On the Sixth day of conference tourneys, the Buffet gave

A Mad Bomber Showdown

*Our first 3 champions crowned*

Gaels and Zags

3 tourney tips

Quarters in the Arch

And HUGE day in the Waiting Line...

Ohhhhhhh glorious day indeed. The first Saturday of the XII Days of Conference tourneys - the midpoint, if you will. When conference tournaments meet regular season finales. When the Waiting Line... bumps up against occupancy limits. Where the always entertaining, but never actually read Buffet Live! blog first debuted. A huge day of hoops.

First - the Big South, where Chalk meets 35 years in the making, crowns a champion. As J.P. Primm and Matt Dickey and the gang, who have been running scrimmages this week disguised as Big South tournament games, try and extend their dominance one game further versus a suddenly spry VMI squad who have been reminded no less than 2million times how the school hasn't seen the inside of the tournament since 1977.

Next, the Atlantic Sun where are school that came out of nowhere. No literally. while the Buffet was being distracted by the fools' good from Upstate South Carolina, a school that DID NOT EXIST in 1990, is now one step away from (obviously) it's first conference tournament final. That's right people of Evanston - first you lost the Keg, now a school that's just 22 years old and named "Florida Gulf Coast University" may get into the NCAAs before your school does. But to do so they'll have to defeat the top seed Bruins, who, although the Buffet didn't predict it (But let's be honest, ask the oldest subscriber, a tradition a richer than the Buffet is the Buffet misfiring early and often with its Predictions, it's almost uncanny, you'd actually have actively try to get it wrong to miss that often.

Finally, Murray State. Period.

Today's Tournament Schedule:

Atlantic Sun Championship

6 Florida Gulf Coast University v. 1 Belmont, 7pm ET, ESPN2

Colonial Athletic Association

1 Drexel v. 9 UNC-Wilmington, 12pm ET, Local Mid-Atlantic Comcast networks, ESPN Full court, ESPN3

4 Old Dominion v. 5 Delaware, 2:30pm ET, Local Mid-Atlantic Comcast networks, ESPN Full court, ESPN3

2 VCU v. 7 Northeastern, 6pm ET, Local Mid-Atlantic Comcast networks, ESPN Full court, ESPN3

3 George Masonv. 4 Georgia State, 830pm ET, Local Mid-Atlantic Comcast networks, ESPN Full court, ESPN3

Horizon League

2 Cleveland State v. 3 Detroit, 6pm ET, ESPNU

1 Valparaiso v. 5 Butler, 830pm ET, ESPNU

Ivy League

Harvard @ Cornell, 7pm ET, ESPN3 (Harvard wins, they clinch no worse than a share)

Yale @ Penn, 7pm ET (if Penn loses and Harvard loses, Penn v. Princeton becomes Penn's shot at a tie, if Penn loses and Harvard wins, Harvard wins Ivy, If Penn wins and Harvard loses, Penn clinches no worse than a share, if Penn wins and Harvard wins, same as if they both lose)

Metro Atlantic

4 Fairfield v. 5 Rider, 2:30pm ET, ESPN3/Full Court

1 Iona v. 8 Marist, 4:30pm ET, ESPN3/Full Court

2 Loyola Maryland v. 7 Niagara, 730pm, ESPN3/Full Court

3 Manhattanv. 6 Siena, 930p, ESPN3,/Full Court

Missouri Valley

1 Wichita State v. 4 Illinois State, 235pm ET, MVC TV Network/ESPN3

2 Creighton v. 3 Evansville, 505pm ET, MVC TV Network/ESPN3

Ohio Valley Conference Championship

1 Murray State v. 2 Tennessee State, 2pm, ESPN2

Southern Conference

1N UNC-Greensboro v. 5N Appalachian State, 12pm ET, ESPN3

2S Wofford v. 3N Western Carolina, 230pm ET, ESPN3

1S Davidson v. 5s Furman, 6pm ET, ESPN3

2N Elon v. 3s Georgia Southern, 830pm ET, ESPN3

West Coast Conference

2 Gonzaga v. 3 BYU, 11pm ET, ESPN2

1 Saint Mary's v. 5 San Francisco, 9oopm ET, ESPN2

Quick note - yes Texas/Kansas will be happening simultaneously, but keep an eye on the St. Mary's/USF game - remember this is the matchup that just a week ago saw St. Mary's struggle with the Dons in Cole Valley, but ultimately get the game and the outright regular season WCC title. So excited were the Gaels, in fact, perhaps a bit too excited - as their boisterous celebration led to an angry exchange between the Gaels, USF guard Rashad Green, campus event staff and a locker room door. Intrigue abound.

Harvard can clinch the Ivy with a win and Penn loss. Penn can clinch no worse than a tie if they win and Harvard loses. Harvard can clinch a no worse than a tie if they both win.

