Well look at that, both teams that I had ranked #1 and #2 didn't lose. If you followed along last year, my weekly rankings were seemingly a curse for whomever was at the top spot. ACU and SHSU will retain the top 2 spots. But if Week 3 showed anything, it's that the league is pretty much still wide open.
1. Abilene Christian - 16-3 (5-1): The Wildcats held strong at home, they had a tough game with HBU but basically no issue with the Demons. ACU is well on their way to increasing their season win total each season under Coach Golding (16-16 in 2017-2018). Oh and Jalone Friday is back. A big week coming up, as the Wildcats travel Nacogdoches and then get Central Arkansas at home.
2. Sam Houston - 10-8 (5-0): The Bearkats are sticking right up there with ACU. They dominated Corpus in their midweek game, and then hung on for a tough 71-65 victory at HBU. A nice week from new transfer Kai Mitchell has given Coach Hooten a nice weapon. A decent week ahead for the Bearkats, traveling to Northwestern State and then getting Lamar in Huntsville.
3. Central Arkansas - 9-10 (4-2): Surprised to see the Bears this high? Maybe me too. But they're playing well. They dominated UIW in San Antonio, and got a solid win at home against Nicholls State. They aren't putting up the same offensive numbers like we are used to seeing, but they are still a good shooting team and playing at a high level right now. The Bears are about to enter a big stretch (UNO, @ACU, @SFA). If they can get wins there they will be setting themselves up nicely for a run to Katy.
4. New Orleans - 9-8 (4-2): It was a little hard putting UNO up this high after they got blasted by Corpus Christi A&M. But they beat SFA and everyone else below them also had a loss. They withstood a strong start from the Lumberjacks early in the week, but were flat against the Islanders. Two road tests await the Privateers, in Conway and at UIW.
5. Stephen F. Austin - 9-8 (2-3): The loss to UNO gave SFA three straight conference losses, which is a strange sight to see. They've been struggling offensively, and the injury bug has reared it's head yet again. PG Aaron Augustin is out for a 3rd time, reserve guard Jock Hughes is out with a dislocated finger, and John Comeaux went down on a hard screen and had to be helped off the court (although it appears to be minor). Meanwhile F Karl Nicholas is also absent from the team, leaving a short bench shorter. The good news, is that other than UNO, the 'Jacks still have 2 games against the top of the league. A win over ACU on Wednesday could be a huge boost.
6. Corpus Christi A&M - 8-10 (3-2) - Here come the Islanders again. The loss to Sam Houston wasn't pretty, but the win against New Orleans was and they've put themselves in a great position early on. Their lone game of the week at home against Nicholls would be a nice addition to their current run.
7. Nicholls State - 10-9 (3-3) - This part of the rankings is tough, everyone seems to like to split their two weekly games. After their solid Week 2, Nicholls had a terrible Week 3. Dropping road games to both McNeese State and UCA was a bad look, but plenty of time to rebound. The Colonels only have the one game road trip to Corpus this week.
8. Southeastern Louisiana - 6-12 (2-3): The week the Lions needed, picking up two wins against Lamar and McNeese, while everyone else around them in the standings took an L. A week on the road could be tough with Houston Baptist and Northwestern State, but after the disastrous start, SLU can slowly chip their way back up the standings.
9. Northwestern State - 7-11 (2-3): The Demons only had the one game last week, and it was a tough match-up on the road to ACU. They'll need to get more production from their starters, including Ishamel Lane, if they want to make the tournament. While it's still early, this next stretch for the Demons could be season defining (SHSU, SLU, @UNO, @UCA).
10. Houston Baptist - 5-11 (1-4): I, for one, think the Huskies are much better than the record. They're racking up the losses right now, but they've played tough. Drawing ACU and Sam Houston in Week 3 didn't help their cause, but both games were fairly tight. They'll need to figure out a way to turn the results around against the rest of the league. A win at home this week against SLU would be a big one, before traveling to McNeese.
11. McNeese State - 6-13 (2-4): The Cowboys had a pretty decent week, all things considered. They'll want that game against the Lions back (falling 74-71), but handled Nicholls State behind 25 points and 14 rebounds from Roydell Brown. This again may not be the year for McNeese to make a "lot" of noise, but they are showing flashes of a solid team. They've got just the home match up with Houston Baptist in Week 4.
12. Lamar - 8-10 (1-4): Unfortunately the Cardinals only had the one game last week, and it was against the desperate SLU Lions. Coach Price has a tough job ahead of him, but I think they get the win at home against UIW. Lamar however has to travel to Sam Houston on Saturday. If they're going to make it to Katy, they'll have to start stringing some wins together.
13. Incarnate Word - 6-12 (1-4): The Cardinals got thumped in Conway last week, but then played very well and almost knocked off the Lumberjacks at home. UIW has a bunch of young players, and will have some growing pains this year. But the future is looking pretty bright for first year head coach Dr. Carson Cunningham. The Cards travel to Lamar and then get the Privateers in San Antonio.
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