coach Willis Wilson, whose teams varied from good to horrible and anywhere in between. From '03 to '05, the Owls finished in the RPI Top 100, but have gone steadily downhill since. Last year's 3-27 finish was an unfortunate end to Wilson's tenure.

10. STEPHEN F AUSTIN - SFA's great 26 win season, which included wins over Oklahoma and Top 100 San Diego, came out of nowhere considering the Lumberjacks were a sub-200 RPI team the previous three seasons. SFA is the 2009 favorite to accomplish what they couldn't last year, winning the Southland tournament.

11. TEXAS A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI - Ronnie Arrow did a masterful job in his tenure at TAMU-CC, turning a green D1 program into a 20-win program. But after making the Dance in 2007, Arrow left, and its hard to tell whether the program can regain a decent level of success under Perry Clark.

12. TCU - In six seasons under Neil Dougherty, TCU never finished over .500 in either the CUSA or MWC, although the 2005 team did sneak into the NIT. Former Kent State coach Jim Christian was hired in the off-season to turn things around.

13. LAMAR - In the last 7 seasons, Lamar has finished .500 or better in the SLC six times, but have never really been able to put together a dangerous postseason run.

14. UT-ARLINGTON - After making the NCAAs last year, UTA is once again one of the league favorites. In the previous 9 seasons though, the Mavs won just a single SLC Tourney game.

15. SMU - The last time SMU was any good was 2003, and the last time SMU was Tournament good was 1993. Matt Doherty was brought in to turn things around, but his teams have gone 7-25 in CUSA play.

16. UTSA - Once one of the more consistently solid Southland teams, UTSA simply hasn't been good the past few seasons. A 2009 .500 finish in the league would be a step in the right direction.

17. UTPA - Considering they've been stuck as an independent for a decade now, UTPA's minimal success isn't that bad. They've been able to beat a good amount of the in-state Southland members over the years, but haven't beaten a Top 200 team since December of 2004.

18. TEXAS STATE - In '06 & '07, this was one of the worst programs in the country, with just 8 D1 wins. That makes last year's 10-16 D1 record shockingly good.

19. TEXAS SOUTHERN - After winning the SWAC in 2003, there hasn't been much to cheer about at Texas Southern. The team has hovered around 300 in the RPI.

20. PRAIRIE VIEW - Like Texas Southern above, Prairie View hasn't been good since 2003.. but unlike Texas Southern who has at least been decent in SWAC play, the Panthers have been atrocious.

*Houston Baptist will also join D1 this season

Last: Tennessee - Next: Utah

State of '08: The Introduction (& State list/links)

Team of the Moment: UT-Arlington

Raphielle Johnson — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 15:39:44 -0400

Texas-Arlington 21-11 (7-9 Southland) Computer numbers (through Saturday; courtesy of kenpom.com): RPI 149, SOS 212 Result today: Defeated Northwestern State 82-79 to win the Southland Conference title. Make way for another NCAA Tournament first-timer, with the Mavericks of Texas-Arlington punching their ticket to the Dance with a hard-fought win over Northwestern State. Junior forward Anthony Vereen led the way with 25 points and nine rebounds, but the biggest development in regards to next week may be the health of guard Rog'er Guignard, who went down late with an apparent ankle injury. Guignard, who comes off the bench, is an "instant offense" type of player who can give teams fits when on his game. Now, where does this team go? Their overall record is a bit deceiving when you account for the fact that the Mavericks have four wins over non-Division I teams this season. Hello Dayton? We'll find out in a matter of minutes who will play Coppin State on Tuesday, but I think it's a toss-up between the Mavericks and Mount St. Mary's. But the only thing that matters right now to UT-Arlington is this: they're making their first trip to the NCAA Tournament. On the clock: Georgia and Illinois. If your team happens to be on the bubble, you'd better cheer like you-know-what for opponents Arkansas and Wisconsin. If the Bulldogs and Fighting Illini complete their magical runs, someone (or someones if both win) will be staying home.

2008 NCAA Tournament Capsule: Texas-Arlington

Joel Welser — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 00:50:48 -0400

Texas Arlington Mavericks

Southland (21-11, 7-9)

Seed: #16

South Region

RPI: 144

Big Wins: 11/21 North Texas (72-64), 3/1 at Stephen F. Austin (75-65), 3/14 vs Sam Houston State (72-66)

Bad Losses: 1/10 at Central Arkansas (68-70), 2/16 McNeese State (69-74), 3/8 at Texas State (86-97)

Last NCAA Appearance: none

Coach: Scott Cross (First NCAA appearance)

Probable Starters:

Rog’er Guignard, Sophomore, Guard, 13.0 ppg, 2.8 apg

Rod Epps, Senior, Guard, 8.4 ppg, 2.6 apg

Tommy Moffitt, Sophomore, Forward, 5.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg

Larry Posey, Senior, Forward, 8.5 ppg, 6.1 rpg

Jermaine Griffin, Senior, Center, 12.2 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 1.1 bpg

Key Roleplayers:

Cardell Hunter, Sophomore, Guard, 4.2 ppg, 2.9 apg

Jeremy Smith, Freshman, Guard, 3.0 ppg, 1.2 apg

Anthony Vereen, Junior, Forward, 13.6 ppg, 4.8 rpg

Trey Parker, Freshman, Forward, 2.3 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.2 bpg

Why They Can Surprise:

The strength of Texas Arlington is in the frontcourt. Anthony Vereen, the team’s leading scorer, usually comes in off the bench and that goes to show how much talent the frontcourt actually has. The 6-7 forward has the strength to battle in the paint, but he is most effective getting to the basket. Like Vereen, Tommy Moffitt can stretch out the defense with his outside shooting. Those two will hit the glass effectively and have helped the Mavericks become one of the best rebounding teams in the Southland Conference, but it is the bigger bodies under the basket that help the most.

Larry Posey might only be 6-5, but he will use his 250 pound frame to pound in the paint. The senior has developed into a solid scoring threat under the basket and is a decent rebounder and defender. At 6-9, center Jermaine Griffin is the tallest player on the team. He averages 12.2 points per game and a team high 7.0 rebounds. On the defensive side of the floor, Griffin is a decent shot blocker and can make it difficult for the opponents to get into the paint.

Why They Can Disappoint:

With all the forwards who have the ball in their hands, it leads to some problems from the charity stripe. Vereen is a solid free-throw shooter, but the rest of the frontcourt is hovering around the 60 percent mark, or worse. UTA will need every point possible to pull off an upset and every free-throw will be very important. Every possession will be important as well and the Mavericks commit 17.4 turnovers per game.

Who To Watch:

Texas Arlington does have three perimeter players who can handle the ball, but they will have to do a better job of keeping the turnovers to a minimum. Rog’er Guignard is a superb scorer and knocks down about three shots from beyond the arc per contest. Rod Epps is a decent scoring threat, but his greatest asset is using his quickness to get to the basket and creating shots for his teammates. Cardell Hunter will not score like Guignard and Epps, but he is arguably the best passer on the team and will be on the floor when the Mavericks need another guard who can handle the ball.

By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 73.5 (85^th in nation, 4^th in conference)

Scoring Defense: 68.1 (152, 6)

Field-Goal Percentage: 47.8 (26, 1)

Field-Goal Defense: 39.7 (25, 4)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.1 (202, 7)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 34.7 (180, 4)

Free-Throw Percentage: 65.8 (273, 8)

Rebound Margin: 3.9 (52, 4)

Assists Per Game: 14.4 (101, 5)

Turnovers Per Game: 17.4 (307, 6)

Joel’s Bracket Says: First Round loss to Memphis

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