Now, what about the The Waiting Line...? Implications are huge:

Miami FL tries to avoid a terrible loss (Boston College)

Xavier too. (Charlotte)

Long Beach has to reach their tourney final, because the odds and biases are stacked against them (@CS-Fullerton)

Dayton is largely done, as far as the Buffet is concerned, but to prove us wrong, they have to win out to their final (George Washington)

Texas with a huge opportunity. No lose situation, as long as the final isn't 80-30 (@Kansas)

Pitt tries to pay spoiler @ UConn.

Seton Hall can't afford another bad loss. (DePaul)

WV v USF try to weaken the others chances, although it isn't an outright elimination game.

Cincy tries avoid getting their 300th loss to a team rated above 100 (Villanova)

Northwestern tries to begin a last stand (Iowa).

Southern Miss needs to avoid bad losses. (Marshall isn't bad, but they've been bad lately, and this isn't a natural profile enhancer)

VCU (Northeastern) & Drexel (William & Mary) need to make their conference final.

Harvard has to win out. (1 down, 1 (@Cornell) to go)

Iona must reach its final (Marist).

Colorado St (Air Force), UNM (Boise St) SD State (TCU) and UNLV (Wyoming) - all have nothing to gain, but varying degrees of a lot to lose. (in this order: CSU, SD St, UNM, UNLV)

No one in the P12 can afford a loss.

Oregon (Utah)

Colorado (@Oregon St)

Washington (@UCLA)

Mississippi St, on life support, has to get to .500 in the SEC (Arkansas)

Alabama is nice and secure, but a regular season closing win @Ole Miss would be a seed enhancer

Tennessee tries for a magical Cuonzo Martin out of nowhere run for an at large v. Vandy,

Nevada just needs to keep winning, in case NMSU exacts revenge in the tourney final (La Tech).

Wichita, Creighton, St. Mary's, Gonzaga, Murray St - are all locks. But if they lose, someone from that last paragraph stands to lose even more, even if they win. Just TRY and decipher that, I dare you. Let's take a look at last night's results, we call this segment:

Last Night in...

...the Atlantic Sun

Belmont slept walked through a weak first half, but Ian Clark powered them through, putting up 19 points (to go with 4 rebounds and 4 assists), and the Bruins used an 18-4 second run to take control. Kerron Johnson hit a key three late as part of his 12 points. ETSU did what they could, they slowed the nation's 3rd leading scorer team to 69 points, but just couldn't fend off the potent Bruin attack for 40 minutes. Adam Sollazo had 16 points, Tommy Hubbard added 15 and 8 to go with a pair of steals, and Marcus Dubose had 15 and 5 for the Bucs in the losing cause.

The Dream lives! FGCU, est 1991, is on the doorstep of the NCAA tournament. They survived 0 points from the best switch-hitter in major league history, were outrebounded, and didn't even force their usual batch of copious turnovers, but somehow toughed out a close tournament win on the road. THE BUFFET BELIEVES. Sherwood Brown put up 14/4 and Christophe Varidel chipped in 13 off the bench, setting up a story-rich A-Sun final between the top seeded Bruins, the regular season champs and 2012's first real Cinderella story - the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles.

...the Colonial Athletic Association

Towson, the second team in two nights, who came into their conference tournament game with chance to double their total output on the season. Failed. As Devon Saddler poured in 28 points to with Josh Brinkley's 14 pts and 5 rebounds to defeat the Tigers 72-65. Robert Nwankwo had a MAN'S double double in the loss, 27 pts and 20 rebounds, but sending Delaware to the line 38 times was just too much to overcome, as Towson erased an 11 point halftime lead (and a lead that stretched to as many as 18) to take a 2 point led, but then allowed Saddler to get loose for a pair of 3s that gave the Blue Hens a 59-55 lead that they didn't give up.

Georgia State scored early, scored often and scored for 40 minutes. Hofstra didn't. Result? 85-50 win. Eric Buckner had 21 and 11, to go with James Field 14 points and Devonta White's 13.

8 UNC-Wilmington 70 9 James Madison 59

7 Northeastern 57 10 W&M 59

...the Horizon League

6 YSU 76 3 Detroit 93

5 Butler 71 4 UWM 49

...Ivy League

Harvard 77 @ Columbia 70 ot

Brown 43 @ Penn 54

Yale 57 @ Princeton 64

...MAAAC

8 St. Peter's 57 9 Marist 64

11 Canisius 70 7 Niagara 80

...the Valley

2 Drake 68 7 Creighton 61

3 Missouri St 65 6 Evansville 72

5 UNI 42 4 Illinois St. 54

1 Wichita St 77 8 Indiana St 48

...the Ohio Valley

1 Murray st 78 4 Tennessee Tech 58

2 Tennessee St 59 3 Morehead St 52

...the SoCon

4s College of Charleston 5N Appalachian State

3S Chattanooga 3S Geogia Southern

4S Samford 5S Furman

3N Western Carolina 6S The Citadel

...the WCC

3 Brigham Young 73 6 San Diego 68

4 Loyola Marymound 60 6 San Francisco 67

Yes, but, what tips today?

