Texas A&M - Corpus Christi

Daily Poll: Who Will Win the Southland Conference?

Shawn Siegel — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 07:52:38 -0700

Perry Clark Named TAMU-CC Head Coach

Jeff Borzello — Wed, 02 May 2007 00:00:00 -0700

South Alabama to Hire TAMU-CC's Ronnie Arrow

Jeff Borzello — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 03:41:53 -0700

Joel Knows: Weekend Review

Joel Welser — Sat, 03 Feb 2007 21:37:10 -0800

Does Joel know everything? Anything? Or does Joel simply know nothing? Find out every Sunday in Joel Welser’s new weekly column: Joel Knows.

Joel knows Michigan State’s unbalanced conference schedule will come back to haunt them. In the Big Ten, each team plays four opponents just one time. The Spartans randomly drew Northwestern, Penn State, Purdue and Minnesota. With all due respect to the Boilermakers, it’s hard to argue that those aren’t the four worst teams in the Big Ten. To make matters worse, of the four, the Spartans get Northwestern and Minnesota at home. Not having a game at Northwestern is like not having a home game. It could be worse though, we could be talking about the Big East scheduling.

Joel knows that all of Corvallis should be embarrassed. The Bruins of UCLA absolutely annihilated Oregon State 82-35 on Saturday. The good news is OSU already beat Arizona State on the road. The Beavers and the Sun Devils square off again next weekend and Oregon State could end up 2-16 in conference…a full two games ahead of the winless ASU squad. Yet, some props need to be given to ASU for nearly beating a ranked Washington State squad on Saturday.

Joel knows the SEC West is messed up. The West leader heading into the weekend was Auburn at just 4-4. The Tigers got beat bad by Ole Miss 59-82, leaving the top spot even more wide open than it was before. A struggling Alabama team has taken the lead after a nail biting win over South Carolina. Even many prognosticators favorite LSU has lost five in a row and is a surprising 2-6 in conference.

Joel knows Colorado really needed a big win. With Ricardo Patton a lame duck coach and the Buffaloes heading into the weekend with a dismal 5-13 record, nobody would have had a second thought if the Buffs finished out the season without winning another game. Yet, when #12 Oklahoma State came to town, CU held onto their 15 point halftime lead to win 89-77. Dominique Coleman tied a career high with 21 points and achieved a career high with 15 rebounds. This could be a spark for Colorado to turn around the program…or it could be more of an indication that Oklahoma State will never win a conference game on the road.

Joel knows Indianapolis won the precursor to the Super Bowl over Chicago. IUPUI, that’s Indiana University, Purdue University at Indianapolis, narrowly escaped with a victory over Chicago State 79-77 on Thursday. If it is any indication, the Colts will beat the Bears, but at least it will be close.

Joel knows Texas A&M Corpus Christi will dominate the Southland conference in five years. This time last year the Islanders were without a conference, and we were still talking about a potential NIT berth. Now TAMU CC is 7-1 in the Southland with their only losses on the season coming at the hands of Oklahoma State, Mississippi State, UNLV, Purdue and conference favorite Sam Houston State.

Joel knows the Big West Conference Tournament is going to be fun. For the first time in a while, there is not a dominant team in the conference. Utah State is gone and Pacific is very far from a conference power this year. I wrote up a blurb about everybody but UC Riverside having a chance to take home the conference tournament championship, but then the previously 0-7 Highlanders went and did something crazy like beat top team Cal State Fullerton 82-76. Now it will be even crazier in Anaheim come March and with a free trip to the semifinals for the top two seeds and a bye to the quarterfinals for the next two seeds, jockeying for position down the stretch is of the utmost importance.

Joel knows that Loyola (MD) can make the NCAA Tournament since their first and only trip in 1994. Despite Saturday’s loss at Marist, the Greyhounds remain atop the Metro Atlantic standings at 9-3. A couple of Big East transfers in Gerald Brown (Providence) and Omari Israel (Notre Dame) are leading the way. Brown averages 22.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists, while Israel adds on 9.2 points and 5.7 boards per contest. Throw in the long range shooting of Marquis Sullivan and the point guard play of Brett Harvey, and you have yourself a dangerous team come MAAC tourney time.

Joel knows just a few years ago Western Illinois looked like a team that could be competitive in the Mid-Continent Conference. Now the Leathernecks, which boast one of the coolest nicknames in all of division I hoops, are in a downward spiral. Coach Derek Thomas brought in a renewed sense of hope, mostly thanks to sharpshooter T.J. Gray, but that disappeared very quickly. After going 3-25 in 2003-2004, Gray, despite a decrease in playing time his sophomore season, led the Leathernecks to an 11-17 record the following year. Gray then transferred and is now starting at Illinois-Chicago, leaving WIU back in the basement of the Mid-Con. This year, the Leathernecks have three wins over division I teams and five overall in an amazingly weak schedule. It would be a surprise if they win another game, but we’ll give them a legitimate shot on senior night against Southern Utah.

