2009 Sun Belt Tournament Preview

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/03/2009 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 33rd-annual Sun Belt Conference Tournament, which includes all 13 members, will begin at campus venues on Wednesday, before moving to Summit Arena for the final three rounds.

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and Arkansas-Little Rock Trojans won the East and West Divisions, respectively, with identical 15-3 records. The Hilltoppers though, swept the Trojans during the regular season and were awarded the top seed in the tournament. Troy finished slightly behind WKU and UALR at 14-4, so it received the No.3 seed. The top three seeds earn a bye in the first round, while the rest of the league must battle for the right to move on to Hot Springs for the quarterfinals.

The North Texas Mean Green claimed the fourth seed with an 11-7 finish and will host 13th-seeded Florida Atlantic, which went just 2-16 in league play. The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders and South Alabama Jaguars both had 10-8 league records and after the tie-breaker scenario was worked out, it was the Raiders who landed the fifth seed. MT will take on 12th-seeded Arkansas State, which finished 5-13, while the sixth-seeded Jaguars will entertain the 11th- seeded New Orleans Privateers after their 6-12 showing. The UL-Monroe Warhawks also recorded a 6-12 ledger, but owned the tie-breaker with New Orleans and were given the 10th seed. The Warhawks will clash with the Denver Pioneers, who earned the seventh seed with an even 9-9 performance. The UL-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns and Florida International Golden Panthers both ended with 7-11 records, but tie-breaker went to the Cajuns and they get to host the Panthers in the first round.

The ninth-seeded Panthers versus the eighth-seeded Cajuns are one of five first round games on tap for Wednesday. In league games, ULL went 6-3 at home compared to 1-8 on the road, so it was important that the Cajuns won the tie- breaker with FIU in order to host this bout. ULL has had great success in this event, going 24-12 all-time and capturing five titles. FIU, on the other hand, is just 5-9 lifetime in the tourney and is in search of its first championship.

The 13th-seeded Owls bring a five-game losing streak to Denton, where they will take on the fourth-seeded Mean Green in the first round. FAU is 0-17 on the road this season, while North Texas owns an 11-4 mark at home. The Mean Green won its lone title in this tourney in 2007, and the Owls have gone 2-2 in their only two appearances.

The fifth-seeded Blue Raiders welcome the 12th-seeded Red Wolves to Murfreesboro for a first-round match up on Wednesday. MT won the lone meeting with ASU during the season and has gone 6-3 in conference home games. The Blue Raiders have posted a 10-8 mark in this tourney, including a 67-57 loss to Western Kentucky in the finals last season. ASU won its lone title in 1999, but it enters the postseason riding a lengthy nine-game slide.

After earning the top seed last season, the Jaguars had to settle for the sixth spot and a first-round home game against 11th-seeded New Orleans this year. USA is one of the most decorated teams in the SBC, as it has won the tourney title on five occasions, most recently in 2006. The Privateers claimed their second championship in 1996, but they most likely won't get past the first round this season considering their 0-9 record on the road in league games.

The seventh-seeded Pioneers and 10th-seeded Warhawks will meet in Colorado in first-round action on Wednesday as well. Denver boasts an 11-3 home ledger, while ULM sports a poor 2-11 road mark. Neither team has won a title in this event, but the Pioneers did reach the finals in 2005, losing out to ULL.

Top-seeded WKU will start off quarterfinal round play on Sunday, as it awaits the winner of the ULL/FIU matchup. The Toppers defeated MT in their finale to wrap up the SBC regular-season title, the program's 41st league championship (regular season and tournament titles). WKU won its unprecedented sixth SBC Tournament title last season as a third seed and is 34-20 all-time in this event.

Muck like WKU, second-seed UALR will be awaiting the arrival of its quarterfinal round opponent at Summit Arena on Sunday. The Trojans will face off against the survivor of the ULM/Denver contest. UALR recorded a school- record 15 SBC wins this season on its way to the program's fourth West Division title in six years. The Trojans also reached the 20-win plateau for the second straight season, a feat they hadn't accomplished since the 1988-89 and 1989-90 campaigns. UALR though, is still looking for that elusive first title despite winning 15 games in this tourney.

The quarterfinal round will conclude with third-seeded Troy taking on either New Orleans or South Alabama on Sunday. The Trojans ripped off wins in 12 of their last 13 outings, although a heart-breaking, 87-86, loss to FIU on February 19th ultimately cost them a share of the league crown. Still, the run pushed Troy to 19-11 overall, marking its best record since the 2003-04 season.

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

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