Deep Three
Candidates to dance
1. The front-runner: Wofford. The Terriers won more games in the conference season (15) and the regular season (23) and are riding a 10-game winning streak into the tournament. Five players were nominated for All-SoCon consideration so they’re not a one-man team, although most of the offense and defense is funneled through Noah Dahlman. But the Terriers haven’t reached the semifinals since 2000, so they don’t have a good tournament track record.
2. A solid second: Appalachian State. Sometimes, having the best scorer in the league can lead to a conference championship. Guard Donald Sims leads the SoCon with an average of 20.4 points per game, leads the nation in free-throw percentage and is second in the SoCon shooting 43 percent from the arc. But one bad night from him could send the Mountaineers back up the mountain.
3. The long shot: Samford is the sentimental pick with forward Jim Griffin having died before the season and coach Jimmy Tillette having suffered a seizure during the Bulldogs’ game at UNC Greensboro. Their Princeton-style offense is tough to prepare for in 24 hours, and any lead they get seems twice as big because of their slow pace. But they could lack depth and experience to make the run.