ESPN Men's Basketball

Until 2001, the Atlantic Sun was known as the Trans America Athletic Conference. Although it never has been truly trans-American in the "across" or "through" sense (sticking to the southeastern corner of the country), the league always has lived up to its original prefix when it comes to transitions, transients and general transitoriness.

Of the A-Sun's 10 current universities, only one (Mercer) has been around since the conference's inception in 1978, and the second-longest tenured school (Stetson) joined seven years later. There are 19 schools that can call themselves ex-members, and seven D-I conferences have at least one former TAAC/A-Sun school in their midst.

The most recent ex-pat is Florida Atlantic, a Division I-A football school that became an all-sports member of the Sun Belt on July 1. With the departure, the Owls left behind 12 years of fan-TAAC-stic basketball memories, including a 2003 trip to the Big Dance. Gardner-Webb already holds the 20th ticket out of the conference, announcing in May that it will join the Big South once the 2007-08 season is complete.

FAU (which does not stand for "Find Another University") always will share a common bond with G-Webb and seven other current league members: The A-Sun gave them all their first D-I home, helping them climb up out of the NCAA's lower divisions. And because of that, nobody knows more about guiding schools through the complicated, ever-changing reclassification process than league commissioner Bill Bibb.

"The absolute worst thing a school can do is go D-I without a conference," Bibb said. "Some schools have tried, but they're having an awfully tough time."

Two of Bibb's current home-building projects are North Florida and Kennesaw State, which just completed their first seasons as provisional D-I members after moving up from the Division II Peach Belt Conference. Both are eligible for regular-season championships but will have to wait until 2009-10 for postseason play.

And the A-Sun isn't done yet -- Florida Gulf Coast University and South Carolina-Upstate will spend one final D-II season on the NCAA's exploratory list before joining the A-Sun as full members in 2007-08. But adding four provisional teams in two years doesn't mean Bibb is willing to blindly take on every southeastern D-II school that wants to make the jump into big-time, big-money college athletics.

"The first question I ask [a potential member] is, 'Why do you want to go D-I?' " Bibb said. "The wrong answer is, 'To make money for the school.' Some folks don't understand how much it costs to run a D-I program, the commitment level, the amount of time and effort it takes. You can't go D-I on a shoestring budget."

But all the growing (and shrinking) pains are finally catching up with the league. Since FGCU and USCU won't be postseason-eligible until 2011-12, the league faces three confusing seasons with a full one-third of its membership barred from its conference tournament. The A-Sun is five years from its last NCAA Tournament win (a 50-49 Georgia State upset over No. 6 seed Wisconsin), and two years have passed since the most successful season in league history, when three teams went to the postseason -- league champ Central Florida drew an NCAA 14-seed, and Troy State and Belmont represented in the NIT.

Now, three of those four teams have moved on to other conferences. And after four seasons averaging a league RPI of 20, the 2005-06 version of the A-Sun wound up three steps from the bottom at No. 29. No other conference in America has fallen so far so fast.

"There's no question that [taking on D-II teams] has hurt our league standing short-term," Bibb said. "But we've picked great schools that are committed to both athletic and academic success. Once they get their footing, I know we're going to be right back up where we were."

Good sign: Although Campbell's 1-6 record in nonconference play helped contribute to the Atlantic Sun's RPI free fall, the Fighting Camels' 9-11 league record was one of Hoops Nation's finest feel-good stories. In 2004-05, they'd gone goose-egg-for-20 against A-Sun opponents.

The nine-game turnabout, which earned head coach Robbie Laing a long-term contract extension, was fueled by a fierce up-tempo style. Campbell led the conference in team assists (17.0 apg) and rebounds (35.9 rpg) and had the distinction of pacing the entire nation in possessions per 40 minutes at 81.1. The fans in Buies Creek, N.C., responded to the fastest show in Division I by packing Carter Gym to at least 95 percent of its capacity throughout the A-Sun season.

"We try to get a shot within seven seconds of getting the ball," said Laing of his offensive philosophy. "Occasionally, the defense has other ideas and slows us down a tad. And if our shot doesn't go, we like to send four bandits to the glass."

The uptick might have been more pronounced if not for Campbell's one glaring offensive weakness. The Camels finished dead last in the conference in free-throw shooting at 63.9 percent. Seeing as they scored an average of 84.4 points in their conference games and allowed 85.6, a made freebie here or there would have made a world of difference.