2012 Big Sky Men's Basketball tournament

March 3, 6-7, Missoula, MT, "The Fieldhouse" -Dahlberg Arena, capacity: 7,321

For the first time since the turn of the century, the Big Sky heads to Missoula. You've got respect the Big Sky, they cut to the chase - eliminating 3 teams, playing the tournament at the home court of the regular season championship, and pretty much saying, we will do all we can to put on our best suit, look all nice and pretty and give someone a go in the NCAA tournament. This year, the best suit has two shades: Maroon and Silver or Purple & White - and what thrilling conclusion it was, came down to the regular season's final game, playing on the very court that one team was seeking to protect and the other to avoid at all costs, and Montana ended up proving relentless, en route to a 66-51, regular season championship, top seed and home court advantage clinching victory.

These two teams are an interesting dichotomy in NCAA tournament resumes as a function of game predictive abilities. Weber has the lower RPI, by virtue of being better able to avoid the ba loss (only a Big Sky costing loss at Idaho St) but its best win was Montana. Meanwhile, the Grizzlies beat Long Beach at home, took out Weber, played Nevada to a near draw, and lost by only 6 at Colorado St, but head scratchers to North Dakota (really?), Oregon St and USF drag down their computer numbers, but didn't change the Buffet's point of view that Damion Lillard notwithstanding, this team is the class of the Big Sky.

The Buffet picks: Montana. Please re-read last sentence of preceeding paragraph.

Upset special: Who among the final four teams can do this? Well, Portland State tells you just what they think they'll be doing, as some Cameron Dollar Jedi Mind tricks have them playing Seattle on March 10. The choice is Eastern Washington, the benefit of hosting Idaho St to get to Missoula - and they played both Weber & Montana tough on the road, which is a sign that the environment isn't as much of a factor for them as it could be.

Schedule

Sat Mar 3

at campus of higher seeds

Game 1: #6 Montana State @ #3 Portland State, 10pm ET

Game 2: #5 Idaho State @ #4 Eastern Washington, 5pm ET

Tues, Mar 6

Game 3: #2 Weber State v. Highest Remaining Seed, 7:30pm ET, Altitude

Game 4: Lowest Remaining Seed @ #1 Montana, 9pm ET, Altitude

Wed, March 7

Championship Game, 900pm ET, ESPN2

Montana Grizzlies (23-6, 15-1)

Ken Pom: 93

ESPN BPI: 96

RPI: 83

SOS: 220

Best wins: Long Beach (34) 73-71

Best losses: @Colorado St (20) 58-64; Nevada (48) 64-70

Worst losses: @North Dakota (275) 81-88 ot; San Francisco (156) 62-65; @Oregon St (148) 46-71

Players to watch

Will Cherry – 16.1 pts, 4.0 rebs, 3.3 assists, 2.6 steals

Kareem Jamar – 13.4 pts, 5.5 rebs, 3.7 assists, 1.1 steals, 45% 3pts

Mathias Ward – 10.4 pts, 3.8 rebs, 1.1 steals, 40%

Art Steward – 9.3 pts, 4.6 rebs, 1.0 steals, 42% 3pts

Derek Selvig - 8.8 pts, 6.2 rebs, 3.0 assists, 1.0 steals, 1.2 blocks, 43% 3pts

Who to foul: Who not to foul:

Billy Reader - 64% Cherry - 79%

Shawn Stockton – 65% Ward – 75%

Jamar – 68% Selvig - 74%

Steward – 65%

Weber St. Wildcats (23-5, 14-2)

Ken Pom: 128

ESPN BPI: 103

RPI: 70

SOS: 250

Best wins: Montana (83) 80-64

Best losses: @St Mary’s (31) 70-87

Worst losses: @Idaho St (284) 62-64; @BYU (45) 66-94; @California (37) 57-77

Players to watch

Damian Lillard – 24.5 pts, 5.0 rebs, 3.9 assists, 1.4 steals, 44% 3pts

Scott Bamforth – 15.0 pts, 3.8 rebs, 2.4 assists,

Kyle Tresnak – 10.1 pts, 4.1 rebs

Who to foul: Who not to foul:

Tresnak - 68% Lillard - 88%

Frank Otis – 67% Bamforth– 88%

Byron Fulton - 64% Kyle Bullinger – 70%

Other players to watch

Charles Odum, Portland St, Sr, 19.1 pts, 3.9 rebs, 2.5 assists, 1.0 steals

Cliff Colimon, Eastern Washington, Sr, 15.9 pts, 3.7 rebs, 5.0 assists, 1.6 steals

