As one of the newest members of the Asun and this board, I wanted to get familiar with some of the players around the league and get opinions regarding who will be the "prime-time" players to watch for the upcoming Bball season.
As for the Bucs...our marquee player is obviousy Tim Smith. He is lightning quick, a creator off the dribble, fun to watch and definitely erratic at times. Tim was 7th in the nation in scoring last year, though his downside is too many turnovers. Aside from Tim, I think we have a solid core. Dillion Sneed was in the top 25 in the nation and led the SoCon in rebounding last year. He's big and physical. Brad Nuckles, a junior out of Va., is returning for his junior season after a medical red-shirt last season. He was highly recruited out of high school and should have a good season. Ben Rhoda is sort of a small forward/big guard sort of "tweener" player that seeminly does all of the little things on the court. The biggest variable for us this season will be our incoming class recruits. I think we've got some talent--but you never know how players will make the transition to D1. Some seem never develop and some seem to far surpass expectations.
What are thoughts about other marquee players around the league??

Here's the Mercer PTP'ers:

Will Emerson (Senior) - Total package, rebounds, defense, and can score from inside or out. Clutch.

Damitrius Coleman (Senior) - Was very close to, if not, leading the nation in assists last year.

Jacob Skogen (Junior) - A fantastic shooter. When he's on he's unstoppable from outside.

Those are the 3 returning starters. After that players will have to emerge to fill roles. My player to watch as an emerging star for Mercer is Montavious Waters, a freshmen transfer last year from USF (Point Guard). He seems to be the total package and I REALLY hope to see him in the starting lineup in game 1.

You will have to wait until second semester. B/c he transfered midseason he has to sit out until exams first semester is over. I haven't looked at the schedule too closely but this could mean he will be out for the two early conference games against campbell and gwu on the road. i'm not sure on what dates they fall. also heard a rumor that one other player, not sure if they are a projected starter or not, will be missing the first semester too for academic reasons. the bears might start off a little slow and could be a force the second time around the league as they get more comfortable as the season goes on.

The ASUN will be good. Close games and such. Just do us a favor and keep tradition of beating stetson going for us. Teams to watch out for are: Mercer, Gardner Webb, belmont, and FAU (for this year). Im not sure what the new guys will do though.

Atleast from the outside im interested to see where you guys will stack up with the other teams.

The first standout player that comes to mind is from JU. He goes by the name (letter) "Q" and you will know him the second you see him. Tall, athletic, quick, and hustles. Guy can play D or take it to the hole. Not sure how JU got him, but he is the only player they have.

Stetson has a few playmakers, register being the best of them. They also have that tall indian kid cheif kickingstallionsims (im serious) who is 7-1 245. He didnt do anything last year as a true freshman, but with that size maybe he can get some good PT this year. Dont forget about their coach, derek WAAAAAAAAAUGH. A former attorney turned head coach he has proven to be HORRIBLE at stetson. He's great to make fun of, though.

FAU has a PT coach in matt doherty. Even though he didnt do crap at notre dame and got run out of town at UNC, I think he will be a good coach for FAU. Their big playmaker, mike bell, graduated and im not sure who they have to step up. I just remember them flopping on EVERY play.

Knights of UCF is right, Q is an awesome player and fun to watch. Their former coach at JU had to be the reason he is there, that coach was fantastic.

MercerFan Wrote:Knights of UCF is right, Q is an awesome player and fun to watch. Their former coach at JU had to be the reason he is there, that coach was fantastic.

HUGH DURAM! Did he retire? He was a great coach.....15 years ago. I remember he would look half asleep by half time, especially when the games started at 7:30!

Knights_of_UCF Wrote:

MercerFan Wrote:Knights of UCF is right, Q is an awesome player and fun to watch.  Their former coach at JU had to be the reason he is there, that coach was fantastic.

HUGH DURAM! Did he retire? He was a great coach.....15 years ago. I remember he would look half asleep by half time, especially when the games started at 7:30!

Yeah I couldn't remember his name (I know I should have!)... but ya he's retired now. JU will really miss him, he was such an awesome coach. and LOL @ him looking asleep, it's true!

I saw him come in to the Mercer-JU baseball game and sit a couple rows in front of me, not long after he was hired.

A very full bio off the JU site: <a href='http://judolphins.collegesports.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/durham_hugh00.html' target='_blank'>http://judolphins.collegesports.com/sports...ham_hugh00.html</a>

Collegehoopsnet.com gives a short writeup for it's preseason Top 144.#129 Belmont Bruins

Atlantic Sun

2004-05: 14-16, 12-8, 3rd

2004-05 postseason: none


By Joel Welser

A trio of seniors are creating a lot of buzz and expectations in Nashville. Brian Collins, Josh Goodwin and Dan Oliver will need to lead the way if Belmont is to head to the post season. The Bruins were up and down last season, including a sluggish 2-7 start, which had more to do with a tough non-conference schedule than poor play Belmont. A few big wins early in the year could really help the morale throughout the season.

Who’s Out: Down by two with a few seconds left, Belmont would have the ball in the hands of Jese Snyder. He’s a sensational shooter and has a knack for scoring. Returnee Josh Goodwin is the likely candidate to replace Snyder as the go-to-guy. As a senior last year Snyder averaged 11.8 points per game and shot a healthy 41% from behind the arc. Guard Nick Otis played in all 30 contests, starting three. He averaged 6.5 points, 1.2 assists and 2.8 rebounds as a senior. Also heading out of Nashville are seldom used Chad Caterson and Vann Patton.

Who’s In: Keaton Belcher fits well into the Belmont system. He’s a 6-7 power forward who can step out and hit the long ball. Belcher plays hard and should see some minutes off the bench. Head coach Rick Byrd’s best newcomer could be Tennessee transfer Boomer Herndon. The 6-10, 255 pound center never saw too many minutes with the Volunteers. He logged 6.6 minutes a game, averaging 1.6 points and 1.8 rebounds two years ago. After spending a year on the Belmont sidelines, Herndon should be ready to come in and make a big impact. Guards Andy Wicke and Henry Harris redshirted last season. Wicke is a solid shooter and floor leader who may see some minutes off the bench. Harris averaged 22.0 points and five assists as a senior in high school. Rounding out the group of newcomers is redshirt freshman Andrew House.

Who to Watch: The post presence will be the key for the Bruins and that falls mostly on the shoulders of junior center Andrew Preston. The 6-10, 215 pound Winchester, Kentucky product started 19 games for Coach Byrd’s squad last year, averaging 6.8 points and 3.2 boards. Preston placed third in the conference in blocked shots with 1.9 per contest. If he can contribute more on the offensive end and on the glass, it would make things much easier for the Bruins.

Projected Conference Rank: Gardner-Webb, Lipscomb and Mercer won’t make this a runaway for Belmont by any means. The Bruins should have enough talent to slip by their conference competitors and get a 1st place finish in the Atlantic Sun and their first ever trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Projected Post-season Tournament: NCAA

Projected Starting Five:

Brian Collins, Senior, Guard, 10.6 points per game

Josh Goodwin, Senior, Guard, 10.4 points per game

Justin Hare, Sophomore, Guard, 10.7 points per game

Dan Oliver, Senior, Forward, 7.0 points per game

Andrew Preston, Junior, Center, 6.8 points per game