3MW’s All Conference Team:
Player of the Year: Michael Weathers, R Sr., Texas Southern
Coach of the Year: Wayne Brent, Jackson St.
Newcomer of the Year: Michael Weathers, R Sr., Texas Southern
Freshman of the Year: Terrell Williams, Southern
Season Storylines:
Aside from Tristan Jarrett’s temper tantrum, it was a Cinderella season for Wayne Brent and the boys of Jackson State. In typical SWAC frontrunner fashion, a brutal non-conference slate hardened JSU for conference play. Keep an eye on Jayveous McKinnis, the spine of the SWAC’s top-ranked defense. Between McKinnis anchoring the defense and Jarrett’s playmaking on offense, the Tigers boast the best player on both sides of the ball on any given night.
Somehow, JSU’s perfect 11-0 conference performance was only good enough to share the SWAC title belt. Prairie View A&M spoiled their exclusive claim to SWAC glory with a 13-0 run of their own, paced by Power-6 transfer destroyer Cam Mack. Bryon Smith took a page out of Johnny Jones’ playbook this summer by nabbing Mack, a unicorn by SWAC talent standards. All Smith had to do was fine tune his trapping defensive schemes while Mack steered the offensive ship like a seasoned commander. Mack dished out 9 or more assists nine different times this season.
Per usual, counting out Texas Southern this weekend would be foolish. From a pure talent perspective, TXSO carries an abundance of riches. The glaring weakness? Shooting. Johnny Jones ignored that skill in his annual transfer apple picking, resulting in a league worst 29% 3-point percentage for the year. Against most of the SWAC, playing volleyball on the glass is good enough to get the job done. Against PVAMU, well, that experiment failed twice this season.
Southern also fits the bill as a potential dark horse. A popular pick to win the league last summer, injuries spread like wildfire throughout Sean Woods’ locker room. The Jaguars’ depth kept them afloat all year and they’ll be a tough out in the tournament, with key cogs Kirk Parker and Andre Allen back in the fold.
Tournament Preview
Tournament Predictions
(1) Prairie View A&M over (8) Mississippi Valley St.
(5) Southern over (4) Grambling St.
(2) Jackson St. over (7) Arkansas Pine Bluff
(3) Texas Southern over (6) Alcorn St.
(1) Prairie View A&M over (5) Southern
(2) Jackson St. over (3) Texas Southern
(1) Prairie View A&M over (2) Jackson St.