Collin Chiverton, Eastern Washington, Jr, 14.7 pts, 2.1 rebs, 41% 3pts

Kenny McGowen, Idaho State, Sr, 14.2 pts, 1.3 rebs, 2.2 assists

Chehales Tapscott, Portland St, Sr, 13.9 pts, 9.2 rebs, 1.8 assists, 1.4 blks

Chase Grabau, Idaho State, Sr, 12.5 pts, 5.3 rebs, 3.3 assists, 1.9 steals

Melvin Morgan, Idaho St, Sr, 11.9 pts, 2.2 rebs, 2.8 assists, 1.8 steals

Cliff Ederaine, Eastern Washington, Sr, 10.6 pts, 7.6 rebs, 3.0 assists, 1.3 blks 1.4 stls

Abner Moreira, Idaho St, Sr, 6.3 pts, 7.1 revsm 1.0 assists

Big Sky Conference Jack Leasure Award: Damian Lillard, Weber St. 88/202, 44%.Truthfully, the Buffet won't be devastated if it gets this conference prediction wrong, like Devin Beitzel a year ago, the Big Sky seems to produce at least one standout per year. But Lillard is an ever better story. Beitzel made everyone forget that the 2009-10 Big Sky MVP was a sophomore Lillard, who broken a bone in his right foot just 9 games into the 2010-11 campaign, opening the door for the Beitzel show. Lillard came back, got a medical reshirt and it was BOMBS AWAY. He's currently locked in a great race for scoring championship with Reggie Hamilton - 25.4 to 24.5 - That percentage, that volume - it speaks to Mr. Leasure. Collin Chiverton made a run, shooting 41% over 211 shots, but this one goes to Lillard. And no, he did not overact to get this award.

Big Sky MVP: Damian Lillard, Jr, Weber State

Big Sky Coach of the Year: Not yet name

Big Sky Newcomer of the Year: Collin Chiverton, Jr, Eastern Washington

Big Sky Freshman of the Year: Dylan Garrity, Sacramento State

All-Big Sky First Team:

Cliff Colimon, Sr, G, Eastern Washington

Will Cherry, Jr, G, Montana

Kareem Jamar, F/G, Montana,

Chehales Tapscott, Sr, F, Portland State

Charles Odum, Sr, G, Portland

Damian Lillard, Jr, G, Weber State

All-Big Sky Second Team:

Chase Grabau, Sr, G/F, Idaho St

Kenny McGowen, Sr, G, Idaho St

Derek Selvig, Sr, F/C, Montana

Art Steward, F, Sr, Montana

Scott Bamforth Jr, G, Weber St

Morsels from the Big Sky...

2012 Summit League Basketball Championships

Summit League: At the Falls

March 3-6, 2012 - Sioux Falls, SD, Sioux Falls Arena, capacity: 6113

In what seems to be a developing 2012 trend, we've got another conference where 1 team was the clear standard, another team made life uncomfortable, but quite separate themselves from the rest of the pack the way the regular season champ did, and everyone else is playing for getting inscribed in the Upset Special section.

The Golden Eagles began the season losing in Morgantown by just 7 points - things to come? Well, what came was a loss versus Texas-San Antonio in the NIT. 6 game winning streak ensued, before a blowout loss at Oklahoma. Then they "got" it. They finally worked last year's 3rd leading scorer back into the lineup, Damen Bell-Holter back into a lineup that wasn't doing so poorly, and then things clicked. A close loss in Spokane, a win at Xavier, that kicked off a 15 game win streak. The predictable let-down game against their closest competitor in the Summit Standings was just the impetus for another 6 game streak headed into the Summit League tournament. ORU returns their top 4 scorers from they 2010-11 Summit League runners up, and the year of seasoning worked. There's probably not enough on the resume to push this team into at-large worthiness - a win in either the Gonzaga or West Virginia game would have done wonders, and the loss to UT-SA is basically lined into neon, but this is not your run of the mill autobid team - and this is the Golden Eagles last shot at a Summit championship, a conference the former independent joined after 1997 school year, and in those 12 years has won or shared the conference regular season title 6 times, finished second in conference 5 times, and have appeared in 3 NCAA tournaments (of course, much of that period it was known as the Mid-Continent conference). Beginning the 2012-13 school year, ORU will be moving to the Southland. Dominique Morrison is a treat to get to watch, and this team is so proficient from the FT line (75% as team), they don't even have a "Who Not to Foul" column.

