2014-15 NCAA Basketball Preview: MAC
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The MAC has been the Rodney Dangerfield of mid-major conferences, they always have a conference with two or three teams that can pull a big upset yet nobody takes note of them.
Last year Toledo was the class of the conference going 14-4 in the MAC and 27-7 overall. Toledo had been a .500 team in recent years before 2013-14 and look to be a team on the rise under coach Todd Kowalczyk. Other than Rian Pearson, all of Toledo's big contributors are returning including Julius Brown who averaged 14.9 points and six assists per game. Considering Toledo was another win or two in conference away from being on the bubble last year, Toledo could contend for an at-large bid if they can get through their easy non-conference slate with two or three losses.
Western Michigan tied with Toledo for the regular season conference title and waxed Toledo in the MAC Tournament final. They made the tournament as a 14-seed with two players averaging over 16 points per game. Both of them have left the team but the rest of the team is back. With a solid recruiting class including two 6-10 centers, they should be below Toledo, but still a top-three team in the conference.
Akron has been towards the top of the conference year in and year out for several years and should be once again this year. Demetrius Treadwell led the team in scoring last season as a senior, but the rest of the team is returning. They have recruited well in recent years and will likely notch another 20 win season this year.
Ohio made the Sweet 16 in 2012 and have won at least 24 each of the last three seasons, developing themselves as a mid-major power. It's unlikely they will do it a fourth straight year as they are losing the their leading scorer and most experienced player Nick Kellogg. The team is in transition with their coach as well as former North Dakota State head coach Saul Phillips is taking over the program after Jim Christian bolted for Boston College.
Ohio has a bit of an intriguing player coming in with Kenny Kaminski transferring from Michigan State. Kaminski was a solid rotation player for Tom Izzo so the sky is the roof for him in a MAC Conference that no longer has a dominating big man with Zeke Marshall no longer at Akron. If he can be a second scoring option to former JUCO transfer Maurice Ndour, who averaged 13.8 points and seven rebounds per game last year, the Bobcats might have the best frontcourt in the MAC.
Eastern Michigan has not been to the NCAA Tournament since 1998, but is a battle tested team. They played one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the nation and still managed 22 wins. Playing the likes of Kentucky, Duke, and Syracuse last year should make this veteran team a contender for the conference title in 2014-15.
Continuing on this loaded conference, Buffalo won the Eastern region of the conference going 13-5 in the MAC and 19-10 overall. There is no way they will duplicate this as both of their top scorers from last season are gone and the rest of the conference is very strong. Buffalo could go from first to worse this season.
Kent State has a young team and a nice recruiting class coming in. They will not contend for the conference crown, but will be a team that break .500 in the MAC this season and could make a run at an NCAA Tournament bid for 2016. Miami (OH) is in the same situation and should be in the middle of the conference before making a serious run in 2016.
While Central Michigan has star prospect DaRohn Scott coming in, they were 3-15 in conference last year and need a few years to rebuild the program. Bowling Green and Ball State are both program in disarray and should be toward the bottom of the league again.
Northern Illinois had one of the most boring years ever last year, finishing 15-17. The Huskies are easily forgotten about due to their lack star-power and bad offense. That might change this year as they return jist about everyone fron last year's tean. Dontel Highsmith led the team in scoring average as a freshman, but missed every game in the 2014 calender year due to a torn ACL he suffered against Iowa State. Take Highsmith out of the equation and Northern Illinois did not have a single player average double-figures last year.
Northern Illinois is a very balanced team with great defense though. Teams scored over 70 points on them just four times in conference play which included three games that went to overtime. If 6-foot-7 wing Darrell Bowie can become a more assertive scorer. They also have a pair of brothers in Aaric and Aaron Armstead that could up the play of this squad.
With Northern Illinois averaging just 62.2 points per game and shooting nearly 39-percent as a team, any jump in those numbers coupled with their defense would put the program on the fast-track to a possible tournament bid in 2016 after this young team takes their licks this year with another .500 record. Not bad for a team that set an NCAA record for least points in a half with four in a game against Eastern Michigan in 2013.
Toledo and Akron should run the conference this season as Ohio is taking a step back. The MAC will be a one-bid league once again unless Toledo goes nuts in the regular season and loses in the MAC Tournament final, but as long as one of the top teams in the conference get the bid to the field of 68, the MAC should have a chance to show well in the tournament.
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