Conference USA Basketball

There is no bubble talk in this league. The Conference USA tournament will be all or nothing for each team regardless of its play during the regular season.

According to KenPom.com, Conference USA ranks 21st out of 32 leagues, a far fall from when it was one of the best in the nation and just outside the power conferences.

However, that doesn't prevent excitement in the postseason. A year ago, UAB went on a dramatic run to win the conference tournament and then turned that into an opening-round win over Iowa State in the NCAA tournament. There is no question there are teams with that ability this time around as well, but it will all come down to who is playing the best right now.

With the season on the line for everyone involved, the week in Birmingham, Alabama, could feature quite a bit of drama. 

Schedule

Date	Game No.	Matchup	Time (ET)	TV
March 8	1	No. 12 Florida Atlantic vs. No. 13 UTSA	5 p.m.	ASN
March 9	2	No. 8 Western Kentucky vs. No. 9 North Texas	1 p.m.	ASN
March 9	3	No. 5 Old Dominion vs. No. 12 Florida Atlantic	3:30 p.m.	ASN
March 9	4	No. 7 Charlotte vs. No. 10 Rice	7 p.m.	ASN
March 9	5	No. 6 UTEP vs. No. 11 FIU	9:30 p.m.	ASN
March 10	6	No. 1 UAB vs. Game 2 winner	1 p.m.	ASN
March 10	7	No. 4 Louisiana Tech vs. Game 3 winner	3:30 p.m.	ASN
March 10	8	No. 2 Middle Tennessee vs. Game 4 winner	7 p.m.	ASN
March 10	9	No. 3 Marshall vs. Game 5 winner	9:30 p.m.	ASN
March 11	10	Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner	4 p.m.	CBS Sports
March 11	11	Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner	6:30 p.m.	CBS Sports
March 12	12	Championship Game	2:30 p.m.	Fox Sports 1

Bracket

The BRACKET IS SET for the 2016 #CUSAMBK Championship. Who will #BeTheNext C-USA Champion? pic.twitter.com/MMHw7ul2GP

— C-USA MBK (@CUSAMBK) March 6, 2016

Odds

Team	Odds
UAB	-120
Middle Tennessee State	+550
Old Dominion	+550
Marshall	+650
Louisiana Tech	+700
Charlotte	+2500
UTEP	+2500
Western Kentucky	+2500
Field	+3300

Preview

Florida Atlantic defeated Texas San Antonio in the opening game of the tournament, but the real action begins Wednesday when the majority of teams kick off their postseason.

Although the eight teams in action possess some dangerous scorers like Old Dominion's Trey Freeman and Rice's Marcus Evans, it would take a lot for any of these squads to make a run all the way to a title. In reality, this conference has shown the benefits of team play over individuality.

Middle Tennessee has kept this mindset throughout the 2015-16 season. Giddy Potts has had a great year—and he should be able to return from his concussion this week, per Aldo Giovanni Amato of the Daily News Journal—but the Blue Raiders know they can succeed without one player taking over.

"It really is the identity," head coach Kermit Davis said, per Amato. "I think our guys feel confident. It doesn’t guarantee anything, but, hopefully, it’ll carry over into this stretch in Birmingham."

The No. 2 seed plays great defense and limits opponents to just one opportunity on each possession. With Potts, Reggie Upshaw and others making plays on offense, this is a well-built team that can be successful.

The same situation can be found with top seed UAB. Nic Gulas of WIAT noted a number of players were honored in the postseason All-Conference USA teams:

4 UAB Blazers land on the All-CUSA team. Robert Brown (1st), Chris Cokley (2nd), William Lee (3rd) and Nick Norton (3rd)

— @nic-gulas.bsky.social (@Nic_Gulas) March 7, 2016

Despite this recognition, none of these players puts up big numbers on a regular basis. Robert Brown and Chris Cokley are tied for the team lead with just 13.2 points per game, while pass-first point guard Nick Norton averages 5.2 assists per game. 

As Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports noted, a lot of credit has to go to head coach Jerod Haase for helping the players care more about the team than themselves:

One thing not getting enough national attention: the job Jerod Haase has done at UAB. Blazers are 26-5 overall after today's win over FAU.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) March 5, 2016

That 26-5 record is even more impressive when you consider the Blazers began the year 3-3. Since a rough start, they have gone on a tear with 23 wins in the past 25 games.

Unfortunately, this still won't be enough to get a bid to the NCAA tournament if they don't win this week. According to ESPN.com, UAB has the No. 300 strength of schedule in college basketball without a single game against an RPI top-50 team. The rest of Conference USA didn't help much, but neither did losses to Auburn and Illinois during nonconference play.

This keeps the pressure on to win as the de facto home team in Birmingham.

Marshall is another team that could surprise people with its lightning-fast pace and a dominant big man in James Kelly. He and Jon Elmore create an excellent inside-out tandem that could beat anyone in the league when things are going well.

However, this event will be UAB's to lose. If the Blazers perform to their ability, they will be headed to their second straight NCAA tournament. 

Follow Rob Goldberg on Twitter for year-round sports analysis.

The Southern Mississippi men's basketball program is reportedly facing allegations of major NCAA violations, including possible academic fraud.

Pat Forde of Yahoo Sports reported officials and former coaches from the school met with the NCAA Committee On Infractions last week to discuss the issue. The potential violations stem from the three-year period (2012-2014) that Donnie Tyndall led the program.

A decision about further punishment for the program, which already enacted a self-imposed postseason ban for both last season and the current campaign, could be made by April 1, according to the report.

Forde noted academic fraud and impermissible financial aid for ineligible players are among the seven alleged violations being investigated by the NCAA. Along with Tyndall, former assistant Adam Howard is also involved in the probe into the program's actions.

Tyndall left Southern Miss for Tennessee following the 2013-14 season. He lasted just one year with the Volunteers before the violations were brought to the forefront and he was let go.

Athletic director Dave Hart stated at the time he wouldn't have been hired if Tennessee knew about the Southern Miss issues, according to ESPN.com.

"I was convinced at the time Donnie had learned from that," Hart said. "If we'd known (then) what we know now, we'd have moved in a different direction."

No further information about the additional punishments Southern Miss could face was provided. The self-imposed postseason ban hasn't come into play with the Golden Eagles finishing 9-20 last season and sporting a 6-12 record this year.

It appears the program should find out its fate within the next few months.

The Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles will not be advancing in anyone’s bracket come March.

According to Raphielle Johnson of CollegeBasketballTalk, the Southern Miss men's basketball program elected to self-impose a postseason ban for the 2015-16 season. That includes forfeiting the right to play in the NCAA tournament and the Conference USA tournament.

The Golden Eagles self-imposed the same penalty last season because they were being investigated by the NCAA for violations that were allegedly committed under former coach Donnie Tyndall.

Athletic director Bill McGillis released a statement Sunday regarding the program’s decision to extend that ban, per Johnson:

I am very disappointed for the current members of our men’s basketball team and coaching staff, none of whom were involved in any alleged violation of NCAA rules. While excruciating due to the impact on the young men in our program today, the decision to withhold our team from postseason competition following the 2015-16 season is appropriate given the findings of the recent university and NCAA review of our program.

Tyndall coached the Golden Eagles during the 2012-13 and 2013-14 campaigns and led them to the quarterfinals of the NIT in both seasons. He then took the job at Tennessee, although he was fired after one season because of the investigation.

Patrick Magee of the Sun Herald noted Tyndall and Southern Miss will “go before the NCAA this spring to address seven Level I allegations, which are judged as the most serious by the NCAA.”

Among the allegations are impermissible financial aid and obstructing the NCAA’s investigation.

Johnson pointed out the timing and general nature of punishments like this seem unfair because current head coach Doc Sadler and his staff had nothing to do with the alleged infractions. There are also four seniors on the roster who cannot look into transferring to postseason-eligible programs without a penalty. 

It is a difficult way to usher in a new campaign for a Golden Eagles team that is looking to build on last year’s disappointing 9-20 record. Southern Miss will begin the season Saturday with a road trip to Memphis.