Joel knows that he will eat too much chip dip while watching the Super Bowl.

Daniels Wins SLC Player of the Week

Press Release — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 10:54:39 -0800

FRISCO, Texas - After averaging 24 points in two wins last week, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Chris Daniels has been named the Aeropostale/SLC Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the second time in three weeks. Following is a look at his week along with honorable mention selections.

CHRIS DANIELS, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Sr., C, 7-0, 270, San Antonio, Texas -- Daniels averaged 24 points in two games last week, including a career-high 34 points against Central Arkansas. On Thursday, he put in 14 points, leading the Islanders to a 12-point win over Northwestern State, snapping its 18-game home court win streak. He had five blocks and was 18-of-26 (.692) from the field and was 11-of-14 (.786) from the free-throw line for the week. The award is the second in three weeks for Daniels.

Game Stats: at Northwestern State - 14 pts., 5 rbs, 3 blks, (6-10 fg) at Central Arkansas - 34 pts, 3 rbs, 2 blks, (12-16 fg)

Player of the Week Honorable-Mention Selections

Josh Alexander, SFA -- Alexander led SFA in scoring and rebounding last week as the Lumberjacks improved to 4-0 in league play with road wins against Lamar and McNeese State. He scored 17 points with eight rebounds in SFA's 73-72 overtime win at Lamar and added 10 points and seven rebounds in the Lumberjacks' 67-53 victory at McNeese State.

Terry Bryant, SLU -- Bryant helped Southeastern to a 2-0 week, snapping a three-game losing streak and evening its SLC mark at 2-2. He tied a career-high with 19 points in a 73-69 win over Texas-Arlington, helping the Lions rally from a 12-point deficit midway through the second half. In a 78-70 win over Texas State, Bryant took the Lions' first shot of the game and didn't score until hitting six free throws in the final minute to preserve the win.

James Davis, LU -- Davis recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 29 points and 15 rebounds in Lamar's 73-72 overtime loss to Stephen F. Austin. He was 13-of-16 from the field and 3-of-6 from the free throw line. He also blocked a season-high five shots, dished out two assists and had one steal. He scored all six of Lamar's points in overtime.

Andrew Francis, UTSA -- Francis, a junior transfer from Houston, averaged a double-double for UTSA last week. In his first start with the Roadrunners at Central Arkansas on Thursday, Francis posted 12 points and eight rebounds, both tied for team highs, in a 59-49 loss. On Saturday, he registered his first double-double in a Roadrunner uniform with 16 points and 14 rebounds, both game highs, in the loss to the Demons. He shot 50 percent from the field for the week, draining 9-of-18 shots, and averaged 34.5 minutes per contest. Francis now leads the league in rebounding in conference games with 10.0 rebounds per game and ranks in the top 10 in scoring with 14 points per outing.

Quentin Gonzales, MCN -- Gonzales scored a total of 30 points and pulled 13 rebounds as McNeese went 1-1 in conference games on the week. He had a career night as the Cowboys beat Sam Houston State, 59-58, in overtime on the road. Gonzales scored 21 points (9 of 17) and had seven rebounds off the bench. He scored 7 of the 9 points for McNeese in overtime.

Chris Daniels is SLC Player of the Week

Press Release — Tue, 02 Jan 2007 12:43:30 -0800

FRISCO, Texas -- After being named to two all-tournament teams over the holiday period, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Chris Daniels has been voted the Aeropostale Player of the Week in Southland Conference men's basketball. Following is a look at his performances for the Islander's six games.

SLC MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

CHRIS DANIELS, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Sr., 7-0, C, San Antonio, Texas -- Daniels averaged 14.5 points and 7.7 rebounds over a six-game period, leading the Islanders to a 4-2 record with wins over South Florida, Norfolk State, Howard and Brown. He was named to the All-Tournament team at the Duel in the Desert Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev., and at the Flint Hills Resources Islander Classic. Daniels blocked 16 shots, tying the school-record for blocks in a career with 86. He was 38-of-68 (.559) from the field and 10-of-12 (.833) from the line.

HONORABLE MENTION SELECTIONS

Josh Alexander, SFA, So., F, Shreveport, La. -- Alexander scored 24 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to record his fifth career double-double in SFA's 89-63 win over Howard Payne. He was a perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line, leading the Lumberjacks to a school record-tying 20-of-20 showing at the foul stripe.

