American West Race Is Anyone’s to Lose

Say this for the fledgling American West Conference: In no other college league in America is a group of basketball coaches and players more eagerly anticipating the start of a conference season.

“That’s the great thing about being in a conference,” said Peter Micelli, a Cal State Northridge forward. “It’s a chance to start all over.”

The American West consists of four teams, all of which could use a fresh start.

Southern Utah, preseason favorite in the first-year conference, has a record of 7-9, and the records careen downhill from there.

Northridge is 3-10, Cal State Sacramento 4-12 and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 1-14.

Having been pummeled by most everyone else, at least now they can pick on each other.

The conference’s first game tonight at 7:30 in San Luis Obispo features Northridge, a team that hasn’t won in eight games away from its gym, against Cal Poly, a team that has barely won at all.

Cal Poly’s average loss has been by 31 points. The Mustangs’ only victory came against tiny Menlo College, a Division III team. The score was 62-59 and Cal Poly trailed at the half.

The Northeast Conference, which features the likes of Robert Morris and St. Francis of New York, is the nation’s only other Division I circuit that didn’t have a team playing break-even basketball at the start of league play.

This final anecdote for perspective: As its top player of last week, the American West Conference recognized David Dineen, a 6-foot guard from Cal Poly who is averaging 7.5 points a game.

No knock on the scrappy Dineen, it’s just that he’s a senior walk-on.

His teammates call him Rudy--after the famous Notre Dame bench-warmer.

Southern Utah’s Sean Allen, a 6-8 forward, probably is the conference’s top player. The senior from Las Vegas is averaging 16 points and shooting 55%.

Allen’s quickness would make him tough to guard even if he weren’t also a polished perimeter shooter. He is shooting 43% from three-point range, which actually makes him below average on his team.

Southern Utah is second in the nation in three-point shooting, converting 44.9% of its attempts. Guard Darrell Christopher, a transfer from Texas El Paso, is best at long-distance dialing, shooting 45.3% from behind the arc.

Guard Keith Berard and swingman Reggie Ingram are the Thunderbirds’ other top players.

Berard, a senior, is the club’s floor leader. He is averaging 15.6 points, shooting 44% from three-point range, and has 54 assists and only 18 turnovers. Ingram, a junior, is in his third season as a starter.

Sacramento’s four victories equals its total of the past two seasons.

The Hornets snapped a 34-game losing streak on Dec. 29 when they downed Grambling, 74-68. A week later, Sacramento won for the first time in 55 road contests, defeating Loyola of Chicago, 68-56.

“The NCAA doesn’t keep records on consecutive road losses,” a school spokesman said, “but I’m sure we had it.”

Adrian Hillman, a 6-7, 280-pound sophomore, paces the Hornets with averages of 10.4 points and 7.1 rebounds. Guard Damond Edwards averages 14.4 points, forward Abie Ramirez averages 8.5 points and 6.7 rebounds, and floor leader Mark Hunter averages 11.1 points.

Two statistics are indicative of Cal Poly’s woes. The Mustangs average almost 24 turnovers and shoot only 39%.

Northridge, against a similarly tough schedule, averages 19 turnovers and is shooting not quite 40%.

Brutal numbers. Only one good thing about them.

Starting tonight, they don’t mean a thing.

The teams will play a six-game conference schedule, then take part in a single-elimination conference tournament, March 10-11 at Southern Utah.

The conference champion won’t be getting an invitation to the NCAA tournament.

The winner probably won’t even go to the National Invitation Tournament.

The winner will get a trophy.

And take a winning streak into next season.