Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - OUTLOOK: The Sun Belt is one of the nation's biggest conferences, with 13 teams fighting for one NCAA Tournament bid. Considering that the league is thought of as a mid-major and does not get many at-large bids, the competition among these squads is fierce. New Orleans struggled mightily last season, as star guard Bo McCalebb missed most of the campaign with an injury. Now that he is back, we expect the Privateers to finish at or near the top of the East Division. There will certainly be some serious heat from North Texas and Arkansas-Little Rock, both of which have three returning starters in the fold. Denver also welcomes back three starters, but the Pioneers lost the best player from their 2005-06 roster and may struggle to reach .500 this year. Arkansas State figures to be mediocre under Dickey Nutt, who has coached 11 years at the school. Rounding out the East are UL-Lafayette and UL-Monroe, a pair of teams with a major hill to climb. In the West Division, Western Kentucky welcomes back three starters from a team that finished 12-2 in Sun Belt play a year ago. South Alabama proved to be one of the nation's most surprising teams in '05-'06, as it won the conference tournament and put up a good effort against Florida in the "Big Dance". Don't expect a repeat, however, as the losses from that club were numerous. Middle Tennessee and Troy have a chance to make some noise out West, but the same can't be said for Florida Atlantic and Florida International.
CONFERENCE CHAMPION: Western Kentucky
PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: EAST DIVISION: 1. New Orleans, 2. North Texas, 3. Arkansas-Little Rock, 4. Denver, 5. Arkansas State, 6. Louisiana-Lafayette, 7. Louisiana-Monroe
WEST DIVISION: 1. Western Kentucky, 2. South Alabama, 3. Middle Tennessee, 4. Troy, 5. Florida Atlantic, 6. Florida International
TEAM BY TEAM ANALYSIS:
LOUISIANA La. - We have become accustomed to UL-Lafayette being a conference power, so the team's sub-.500 finish in 2005-06 was surprising. To make matters worse, super seniors Dwayne Mitchell and Michael Southall, who combined for 32.4 ppg and 16.2 rpg, are gone from the program. Add to that the fact that the club's two returning starters combined to average a miniscule 4.0 ppg last year, and things look pretty bleak in Lafayette. There are nine recruits in the fold, and that suggests a rebuilding year for the Ragin' Cajuns. Clearly, they may be one of the two or three least talented teams in the Sun Belt, at least in regard to returning talent.
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The Sports Network
Pat Taggart
Associate College Basketball Editor