College basketball countdown: No. 61 Texas Southern

HEAD COACH MIKE DAVIS
TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL

HOUSTON, Texas  --  The first word: It was August of last summer when Mike Davis took over a Texas Southern team that was hit hard by the NCAA for breaking rules - recruiting violations among others - and lying about imposing sanctions. The NCAA's punishment, which came close to levying the "death penalty," included a men's hoops postseason ban for the 2012-13 season.

So although the Tigers finished in first place in the SWAC with a 16-2 record, their season ended before tournament play -- while riding a 12-game winning streak. Now, free of the postseason ban, TSU will have much more to play for - with the opportunity to win the SWAC Tournament and potentially garner a No. 14 or No. 15 seed. That'll be a tough task for Davis with the departure of go-to playmaker Omar Strong, who averaged 17 points per game last season. But don't count Davis out. He fueled one of the biggest turnarounds in all of college basketball last season after his team started a disastrous 1-13.

"We lost two big guys, but I think we have what it takes to be better than last year's team. The guys have an extra gear of hunger now with (the postseason). It's going to just come down to chemistry," said Davis, who previously coached at Indiana (2000-2006 as head coach) and UAB (2006-2012).

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