The beginning of the collegiate basketball season is always very interesting for Division I programs. In what I consider as “Week 0”, these teams often face FCS or NAIA schools to get the players warmed up for the gruesome season that they will soon endure. Of course, there are a few exceptions, and we will be highlighting key matchups and predicting how “Week 0” will go for all Sun Belt teams.
Monday, November 7th
Texas State vs Washington State (6:30 p.m. CST)
The reigning Sun Belt regular season champions travel to Pullman, Washington to face the Cougars in each program’s season opener. The Cougars are coming off an impressive 22-15 season where they maintained a +6.6 scoring margin. However, the Bobcats are looking to ride the momentum of their 21-8 season where they absolutely dominated their opponents on both sides of the court.
ULM vs Texas A&M (7 p.m. CST)
Although this matchup is strongly in favor of the Aggies, it is always exciting for a group-of-5 team to have the opportunity to compete against an SEC program. Texas A&M are looking to repeat or improve on their 27-13 season against a ULM program that has nothing to lose based off their 13-18 season last year.
Friday, November 11th
Southern Miss vs Vanderbilt (6 p.m. CST)
Similar to the previous matchup, the only thing appealing about this game is the Sun Belt competing against the SEC. Southern Miss is entering their first season in the Sun Belt and is trying to wipe their previous 7-26 season completely from memory. On the other hand, Vandy is looking to improve on a disappointing 19-17 season.
Saturday, November 12th
Georgia Tech vs Georgia State (6 p.m. CST)
A matchup between 2 prestigious programs that pride themselves on competition. These 2 in-state rivals are very familiar with one another, with 8 games between the 2 programs. The series is heavily in Tech’s favor with a 7-1 record over State, however, State is hot off a Sun Belt championship win and a March Madness appearance and has all the tools necessary to swat the Yellow Jackets.
Arkansas State vs LSU (5 p.m. CST)
This matchup is way more impressive than the previous SBC vs SEC schools. Arkansas State is coming off a 18-11 season and is looking to prove that they are ready to stay competitive against one of the best SEC schools. The Tigers finished 22-12 last season and expect to start off hot.
Monday, November 14th
Troy vs Florida State (6 p.m. CST)
The Trojans are in a very weird state within their program. With an almost completely new roster, they will be traveling to Tallahassee to compete against the Seminoles. The Seminoles finished 17-14 last season, competing in arguably the best basketball conference in the world. If Troy can pull off the upset, the Trojans will have the biggest amount of momentum in all of the conference and will quickly become the favorite to win the Sun Belt.
Quad Sports 