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Fast, athletic, deep, defensive, that is my quick assessment of one the teams who can possibly make Conference USA a two bid league.
Michael White has led the Bulldogs to back-to-back league titles, 25-win seasons, and a number one seed in the WAC, and C-USA tournaments, turning LA Tech into a mid-major monster.
Kenneth Smith garnered his second straight all-league first team, and was named defensive player of the year.
One thing that stood out to me about LA Tech is their elite team speed.
Smith, along with Alex Hamilton, and Kenyon McNeail coming off the bench, and their whole stable of guards can hang with any guard combo in the nation.
McNeail is one of the more under the radar players in the C-USA, McNeail scored 34 points off the bench against UTSA, and is also a 1,000 point club member at LA Tech.
But it doesn't stop there for the "Dunking Dawgs".
Cordarius Johnson is another guard that comes off the bench and can wow you away. He drilled five three-pointers in their overtime win at Oklahoma, and was the second leading scorer last season.
Chris Anderson is another player who I really like for the Bulldogs.
He is a physical rock in their lineup, he can be the leading the scorer if need be, but his rebounding is his best contribution to this deeply talented team.
Jaron Johnson has started in place of the injured Raheem Appleby, and has scored in double fiures in 10 of their last 12 games.
Coach White indicated Appleby is not at 100 percent, but would come off the bench in limited capacity this weekend.
Despite not having the All-Conference and MVP caliber Appleby, LA Tech is still a very serious threat, and even having Appleby in some capacity has to make them the favorite.
Since the injury, Jaron Johnson has raised his average by 6.2 points, while McNeail has improved his average by almost three points.
With the depth, ability to defend at a high level, holding its last three opponnets to under 40 percent from the field, LA Tech is a team that can not only make a C-USA run, but also represent the conference well if the dance in the NCAA tournament. )