So, who will protect this house? The Jackrabbits are a great story. Made the jump to Division 1 in 2004, joined the Summit League in 2008, and now here they are just 5 seasons into the conference, and they've steadily climbed passed respectability and straight to conference title contention. The 2011/12 Jackrabbits officially announced their arrival with a December 18 road win in Seattle. Including that game against Washington, SDSU won 17 of 20, including a home blowout win over Oral Roberts and a Bracket Buster blowout win over MAC runner-up Buffalo. Their only losses in that stretch came at Oakland, when Reggie Hamilton was held in check but the next big scorer from the Golden Grizzlies introduced himself to SDSU, Travis Bader came off the bench for 37 points on 10-14. YES TEN OF FOURTEEN from three-point range (*Mad Bomber candidate*). A "listen youngens, we're still the sheriffs on this block" win by Oral Roberts when Dominique Morrison went off for 38 points/7 rebounds and ORU won by 18. And then the Battle for South Dakota was a bad loss but understandable given the context, as South Dakota raced to a huge lead (as many as 21 as the Jackrabbits couldn't buy a basket) and then held on to a 4 point lead, as SDSU got to 70-68, with 23 seconds let. But Nick Wolters missed a game timing 3 point attempt with 14 seconds, then they missed the front of the 1 and 1 TWICE, en route to a 72-68 loss. Just wasn't their night. This team has set themselves up nicely, as the host of a tournament being played 1 hour south of their school in Sioux Falls.

The Buffet picks: Oral Roberts. Close. Truthfully, the gut is saying South Dakota St, they're hot, playing just hours from home, but this is a young team, one senior on the roster, a roster with only 10 players total - and ORU brought their four top scorers back from last year, and I think last year ended with a bad taste for all the Golden Grizz, they just don't seem quite in the mood for 2011-12 to have the same taste.

Upset special: Oakland. They haven't really distinguished themselves this year. But they beat Tennesse, won at Horizon champ Valpo, and can score the ball. NCAA scoring leader Reggie Hamilton and the emergent Travis Bader make them dangerous. They don't rebound or play D, but this is a short-form tournament environment where a couple of guys getting red hot is sometimes all it takes. We're not betting on it, but the best path to upset comes from Rochester, Michigan.

Schedule

All games on the Midco Sports Network // Fox College Sports

Sat Mar 3

Game 1: #1 Oral Roberts v. #8 Indiana Univ Purdue Univ @ Fort Wayne, 7pm ET

Game 2: #2 South Dakota State v. #7 Indiana Univ Purdue Univ @ Indianapolis, 930pm ET

Sun, Mar 4

Game 3: #4 Western Illinois v. #5 North Dakota State, 7pm ET

Game 4: #3 Oakland v. #6 Southern Utah, 830pm ET

Mon, March 5

Game 5: Winner Game 1 v. Winner Game 3, 7pm ET

Game 6: Winner Game 2 v. Winner Gam 4, 930pm ET

Tues, March 6

Championship Game, 9pm ET, ESPN2/ESPN3

Oral Roberts Golden Eagles (26-5, 17-1)

Ken Pom: 90

ESPN BPI: 79

RPI: 40

SOS: 175

Best wins: Xavier (56) 64-42; So Dakota St (57) 97-75; Akron (61) 67-61

Best losses: @Gonzaga (25) 61-67; @West Virginia (54) 71-78

Worst losses: v.UT-San Antonio (197) 77-78; @Oklahoma (121) 59-73

Players to watch

Dominique Morrison – 20.3 pts, 4.4 rebs, 1.5 assists, 45% 3pts

Warren Niles – 12.0 pts, 3.6 rebs, 2.4 assists, 1.0 steals

Michael Craion – 11.1 pts, 6.1 rebs, 1.5 assists, 1.6 steals

Steven Roundtree – 10.3 pts, 5.3 rebs, 1.5 asssists, 1.0 steals

Damen Bell-Holter – 8.1 pts, 5.9 rebs, 1.3 assists

Who not to foul:

Morrison - 83%

Niles – 81%

Craion – 69%

Bell-Holter – 72%

Roderick Pearson Jr. – 72%

Steven Roundtree - 69%

South Dakota State Jackrabbits (22-7, 15-3)

Ken Pom: 59

ESPN BPI: 85

RPI: 57

SOS: 184

Best wins: Oral Roberts (40) 75-60; @Washington (50) 92-73

Best losses:

Worst losses: @North Dakota (275) 70-89; @South Dakota (291) 68-72; @Oakland (132) 87-92; @Nebraska (139) 64-76

Players to watch

Nate Wolters – 21.2 pts, 5.0 rebs, 6.1 assists, 1.6 steals

Griffan Callahan – 11.6 pts, 4.9 rebs, 1.2 assists, 1.3 steals, 41% 3pts

Jordan Dykstra – 11.6 pts, 5.1 rebs, 1.3 assists, 49% 3pts

Chad White – 9.5 pts, 3.5 rebs, 1.5 assists, 45% 3pts

Brayden Carlson – 7.3 pts, 3.1 rebs, 2.5 asssts, 1.3 steals, 48% 3pts

Tony Fiegen – 7.2 pts, 3.8 rebs

Taevaunn Prince – 6.8 pts, 3.7 rebs

Who to foul: Who not to foul:

