2009–10 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball season
Encyclopedia
The 2009–10 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball season marks the 33rd season of Sun Belt Conference
basketball
.
to win the East Division. The Hilltoppers are returning from a season in which they came within one second of upsetting Gonzaga and advancing to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen. In addition, Hilltopper star A.J. Slaughter
was named the Preseason Player of the Year.
West Division
76-69 on December 11. A.J. Slaughter scored 27 points to lead the Hilltoppers to their first win over Vanderbilt since 1946. Western Kentucky led for the final 16:33 of the game, though Vanderbilt cut the lead to one twice. This was Vanderbilt's second consecutive loss.
Sun Belt Conference
The Sun Belt Conference is a college athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Its football teams participate in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , the higher of two levels of Division I football competition . The Sun Belt has member institutions...
basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
.
Preseason
Blue Ribbon magazine predicted Western Kentucky UniversityWestern Kentucky University
Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky, USA. It was formally founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier....
to win the East Division. The Hilltoppers are returning from a season in which they came within one second of upsetting Gonzaga and advancing to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen. In addition, Hilltopper star A.J. Slaughter
A.J. Slaughter
A. J. Slaughter was a guard for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball team.-Early life:Slaughter was born in Louisville, Kentucky on August 3, 1987. His father, Tony Slaughter, played basketball at Murray State from 1980 to 1981...
was named the Preseason Player of the Year.
Sun Belt Preseason Poll
East Division| Rank | Team |
|---|---|
| 1 | Western Kentucky |
| 2 | Troy |
| 3 | Middle Tennessee State |
| 4 | South Alabama |
| 5 | Florida Atlantic |
| 6 | Florida International |
West Division
| Rank | Team |
|---|---|
| 1 | North Texas |
| 2 | UALR |
| 3 | Louisiana-Lafayette |
| 4 | Denver |
| 5 | Arkansas State |
| 6 | ULM |
| 7 | New Orleans |
Preseason All-SBC Team
- G -- Brandon Hazzard (Troy, Sr.)
- G -- AJ Slaughter (WKU, Sr.)
- F -- Nate Rohnert (Denver, Sr.)
- F -- Eric Tramiel (North Texas, Sr.)
- F -- Desmond Yates (Middle Tennessee, Sr.)
Non-conference
In terms of upsets over the six major conferences, Western Kentucky beat Vanderbilt UniversityVanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...
76-69 on December 11. A.J. Slaughter scored 27 points to lead the Hilltoppers to their first win over Vanderbilt since 1946. Western Kentucky led for the final 16:33 of the game, though Vanderbilt cut the lead to one twice. This was Vanderbilt's second consecutive loss.
Rankings
| AP Poll | Pre | Wk 1 | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 8 | Wk 9 | Wk 10 | Wk 11 | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Wk 15 | Wk 16 | Wk 17 | Wk 18 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas-Little Rock | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Arkansas | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Denver | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Florida Atlantic | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Florida International | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Louisiana-Lafayette | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Louisiana-Monroe | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Middle Tennessee State | ||||||||||||||||||||
| New Orleans | ||||||||||||||||||||
| North Texas | ||||||||||||||||||||
| South Alabama | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Troy | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Kentucky | RV | RV |