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College Basketball Preview - Summit League

Tue 1st, November 2011

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) -

OUTLOOK: The Summit League is celebrating its 30th anniversary at the Division I level, and 10 teams will compete for both a regular season and conference tournament crown, as well as an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. For the first time, all 10 Summit League teams will compete in the BracketBusters Event in February, and the 2012 conference tournament returns to Sioux Falls, South Dakota for a fourth consecutive year.

According to a recent poll of the league's coaches, SIDs and media, Oral Roberts is the overwhelming favorite to walk away with the conference crown this year. The stiffest competition figures to come from Oakland, and that is no surprise considering the fact that those two schools are seemingly always in contention for league supremacy. IUPUI is a dangerous team because of the presence of Alex Young, the Summit League's Preseason Player of the Year, and South Dakota State figures to be tough as well. The remainder of the Summit's upper half consists of the likes of North Dakota State and South Dakota State, two teams that figure to hover above the .500 mark for much of the conference schedule. As for the also-rans, UMKC, IPFW, Southern Utah and Western Illinois are firmly entrenched in that group. Centenary is no longer a conference member, and it was replaced by a South Dakota squad which figures to struggle with the transition.

ONFERENCE CHAMPION: OAKLAND

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: 1. Oral Roberts, 2. Oakland, 3, IUPUI, 4. South Dakota State, 5. North Dakota State, 6. UMKC, 7. IPFW, 8. Southern Utah, 9. Western Illinois, 10. South Dakota

TEAM BY TEAM ANALYSIS:

ORAL ROBERTS: There is no question that Oral Roberts is loaded, as five players from the roster appear on the Preseason All-Summit League First or Second team. ORU, which finished second last season after a 13-5 league record, is seeking its first Summit League title since 2007-08. The Golden Eagles return five starters and eight letterwinners from last season, and Dominique Morrison lead the way after posting 19.5 ppg on 51.4 percent shooting from the field last year, including 40.4 percent from three-point range. Fellow forward Michael Craion missed last season due to injury after claiming the Newcomer of the Year Award in 2009-10, and he appears to be 100 percent healthy. On the Second Team are F/C Damen Bell-Holter, F Steven Roundtree and G Warren Niles. Bell-Holter averaged 13.3 ppg and 7.8 rpg last season, and Roundtree was close behind with 12.1 ppg and 6.4 rpg. Add Niles (14.3 ppg) to the mix, and it is hard to imagine the Golden Eagles faltering.

OAKLAND: Two-time defending champion Oakland doesn't have as much big-time returning talent as Oral Roberts, but don't expect anyone to feel bad for the Golden Grizzlies. They went 17-1 in The Summit League each of the past two seasons and now return seven letterwinners, including three starters for Greg Kampe, the reigning Summit League Coach of the Year. The most notable is Preseason First-Team All-Summit League selection Reggie Hamilton, who scored 17.6 ppg and handed out 5.3 apg last season despite his 5-11 frame. He'll get some help from fellow guard Travis Bader, a three-point marksman who netted 10.5 ppg a year ago. Laval Lucas-Perry is a Michigan transfer where he was a starter, so his talent is undeniable. Another newcomer is Corey Petros, a big man considered to be the league's elite freshman. If any team can push Oral Roberts for league supremacy it is clearly Oakland.

IUPUI: Last season, the aforementioned Young was dominant, pouring in 19.7 ppg thanks to double-digit performances in all but one outing. He also pulled down 6.4 rpg and flirted with the notion of skipping his senior season to make the jump to the NBA. Much to the delight of Jaguar fans, that did not happen, and the standout returns as the top returning scorer in the nation with his 1,663 points. He is fourth in school history in scoring and will take aim at the record this season. New head coach Todd Howard will obviously depend heavily on the talents of Young, but he doesn't have to carry the weight alone. Seniors Christian Siakam and Stephen Thomas are dependable performers capable of significant contributions, proving as much last year. Siakam netted 9.3 ppg to go along with his team-high 6.9 rpg, despite logging under 24 minutes per contest. He hit a staggering 62.9 percent of his shots from the floor and played his best ball at the end of the season. As for Thomas, he averaged 11 ppg and figures to at least maintain that mark.

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE: The Jackrabbits will have a chance to win every time they take the court because of the duo of Nate Wolters and Jordan Dykstra. Wolters was a recent selection to the Preseason All-Summit First Team, while Dykstra was a Second-Team choice. Last season, Wolters started all 31 games for his team and led the way with 19.5 ppg. In addition to shooting 40.8 percent from three-point range, the standout handed out 188 assists and racked up 41 steals to pace the squad in both of those categories as well. As for Dykstra, he contributed 11.3 ppg on 56.1 percent shooting from the field, and his 51.5 percent accuracy from three-point range was downright staggering. The Jackrabbits are a high-scoring team that posted 81.7 ppg in 2010-11, thanks in large part to their blistering 41.1 percent three-point accuracy as a team. Because of the offensive explosiveness, coach Scott Nagy's team should be in the mix all season long.