"I can't explain it," Laing said. "Were they tired from all that running around? That's a poor excuse. We've already worked on free throws a lot in our summer workouts. You can bet that'll be a point of emphasis."

Safe bet: The 2006-07 crop of Atlantic Sun hoopsters doesn't include a Shaq Diesel, or even a Vin Diesel, but you can safely put money on this league once again being plenty fast and furious.

People who showed up for games -- or tuned in for the Friday night game of the week on satellite -- found out today's A-Fun is a high-flying, high-scoring hoop-de-doo. League champion Belmont led the civilized basketball world in team field goal percentage at 49.3 percent, and no fewer than seven conference games featured at least one team scoring 100 points.

And although Campbell was by far the quickest team in D-I last season, conference mate East Tennessee State was second in the league (and nation) with 79.6 possessions per 40 minutes and Jacksonville came in a close third at 78.4. The national median in this stat was 68.8.

So, it's OK if the shot clock breaks down during an A-Sun game -- they probably didn't need it, anyway. Say what you will about the league's precipitous drop in league RPI, but the product definitely is not boring.

Red flag: The first casualty of offense, naturally, is defense. And on aggregate, no conference featured worse defense last season than the Atlantic Sun.

Seven of the league's 11 teams gave up more than 75 points per game in 2005-06, and three (Mercer, Jacksonville and Campbell) yielded more than 80 per contest. Five A-Sun squads dotted the bottom 30 in defensive efficiency, anchored by Mercer's 1.097 points allowed per defensive possession (330th nationally). Only Centenary, James Madison, Duquesne, Fairfield and Savannah State were more sievelike in defending their own hoop.

In fact, only one conference team gave up less than one point per possession, considered by most coaches and stat geeks to be an acceptable average. Lipscomb allowed only .959 points per possession (and a league-low 66.9 points per game), and the Bisons rode their defense to 21 overall wins, a regular-season co-championship with fellow Nashvillians Belmont and an automatic NIT berth.

"That's all we've talked about from Day 1 -- defending and rebounding," said Scott Sanderson, who was named the A-Sun coach of the year for his efforts. "You've got to be able to stop people. We spend more than half our practices every day working on defensive stuff."

The rest of the league might want to follow suit.

Worth watching: After senior guard James Poindexter's 3-pointer put the Bisons up 58-55 with a half-minute of regulation play left in the 2006 A-Sun title game, Lipscomb was 27.7 seconds away from the NCAA Tournament. But Belmont tied it seconds later, sent the game to overtime and eventually pulled away for a 74-69 championship-clinching win.

The 15th-seeded Bruins went on to lead UCLA 18-12 with 6:35 left in the first half before being solved by the eventual national runners-up. Lipscomb, on the other hand, trudged out to El Paso, where it received a merciless 85-66 poleaxing at the hands of the UTEP Miners out of Conference USA.

"UTEP was just so physical, so strong, it opened some of our better players' eyes," Sanderson said. "Especially Eddie Ard. He's a big strong kid, but he came into my office when we got back, and his eyes were big as saucers. We like to get after teams defensively, but UTEP was just at a much higher level. So, that game really helped us learn how to compete in postseason play."

With its newfound humility and focus, this could be the season Lipscomb puts it all together and earns its NCAA Tournament debut. In addition to the league's best defense, the Bisons will feature plenty of senior leadership, with the only two returning all-first-team Atlantic Sunners, 6-5 winger Ard (16.2 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.8 spg) and deadeye two-guard Brian Fisk (16.0 ppg, 1.8 spg), as well as pacemaking point guard Trey Williams (3.9 apg).

But the most remarkable facet of Lipscomb's emergence as an A-Sun power is the speed at which it has happened. The Bisons' first season at the D-I level was 2003-04, a 7-21 campaign. The second year saw a nine-game improvement and a first trip to the conference tourney. Then, last year, they were just a shot away from dancing big.

"We've tried to sign guys with good character," Sanderson said. "Guys who do it the way we ask them to do it. Sometimes, you lose sight of that stuff, but we've been lucky enough to find guys with good character who've bought in. They've got to buy in to what you're doing."