When the Connecticut Huskies won the national championship last year, they became the first No. 7 seed to do so and were underdogs in their last five games en route to the title. The Huskies nearly lost their first game too, needing overtime to oust the 10th-seeded St. Joseph’s Hawks 89-81 and cover the spread as 5.5-point favorites.

The lowest seed to ever win the NCAA tournament remains the eighth-seeded Villanova Wildcats in 1985, but picking an upset candidate in the Big Dance does not mean that team needs to win it all. While picking a “sleeper” team or underdog that wins a game or two during March Madness could end up being the difference in helping you win your bracket contest or pool, it can also be profitable from a betting perspective.

One team that fits the sleeper role perfectly this year and may be capable of pulling off a straight-up upset in this year’s NCAA tournament is the 14th-seeded UAB Blazers, who will be facing third-seeded Iowa State in the South Region Thursday in Louisville, Kentucky. The Blazers have covered eight straight games as underdogs, winning five of six SU.

Also in the South, the 11th-seeded UCLA Bruins have covered five in a row as underdogs and meet sixth-seeded SMU Thursday in Louisville as well.

Looking for a No. 12 seed this year that could knock off a No. 5 in the round of 64? The 12th-seeded Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks have won 28 of their last 29 games and will be playing fifth-seeded Utah, who have gone 2-5 ATS in their past seven games as favorites and lost four times in that scenario.

Last year, the Lumberjacks upset the fifth-seeded VCU Rams 77-75 in overtime as a No. 12 seed and six-point underdogs before falling to the fourth-seeded UCLA Bruins in the following round.

Coincidentally, another team capable of pulling off an upset in its first game this year is VCU, a No. 7 seed but an underdog against 10th-seeded Ohio State. The Rams are 12-3 ATS in their last 15 NCAA tournament games and made it to the Final Four as a No. 11 seed in 2011 under head coach Shaka Smart.

Conference USA appears to have transformed into a one-bid league, but all that does is make the conference tournament that much more dramatic.

While Old Dominion has an outside shot of an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, any loss during this week would likely hurt its profile too much to recover. As a result, every team in Birmingham comes in with the same goal: win a championship.

Here is a guide for everything you need to know about this year's Conference USA tournament, an event with seemingly endless possibilities.

Date	Game	Matchup	Time (ET)	TV
March 11	1	UTSA vs. FIU	1 p.m.	ASN
March 11	2	Middle Tennessee vs. Charlotte	3:30 p.m.	ASN
March 11	3	Western Kentucky vs. Marshall	7 p.m.	ASN
March 11	4	North Texas vs. Rice	9:30 p.m.	ASN
March 12	5	UTEP vs. Game 1 winner	1 p.m.	ASN
March 12	6	Old Dominion vs. Game 2 winner	3:30 p.m.	ASN
March 12	7	UAB vs. Game 3 winner	7 p.m.	ASN
March 12	8	Louisiana Tech vs. Game 4 winner	9:30 p.m.	ASN
March 13	9	Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner	4 p.m.	CBS Sports
March 13	10	Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner	6:30 p.m.	CBS Sports
March 14	11	Championship Game	3:30 p.m.	Fox Sports 1

Bracket

Conference USA Bracket:
# pic.twitter.com/1HlPK86Xo6

— Bob Cantu (@coachbobcantu) March 8, 2015

You can view an updated bracket each day, courtesy of ConferenceUSA.com.

Championship Odds

Seed	Team	Odds
1	Louisiana Tech	2-1
2	UTEP	9-4
3	Old Dominion	3-1
4	UAB	5-1
5	Western Kentucky	12-1
6	Middle Tennessee	12-1
7	UT San Antonio	25-1
8	North Texas	66-1
9	Rice	66-1
10	Florida International	100-1
11	Charlotte	150-1
12	Marshall	150-1

Teams to Watch

Old Dominion

Looking at this conference from the outside, Old Dominion clearly has the best profile of wins and losses. Beating LSU and VCU still looks good, while the recent run of six victories in a row shows the squad continues to head in the right direction.