Carlson - 67% Wolters - 78%

Prince - 68% Fiegen - 70%

Callahan - 77%

Dykstra - 72%

White - 70%

Other players to watch

Reggie Hamilton, Oakland, Sr, 25.5 pts, 3.8 rebs, 5.1 assists, 2.0 steals, 41%

Frank Gaines, IPFW, Jr, 21.0 pts, 5.8 rebs, 1.1 assists, 1.1 assists, 1.3 steals

Alex Young, IUPUI, Sr, 20.7 pts, 5.9 rebs, 2.0 assists, 1.6 steals, 1.0 blks

Charlie Westbrook, South Dakota, Sr, 18.7 pts, 4.0 rebs, 2.2 assists, 1.7 steals

Reggie Chamberlain, UMKC, Sr, 17.3 pts, 2.5 rebs, 2.5 assists, 47% 3pts

Louie Krogman, South Dakota, Sr, 16.8 pts, 3.1 rebs, 3.8 assists, 1.5 steals

Taylor Braun, North Dakota St, So, 15.7 pts, 6.6 rebs, 2.6 assists, 1.2 steals, 45% 3pts

Travis Bader, Oakland, So, 15.6 pts, 3.1 rebs, 1.2 assists

Jackson Stevenett, Southern Utah, Jr, 14.1 pts, 5.7 rebs, 1.6 assists

Ceola Clark III, Western Illinois, Sr, 13.8 pts, 3.9 rebs, 4.8 assists, 1.6 steals, 47%

Obi Emegano, Western Illinois, Fr, 13.3 pts, 3.9 rebs, 1.1 assists, 1.1 steals

Terell Parks, Western Illinois, Jr, 12.1 pts, 9.1 rebs, 1.5 assists, 1.3 blks, 1.1 steals

Drew Valentine, Oakland, Jr, 11.9 pts, 7.1 rebs, 2.6 assists, 1.1 steals

Ramell Taylor, Southern Utah, Sr, 11.8 pts, 4.6 rebs, 1.0 assists

Marshall Bjorklund, North Dakota St, So, 11.7 pts, 6.0 rebs

Summit League Jack Leasure Award: Reggie Chamberlain, UMKC, 97/206, 47%. When you fire over 200 threes and hit close to half, you are a virtual Jack Leasure shoo-in. The Oakland backcourt combined for over 500 threes (Bader - 265 and Hamilton - 241) but 47% trumps it.

Summit League MVP: Dominique Morrison, Sr, Oral Roberts

Summit League Coach of the Year: Scott Sutton, Oral Roberts

Summit Newcomer of the Year: Lawrence Alexander, Fr, North Dakota State

All-Summit League First Team:

Taylor Braun, So, G, North Dakota State

Frank Gaines, Jr, G, IPFW,

Reggie Hamilton, Sr, G, Oakland

Dominique Morrison, Sr, F, Oral Roberts

Nate Wolters, Jr, G, South Dakota State

Alex Young, Sr, F, IUPUI

All-Big Sky Second Team:

Ceola Clark III, Sr, G, Western Illinois

Michael Craion, Sr, F, Oral Roberts

Jordan Dykstra, So, F, South Dakota State

Jackson Stevenett, Jr, F, Southern Utah

Charlie Westbrook, Sr, G, South Dakota

Morsels from the Summit

2012 Sun Belt Basketball Championships

The Drive to the Summit

March 3-6, Hot Springs, AR

Summit Arena & Convention Center Court, capacity: 6000 (for each)

The Sun Belt regular season came down to two teams, and when it was all said and done, the dominance of Middle Tennessee State reigned supreme, and only looked as close as it was thanks to a let down loss of a finale that gave them their second conference loss.

They spent most of the year as a legit at-large candidate, with a great season start that saw them sweep through LA (wins @LMU and @UCLA), a 2ot loss to Atlantic Sun regular season champ Belmont, that they later avenged, a 20 point win over MAC champ Akron, and a win at Mississippi. After a midseason non-conference war with Vandy (MTSU lost after a tough game), they showed a big of fragility, losing at Denver and then an at-large crushing regular season finale loss But the Blue Raiders possess the overall top to bottom roster talent to take the decision making out of the committee's hands. They beat 2 Seed UA-LR by 8, but #3 seed, Denver, who the Buffet believes is the true top contender to take the bid away from Middle Tennessee, did win their only match up by 15.

So, how about those Pioneers? They beat Southern Miss, they beat St Mary's, took Iona to OT (losing by 2) and beat up the WAC's Boise St by 17 and the MWC's Wyoming by 11. They came within 4 points of being a January 11 inclusion in anyone -otology, losing a tough one at Colorado State. You try to criticize Denver for losing 5 conference games - but the losses were by 7, 7, 1 (OT), 1, and 1 (OT) - what are you going to do? They need to learn to close out games. They come in having won 4 straight games and the two-man threat of Chris Udofia & Brian Stafford can get at anyone.

UA-Little Rock is the 2 seed, and they did sweep Denver, and they play in the tougher division - so dismissing them out of hand would be a mistake. The reason is they were 2-11 in non-conference, and lost to everyone. Then they developed a Sun Belt game plan that was effective and successful, but recent struggles (losses to Middle Tenn St (60-68), needed overtime to beat Troy, lost at Home to North Texas, and a home 2 point edging of Arkansas St) suggest that time may not be on their side.

