Men's Basketball

GREEN GANG: There are few things better than a prime-time horse race when a half dozen riders jockey for mere inches of positioning at a photo finish. With 10 regular season games remaining, that's exactly what's shaping up in the Sun Belt Conference men's standings.

I don't know if you've looked at the Sun Belt standings lately, but take a gander. You'll see 11 of the 13 teams log jammed between four and six wins in conference play. Think about that for a minute ... Teams 1 through 11 are within two wins of each other with just a month to go!

Literally anything can happen in a Sun Belt game this season. Western Kentucky, the two-time defending champion and preseason unanimous pick to three-peat, is in fourth place in the East and 4-4 in SBC play.

Arkansas State has been near the bottom of the standings for the last two years, but now boasts the league's best record at 6-2. Denver isn't far behind at 6-3, but as recently as last season owned a three-year-long road losing streak.

I guess most people will use the dreaded "P" word in a situation like this, but I don't see this year's Sun Belt being a result of "Parity". Instead, I see across-the-board improvement both on and off the court at most of the Sun Belt schools.

This is no longer a conference that will be dominated by one or two teams, but instead a league of excellent teams that will soon gain much deserved attention nationwide.

I see teams like Arkansas State, Florida Atlantic, Florida International, South Alabama, Denver and Western Kentucky making great coaching hires to contend with the consistent winners already in place in the Sun Belt at places like North Texas, Middle Tennessee and Troy.

Many people criticized FIU for hiring Isiah Thomas, but he has motivated his bunch into a 4-6 squad in SBC play. Most people would have laughed you out of the room if you'd have predictied that six months ago.

John Brady took LSU and "Big Baby" Davis to the Final Four in 2006, and now already has Arkansas State poised for the postseason. Don't forget about Mike Jarvis and FAU, because they are tied for the lead in the East.

At 5-4, North Texas is smack in the middle of the league heading into the stretch run. If the injury bug stays away, the Mean Green will be a contender this March, just like Johnny Jones & Co. have been in each of the last three years.

As Hank Dickenson, Mean Green announcer extraordinaire, has been fond of saying, "It all comes down to five days in Hot Springs." I'll see you there!