Michigan, right?
Maybe not. Try Detroit-Mercy.
The Titans are coming off one of their best seasons ever, which included a tie for the Mid-Continent Conference regular-season title, an NCAA Tournament berth and an upset victory over St. Johns in that tournament.
And, even though Detroit is losing four key players from that team, the Titans look to be better this go-round.
Guards Jermaine Jackson and Rashad Phillips, who combined for 22.1 points and 8.1 assists per game last season, form the MCC's best backcourt. Jackson is a playmaker, a favorite to win the conference's player of the year title.
"Our team starts with Jermaine," Detroit coach Perry Watson said. "He's really been entrusted with running the show and getting all of our players on the same page."
The frontcourt isn't as strong, but should still be solid. Senior forward Bacari Alexander gives the Titans an experienced inside game.
"Bacari gives us a tremendous presence inside and on the boards," Watson said. "And he'll contribute to us in more ways this year."
But Detroit's best asset just might be its coach.
"Perry's done an unbelievable job at Detroit," Michigan coach Brian Ellerbe said of the former Michigan assistant. "He's a competitive guy, so his teams will be competitive. They're not going to be in awe of anyone."
Ellerbe is also a little worried about the Titans' size.
Not that they're too big, but too small.
"It causes matchup problems," Ellerbe said. "It's hard for big guys to chase around someone who's 6-foot-5."
The Titans will have to play the season without one of their top freshman. Terrell Riggs, a 6-6 forward that many prognosticators picked to be the MCC freshman of the year, was declared academically ineligible.
Riggs was rated one of the top 65 players in the country last season by the Basketball Times and led Detroit Finney High School to the state Class A semis.
- Josh Kleinbaum
And even though Eastern Michigan lost in the first round of last year's NCAA Tournament, the Eagles still have a pretty impressive memento from San Antonio.
The floor.
The hardwood that was used in last year's Final Four now resides in the Eagles' brand new basketball arena, the Convocation Center. In order to the have floor laid by the building's opening date in mid-November, the university had to order one that was already made.
They decided to get a floor with a story behind it.
The floor was re-sanded and painted with the Eagles' colors, and is now ready for the season.
The same, however, cannot be said of the Eagles.
Eastern must be hoping that some of the talent from the floor's previous players will rub off on the team, because there isn't much optimism in Ypsilanti.
The Eagles lost all five of their starters, including star point guard Earl Boykins.
Coach Milt Barnes will be looking to a host of junior college transfers to fill the gap.
And Barnes is refreshingly realistic about his team's slight chances.
"Anytime you lose that much production, it's got the potential to be a long year."
- Andy Latack
The fun didn't stop there for the Broncos, who went on to upend sixth-seeded Clemson in the first round of the tournament. In fact, last season was such a crowning success for the program that its athletic department can't seem to let it go. This year's ticket promotion of "Let's Get Back to The Dance" might just focus too much on last year's success, as opposed to this year's team.
Which invites the question: Can you blame them? After losing seniors Aaron Toothman, Rashod Johnson, Jason Kimbrough and Saddi Washington, Western Michigan's cupboard is bare. Washington and Johnson, the Broncos' top two scorers from last season, will be missed the most. In the Broncos' upset of Michigan, Washington poured in 33 points while Johnson added another 20.
While the Broncos still have players who saw action in last year's tournament such as forward Shaun Jackson and guards Kylo Jones and Isaac Bullock, the best of the bunch seem to be gone.
Nevertheless, coach Bob Donewald feels his recruiting efforts shored up an otherwise bleak roster for the Broncos.
"Our recruiting tried to touch all of the bases - replacing the perimeter people we lost and also trying to establish an inside game built around natural inside players," Donewald said.
While the effect of his recruiting remains to be seen, one thing is certain for Donewald - getting "Back to The Dance" is going to be a lot more difficult than getting there the first time.
- Pranay Reddy
11-12-98
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