Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) -
OUTLOOK: To be successful in the Big West Conference, a team usually needs to
have an up-tempo style and plenty of scoring threats, and the two teams that
figure to be contending for the league championship this year have no problem
putting points on the board.
Last season, Long Beach State won their second consecutive conference title
with a veteran team, but it will need to overcome the loss of a lot of talent
from last season if it wants to make it a three-peat in 2012-13. Waiting in
the wings is Cal State Fullerton, which returns two of last year's top scorers
in D.J. Seeley and Kwame Vaughn.
Things get a bit muddled after the top two teams. UC Santa Barbara is
typically a contender, but the cupboard looks pretty bare this season. In its
first season as a member of the conference, Hawaii certainly has the talent to
compete with anyone, but a transition is in order coming from the Western
Athletic Conference. Although UC Irvine and Cal State Northridge were rather
lackluster in 2011-12, both squads hold a lot of intrigue with regard to
returning star power.
While never the sexiest of picks, Pacific and Cal Poly always seem to put
together solid years without the same sort of talent its rivals have. UC
Riverside was disappointing last season, and the loss of its best player in
Phil Martin certainly doesn't help matters. UC Davis has no where to go but up
after a dreadful year, but even a modest improvement could still mean last
place for a team with so little to work with.
CONFERENCE CHAMPION: Cal State Fullerton
PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: 1. Cal State Fullerton, 2. Long Beach State, 3. UC
Irvine, 4. UC Santa Barbara, 5. Hawaii, 6. Cal State Northridge, 7. Pacific,
8. Cal Poly, 9. UC Riverside, 10. UC Davis
TEAM BY TEAM ANALYSIS:
CAL STATE FULLERTON: The Titans were one of the most explosive teams in the
nation last year, scoring 78 ppg during a season in which they finished 21-10
and second in the conference at 12-4, resulting in a bid to the
CollegeInsider.com Tournament. With Bob Burton stepping down from his coaching
duties, Andy Newman has taken over on an interim basis, and he will be
fortunate enough to have two of the conference's best scorers returning. D.J.
Seeley finished his junior season ranked fourth in the conference in scoring
(17.3 ppg) and he also added 5.5 rpg and 1.8 apg en route to being named First
Team All-Big West. Kwame Vaughn was also spectacular, scoring 15.6 ppg on
nearly 46 percent shooting while leading the conference in assists (3.7 apg).
Although Fullerton will be without three starters from last year, all of whom
averaged double figures in scoring, Sammy Yeager (9.3 ppg) and Marquis Horne
(8.5 ppg, 4.9 rpg) were solid in reserve roles and are expected to shine in
the starting lineup. The only question mark among the starting five is John
Underwood, who has ideal size (6-9) but minimal experience (6.9 minutes per
game last season).
LONG BEACH STATE: The 49ers won their second consecutive Big West Conference
championship in 2011-12, going 15-1 in conference and 25-9 overall, advancing
to the NCAA Tournament but losing to fifth-seeded New Mexico in the first
round, 75-68. Head Coach Dan Monson will have his work cut out for him this
time around however, as Long Beach State returns just one starter from its
championship squad in James Ennis. The 6-6 guard earned All-Big West honorable
mention last season, filling up the stat sheet with 10 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.6 apg,
1.6 spg, and 0.8 bpg. With the four other starters lost, the team hopes to
replace more than 50 points per game. Michael Caffey (5.9 ppg, 2.2 apg) was
the backup point guard last year and should step right into the starting
lineup, as should James Ennis (10 ppg), although Peter Pappageorge and Nick
Shepherd received very little playing time a year ago. The 49ers will hope
that four transfers will help their prospects of repeating, including former
Arizona State guard Keala King, who led the Sun Devils in scoring last year
(13.7 ppg) before being dismissed from the team in January.
