louisiana-monroe – Rush The Court

2013-14 RTC Class Schedule: Kansas Jayhawks

BHayes — Mon, 16 Sep 2013 15:25:36 +0000

Bennet Hayes is an RTC columnist. He can be reached @HoopsTraveler. Periodically throughout the preseason, RTC will take an in-depth look at the schedules of some of the more prominent teams in college basketball.

We have seen rapid and successful overhauls in Lawrence before, but perhaps never on this scale. Kansas is short five starters from a year ago, and in their wake arrives a decorated freshman class headed by a once-in-a-generation talent. Commitments from top-50 recruits Joel Embiid, Wayne Selden, and Conner Francamp had Jayhawk fans believing a quick rebuild was possible, but it was the May signing of Andrew [...]

Middleton Nearing Return for Texas A&M

dnspewak — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 20:05:59 +0000

Khris Middleton could be returning to Texas A&M at exactly the right time.

The preseason All-Big 12 wing played in the Aggies’ season opener, but he underwent surgery for a partially torn meniscus in mid-November and has not played since. According to a tweet by Jon Rothstein today, Middleton participated in a full practice yesterday for the first time since his injury. Although no news outlets have reported anything about his official return yet, we’ve got to think A&M will have its star back by the time it plays Florida on December 17.

Middleton Is Back on the Practice Court [...]

Checking In On… the Sun Belt

Brian Goodman — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 18:08:48 +0000

Danny Spewak is the RTC correspondent for Sun Belt Conference. You can also find his musings online at Sun Belt Basketball or on Twitter @dspewak.

Reader’s Take

Take Our Poll

The Week That Was:

Pioneers Rolling: Denver looks like the best team in the Sun Belt Conference having knocked off both St. Mary’s and Utah State in the span of a week. And did we mention Denver is the first team since 2009 to beat the Aggies on their home floor? Nobody wins road games at Utah State—except for Denver, apparently. Joe Scott’s team played flawlessly leading from start to finish. At one point, Denver led by 20 points eventually [...]

Checking In On… the Sun Belt Conference

Brian Goodman — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 15:20:28 +0000

Danny Spewak is the RTC correspondent for Sun Belt Conference and a Big 12 microsite staffer. You can also find his musings online at www.sunbeltbasketball.com or on Twitter @dspewak.

Reader’s Take

Take Our Poll

The Week That Was

Blue Raiders > Blueblood: Middle Tennessee came to play this November. The Blue Raiders quietly earned a solid season-opening victory over Austin Peay, a favorite in the Ohio Valley Conference. Two days later, it knocked off Loyola Marymount—and then, the Blue Raiders earned one of the more significant victories of Kermit Davis’s tenure by blowing out UCLA 86-66 on Tuesday night. Iowa State transfer LaRon Dendy dominated [...]

RTC Summer Updates: Sun Belt Conference

Brian Goodman — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 16:00:42 +0000

With the completion of the NBA Draft and the annual coaching and transfer carousels nearing their ends, RTC is rolling out a new series, RTC Summer Updates, to give you a crash course on each Division I conference during the summer months. Our latest update comes courtesy of our Sun Belt correspondent, Danny Spewak.

Reader’s Take

Take Our Poll

Summer Storylines

Staying Put: Not a single head coach in the Sun Belt changed jobs this summer. That fact is especially noteworthy in Bowling Green, a city that nearly chased [...]

Sun Belt Wrap & Tourney Preview

Brian Goodman — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 20:28:55 +0000

Daniel Spewak is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt Conference. With SBC tournament action set to tip on Saturday, get up to speed with RTC’s preview and regular season wrap-up.

Tournament Preview

The Favorite: The Sun Belt Conference tournament is what ESPN’s Championship Week is all about. There is no talk of “bubble” in the Sun Belt. The only team in the league with a chance at avoiding a 16-seed is Florida Atlantic, a team with a strong overall record and several quality wins. And even that’s a long shot. The Owls are the easy [...]

Checking in on… the Sun Belt

Brian Goodman — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 22:35:32 +0000

Daniel Spewak is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt Conference.

A Look Back

At least it’s not a guard this time, we suppose. Senior center Cliff Dixon is the latest victim in the Western Kentucky saga, as coach Ken McDonald dismissed him from the team last weekend for violating team rules. Brown already dismissed point guard Ken Brown for academic violations, while freshman guard Snap Peters is academically ineligible. That’s left WKU with a thin backcourt and only two players capable of running the point, and now the team will have to deal with the departure of a frustrating but still potentially [...]

The Other 26: Week 13

KDoyle — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 20:51:39 +0000

Kevin Doyle is an RTC contributor.

Introduction

In last week’s article I touched on the notion of parity and how great it is within the world of sports. After analyzing many of the Other 26 conferences this week, I could not help but notice how in several of the conference there is not one team that has distinguished themselves from the pack yet, and we are already nearing mid-February. In some cases, there are not even two or three teams that are running away with the league. Competitiveness or mediocrity? Well, does it really [...]

Checking in on… the Sun Belt

Brian Goodman — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 19:00:53 +0000

Danny Spewak is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt Conference.

