Big South Conference play for men’s basketball begins tonight as Winthrop faces VMI along with three other Big South match-ups. The Eagles will play at Liberty on Saturday before going back to non-conference action for a couple of weeks.
It is too early to get a read on any of the teams in the league this season. One reason is because of all the non-D1 games Big South teams have played this year. I have a hard time reading much into the 151 points VMI hung on Central Penn or Charleston Southern’s 120 points against Toccoa Falls.
UNC Asheville has a marquee win over a bad Auburn team but it was competitive against North Carolina and Georgetown and then lost to a winless USC Upstate. Gardner-Webb has posted good results this season including wins over Charlotte and Western Carolina, a team that people were saying could be a factor in the Southern Conference. Coastal Carolina has an overtime victory over Charlotte.
Winthrop of course has the win over Wake Forest which looks even better since the Deacons knocked off Illinois this week but the loss to Hampton still stings.
After this weekend we should be a glimpse of what the conference will look like. The Virginia trip is always difficult for the Eagles but if they can come home with a couple of victories I think it would give fans a lot of confidence heading into January.
Presbyterian is a team that has raised some eyebrows with wins at Eastern Kentucky and against Princeton. It will face Liberty and VMI this weekend as well. High Point has struggled out of the gate but we should get a read on the Panthers after they face Gardner-Webb and UNC Asheville.
If you have a satellite, MASN will show two Big South games tonight. High Point hosts Gardner Webb and PC at Liberty. For those of you who have Comporium cable we will try to get the Winthrop games against VMI and Liberty on the air next week.
It’s early but always exciting to talk about conference basketball. We will look forward to seeing the Eagles play this weekend.