Leading scorer Trey Freeman discussed the difference in the team's recent play, via Ed Miller of The Virginian-Pilot:

We've figured out what we have to lay our hat on: energy and defense. Some games, we'll come out flat, and we'll win some, but that's not going to be consistent enough to do what we want in this tournament. If we show up, play hard and fight every night, then of course that betters our chances.

Combining the improved defense with the rebounding of Richard Ross and Denzell Taylor, plus the elite scoring ability of Freeman, this is a team that can beat anyone in the conference.

The problem is the Monarchs have also had some disappointing showings throughout the year, especially away from home. According to ESPN, they have three losses to teams outside the top 150 in the RPI, while all six defeats came either in road or neutral games.

Playing this tournament in Alabama could be a recipe for an early exit if Old Dominion isn't 100 percent focused.

Louisiana Tech

This is one of the most fun teams in college basketball to watch, with some talented offensive players and a defense that loves to pressure opponents.

Raheem Appleby and Alex Hamilton each average over 15 points per game, but the real catalyst for the team is Kenneth "Speedy" Smith. The point guard is among the best in the nation with 7.5 assists per game, while also being an elite defender with 1.8 steals per game.

Mike Jarvis recently called the senior one of the top players in the nation at his position:

Speedy Smith, one of best Pt. G's in the country's warming up for tonight's game on Fox Sports 1 at 8pm EST pic.twitter.com/h5ekxDBZf5

— Coach Mike Jarvis (@CoachMikeJarvis) February 27, 2015

Louisiana Tech makes opponents work for every basket while efficiently working for points on the offensive end.

The problem is when things aren't going well, they are really going poorly. The Bulldogs had just three losses in conference play, but they were by a combined 46 points.

This is a team that can make an impact in the NCAA tournament if it makes it that far, but don't rule out an early upset.

UTEP

In a conference full of quality players, Vince Hunter might be the most talented of the bunch. The 6'8" forward has had an excellent sophomore year, which could be his last at this level before going to the NBA.

Chris Spatola of CBS Sports had some high praise for the young player earlier in the year:

UTEP's Vince Hunter one of most underrated players in the country. Double-double machine. Crazy motor. Enjoyed watching him tonight.

— Chris Spatola (@Chris_Spatola) January 30, 2015

Of course, this isn't a one-man team. The Miners have three other players averaging at least 10 points per game to help overcome a general lack of depth.

With the team heating up as the season goes on (nine wins in the final 11 games) and a coach in Tim Floyd who knows how to run a defense, UTEP is capable of living up to its seed and at least getting to the conference finals.

Follow Rob Goldberg on Twitter for the latest breaking news and analysis.

The 2015 Conference USA basketball tournament will take place in Birmingham, Alabama, beginning on Wednesday.

Despite a lackluster overall record, host UAB derived enough positives from a tough out-of-conference schedule to mount an impressive surge once the conference slate began.

The Blazers figure to make the most of home-court advantage to bid for the tourney title—since they finished a perfect 9-0 in Conference USA at Bartow Arena.

Check out an overview of the Conference USA tournament schedule below. Then read on for predictions on how the single-elimination showcase will unfold.

Conference USA Tournament Schedule

Game	Wednesday, March 11	Time (CT)	TV
	Thursday, March 12	Time (ET)	TV
	Friday, March 13	Time (ET)	TV
	Saturday, March 14	Time (ET)	TV
1	UTSA vs. Florida International	12 p.m.	American Sports Network
2	Middle Tennessee vs. Charlotte	2:30 p.m.	American Sports Network
3	Western Kentucky vs. Marshall	6 p.m.	American Sports Network
4	North Texas vs. Rice	8:30 p.m.	American Sports Network
5	UTEP vs. Game 1 Winner	12 p.m.	American Sports Network
6	Old Dominion vs. Game 2 Winner	2:30 p.m.	American Sports Network
7	UAB vs. Game 3 Winner	6 p.m.	American Sports Network
8	Louisiana Tech vs. Game 4 Winner	8:30 p.m.	American Sports Network
9	Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner	3 p.m.	CBS Sports Network
10	Game 7 Winner vs. Game 8 Winner	5:30 p.m.	CBS Sports Network
11	Game 9 Winner vs. Game 10 Winner	2:30 p.m.	Fox Sports 1

Preview and Predictions

This mid-major cluster of colleges may not be the most intimidating in the country, but there is decent depth to Conference USA. Louisiana Tech is the regular-season champion, while formidable challengers in Old Dominion, UTEP and Western Kentucky also loom.