NORTH DAKOTA STATE: Saul Phillips enters his fourth season as the head coach of the Bison, and he has a 53-38 record thus far, including a 34-20 record in The Summit League. Phillips guided North Dakota State to its first Summit championship and NCAA Division I tournament appearance in 2009, but repeating that task this season seems a bit unrealistic considering the fact that there isn't a standout performer on the 2011-12 roster. Michael Tveidt, the top offensive option from a year ago, is gone, and with him went 15.3 ppg. That leaves Eric Carlson as the leading returning scorer, though his 10.1 ppg average isn't likely to scare anyone. Marshall Bjorklund led the league in shooting percentage a year ago (.647), but he played fewer than 22 minutes per contest and finished with only 8.7 ppg. Taylor Braun (8.2 ppg) needs to be a bit more assertive as well and improve his 28.9 percent shooting from the field. The Bison figure to be competitive, but expecting a contender here is unrealistic.

UMKC: Last season, the Kangaroos finished a respectable 16-14 overall, including a 9-9 mark against Summit League competition. They were far better at home (11-4) than outside of their own building (5-10), but that is the case with most college hoops teams. UMKC didn't carry much momentum into the offseason, as the squad suffered four consecutive double-digit losses to close out the 2010-11 campaign. Still, it was the most successful season of Matt Brown's four years as head coach, and he hopes to defy the odds and post an even better mark in this fifth go-round. Three of the top four scorers have to be replaced, including offensive standout Jay Couisnard (17.6 ppg). Reggie Chamberlain paced the conference in free-throw shooting (.853), and he brings back 11.6 ppg. The next most productive returnee, Trinity Hall, provides a mere 7.7 ppg, a figure that must improve significantly. The Roos would surprise many if they are able to post a .500 league mark this season.

IPFW: It is obvious that the Mastodons will only go as far as Frank Gaines takes them this season. Gaines, one of the most explosive athletes in the Summit League, led his team with 14.8 ppg, 6.2 rpg and nearly a steal per contest last season, and he also finished second 20 blocks. The standout was named to the All-Summit League Honorable Mention squad and is a 2011-12 Preseason All-Summit First Team choice. The hope is that Saint Louis transfer Justin Jordan can step in and be a solid second scoring option for the Mastodons. Jordan netted just 4.9 ppg for the Billikens, but he played barely over 18 minutes per contest and will get considerably more playing time now. Tony Jasick is the new head coach of IPFW, earning a promotion from the associate head coach position he previously held with the squad.

SOUTHERN UTAH: Last season was a rough one for the Thunderbirds, who won just 11 of their 30 games. They ended the season on a two-game slide, and Roger Reid now enters his fourth season as head coach of the program with little success to speak of during his tenure. Jackson Stevenett is back in place after averaging 10.1 ppg on 54.9 percent shooting from the floor in 2010-11, and coach Reid needs a higher output from the forward. Matt Massey returns 9.4 ppg, and Ray Jones brings back 9.2 ppg. Both players are solid contributors, and it will be interesting to see if either can emerge as a go-to guy at the offensive end of the court. In 30 games last season, Southern Utah scored 69.2 ppg while surrendering 73.1 ppg, and a better ratio is needed for the team to make the climb up the league ladder.

WESTERN ILLINOIS: The player to watch for Western Illinois is Ceola Clark III, a guard who was named to the Preseason All-Summit Second Team. Clark played only six games last season and scored 10.7 ppg, but he is capable of far more with full health and plenty of touches promised. There is no doubt that the club will miss Matt Lander, who tallied 17.0 ppg for the club last season. The Leathernecks struggled mightily to score points with Lander, as they posted just 57.3 ppg in 2010-11 while shooting a mere 41.3 percent from the field. They surrendered 64.8 ppg to foes, and there is no reason to expect a major turnaround. Jim Molinari is entering his fourth season as head coach of the program, and he figures to endure many more losses than wins.

SOUTH DAKOTA: Obviously, one team has to be picked to finish last, and South Dakota seems like the obvious choice. The Coyotes have made the jump from the Great West Conference, and the competition level spikes for head coach Dave Boots. Entering his 24th campaign as the leader of the program, Boots has never endured a losing season at South Dakota, but that incredible streak will likely come to an end in 2011-12. The cupboard certainly isn't bare, as the team's two top scorers from a year ago are back. Charlie Westbrook tallied 16.2 ppg as a junior and will be eager to prove capable of maintaining that mark. Fellow senior Louie Krogamn brings back 14.8 ppg to the mix for the Coyotes, who will be hard-pressed to equal last season's output of 79.8 ppg.