TicketsUC Picked 3rd in C-USA Cage Race
Maxiell earns a spot on the preseason all-league team.
Contact: Brian Teter
10/26/2004
UC, winners of eight of the previous nine C-USA league titles, is picked to finish third this year. |
CINCINNATI, Ohio ? The University of Cincinnati, which has won at least a share of eight of the first nine Conference USA regular season championships, has been picked to finish third by the league?s head coaches. Meanwhile, UC 6-7 forward Jason Maxiell was selected to the preseason All-Conference USA squad for the third straight year.
Led by the C-USA Preseason Player of the Year selection Francisco Garcia, Louisville is the coaches? preseason favorite for the second straight year to win the 2004-05 regular-season crown. Memphis is picked to finish second, followed by UC, Charlotte, UAB, DePaul, and Marquette round out the top seven.
?Conference USA is a great league and I think it will be very strong from top to bottom this year,? said Bearcats head coach Bob Huggins. ?We have done a lot for the league in the first nine years, and at the same time, the league has been good to us.?
The Bearcats, along with DePaul, Louisville, Marquette, and USF, will be joining the BIG EAST Conference next year.
Maxiell enters his senior season ranked No. 35 on the all-time Bearcat scoring list with 1,060 points and is No. 2 in blocked shots with 161. The native of Carrollton, Texas is joined on the All-Conference USA preseason team by Louisville?s Garcia, Sean Banks of Memphis, Travis Diener of Marquette, and Curtis Withers of Charlotte. All five players are on the John Wooden Award preseason Top 50 Watch list for the 2004-05 season, as well
Last season, Conference USA produced a league-record six NCAA Tournament teams, with UAB advancing to the Sweet Sixteen. Additionally, two teams participated in the National Invitation Tournament.
Memphis will serve as host city for the 2005 Conference USA Tournament, March 9-12 at the new state-of-the-art FedEx Forum. The first round and quarterfinal games will be carried on ESPN2 and ESPN Plus, while the semifinals will be carried on ESPN. The championship game is slated for Saturday, March 12 at 11:45 a.m. EST on CBS.
2004-05 CONFERENCE USA COACHES PRESEASON POLL
1. Louisville (11) 192
2. Memphis (2) 172
3. Cincinnati (1) 171
4. Charlotte 148
5. UAB 136
6. DePaul 122
7. Marquette 120
8. Saint Louis 93
9. TCU 88
10. Southern Miss 65
11. East Carolina 55
12. Tulane 41
13. Houston 29
14. USF 25
(#) designates first place votes
PRESEASON ALL-LEAGUE TEAM
*Francisco Garcia, Louisville, F, 6-7, Jr., Bronx, N.Y.
Sean Banks, Memphis, F, 6-8, So., Oradell, N.J.
Travis Diener, Marquette, G, 6-1, Sr., Fond du Lac, Wis.
Jason Maxiell, Cincinnati, F, 6-7, Sr., Carrollton, Texas
Curtis Withers, Charlotte, F, 6-8, Jr., Charlotte, N.C.
* - Preseason Player of the Year