define('DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT', true); define('DISALLOW_FILE_MODS', true); mike smith – Rush The Court http://rushthecourt.net The Independent Voice of College Basketball Wed, 02 Mar 2011 21:35:49 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.1.9 http://rushthecourt.net http://rushthecourt.net/wp-content/mbp-favicon/RTC.jpg Rush The Court O26 Primers: Atlantic Sun, Ohio Valley & Patriot League Tourneys http://rushthecourt.net/2011/03/02/o26-primers-atlantic-sun-ohio-valley-patriot-league-tourneys/ http://rushthecourt.net/2011/03/02/o26-primers-atlantic-sun-ohio-valley-patriot-league-tourneys/#respond Wed, 02 Mar 2011 21:35:49 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=34313

RTC’s Kevin Doyle, author of the weekly column, The Other 26, and the Patriot League Correspondent, will be providing conference tournament previews for all non-BCS conferences.

Three more conferences get their tournaments underway tonight which means that several more teams will have their dreams of advancing to the greatest Dance in the world dashed, while others will inch one step closer to winning their conference championship. Tonight the Atlantic Sun, Ohio Valley and Patriot League tournaments all get underway. Belmont and Bucknell are the obvious favorites to win their respective conferences, but the Ohio Valley is a little unclear with [...]]]> http://rushthecourt.net/2011/03/02/o26-primers-atlantic-sun-ohio-valley-patriot-league-tourneys/feed/ 0 Atlantic Sun Wrap & Tourney Preview http://rushthecourt.net/2011/03/02/atlantic-sun-wrap-tourney-preview/ http://rushthecourt.net/2011/03/02/atlantic-sun-wrap-tourney-preview/#respond Wed, 02 Mar 2011 19:31:30 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=34069

Bucky Dent is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun. The A-Sun is among the first of the conference tournaments to tip off, with action set to begin Wednesday.

Tournament Preview and Prediction

The top two seeds play Wednesday, giving them a day off before playing in semifinal matchups Friday night. While weird stuff happens in March, there’s nothing to suggest that Belmont or ETSU should lose against Kennesaw State or Campbell, respectively.

On the other hand, a North Florida upset of Jacksonville or a Mercer victory over Lipscomb wouldn’t come [...]]]> http://rushthecourt.net/2011/03/02/atlantic-sun-wrap-tourney-preview/feed/ 0 Checking in on… the Atlantic Sun http://rushthecourt.net/2011/02/20/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-14/ http://rushthecourt.net/2011/02/20/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-14/#respond Sun, 20 Feb 2011 20:03:27 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=33498

Bucky Dent is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference.

A Look Back

Belmont Clinches: By knocking off East Tennessee State, 68-58, Thursday night in Nashville, the Bruins clinched the regular season title and the top seed for next month‘s conference tournament in Macon, Georgia. Belmont also gained no worse than an automatic bid to the NIT should it somehow stumble in Macon, which looks doubtful. Easily the deepest, most physical and most talented team in the A-Sun, the Bruins could face tough semifinal and championship challenges in Macon but also appear well-equipped to handle them. Of [...]]]>
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Checking in on… the Atlantic Sun http://rushthecourt.net/2011/02/04/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-13/ http://rushthecourt.net/2011/02/04/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-13/#respond Fri, 04 Feb 2011 22:12:39 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=32588

Bucky Dent is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference.

A Look Back

Bruins Beaten: Just when Ken Pomeroy‘s metrics rated Belmont with a 53 percent chance of running through the Atlantic Sun Conference with a 20-0 record, the Bruins were beaten January 25 at Lipscomb. And not just any loss, either. A come-from-way-ahead loss in which they led by 18 in the first half before the Bison reeled them in down the stretch and won 73-64. Not that it seems to have bothered the Bruins too much, however, as they’ve won three straight, including a 76-70 [...]]]>
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Checking in on… the Atlantic Sun http://rushthecourt.net/2011/01/21/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-12/ http://rushthecourt.net/2011/01/21/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-12/#respond Sat, 22 Jan 2011 01:07:09 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=31590

Bucky Dent is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference.

A Look Back

Leaving it in Bruins: Belmont isn’t just winning its games, it’s flat-out plundering this conference. Going into a Friday date at USC Upstate, the Bruins have won their first eight A-Sun games by an average of 29 points per game and are also receiving votes in the coaches’ top 25. Ken Pomeroy’s tempo-free metrics rank them as the 25th-best team nationally, an eye-opener for those who would prefer to denigrate their accomplishments because of the A-Sun. Anyone who’s seen Belmont and its [...]]]>
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Checking in on… the Atlantic Sun http://rushthecourt.net/2011/01/08/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-11/ http://rushthecourt.net/2011/01/08/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-11/#respond Sat, 08 Jan 2011 14:00:24 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=30610

Bucky Dent is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference.