As for the league commissioner, he thinks Lipscomb provides a great case study for the North Floridas and USC-Upstates of the A-Sun world to buy into, a blueprint that details how they can get up to speed quickly on competing successfully in the top flight.

"It's a great story," Bibb said. "Coach Sanderson's done an incredible job. And Lipscomb's done it the right way ... with strong commitments to both athletics and academics. I'm proud of what they've done."

Belmont: The Bears lose two double-figure-scoring guards, but A-Sun tournament MVP Justin Hare and his team-leading 15.6 ppg return. Chiseled 6-4 Murray State transfer Shane Dansby could contribute right away, too.

Campbell: The Camels might struggle to replace Maurice Latham's 18 points and nine boards a game, but they likely will ride the speed-blurry backcourt of Eric Smith (16.8 ppg) and Ledell Eackles (9.9 ppg) to increased success.

East Tennessee State: League POY Tim Smith is gone, but highly regarded Tennessee prep recruit Dequan Twilley will replace him at point guard. Twilley's first order of business will be to redistribute the league-high 530 shots (19 per game) Smith hoisted last season.

Gardner-Webb: A senior exodus means an eight-man recruiting class for the Runnin' Bulldogs from Boiling Springs, a class that includes three big Australians, a 6-9 Senagalese and two football NLIs. In their second-to-last A-Sun season, these Bangin' Bulldogs might leave some bruises.

Jacksonville: Former Georgia Tech assistant Cliff Warren's first year was full of bad luck and bad breaks as the 2005-06 campaign ended with a 24-game losing streak, but with promising 6-7 all-freshman selection Marcus Allen (11.7 ppg, team-leading 6.5 rpg) in hand, these Dolphins won't get caught quite as often.

Kennesaw State: The D-I newbie Owls led the league standings throughout January before the injury bug hit. Now, Tony Ingle, the most quotable head coach in America, has to reload with eight newcomers, including a 21-year-old frosh named Jon-Michael Nickerson who has been playing minor league baseball the past three years.

Lipscomb: To counter Belmont's looming 6-11 Boomer Herndon (who reportedly has dropped 20 pounds to 230 to better keep up with the league's speed), coach Sanderson will use the services of 6-10 Auburn transfer Ryan Daniel.

Mercer: The Bears and their fans face an emptied cupboard after a disappointing 9-19 season. If the juco-heavy incoming class doesn't work out, there's always the possibility of a second annual Wig Night, where the first 200 fans "got wiggy" with a Mercer-orange head of fake hair.

North Florida: Five-foot-11 junior point guard Chris Timberlake (10.2 ppg, 3.6 apg) might not be able to bring sexy back, but the Ospreys should find a way to win more than three games in their second A-Sun go-round.

Stetson: A late nine-game winning streak culminated in a quarterfinal win over outgoing Florida Atlantic before the season ended against eventual champ Belmont the next night. Senior shooting guard Gabe McMillen (7.9 ppg, 47.8 percent FG) is the returning high scorer and could emerge as a go-to guy.

After losing the A-Sun tournament title game to intracity rival Belmont last season, can Lipscomb bounce back? Joe Lunardi thinks so -- he has the Bisons (yes, with an s) as the A-Sun's lone rep in his early look at the 2007 NCAA Tournament.

2007 Bracketology

2005-06 Standings
Team	League record	Overall record
Lipscomb	15-5	21-11
Belmont*	15-5	20-11
Florida Atlantic	14-6	15-13
Gardner-Webb	13-7	17-12
E. Tennessee St.	12-8	15-13
Stetson	11-9	14-18
Kennesaw St.	10-10	12-17
Campbell	9-11	10-18
Mercer	7-13	9-19
North Florida	3-17	6-22
Jacksonville	1-19	1-26

* NCAA Tournament

Note: Florida Atlantic has left for the Sun Belt. Kennesaw State and North Florida are transitioning into Division I and are not eligible for the conference tournament.

Expected leading returning scorers
Player (Team)	2004-05 PPG
Eric Smith (Campbell)	16.8
Golden Ingle (Kennesaw)	16.6
Eddie Ard (Lipscomb)	16.2
Brian Fisk (Lipscomb)	16.0
Rashad Williams (N. Florida)	15.6

Kyle Whelliston is the founder of midmajority.com and is a contributor to ESPN.com.