Philadelphia, PA –  

OUTLOOK: The Conference USA has sent just two teams to the NCAA Tournament in each of the past two seasons, but the league has an abundance of talent and is poised to gain more respect in the 2011-12 season.

Memphis is the clear favorite in the league once again, with five starters back and the depth to make a serious run in March. After the Tigers however, the league is wide open.

Marshall could be one of the country's best kept secrets this season, returning four starters and a mint transfer that should propel this team to new heights.

UCF, Tulsa and UAB may not have the top-tier talent of a Memphis or even a Marshall, but all return enough experienced core players to be formidable.

Southern Miss will have to replace its top two scorers, as will East Carolina. UTEP loses its top five scorers from a year ago, while Rice, SMU, Houston and Tulane will all be vying to become surprises in the league.

CONFERENCE CHAMPION: Memphis

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: 1. Memphis, 2. Marshall, 3. UCF, 4. Tulsa, 5. UAB, 6. Rice, 7. Southern Miss, 8. East Carolina, 9. Texas El-Paso, 10. Houston, 11. SMU, 12. Tulane

TEAM BY TEAM ANALYSIS:

MEMPHIS: The Tigers boast a core of five standout sophomores, all of whom return to the starting lineup a year after taking the league crown and narrowly upsetting Arizona in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Will Barton returns to anchor the backcourt, a year after he established himself as a guard who could consistently score (12.3 points per game) and rebound (4.9 rebounds per game.) His brother, fellow sophomore Antonio Barton, is an excellent wing player who shot 44.2 percent from three-point land a year ago. Memphis also returns 6-0 guard Joe Jackson, 6-4 guard Chris Crawford and 6-8 forward Tarik Black, all sophomores who started a year ago. Jackson averaged 9.9 points per game and was a member of the USA Basketball U19 squad this summer. Crawford led the team in assists and steals last season, while Black posted 9.1 points and five rebounds during his freshman campaign. Head coach Josh Pastner also lured in one of the country's top recruits in Adonis Thomas, a 6-6, 205 pound swing player who will give Memphis more depth and versatility on the wing.

MARSHALL: The Thundering Herd finished 22-12 a year ago, and now second year head coach Tim Herrion has enough weapons returning for his team to contend in the C-USA race. Last season's C-USA Freshman of the Year, DeAndre Kane, returns to team up with point guard Damier Pitts to form one of the best backcourts in the league. Kane averaged 15.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game last season, while Pitts led the team with 16.2 points and 4.7 assists. Marshall has quality depth, and the frontcourt should benefit from sizable talent in 6-10 center Nigel Spikes and 7-2 Marquette transfer Yous Mbao. Justin Coleman is another key transfer for Marshall. Coleman, a former Louisville star-recruit, is a 6-5, 215 pound swing man who gives the Herd another explosive player on the perimeter.

UCF: The Knights made waves a year ago by starting the season 14-0, but faded down the stretch. UCF finished just 6-10 in C-USA play and missed the NCAA Tournament, and the sting of last season's inconsistent play could be a huge motivator for this years club. Head coach Donnie Jones has four starters back, including all-conference picks in Marcus Jordan and Keith Clanton. Jordan was the team's most prolific scorer a year ago, posting 15.2 points per game, all the while dishing out 3.2 assists, which also led the team. Clanton, a 6-8 245-pound block player, registered 14.2 points per game to complement a team high 7.7 boards per game. Senior point guard A.J. Rompza also returns, which should give this back court stability.

TULSA: The Golden Hurricane are looking to replicate last season's strong C- USA play (11-5) and to make a run at an NCAA berth. Tulsa will have to do it without Justin Hurtt though, who led the C-USA in scoring last season with 20 points per game. Tulsa still has three of its top four scorers back, including Steven Idlet (11.6), Jordan Clarkson (11.5) and Scottie Haralson (10.9). Idlet is a 6-11 240-pound senior who was extremely accurate shooting the basketball last season (52.7 field goal percentage) and gives the Golden Hurricane a physical force down low, while Clarkson and Haralson are a pair of 6-4 swingmen who give Tulsa length and athleticism on both ends of the floor. D.J. Magley and Joe Richard started a combined 33 games last season, and give Tulsa depth on the front line. Richard averaged 3.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game a year ago, while Magley chipped in 3.9 points and 3.9 assists.

UAB: Mike Davis enters his sixth season at the helm for UAB, which has won 22 games or more in each of the last four years. Last season's 22-9 mark was good enough to win the C-USA regular season title and earn the Blazers an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament. UAB must replace last season's C-USA Player of the Year in Aaron Johnson, but Davis has the C-USA Preseason Player of the Year in Cameron Moore back. Moore is a formidable presence in the paint (6-10, 230 pounds) and had a coming out party in 2010-11, averaging 14 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. He will be complemented in the middle by 6-8 bruiser Ovie Soko, the team's second leading returning scorer (9.1), who averaged 5.8 boards a year ago. Preston Purifoy played in 31 games last season and averaged 12.4 minutes and 3.9 points per game and is the team's most productive returning guard.