A Look Back

The Agony Ends… and Resumes: While no one picked Kennesaw State to win the conference this year, no one thought it would have a ten-game losing streak, either. But that‘s what happened as the Owls played poor defense and were too shot-dependent. KSU broke the spell with a 78-71 home win against USC Upstate Jan. 3, with the Spartans getting 23 points from Kelvin McConnell and 16 rebounds from Aaron Anderson. But it went back to losing two nights later when it allowed East [...]]]>
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Checking in on… the Atlantic Sun http://rushthecourt.net/2010/12/26/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-10/ http://rushthecourt.net/2010/12/26/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-10/#respond Mon, 27 Dec 2010 05:01:41 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=29805

Bucky Dent is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference.

A Look Back

Belmont‘s the Best: There is no team as consistent in this league as the Bruins, who came within a Scotty Hopson layup of scoring an upset win at Tennessee Thursday night. How good is Belmont? It went 8-of-35 from the 3-point line, had a 37-10 disadvantage in free throw chances and still fought a top 20 team — a top 20 team with decisive neutral court wins over Villanova and Pittsburgh — down to the wire. Between ripping his team after the [...]]]>
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Checking in on… the Atlantic Sun http://rushthecourt.net/2010/11/27/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-8/ http://rushthecourt.net/2010/11/27/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-8/#respond Sat, 27 Nov 2010 12:01:26 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=27891

Bucky Dent is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference.  [ed note: this post was written prior to the Nov. 26-28 games]

A Look Back

Tommy Hubbard Injured: East Tennessee State forward Tommy Hubbard is battling knee problems which have kept him out of two games and hampered him in the only game he played, a Nov. 15 loss at Murray State. While the Buccaneers have enough depth to still field a solid lineup, they don’t want to think about life without Hubbard, their best defensive player and top scorer last year when [...]]]>
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RTC Conference Primers: #22 – Atlantic Sun Conference http://rushthecourt.net/2010/10/13/rtc-conference-primers-22-%e2%80%93-atlantic-sun-conference/ http://rushthecourt.net/2010/10/13/rtc-conference-primers-22-%e2%80%93-atlantic-sun-conference/#comments Wed, 13 Oct 2010 15:00:09 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=25207

Rush The Court is actively seeking a correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference. If you or someone you know is interested in becoming a correspondent, please contact us at rushthecourt@yahoo.com.

Predicted Order of Finish

Belmont (16-4) East Tennessee State (15-5) Lipscomb (13-7) Campbell (12-8) Jacksonville (11-9) North Florida (10-10) Mercer (10-10) USC-Upstate (7-13) Kennesaw State (6-14) Stetson (5-15) Florida Gulf Coast (5-15)

All-Conference Team

Markeith Cummings (F) – Kennesaw State (17.4 PPG and 6.1 RPG) Adnan Hodzic (C) – Lipscomb (22.7 PPG and 9.1 RPG; last year’s A-Sun POY) Mike Smith (G) – ETSU (15.3 PPG and 7.7 RPG as a sophomore; injured last year) Josh [...]]]>
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Checking in on… the Atlantic Sun http://rushthecourt.net/2009/12/11/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-2/ http://rushthecourt.net/2009/12/11/checking-in-on-the-atlantic-sun-2/#respond Fri, 11 Dec 2009 17:48:10 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=13859

Ryan Dunn is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference.

Current Standings:

Belmont (7-2, 2-0) Campbell (5-2, 1-0) East Tennessee State (5-5, 1-0) USC Upstate [...]]]>
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2009-10 Conference Primers: #25 – Atlantic Sun http://rushthecourt.net/2009/10/13/2009-10-conference-primers-25-atlantic-sun/ http://rushthecourt.net/2009/10/13/2009-10-conference-primers-25-atlantic-sun/#respond Tue, 13 Oct 2009 18:55:30 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=11675

Ryan Dunn is the RTC correspondent for the Atlantic Sun Conference. Click here for all of our 2009-10 Season Preview materials.

Predicted Order of Finish:

Lipscomb Bisons                             (20-9, 15-5) Jacksonville Dolphins                     (19-11, 14-6) Mercer Bears                                   (17-15, 12-8) Campbell Camels                            (17-13, 11-9) East Tennessee State Bucs              (15-15, 11-9) Belmont Bruins                               (13-17, 10-10) Florida Gulf Coast Eagles              (14-15, 9-11)               Stetson Hatters                               (13-16, 8-12) North Florida Ospreys                    (11-19, 7-13) Kennesaw State Owls                   (9-23, 5-15) USC-Upstate Spartans                  (4-25, 4-16)

Preseason All-Conference Team (all stats 2008-09 season):

James Florence (G), Mercer                  20.8 points, 3.7 assists Ben Smith (G), Jacksonville                   16.9 points, 4.0 assists Jonathan Rodriguez  (F), Campbell        15.6 points, 8.3 [...]]]>
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RTC 2009-10 Impact Players: Mid-South Region http://rushthecourt.net/2009/10/07/rtc-2009-10-impact-players-mid-south-region/ http://rushthecourt.net/2009/10/07/rtc-2009-10-impact-players-mid-south-region/#respond Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:05:20 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=11481

Ed. Note: the previous posts in this series (Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Atlantic South and Deep South) are located here.

