Sun Belt Update

Just as Belmont is running roughshod through the OVC, Middle Tennessee is cruising in the Sun Belt.  I'm not sure exactly what happened here.  Kermit Davis, Jr. took over as MTSU's coach after the 2002 season, and from 2003 to 2011 he went 151-125 -- good, but not exactly setting the world on fire.  But last year they went 27-7, and this year they are 18-4 (with wins over Vandy and Ole Miss).  Last year, MTSU was stunned in the Sun Belt tournament by an Arkansas State team that finished 14-20.  It will be interesting to see how the Blue Raiders handle the pressure this year.

As for Western Kentucky, they got off to a very encouraging start:  on December 29 they were 4-0 in the Belt and 10-5 overall.  But maybe Ray Harper's magic was only good for calendar-year 2012, because the Tops have been terrible since the calendar turned.  They have lost six of their last seven games, and are now 5-6 in the Belt and 11-11 overall.  On Saturday, as Eric mentioned, MTSU crushed them 72-53 in Murfreesboro.

We wanted Ray Harper to get the WKU job, and we still have high hopes for him.  But we would point out that in conference play, 40.6 percent of Western's shots are coming from three-point range, even though they are shooting only 31.6 percent from behind the arc.  By contrast, UK (another bad three-point shooting team) is only taking three-point shots 26.3 percent of the time.  It will be interesting to see if Harper continues having the Tops take so many three-pointers, or if he tries something else.

Here are the standings (conference games only, numbers from K-Pom's ratings):

EAST:
43.  Middle Tennessee:  10-1
191.  S. Alabama:  8-3
189.  Fla. Int'l:  6-5
185.  W. Kentucky:  5-6
238.  Fla. Atlantic:  5-6
295.  Troy:  4-6

WEST:
200.  Ark-Little Rock:  8-4
140.  Arkansas St:  6-5
229.  La-Lafayette:  3-8
231.  N. Texas:  3-8
322.  La-Monroe:  2-8