Closeness in competition at the top should create a compelling conclusion to this conference tourney and allow at least one other deserving squad to clinch a spot in the Big Dance come Selection Sunday.

Defense will determine just how much of a chance UAB has at holding its own in front of the friendly fans. Junior guard Robert Brown is the only Blazers player who averages double figures in scoring.

Brown isn't too efficient, however, shooting a shade below 40 percent from the field. The recent emergence of freshman forward William Lee—who had eight blocks in a Feb. 28 win over Middle Tennessee—ought to open up opportunities for Brown and others on the perimeter.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Tonight’s honor goes to William “HaHa" Lee, who finished two blocks shy of a triple double! pic.twitter.com/U6Tgk7RjAq

— UAB Men's Basketball (@UAB_MBB) February 28, 2015

Old Dominion's Trey Freeman is among the best players in the conference and should give the Monarchs a decent chance of advancing to the final. If he's off his game on offense, though, ODU may be in danger of an early upset.

Among the five teams that won double-digit games within the conference, UTEP executes the best on offense in terms of shooting percentage.

Look for Western Kentucky to come out on top, though, thanks to George Fant's ability to crash the offensive glass, superior backcourt play and the recent rise of supremely athletic freshman forward Justin Johnson.

"As the season progresses, the younger guys start to understand things and start to know if they do certain things, they get the benefits of it," said Fant regarding Johnson's increasing role, via Zach Greenwell of the Bowling Green Daily News. "He's finally starting to understand and it's clicking for him, and we're happy to see it."

Hilltoppers star T.J. Price leads Conference USA in scoring but also pulls down more than five rebounds and dishes out approximately four assists per contest. As is the case with Price, senior Trency Jackson shoots over 40 percent from beyond the arc.

The following quote from Fant, via WBKO-TV's Chad Bishop, is an appropriate reflection of Western Kentucky's collective mindset:

WKU’s George Fant today: “You don’t practice mental toughness – you just have to have it."

— Chad Bishop (@MrChadBishop) March 3, 2015

This experienced squad endured four straight losses in February, but none were by more than five points. Johnson is adding an energetic spark to the frontcourt at the perfect time, and firepower from the perimeter is critical in win-or-go-home situations.

The Hilltoppers are entering the tournament in better form, and they'll stand out among the pack—using their prior adversity as fuel to claim an NCAA tournament berth.

The Southern Miss basketball program is under investigation by the NCAA for potential rules violations that occurred under former coach Donnie Tyndall, who is now the head coach at Tennessee.

A source close to the program told Bleacher Report that the NCAA's investigation centers on how tuition, living expenses and other fees were paid for "Prop 48" recruits who signed with the Golden Eagles but were academically ineligible out of high school or junior college.

Even though they weren't on scholarship, the players in question enrolled in classes at Southern Miss, lived in off-campus apartments and spent a year earning enough academic credits to make them eligible the following season, when they were placed on scholarship. This is standard practice under NCAA Proposition 48 rules, but the financial support these players may have received is under investigation.

Most of the recruits in question hail from out of state, which would've made their tuition fees even higher. Along with investigating how those fees were paid—and by whom—the NCAA is also looking into the academic records of some of the players, the source said.

Members of the NCAA enforcement staff were in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, last week and this week to interview players and administrators about the potential violations.

"The s--t is about to hit the fan," the source said.

Tyndall didn't return a phone call seeking comment Thursday. His replacement, Doc Sadler, has not been interviewed by the NCAA and is not believed to be under investigation.

Three players on Southern Miss' 2014-15 roster—Shadell Millinghaus, Matt Bingaya and Davon Hayes—were Tyndall signees who entered Southern Miss as Prop 48 recruits and are now academically eligible. It is not clear if those players are among those being investigated, as Tyndall signed other players who enrolled at Southern Miss under similar circumstances but are no longer with the program.