It’s time for the fifth installment of our RTC 2009-10 Impact Players series, the group of landlocked states that produce some really good basketball players – the Mid-South.   Each week we’ll pick a geographic area of the country and break down the five players who we feel will have the most impact on their teams (and by the transitive property, college basketball) this season.  Our criteria is once again subjective – there are so many good [...]]]> http://rushthecourt.net/2009/10/07/rtc-2009-10-impact-players-mid-south-region/feed/ 0 NCAA Preview: East Tennessee State Buccaneers http://rushthecourt.net/2009/03/18/ncaa-preview-east-tennessee-state-buccaneers/ http://rushthecourt.net/2009/03/18/ncaa-preview-east-tennessee-state-buccaneers/#respond Wed, 18 Mar 2009 07:41:56 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=7193

East Tennessee St.  (#16, East, Dayton pod)

vs. Pittsburgh (#1) Mar. 20 @ 2:55pm Vegas Line: ETSU +20

General Profile

Location: Johnson City, Tennessee Conference: Atlantic Sun — Tournament Champion Coach: Murray Bartow, hired 2003. Record at ETSU = 118-71 08-09 Record: 23-10 (14-6) Last 12 Games: 8-4, won 5. Best Win: vs Jacksonville 85-68 on 3/7/09 for the Atlantic Sun title. Worst Loss: at Florida-Gulf Coast, 61-64, on 1/12/09. Off. Efficiency Rating: 105.3 (105th) Def. Efficiency Rating: 100.3 (149rd)

Nuts n Bolts

Star Player(s): Kevin Tiggs (6’4″ senior guard), 21.5 ppg on 54% shooting. Unsung Hero: Mike Smith (6’6″ junior forward), 17.5 ppg/7.7 rpg/1.3 steals/gm. Potential NBA Draft Pick: None. Key Injuries: No significant injuries. Depth: 28.4% mins [...]]]> http://rushthecourt.net/2009/03/18/ncaa-preview-east-tennessee-state-buccaneers/feed/ 0 4 Tickets Punched, 61 to go… http://rushthecourt.net/2009/03/07/4-tickets-punched-61-to-go/ http://rushthecourt.net/2009/03/07/4-tickets-punched-61-to-go/#respond Sun, 08 Mar 2009 05:35:23 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=6120

We punched four RSVPs to the Dance in the last 24 hrs, so we thought it’d be worthwhile to show these guys a little love before they get crowded out by all the bigger leagues next week.

These Four Teams Got Their Dance Tickets

#1 – Cornell (21-9, 11-3 Ivy). Your back-to-back Ivy League champion dominated Penn 83-59 last night to clinch the Ivy again.  The Big Red fans were so excited that they RTC’d and “demolished” a computer that ran the scoring system.  Believe it or not, the o/u for that game was [...]]]> http://rushthecourt.net/2009/03/07/4-tickets-punched-61-to-go/feed/ 0 2008-09 Season Primers: #18 – Sun Belt http://rushthecourt.net/2008/10/24/2008-09-season-primers-18-sun-belt/ http://rushthecourt.net/2008/10/24/2008-09-season-primers-18-sun-belt/#respond Fri, 24 Oct 2008 23:06:49 +0000 http://rushthecourt.net/?p=1596

 

Rick Henderson of The Owl’s Nest is the RTC correspondent for the Sun Belt conference.

Predicted Order of Finish:

East

Middle Tennessee  (19-11, 13-5) Western Kentucky  (18-11, 12-6) South Alabama  (18-11, 11-7) Florida Atlantic  (17-14, 10-8) Florida International  (15 -16, 8-10) Troy  (12-20, 5-13)

West

Arkansas-Little Rock  (17-9, 12-6) North Texas  (16-13, 10-8) Louisiana-Lafayette  (15-14, 10-8) Arkansas State  (14-15, 8-10) Denver  (12-17, 7-11) Louisiana-Monroe  (15-14, 7-11) New Orleans  (11-19, 4-14)

WYN2K.  The Belt took a step forward last season with the NCAA Tourney appearance of South Alabama, and the deep run of Western Kentucky into the Sweet 16, jumping from 17 to 14 in the RPI rankings.  Accordingly, recruiting is on the way up all around.  [...]]]> http://rushthecourt.net/2008/10/24/2008-09-season-primers-18-sun-belt/feed/ 0