UC IRVINE: Despite a respectable home record (8-6) last season, the Anteaters
suffered through a tough campaign, winning just six conference games and 12
bouts overall. The good news for Irvine is that it will enjoy nearly universal
continuity from last season to this, with all 10 of its players who earned
regular playing time coming back, including four seniors in Michael Wilder,
Daman Starring, Derick Flowers and Adam Folker. Wilder is the top returning
player in the conference in terms of career points (762), assists (162), field
goals made (223), three-pointers made (152), free throws made (164) and
minutes played (2,321). Wilder (11.5 ppg), Starring (11.4 ppg), and Chris
McNealy (10.2) all averaged double figures in scoring last season, while
Folker (8.2 ppg, 6.7 rpg) was the team's best rebounder. Third-year head coach
Russell Turner will also have several underclassmen with valuable experience
in reserve roles under their belts in Will Davis II (7.8 ppg, 5.2 rpg), Aaron
Wright (6.9 ppg) and Mike Best (4.0 ppg).
UC SANTA BARBARA: For the 10th time in school history, the Gauchos won 20
games a season ago, and as a result they were invited to play in the
CollegeInsider.com Tournament. UCSB has now gone to the postseason three
straight years and 15th-year head coach Bob Williams is now the program's all-
time leader in wins with 237. If it plans on returning to postseason action
this year, it will need to do so without the Big West's best scoring duo from
a season ago in Orlando Johnson (19.7 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 2.9 apg) and James
Nunnally (16 ppg, 5.9 rpg), as well as Jaime Serna (9.0 ppg, 5.0) -- all of
whom graduated. Predicting who will carry the torch as the team's leading
scorer this year is not easy, as only Kyle Boswell (7.5 ppg) and Alan Williams
(6.9 ppg) have shown any sort of scoring potential. After both players sat out
last year because of NCAA transfer rules, Keegan Hornbuckle (formerly of
Colorado) and Nate Garth (New Mexico) figure to be mainstays in the rotation.
Williams also welcomes nine incoming freshman, who he hopes at least a handful
of can make an immediate impact.
HAWAII: After competing in the Western Athletic Conference for the past 33
years, the Rainbow Warriors will play their first season as a member of the
Big West after going 16-16 in 2011-12 under second-year coach Gib Arnold.
Hawaii lost 27.7 combined ppg from its starting lineup with the departures of
Zane Johnson and Joston Thomas, but it still retains its top scorer from a
year ago in 6-10 Vander Joaquim (14.3 ppg). The First Team All-WAC performer
also ripped down 9.5 rpg and blocked nearly two shots per game, and he will
immediately be one of the most imposing forces in the conference. The team
also lost Jeremiah Ostrowski, who ranked sixth in the nation in assists per
game (7.0), and it will have difficultly replacing him as no returning player
averaged more than one helper per tilt last season. Of the eight newcomers,
five are freshman. Caleb Dressler (6-10) was one of Washington State's top
prospects and should be a nice complement off the bench. Keith Shamburger was
a two-year starter at San Jose State but must sit out this season per NCAA
transfer rules.
CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE: Bobby Braswell's 16th season as the Matadors' head coach
was not one of his best as the team went just 7-21 overall and 3-13 in
conference play. There's a silver lining for Northridge however, as it returns
the reigning Big West Freshman of the Year and Mid-Major Freshman All-American
Stephan Hicks. The 6-5 swing man was among the Big West's leaders in scoring
(15.1 ppg), rebounding (7.1 rpg), field goal percentage (.440), and free throw
percentage (.813) last year. Hicks is already one of the league's elite
players, and he hopes to spring on to the national radar in his sophomore
season. Josh Greene (12.4 ppg, 2.8 apg) was a solid complement to Hicks last
season, but he needs to improve upon his dreadful field goal percentage (.368)
to be a more consistent performer. Stephen Maxwell (8.6 ppg, .524 FG
percentage, 6.4 rpg) also returns as a solid post presence. The team is still
very young with just three juniors and no seniors, so once again the
sophomores and freshmen will need to step up.
