3MW’s All Conference Team:
Player of the Year: Darius McGhee, Jr., Liberty
Coach of the Year: Scott Davenport, Bellarmine
Newcomer of the Year: Dontarius James, Jr., Jacksonville
Freshman of the Year: Chase Johnston, Stetson
Season Storylines:
Bellarmine, the undisputed darling of the 2021 mid-major kingdom, nearly extinguished Liberty’s hopes of an ASUN 3-peat. But, on the final day of the season, Ritchie McKay and the Flames refused to yield the throne. Turns out this is the new normal for Liberty basketball. A decorated senior class departed this summer, leaving questions abound as to how sturdy the Flames’ floor was this year. Akin to Virginia’s ‘personnel-agnostic’ pack line system, McKay continues to prove he can plug-and-play just about anyone and not skip a beat.
Lipscomb took home the bronze medal, a disappointing result in the eyes of many (read: ‘us’). Lennie Acuff’s rotational juggling act was spurred by untimely injuries, most notably starters KJ Johnson and Greg Jones, so the Bisons deserve a pass for dropping five games to teams not named Liberty or Bellarmine. That said, Lipscomb’s 3-1 record against the league’s top two dogs is evidence of how dangerous this club is entering the ASUN tournament.
Speaking of underachievers, the Hatters of Stetson fall right in that camp as well. A 7-9 league record fell below the Mendoza line of our expectations, two games shy of their 9-7 2020 ASUN record. The young Hatters appeared to be on the precipice of a banner year, paced by two super sophomores in Rob Perry and Mahamadou Diawara fresh off monster rookie seasons. Granted, Stetson did take marginal strides in the analytic metric rankings this season but still couldn’t muster enough outright wins to forge higher in the standings.
With the bracket now set in stone, don’t forget to read the footnotes, folks. First and foremost, Bellarmine is eligible to compete, despite being disqualified for the NCAA Tournament - does this make sense to anyone? Additionally, an untimely COVID disruption pulled the plug on Jacksonville’s season, an abrupt ending to the Dolphins’ 2021 campaign. Tony Jasick and company were the biggest injury bug victims this year, devoid of All-Conference caliber guard Kevion Nolan for seven conference games. Unfortunately, Nolan’s late season return is now an afterthought, as the Dolphins get a head start on their summer vacation plans.
Tournament Preview
Tournament Predictions
(1) Liberty over (8) Kennesaw St.
(5) North Alabama over (4) North Florida
(3) Lipscomb over (6) Florida Gulf Coast
(2) Bellarmine over (7) Stetson
(1) Liberty over (5) North Alabama
(3) Lipscomb over (2) Bellarmine
(1) Liberty over (3) Lipscomb