The Buffet picks: Denver. Upset Special and Pick rolled into one. Willing to bet against La-Lafayette winning 3 straight over them, and then the big championship game upset. GO PIONEERS!

Schedule

Sat Mar 3

Game 1: #6 South Alabama v, #11 Troy, 7pm ET, Summit Arena, SunBeltSports.org

Game 2: #8 Florida Atlantic v. #9 Arkansas State, 715pm ET, Convention Center Ct, SunBeltSports.org

Game 3: #7 Western Kentucky v. #10 Florida International, 930pm ET, Summit Arena, SunBeltSports.org

Sun Mar 4

Game 4: #1 Middle Tennessee State v. Winner Game 2, 700pm ET, Summit Arena, SunBeltSports.org/Sun Belt Network

Game 5: #4 Louisiana-Lafayette vs. #4 North Texas, 715pm ET, Convention Center Court, SunBeltSports.org

Game 6: #2 Arkansas-Little Rock vs. Game 3 Winner, 930pm ET, Summit Arena, SunBeltSports.org/Sun Belt Network

Game 7: #3 Denver vs. Winner Game 1, 945pm ET, Convention Center Court, SunBeltSports.org

Mon March 5

Game 8: Winner Game 5 v. Winner Game 6, 7pm ET, Summit Arena, SunBeltSports.org/Sun Belt Network

Game 9: Winner Game 7 v. Winner Game 8, Summt Arena, SunBeltSports.org/Sun Belt Network

Tues, March 6

Championship Game, 700pm ET, ESPN2

Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders (26-5, 14-2)

Ken Pom: 50

ESPN BPI: 48

RPI: 45

SOS: 171

Best wins: v.Mississippi (63) 68-56; Akron (61) 77-53; Belmont (59) 65-62

Best losses: @Vanderbilt (20) 77-84; Belmont (59) 84-87 2ot

Worst losses: @UAB (104) 56-66; @Denver (90) 60-75; @Western Kentucky (224) 67-73

Players to watch

LeRon Dendy – 14.8 pts, 7.0 rebs, 2.1 assists, 1.6 blks

Marcos Knight – 11.7 pts, 5.2 rebs, 2.9 assists, 1.3 steals

JT Sulton – 10.7 pts, 5.5 rebs

Raymond Cintron – 8.0 pts, 1.4 rebs, 1.1 assists, 43% 3pts

Bruce Massey – 5.6 pts, 3.5 rebs, 3.8 assists, 1.6 steals

Who to foul: Who not to foul:

Dendy - 61% Sulton - 74%

Knight - 59% Cintron - 89%

Jones 56%

Massey –57%

Arkansas - Little Rock Trojans (15-15, 12-4)

Ken Pom: 176

ESPN BPI: 185

RPI: 165

SOS: 144

Best wins: Denver x2 (90) 64-57; @66-59

Best losses: @Middle Tenn St (45) 60-68; Oral Roberts (40) 55-58

Worst losses: @W.Kentucky (224) 53-65; @E.Michigan (212) 51-62; @Louisiana Tech (187) 68-71; SMU (209) 63-69 ot; @Northwestern St. (215) 65-80; UL-Lafayette (180) 49-68; UW-Milwaukee (126) 54-59; @Illinois St (11) 65-72; @Tulsa (107) 49-65; North Texas (203) 67-75

Players to watch

D’Andre Williams – 13.0 pts, 3.9 rebs, 4.1 assists, 1.7 steals

Will Neighbour – 10.8 pts, 5.3 rebs, 42% 3pts

Chuck Gay – 10.3 pts, 3.4 rebs, 1.7 assists, 1.4 steals

Courtney Jackson – 8.5 pts, 5.7 rebs, 1.1 assists

Ben Dillard – 4.8 pts, 1.2 rebs, 44% 3pts

Who to foul: Who not to foul:

Jackson - 56% Williams - 75%

Michael Javes - 54% Neighbour - 82%

Taggart Lockhart - 56% Guy - 72%

Tramar Sutherland – 60% Dillard - 85%

Denver Pioneers (21-8, 11-5)

Ken Pom: 73

ESPN BPI: 66

RPI: 90

SOS: 186

Best wins: Southern Miss (17) 59-52; St. Mary's (31) 70-58; Middle Tenn St (45) 75-60; Wyoming (76) 57-46

Best losses: @Colorado St (21) 75-79; Iona (39) 76-80

Worst losses: North Texas (203) 74-75ot; @Florida Atlantic (195) 71-72; @UL Lafayette (180) 71-72; UA Little Rock x2 (165) @57-64; 59-66