Tyndall went 56-17 in two seasons at Southern Miss but failed to lead the Golden Eagles to the NCAA tournament. He left last spring to replace Cuonzo Martin as the head coach at Tennessee. In 2011, Tennessee fired coach Bruce Pearl for violating NCAA rules while at Tennessee and then lying about it to the NCAA.

Jason King covers college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @JasonKingBR.

The field is all set for the 2014 Conference USA tournament following Thursday's action.

There's an air of uncertainty about the tournament that's been missing for the past few seasons. The Memphis Tigers won seven of the last eight tournaments, but they're in the American Athletic Conference now.

That leaves the door open for somebody else to sneak into the NCAA tourney, and there are plenty of worthy candidates.

Four teams—Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee, Southern Miss and Tulsa—finished with 13-3 records. According to the conference's website, it's only the third time in 19 years that more than one team laid a claim to the regular-season title.

The Bulldogs will be the top seed in the conference tournament, and should they fail to make the NCAA tournament, they'd receive the conference's bid to the National Invitational Tournament, per Roy Lang III of the Shreveport Times:

Despite Louisiana Tech getting the No. 1 seed, the other three aforementioned teams will all be a threat to win the C-USA tournament and snag the automatic bid to the Big Dance. The UTEP Miners, who finished 12-4 in the conference, will be another solid team to watch next week.

Really, though, having Memphis out opens up the field a lot. Everyone from Charlotte on up has a chance to get hot for a few games en route to a championship win.

Here's the full schedule for the Conference USA tournament. You can view the full bracket on C-USA's official website.

Time (ET)	Team 1	Team 2	TV Info
Tues., March 11
5:30 p.m.	No. 10 North Texas	No. 15 Rice	None
8 p.m.	No. 11 Florida Atlantic	No. 14 Marshall	None
10:30 p.m.	No. 12 East Carolina	No. 13 UTSA	None
Wed., March 12
2 p.m.	North Texas/Rice	No. 7 Tulane	None
4:30 p.m.	FAU/Marshall	No. 6 Old Dominion	None
8 p.m.	ECU/UTSA	No. 5 UTEP	None
10:30 p.m.	No. 9 Charlotte	No. 8 UAB	None
Thurs., March 13
2 p.m.	UNT/Rice/Tulane	No. 2 Tulsa	None
4:30 p.m.	FAU/MAR/ODU	No. 3 Middle Tennessee	None
8 p.m.	ECU/UTSA/UTEP	No. 4 Southern Miss	None
10:30 p.m.	UAB/Charlotte	No. 1 Louisiana Tech	None
Fri., March 14
4 p.m.	TBD	TBD	CBS Sports Network
6:30 p.m.	TBD	TBD	CBS Sports Network
Sat., March 15
11:35 a.m.	TBD	TBD	CBS

Note: All games are available to stream on the C-USA Digital Network.

Champions: Tulsa Golden Hurricane

Danny Manning has a new version of the "Miracles."

Winning a postseason tournament is often about being hot at the right time, and no Conference USA team is hotter than Tulsa, per John Klein of the Tulsa World:

The Golden Hurricane have won their last eight games and 11 of their last 13. During that streak, they have a road win against UTEP and a home win against Middle Tennessee. The road loss to Louisiana Tech does stick out, but it's not all that bad, as the Bulldogs lost once at home all season.

Tulsa couldn't be any different from where it was earlier in the season, when the Golden Hurricane got off to a dismal 1-6 start.

Although Manning doesn't have a wealth of coaching experience, he did in his playing days take what was an otherwise average Kansas team to the national championship in 1988. He'll know exactly what buttons to push to both build confidence in the team and inspire an us-against-the-world mentality.

Of course, it helps that Manning has some talent with which to work. James Woodard can do it all on the floor, leading the team in both scoring (14.8 points per game) and rebounds (5.9), and Rashad Smith is the tough presence inside.

As a team, Tulsa ranks second in scoring offense during C-USA play and fourth in scoring defense. That kind of balance means the Golden Hurricane won't struggle too much if they are having trouble at one end of the floor.