James Barrett, SHSU, Jr., F, Brooklyn, N.Y. -- Barrett scored 48 points (16.0 per game) and had 12 rebounds (4.0), hitting 17-of-29 (.586) from the field in three games. In the victory over Wisconsin-Milwaukee, his first SHSU start, he scored a career high 27 points. Barrett led SHSU with 12 points in a strong performance against No. 1 UCLA.

Stefan Blaszczynski, NICH, Sr., G/F -- The Colonels closed out 2006 with a strong showing at Louisiana-Monroe, in which Blaszczynski scored his fourth double-double of the season with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Nineteen of his 21 points came in the second half to help the Colonels overcome a 17-point deficit to get back within striking range, but Nicholls lost by four. Blaszczynski's 21 points cemented him in the Colonels record books with 1,005 points for his career, making him only the 20th player in Nicholls history to accomplish such a feat. He is now 20th on the all-time scoring list, and with his average of 20.3, he could break the top 10.

Southland Conference Preview

CHN — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 10:02:14 -0800

Conference Previews | Top 144 | 06-07 Preview Home

Southland Preview

Conference Rank: 29th

Conference Page

All-Conference

Player of the Year - JeJuan Plair, Sam Houston St, G

Dwight Boatner, McNeese St, G

Josh Alexander, SFA, G/F

Stefan Blaszczynski, Nicholls St, F

Chris Daniels, TAMU-CC, C

Nat'l	Team (Click for Preview)	Conf	Tourney
117	Sam Houston St	1	NCAA
161	Stephen F. Austin	2
187	TAMU CC	3
202	Northwestern St	4
208	Lamar	5
224	McNeese State	6
244	SE Louisiana	7
265	Texas Arlington	8
281	Nicholls State	9
288	Texas State	10
320	Texas San Antonio	11
336	Central Arkansas	12

Head Coach Q&A's

Danny Kaspar - Stephen F Austin

Scott Cross - Texas Arlington

Other Preseason Articles

Southland Gets Best of the Deal

Southland gets the best of the deal

Dan Vance — Sun, 15 Oct 2006 20:27:28 -0700

It has taken a couple of years for the fallout affects of Virginia Tech and Miami’s move from the ACC to reach the small time. But now that it finally has trickled down, conferences are starting to snatch up Independent teams like a starving kid at a donut shop. UC-Davis is all set to officially move to the Big West, the Mid-Con has snatched up IPFW, North Dakota State and South Dakota State for the 2007-2008 season and Florida Gulf Coast is already getting looks before they are ever cleared to become a Division I institution. But the biggest winner of all? The Southland Conference. Full of mediocre teams, coaches and players, this conference reeled in a big fish when it landed Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, perhaps the best DI Independent ever. The Islanders will officially begin conference play this season and the Southland shouldn’t be happier. In fact, the Islanders have a legit chance to win the conference this year. And no, I am not joking. If for no other reason, look at Islander coach Ronnie Arrow, who already gets some play by being named the Southland Conference’s representative in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, where he is one of only 31 total coaches. And Arrow has earned that spot. As the only coach in TAMCC’s seven-year DI stint, he has led the Islanders to back-to-back 20-win seasons the past two years and over his tenure with the Islanders, has led the team to wins over teams like South Florida, Florida State, TCU and Baylor, all schools from far more power conferences than the Southland. Not to mention that in those two 20- win seasons, TAMCC should have easily been tapped to appear in the NIT Tournament at the least. We all know that an Independent would basically have to go undefeated to make the NCAA Tournament and even then would likely be shutout. But lets face facts, who really expects an Independent to win that many games? Probably as few people as Ronnie Arrow had friends with the NIT after getting shunned back-to-back years. If only he could dress as well as he can coach. I don’t care why the Southland people decided to bring in the Islanders. Be it because it added a seventh team in the state of Texas or because they were a 20-win school. The fact is that they almost should have invited the team by handing them the conference title trophy. TAMCC dominated some Independent programs that were just as good, if not better than teams like Lamar and McNeese State. The team returns 14 (yeah, like pretty much the whole team) letterwinners, including four starters. Big man Chris Daniels was named to the Preseason All-Southland Second Team without ever stepping on a court in the conference. Hey, maybe someone is finally giving these guys some respect. Come January 6, when TAMCC opens conference play against McNeese State, I fear for the other teams in this conference. This is perhaps the greatest move made conference wise in years in Division I ball. Now, someone better just give Arrow and his Islanders some respect.