Weekend Update

Wow. Just, wow.

Right when it looked like Stetson was circling the drain, they sweep the Nashville schools to pull back above .500. Campbell finally lays the beat downs on people that we thought they were capable of, winning three straight. Lipscomb drops two more close games, their last seven conference losses coming by a total of 25 points.

And Jacksonville beat ETSU in overtime to take sole possession of first place, only to leave a giant hairball on the rug Sunday, losing at home to Upstate by 11 in a game that wasn't that close. ETSU barely got by UNF after the Jacksonville loss.

I love this conference.

Game of the Week: Jacksonville over ETSU in OT. This just in: Ben Smith is pretty good. Smith threw one in from 28 feet in the last 10 seconds of regulation. And welcome back, Marcus Allen. 17 points, 9 boards, 5 blocks for a PEG of 25. For ETSU, Mike Smith was a one-man show, going for 18 & 16 but not scoring in the last 5 minutes of regulation as the Dolphins came from 7 down to force overtime. Still, credit the Bucs. Virtually everybody has an off night, and they take Jacksonville to OT on the road? Not bad.

Second-best game: Stetson over Lipscomb in OT. This year for Lipscomb is shaping up a lot like Eddie Ard's freshman year. The Bisons are right there late in games, but can't quite close the deal. If they had luck on their side, they would be 9-3 right now. If their record mirrored their stats, they would be 7-5. As it is, they have lost ALL of the close games and sit 4-8. In this one, Lipscomb trailed by 13 in the first half, but mounted a 17-4 run to tie it early in the second. From then on, neither team led by more than 4 until overtime, when Stetson finally took control. The Hatters then made 9 of 10 free throws in the last 36 seconds of OT to put it away.

Player of the week -- Sorry, but the conference office kicked this one. They gave it to A. J. Smith of Stetson, who posted a 34 PEG against Belmont. Good, but not the high single-game PEG of the weekend (see below), and when you factor in the Lipscomb game, teammate Garfield Blair was better. 30 PEG vs. Lipscomb on 26 points, 10 boards, and a perfect 10-for-10 at the line, followed by 22 PEG and a near dub-dub vs. Belmont. That said, if I had a vote, I would give it to Mike Smith of ETSU. 37 PEG against UNF (24 points, 14 boards, 9-11 shooting in a game when his team had to have every bit of him). Throw in 26 PEG against Jacksonville (even though he was effectively neutralized late) and you've got your player of the week.

Honorable mention -- Welcome back, J-Rod. 28 PEG against Kennesaw, 26 PEG against FGCU, 20 PEG against Mercer. Any other week, my man. Bobby Davis: 28 PEG (but a miss on a potential tying FT in the last 5 seconds) in a loss at North Florida. Daniel Emerson (MER): 27 PEG on 17 & 15 against Kennesaw. This is a recording. Jon House (BEL): 26 PE vs. FGCU. Marcus Allen (JAX): 25 PEG vs. ETSU. Matthew Dotson (BEL): 23 PEG vs. FGCU. Andy Wicke (BEL): 21 PEG vs. FGCU. Brian Mills (MER): 21 PEG vs. Kennesaw. Alex Renfroe (BEL): 21 PEG at Stetson. Derrick O'Neal (FGCU): 21 PEG vs Lipscomb. Kyle Vejraska (CAM): 20 PEG at Kennesaw. James Florence (MER): 20 PEG on 24 points, 5 assists, and 4 steals against Kennesaw. Yes, that's a lot of missed shots. Junard Hartley (CAM): 19 PEG against FGCU with 9 points, 8 assists

Cool stats -- Campbell had 24 assists on 28 baskets against FGCU. Lipscomb and Stetson combined for 38 points in overtime. Campbell and Mercer combined to shoot 75 free throws in a game that the Camels led by as many as 28 and won by 19.