If anything, this is a team built to win in this kind of situation because of its reliance on the defensive end. Speaking ahead of Thursday's win over North Texas, Manning said, "But some nights, shots don't fall. That's why we don't hang our hats on the offensive end. We hang our hats on the defensive end," per Bill Haisten of the Tulsa World.

Tournament MVP: James Woodard

You can pretty much guarantee the best player on the champion will take home the Most Valuable Player Award.

Especially with Pat Swilling Jr. and Stevie Repichowski out, James Woodard is the only Tulsa player who's capable of having that one huge night that gives the Golden Hurricane a win that they'll need over somebody like UTEP, Louisiana Tech or Middle Tennessee.

The biggest problem with Woodard is that he may try to shoot himself out of a funk. The last thing Tulsa needs is for him to keep taking bad shot after bad shot when he's having an off night. It would only dig a hole deeper and hurt the offense.

At his best, though, Woodard is a difference-maker who could deliver a C-USA title.

It's time to take Memphis seriously again. That's what should be the takeaway from the news that broke Tuesday morning that former Missouri guard Michael Dixon will be transferring to Memphis, according to a report from Gary Parrish of CBSSports.com. 

You may have forgotten about Dixon because he didn't play last season. And you may have forgotten about the post-John Calipari Tigers in the last four years as Josh Pastner has routinely signed talented recruits, beat up on Conference USA and hasn't been a real threat to anyone else in March. Pastner got his first (and only) NCAA tourney win this past year. 

The training wheels are off now. 

The Tigers make the move to what used to be the Big East—now the American Athletic Conference—and Pastner has a roster that can clearly compete. 

Pastner spent the last few years defending the league, but he might as well have been a used car salesman trying to sell a rusty old pickup with leaky oil. The league didn't get Memphis ready for the tournament or give any reason for the committee to award Memphis with a high seed. 

The AAC isn't on par with the old Big East, but there's some worthy leftovers. Memphis will face Connecticut, Cincinnati and Louisville next season in addition to fellow newcomer Temple. 

Without Dixon, Memphis would have the third-best backcourt in that group behind Louisville and Connecticut and would have competed with Connecticut as the second-best team in the league. With Dixon, the Tigers should be the clear pick for No. 2, and you could argue the Memphis backcourt is the best in the league. 

Dixon is that good. So is Joe Jackson. 

Missouri's offense was so good in 2012 because Frank Haith put Phil Pressey and Dixon on the court together, surrounded them with shooters, spaced the floor and let those two attack off the dribble. 

Pastner would be wise to do the same. 

If you don't remember how good Dixon was, simply look at his numbers. In his junior year, he was one of the most efficient guards in the country on the most efficient offense. 

Dixon played starter minutes off the bench and averaged 13.5 points and 3.3 assists. He got to the line 132 times and shot 87.9 percent there. He made 57.8 percent of his twos and 36.8 percent of his threes. Those numbers repeated would have made him the best player on Pastner's team last season. 

Memphis already had a nice roster returning and the third-best recruiting class in the nation coming in, according to Rivals.com. Pastner already had a solid starter at shooting guard in Geron Johnson. Now he just has better options.

Dixon can come off the bench and play both the 1 or 2, or Dixon could start next to Jackson and Johnson could come off the bench and play both the 2 or 3. 

There's no guarantee that Dixon will be able to play next season, but it's hard to believe the NCAA would disallow it. Parrish reported that his source told him that Dixon will apply for a NCAA waiver to play immediately. As Parrish noted, Dez Wells was allowed to play last season for Maryland under similar circumstances after transferring from Xavier. 

Dixon was the best available transfer in a market that is getting stronger every year. The reason it took this long for him to sign on with someone is the obvious red flag that got him kicked out of Missouri—allegations of sexual assault for a second time. 

Dixon was never charged, so you cannot blame Pastner for taking a chance on the guard. 

There's the possibility that this could blow up in his face if Dixon gets in trouble. But there's also the possibility that Memphis gives Louisville something to actually worry about in the AAC, climbs into the top 10 next season and makes a run in March.  