Players to watch

Chris Udofia - 14.9 pts, 5.3 rebs, 2.8 assists, 2.4 blks

Brian Stafford - 14.3 pts, 1.8 rebs, 2.0 assists, 46% 3pts

Royce O'Neale - 9.7 pts, 5.6 rebs, 2.2 assists, 1.4 steals

Brett Olson - 7.9 pts, 2.1 rebs, 2.1 assists

Chase Hallam - 7.5 pts, 4.1 rebs, 2.3 assists, 1.6 steals

Rob Lewis - 7.1 pts, 3.1 rebs, 1.7 assists

Who to foul: Who not to foul:

Hallam - 56% Udofia - 73%

Justin Coughlin - 63% Stafford - 81%

O'Neale - 86%

Olson - 90%

Rob Lewis - 75%

Louisiana – Lafayette Rajun Cajuns (16-14, 10-6)

Ken Pom: 195

ESPN BPI: 205

RPI: 180

SOS: 199

Best wins: UCF (66) 61-60; Denver (90) 72-71 ot

Best losses:

Worst losses: @Arkansas St (248) 74-79; South Alabama (173) 65-70; UA Little Rock (165) 70-72 ot; CS Fullerton (160) 63-69; @San Francisco (136) 70-71; v.North Dakota St (177) 58-78; @Lamar (128) 63-80; @Robert Morris (118) 64-72; UL Monroe (317) 60-78

Players to watch

Josh Brown – 10.3 pts, 6.5 rebs

Kadeem Coleby – 9.7 pts, 5.0 rebs, 1.0 assists

J.J. Thomas – 8.6 pts, 5.5 rebs, 1.1 assists

Darshawn McClellan – 9.5 pts, 5.6 rebs, 1.6 assists, 41% 3pts

Bryant Mbamalu – 7.3 pts, 3.2 rebs, 1.1 assists, 41% 3pts

Elfird Payton – 7.0 pts, 3.3 rebs, 2.8 assists, 1.0 steals

Who to foul: Who not to foul:

Brown - 67% Thomas - 72%

Coleby - 50% McClellan - 72%

Payton - 58% Mbamalu - 68%

Raymone Andres - 73%

Other players to watch

Dejuan Wright, Florida International, Sr, 16.4 pts, 7.7 rebs, 1.9 assists, 1.4 steals

Augustine Rubit, South Alabama, So, 14.9 pts, 9.3 rebs, 1.0 blks

Greg Gantt, Florida Atlantic, Jr, 14.3 pts, 3.3 rebs

Jeremy Allen, Florida International, Sr, 14.2 pts, 3.4 rebs, 1.1 assists, 2.7 stls

Phil Taylor, Florida International, So, 13.8 pts, 2.0 rebs, 3.1 assist

Fred Brown, Louisiana-Monroe, Sr, 12.8 pts, 2.6 rebs, 2.3 assists, 1.2 steals

Malcolm Kirkland, Arkansas St, Sr, 12.1 pts, 6.0 rebs

Will Weathers, Troy, Jr, 12.0 pts, 2.9 rebs, 5.7 assists, 1.2 steals

Marcus Hooten, Arkansas State, Jr, 11.9 pts, 2.3 rebs, 1.6 assists

Derrick Gordon, Western Kentucky, Fr, 11.7 pts, 6.3 rebs, 2.2 assists

Freddie Goldstein, South Alabama, Jr, 11.3 pts, 2.7 rebs, 2.6 assists

Charles Winbone, Louisiana-Monroe, So, 11.2 pts, 2.1 rebs, 1.6 assist

Trey Finn, Arkansas State, Jr, 11.0 pts, 5.1 rebs, 1.7 assists, 1.6 steals

Brandon Peterson, Arkansas State, Jr, 9.1 pts, 7.9 rebs, 1.1 blks

Sun Belt Conference Jack Leasure Award: Brian Stafford, Denver, 69/150, 46%. We're light on the bombing in the Sun Belt, as the top volume guy is only at 178. Stafford is not far (especially over 30 games) and at 46%? BOMBS AWAY. Strangely, the Buffet feels prediction vindication where the predicted winner has a Leasure Awardee on their roster. Weird.

Sun Belt MVP: LaRon Dendy, Sr, Middle Tennessee

Joe Gottfried Sun Belt Coach of the Year: Kermit Davis, Middle Tennessee State

Sun Belt Freshman of the Year: Tony Mitchell, North Texas

All-Sun Belt First Team:

D'Andre Williams, Sr, G, Arkansas-Little Rock

Chris Udofia, So, F, Denver

LaRon Dendy, Sr, F, Middle Tennessee

Tony Mitchell, Fr, F, North Texas

Augustine Rubit, So, F, South Alabama

All-Big Sky Second Team:

Will Neighbour, So, F, Arkansas-Little Rock

Brian Stafford, Sr, G, Denver

DeJuan Wright, Sr, G, Florida-International

Josh Brown, Sr, G, Louisiana-Lafayette

Marcos Knight, Jr, G, Middle Tennessee

Morsels from the Sun Belt...