2009 Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament Preview

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/10/2009 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the second consecutive season, Alabama State grabbed the regular season title in the Southwestern Athletic Conference and will try to collect its first tournament championship since 2004 when the tournament opens this Wednesday at the Fair Park Arena in Birmingham.

The Hornets were the class of the SWAC this season, winning 19 games while finishing with an impressive 16-2 mark in conference play. Jackson State, which swiped the 2007 title in the SWAC, will play out of the second seed after finishing the season with a 15-3 mark in league play. The Panthers of Prairie View A&M closed out their season strong and captured the third seed with a 12-6 ledger. The fourth seed belongs to the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions, who finished with an 11-7 record in league play.

After the Golden Lions there is a major drop off, as the fifth seed will be controlled by Southern. The Jaguars have won the SWAC title seven times, but this season Southern suffered 22 losses and finished with just an 8-10 mark in SWAC action. The league's defending champion, the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils had a far fall from grace this season, posting just a 7-11 mark against conference foes. The final two spots went to Texas Southern and Alabama A&M, but it is unlikely either team will have much of a shot against the powerhouses of the conference.

Quarterfinal round action will begin Wednesday afternoon with cat fight, as the second-seeded Tigers of Jackson State will battle the seventh-seeded Tigers of Texas Southern. Texas Southern only grabbed seven victories on the season, but the Tigers from the Lone Star State close out the regular season with four wins in their last five games. As for Jackson State, the Tigers from Mississippi are primed to grab their fifth league title and their second in three years. Jackson State closed out its regular season with 11 wins in its last 12 games, finishing the year with a very strong 15-3 record in league action.

The second quarterfinal game on Wednesday will pit the top-seeded Alabama State Hornets against the eighth-seeded Alabama A&M Bulldogs. The Bulldogs lacked consistency throughout most of the season, as the team racked up just eight victories, while finishing the year 6-12 in conference action. Alabama A&M's play down the stretch was also terrible, as the team dropped seven of its last eight games. Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum are the two- time defending SWAC regular season champion Hornets. Alabama State, which closed out the regular season with nine wins in its last 10 games, was the top defensive team in the conference, limiting opponents to just 64.1 ppg.

Quarterfinal action will resume on Thursday when the third-seeded Prairie View A&M Panthers take on the defending SWAC Tournament champion Delta Devils of Mississippi Valley State. MVSU will be playing out of the sixth seed this season after struggling to finish with a mere 7-11 league ledger. The Delta Devils, who dropped three of their last five games, were one of the worst defensive teams in the league, allowing 74.9 ppg, which ranked the squad ninth in the conference. As for the Panthers, they enter this tournament as the top scoring team in the league (71.0 ppg) and the second best defensive squad in the conference (68.0 ppg). Prairie View A&M closed out the regular season with five wins in its last six games, and will be playing for its first league title since 1998.

The final quarterfinal matchup will have the fifth-seeded Southern Jaguars take on the fourth-seeded Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions. The Jags have been one of the top teams in the SWAC Tournament, winning seven different times, while posting an impressive 37-22 all-time mark in the event. This season Southern was mediocre at best, posting an 8-10 conference mark, while closing out the year with four losses in its last six contests. As for the Golden Lions, they posted just a 12-17 overall mark on the year, but was much better in conference play, racking up an 11-7 record. The team won four of its last six games, and if a few things go right the Golden Lions could have a shot at their first SWAC title.