Pastner has a roster that can play with the big boys. Now it's time for him to show that he can coach at that level.

Nestled between North Carolina and North Carolina State in the latest Rivals.com recruiting rankings at No. 14 in the country is SMU, a school that has not made the NCAA tournament since 1993.

The Mustangs’ climb up the charts is the result of head coach Larry Brown convincing McDonald’s All-American guard Keith Frazier, the top player in Dallas, to play for SMU.

This is why SMU went after Brown a year ago—his name recognition alone made the program relevant—and getting a player like Frazier to campus was key to Brown’s turnaround plan.

Brown told the Dallas Morning News:

For him to make a commitment to come here is remarkable with the options he had. When we got the job here, our goal was the hopefully be good enough and relevant so that kids would want to stay at home and play here. For him to be the first to do that is huge. I don’t take it lightly. I want kids to feel like they can stay at home and be coached at the highest level.

Winning games is the next part of the equation, and how can you bet against Coach Brown? He’s only coached one team that did not reach the postseason at some point—his one season with the New York Knicks.

The genius of Coach Brown was not really felt in the first year. The Mustangs won two more games overall and one more in conference than the year before under former head coach Matt Doherty.

But Coach Brown wasn’t dealt much of a hand when he took over. His bench was so thin this past year that he played his starters a higher percentage of minutes than any team in the country, according to KenPom.com.

All five starters return next year, but a majority of them will be coming off the bench.

Along with Frazier’s likely addition to the starting lineup, Brown will also be able to insert Illinois State transfer Nic Moore at point guard and the top JUCO prospect in the nation, Yanick Moreira, inside.

That gives SMU three players who would start for many teams across the country. Frazier is a given, considering he’s ranked as the fourth-best shooting guard by Rivals.com.

Moore averaged 10 points and 3.9 assists as a freshman at Illinois State, a team that nearly made the NCAA tournament. He came to SMU with his coach Tim Jankovich, who is the coach-in-waiting.

Adding Jankovich to his staff was one of the best moves Brown made when he got the job. Not only did he get a good point guard along with the coach, Jankovich knows the college game and was a rising star at Illinois State. The former Kansas assistant took the Redbirds to four NITs in five seasons at the school, which had gone six straight seasons without a postseason appearance before he arrived.

The Redbirds lost in the Missouri Valley championship game in overtime to Creighton in 2012. They would go on to the NIT, where they won on the road in overtime against Ole Miss and then lost in overtime to eventual NIT champion Stanford in overtime. In those three games, Moore averaged 23 points and 5.7 assists.

Brown also signed shooting guard Sterling Brown, the brother of NBA guard Shannon Brown. The younger Brown is ranked as the 138th-best prospect by Rivals.com.

Two other candidates to start will be Illinois transfer Crandall Head, the brother of former Illini guard Luther Head, and Villanova transfer forward Markus Kennedy.

With Frazier, Brown, Moore and SMU’s leading scorers this past year—Nick Russell and Jalen Jones—SMU has a crowded backcourt, giving Brown some actual depth to work with.

Depth can only take you so far if your talent is average, and that’s why adding Frazier is so significant. The guard has the ability to come in right away and be a go-to scorer. Russell and Jones were role players miscast as scorers by necessity last season.

Coach Brown spent the year before he took the job at SMU visiting his buddies in the profession at Kansas, Kentucky and Villanova, and what he saw in the college game made him believe he could build a winner quickly at a school like SMU if he got the necessary talent.

Brown told ESPN.com in January:

Butler has figured it out. Gonzaga has it figured out. When Cal [John Calipari] was at Memphis, he figured it out. We'll figure it out here, too. I think we're gonna be good a lot quicker than people expect.

The whole equation—struggling program reels in genius mind—is reminiscent of Kansas State and Bill Snyder in college football. Brown preaches for his teams to play “the right way.” Snyder does the same, and he has led two turnarounds in Manhattan.

Betting against Brown now that he has legitimate talent would not be wise. The turnaround king and his new star, in Brown’s words, are gonna be good a lot quicker than people expect.