RICE: The Owls finished 14-18 a year ago, and it is clear that the program must improve upon its 5-11 Conference USA record in order to make strides this season. There is a real possibility that Rice will become one of the league's best surprises in 2011-12, especially considering that it returns its top four offensive players from a year ago. That includes the incredibly talented trio of Arsalan Kazemi, Tamir Jackson and Connor Frizzelle, all of whom were double digit scorers last season. Kazemi is one of the league's best players, and his average of 15.2 points per game (shot 52.5 percent from the field) and 11 rebounds per game validates that claim. The Iranian Kazemi has excellent size (6-7) and registered 18 double doubles last year. Jackson averaged 13.9 points per game a year ago and led the team with 3.6 assists during the year, while Frizzelle added 10.7 ppg and should again be a threat in the backcourt for the Owls.

SOUTHERN MISS: Head coach Larry Eustachy is charged with replacing over 30 points per game in production this year after his two top scorers in Gary Flowers and R.L. Horton moved on during the offseason. Southern Miss was on the cusp of great things last season, but its 22-10 record was marred by inconsistent play in league play, and despite a second consecutive twenty win season, the program missed out on the NCAA Tournament. Angelo Johnson returns at point guard and will need to give this club stability. Johnson averaged 7.5 points per game last season, shooting 42.8 percent from the field and adding 3.1 assists per game. He is complemented in the frontcourt by 6-10 Maurice Bolden, who averaged 6.8 points and 4.4 rebounds per contest last season. Bolden started just 12 games, and his production should increase as his minutes do this season.

EAST CAROLINA: The Pirates enjoyed their first winning season (18-14) in 14 years in 2010-11, which included a berth to the CollegeInsider.com postseason tournament. East Carolina returns its second leading scorer from last season in Darrius Morrow, who also grabbed 6.3 rebounds per outing. The 6-8 Morrow finished fourth in the league in field goal percentage a year ago (he was sixth in rebounding), and with Jontae Sherrod and Jamar Abrams both gone, he will be the centerpiece to this club. Jeff Lebo also has starters back in point guard Corvonn Gaines and shooting guard Erin Straughn. Gaines averaged 6.7 points and led the team in both assists (105) and steals (55) a year ago, while Straughn started 33 contests and posted five points per game.

TEXAS-EL PASO: UTEP has just four players back from last year's team, which finished 25-10 and made an appearance in the NIT in Tim Floyd's first year at the controls. The Miners must replace its top five scorers from last season, including three players who registered double digit averages. That will be no easy task for Floyd, who has 10 new players on the roster. Gabriel McCulley is the lone returning starter, and the only senior on the club. McCulley averaged 6.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game last season. John Bohannon, a 6-10, 210 pound post player, started 10 games last year and posted 5.2 points and 4.6 rebounds a year ago, and will be relied upon to help UTEP patrol the paint this season. UTEP will rely heavily on fresh contributions from fresh faces, including Jacques Streeter, who was a two-year starter at Cal State Fullerton before transferring to UTEP in 2010. Streeter averaged 11.1 points and 4.6 assists from 2008 to 2010 and should give the Miners stability in the backcourt.

HOUSTON: The Cougars finished a disappointing 12-18 last season, which marked James Dickey's first season as head coach. Alandise Harris and Darian Thibodeaux are the top two players returning to the mix, with both averaging 9.4 and 8.3 points per game, respectively. Thibodeaux started all 30 games a year ago and is the lone senior on the roster. He is also the team's top returner in assists and three point percentage, hitting 44 percent (59-134) beyond the arc last season. At 6-9 and 225 pounds, Kirk Van Slyke gives the team a versatile big man on the perimeter, while redshirt freshman Joseph Young gives the club a young talented guard who gives the backcourt depth.

SMU: Head coach Matt Doherty will have to replace seven players from a team that went 20-15 last season, which included an appearance in the CollegeInsider.Com Tournament. One of the more important priorities is replacing center Papa Dia and his 18.3 points, 9.6 boards and 2.2 blocks per game. SMU returns 6-8, 220 pound Robert Nyakundi, who averaged 14.3 points and 4.3 boards last season, and the Mustangs are relying on him to carry this team in 2011-12. Nyakundi was second in the country in three-point field goal percentage, nailing 49.7 percent of his treys. Jeremiah Samarrippas returns at point guard (7.8 ppg, 3.4 assists, 2.6 rebounds), and a core group of transfers will give the team a fresh batch of contributors on both ends of the floor. That includes Texas transfer Shawn Williams, a talented 6-7 sophomore who will be available midway through the season.

TULANE: The Green Wave faded down the stretch last season, losing 14-of-15 and crushing what was a positive start to the season. Now head coach Ed Conroy is wiping the slate clean, and he has one of the best players in the league to lead his club. Kendall Timmons was an all-league pick a year ago, and led Tulane in scoring (17.0) and rebounds (8.3). Timmons is also a force on the defensive end, posting 58 steals and 17 blocks last season. Jordan Callahan averaged 13.7 points per game and gives Tulane a second viable scorer. Callahan hit 63 three-pointers a year ago. Guard Ben Cherry, who started four games last season before missing the last 22 with an injury, also returns to bulk up the Green Waves' backcourt.