PACIFIC: Just a few years removed from a Big West regular season championship
in 2010, the Tigers fell a long way to just 11-19 (6-10 Big West) last season,
which was one of the worst in legendary head coach Bob Thompson's career.
Heading into his 25th year as Pacific's head man, Thompson has announced he
will retire at year's end, and he has an experienced squad ready to make a
leap in the standings. Despite starting just two of 26 games, Ross Rivera
(11.0 ppg) was the leading scorer a season ago, shooting an impressive 51.8
percent from the field. Lorenzo McCloud (10.6 ppg, 3.5 apg), Travis Fulton
(9.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg) and Markus Duran (6.8 ppg) are all be seniors this season
and have multiple years of starting experience under their belts. Center
Khalil Kelly (6.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg) made an impact in his freshman year and hopes
to take the next step this time around.
CAL POLY: The Mustangs (18-15) won more games than they lost in 2011-12 behind
the best scoring defense in the conference (60.5 ppg), but improving upon
their 8-8 Big West record may prove to be difficult with the loss of their
three best players in Amaurys Fermin (9.8 ppg, 3.6 apg), David Hanson (11.8
ppg, All-Conference Second Team) and Will Taylor (9.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg). In his
fourth season as head coach, Joe Callero will turn to forward Chris Eversley
and guard Dylan Royer as his go-to performers. Eversley saw time in all 33
games last year and averaged 8.2 ppg and 4.8 rpg. Royer (7.5 ppg) led the team
in three-pointers (72) and was tops in the conference in three-point field
goal percentage (.465), and his production is expected to go up with an
increased role this season. Drake U'u (6.1 ppg) is the only other returnee who
experienced regular minutes a year ago. Senior guard Chris O'Brien (5.9 ppg in
2010-11) hopes to contribute after missing all of last season after suffering
an injury in the preseason.
UC RIVERSIDE: In five years as head coach of the Highlanders, Jim Wooldridge
has recorded just a 64-87 record, but his squad was able to inch closer to
.500 in 2011-12 with a 14-17 (7-9 Big West) mark. The return of only three of
10 letter-winners from a season ago, including just one starter, means this
year will likely be a difficult one. Without former star Phil Martin (17.5
ppg, 5.6 rpg), Robert Smith (9.2 ppg) will need to step up to be the team's
leader and its primary scorer. Smith is a great distributor of the ball (3.3
apg), but his field goal percentages (.384, .284 three-point) will not cut it
for a go-to guy. Other than Smith, only T.J. Burke (2.0 ppg) and Austin Quick
(2.4 ppg) are back of the guys who have logged regular minutes in the past. In
addition to the usual influx of rookies, the Highlanders welcome Chris
Harriel, a transfer from Portland State who averaged 12.6 ppg in 2010-11, and
Chris Patton, a 6-10 forward from Australia. The fresh blood could mean a
change in culture in the UCR locker room this season. Time will tell.
UC DAVIS: The Aggies' 2011-12 season was nothing short of dreadful, winning
five games overall and finishing just 1-15 in conference play. After
performing well in his first two seasons, Ryan Sypkens averaged 14.5 ppg in
four games before being lost for the remainder of the season with an injury.
With presumably a full season of action ahead, UC Davis will automatically be
much better with him in the lineup. The team alsos welcome Josh Ritchart back
to the starting lineup, as he was the team's top performer in 2011-12 with
11.3 ppg and 5.1 rpg. Tyler Les (9.7 ppg) and Ryan Howley (6.7 ppg) also
return to the rotation as both averaged more than 27 minutes per game. There's
an influx of new players, including transfers Corey Hawkins (Arizona State),
Avery Johnson (USF), and Iggu Nujic (Texas-San Antonio), all of whom should
see immediate playing time with the hopes of improving upon the Aggies'
league-worst scoring margin of minus-12.4 from a season ago.
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