A Look Back

Sun Belt Conference, look out: Tony Mitchell is here. After failing to qualify at Missouri, the five-star power forward enrolled at North Texas last month, landing the Mean Green one of the most celebrated recruits in Sun Belt history. Mitchell signed a letter of intent for Mike Anderson last fall, but the NCAA ruled him ineligible because of disputed high school credits. If he completes 24 credits at North Texas during the next two semesters, he will gain eligibility for the second semester next season. Mitchell isn’t the [...]

Checking in on… the Sun Belt

Brian Goodman — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 01:08:42 +0000

Danny Spewak is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt Conference.

A Look Back: News and Notes

Dennis Harris wants a reunion with John Brady. Harris, who signed with Brady at LSU and remained at the school when Trent Johnson took over in 2008, announced his decision to transfer to Arkansas State earlier this month. He appeared in only four games this season, but saw significant minutes as a role player last year. His 6’11 frame and long wingspan has to frighten opponents in his new league, especially since Harris will play alongside Martavius Adams when he becomes eligible in the spring of 2011. It’s [...]

Checking in on… the Sun Belt

Brian Goodman — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 20:12:15 +0000

Daniel Spewak is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt conference.

A Look Back: News and Notes

The hits keep coming for Western Kentucky. Never mind that the Hilltoppers are 5-8 and just lost at Arkansas State. Now, just a few weeks after the dismissal of point guard Ken Brown, WKU has learned that freshman guard Snap Peters is academically ineligible for the second semester. The good news for coach Ken McDonald is that Peters hasn’t left the program for good and can return next year. The Sun Belt’s poor performance in non-conference play has resulted in an RPI plummet for the conference. As of Thursday morning, [...]

Checking in on… the Sun Belt

Brian Goodman — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 00:52:02 +0000

Daniel Spewak is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt Conference.

A Look Back

According to the beat writer for Western Kentucky’s hometown newspaper, star forward Sergio Kerusch was benched for much of Wednesday night’s 59-52 victory at Bowling Green. Coach Ken McDonald played the Sun Belt pre-season Player of the Year for only six minutes, citing a general lack of focus. In a similar move, McDonald also benched guard Khalil McDonald in a December 4 loss to Memphis because of on-court issues. The personnel changes opened an opportunity for freshman forward Stephon Drane the past [...]

RTC Conference Primers: #21 – Sun Belt

Brian Goodman — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 15:32:40 +0000

Danny Spewak is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt Conference.

Predicted Order of Finish

East:

Western Kentucky (12-4) Florida Atlantic (11-5) South Alabama (11-5) Middle Tennessee State (6-10) Troy (4-12) Florida International (4-12)

West:

North Texas (12-4) Arkansas State (11-5) Denver (8-8) Louisiana-Lafayette (8-8) Arkansas Little-Rock (6-10) Louisiana-Monroe (3-13)

All-Conference Team (key stats from last season in parentheses)

G: Josh White, North Texas (14.5 PPG, 3.5 APG) G: Ray Taylor, Florida Atlantic (14.2 PPG, 5.9 APG) F: Sergio Kerusch, Western Kentucky (14.2 PPG, 7.2 RPG) F: Steffphon Pettigrew, Western Kentucky (14.9 PPG, 5.9 RPG) F: Brett Royster, Florida Atlantic [...]

Checking in on… the Sun Belt

rtmsf — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 01:19:03 +0000

Laura Hathaway of the Clarion is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt Conference.

Current Standings

East Division (conf/overall/streak)

Troy (12-5/17-11/W4) Middle Tennessee (12-5/18-12/W2) Western Kentucky (11-6/18-12/W5) Florida Atlantic (10-7/14-14/L2) South Alabama (8-10/16-14/W1) Florida International (4-13/7-23/L7)

West Division (conf/overall/streak)

North Texas (12-5/20-8/W7) Arkansas State (11-6/16-12/W1) Louisiana-Lafayette (10-7/13-15/L1) Denver (9-8/16-12/L1) Louisiana-Monroe (6-11/11-17/L3) New Orleans (3-14/8-20/L2) Arkansas-Little Rock (3-14/7-21/L6)

News and notes

Western Kentucky’s A.J. Slaughter was named conference player of the week. He has now received this honor three times this season and also was picked as the preseason player of the year. In his senior year, Slaughter has shown why he was picked as such,as he had four straight 20-plus point performances in the last [...]

Checking in on… the Sun Belt

rtmsf — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 04:25:49 +0000

Laura Hathaway of the Clarion is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt Conference.

Current Standings

East Division (conf/overall/streak):

Middle Tennessee (8-3/13-10/W5) Florida Atlantic (8-3/12-10/W5) Troy (7-4/12-10/W2) Western Kentucky (5-5/12-10/W1) South Alabama (4-7/12-11/L4) Florida International (4-7/7-17/L1)

West Division (conf/overall/streak):

Arkansas State (8-2/13-8/W2) Louisiana-Lafayette (6-4/9-12/W1) North Texas (6-5/13-8/L1) Denver (6-5/13-9/L2) Louisiana-Monroe (4-8/9-13/L2) Arkansas-Little Rock (2-8/6-15/W1) New Orleans (2-9/7-15/L4)

East Division update:

Middle Tennessee, along with Florida Atlantic, has been hot in the last two weeks. Each team has a five-game winning streak. This conference is officially unpredictable; or, at least the East division is unpredictable. Two weeks ago, Middle Tennessee was the fifth-ranked team in the division and now the Blue Raiders are flying high topping the entire Sun [...]