Oakland had North Dakota State beat ... then fell apart late and lost on Ben Woodside's jumper in the Summit League tournament title game. Oakland had Bradley beat ... then lost on a controversial catch-and-shoot with 0.9 of a second left in the second round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.

The postseason wasn't kind to the Golden Grizzlies. But this season should be much better. With St. John's transfer Larry Wright and 2007-08 first-team all-league member Derick Nelson back after a foot injury sidelined him last season, Oakland has all the ingredients to win the Summit and represent it well in March.

Traditional power Oral Roberts is next in line, despite some significant losses. The Indiana schools - IUPUI and IPFW - should be improved and dangerous, and South Dakota State has most of its key players back.

It's rebuilding time at North Dakota State, which loses the four seniors who redshirted as freshmen so they could play in the school's first full season in Division I. They made the most of it, beating Oakland and giving Kansas a heck of a first-round NCAA run in Minneapolis.

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
1. Oakland
2. Oral Roberts
3. IUPUI
4. IPFW
5. South Dakota State
6. Southern Utah
7. North Dakota State
8. Centenary
9. Western Illinois
10. Missouri-Kansas City

PRESEASON PICKS
First team
C Keith Benson, 6-11, Jr., Oakland
F Robert Glenn, 6-7, Sr., IUPUI
F Derick Nelson, 6-5, Sr., Oakland
G Davis Baker, 6-5, Sr., Southern Utah
G Johnathon Jones, 5-11, Sr., Oakland
Second team
C Kevin Ford, 6-9, Sr., Oral Roberts
F Dominique Morrison, 6-6, Soph., Oral Roberts
F Deilvez Yearby, 6-6, Sr., IPFW
G Garrett Callahan, 6-1, Sr., South Dakota State
G Larry Wright, 6-2, Jr., Oakland
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
G Johnathon Jones, 5-11, Sr., Oakland
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
G Larry Wright, 6-2, Jr., Oakland

Regular-season winner last season: North Dakota State
Tournament winner last season: North Dakota State (lost in first round of NCAA tourney to Kansas as a No. 14 seed)
2010 conference tournament: March 6-9, Sioux Falls Arena, Sioux Falls, S.D.

This is how it's supposed to be. A team improves, builds and makes its run with a senior-laden rotation; that's how it went for 2009 Southland champ Stephen F. Austin. Although a first-round loss to Syracuse in the NCAA tournament wasn't an effective showcase for the team or the league, the Lumberjacks had a great season.

Now they're rebuilding, and the Southland race should be a hotly contested one. Nicholls State definitely is the best team in the East Division and the slight favorite overall, with Anatoly Bose making a bid for player of the year.

Southeastern Louisiana is the only other team in the East with the chops to make a run, while the tougher West Division has three legitimate hopefuls - Sam Houston State, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Texas-San Antonio.

Texas A&M-CC might have the best player in the league in Kevin Palmer, although Texas-Arlington and star guard Marquez Haynes might argue that point.

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
EAST
1. Nicholls State
2. Southeastern Louisiana
3. Stephen F. Austin
4. Northwestern State (La.)
5. McNeese State
6. Central Arkansas
WEST
1. Sam Houston State
2. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
3. Texas-San Antonio
4. Texas-Arlington
5. Texas State
6. Lamar

PRESEASON PICKS
First team
F Anatoly Bose, 6-6, Sr., Nicholls State
F/G Kevin Palmer, 6-6, Sr., Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
G Corey Allmond, 6-1, Sr., Sam Houston State
G Marquez Haynes, 6-3, Sr., Texas-Arlington
G Ashton Mitchell, 5-11, Sr., Sam Houston State
Second team
C Patrick Sullivan, 6-9, Sr., Southeastern Louisiana
F Justin Reynolds, 6-9, Jr., Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
G Devin Gibson, 6-0, Jr., Texas-San Antonio
G Fred Hunter, 6-5, Soph., Nicholls State
G Omar Johnson, 5-7, Sr., Texas-San Antonio
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
F/G Kevin Palmer, 6-6, Sr., Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
G Rodney Jones, 6-3, Jr., Southeastern Louisiana

Regular-season winner last season: Stephen F. Austin in the East, Sam Houston State in the West
Tournament winner last season: Stephen F. Austin (lost in first round of NCAA tourney to Syracuse as a No. 14 seed)
2010 conference tournament: March 10-13, Merrell Center, Katy, Texas

The Big West nearly made the biggest first-round splash of the 2009 NCAA tournament, but Cal State Northridge could not hold onto a six-point lead over No. 2 seed Memphis in the final moments of what became an 81-70 loss. Nevertheless, it was a positive performance by the Matadors.

Pacific also represented well, beating Portland and Idaho in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament before falling at Bradley in the semifinals. The Big West's big two then bid farewell to several key seniors, which means a change at the top is in order.

Dan Monson's third season at Long Beach State could be a special one, considering the talent he has been able to accumulate in a short period. The 49ers are stacked. The next seven teams could be closely bunched together, with rebuilding Cal Poly again bringing up the rear. UC Riverside will try to ride star Kyle Austin to the top, while contender UC Davis has versatile swingman Joe Harden.

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
1. Long Beach State
2. UC Davis
3. UC Santa Barbara
4. UC Riverside
5. Pacific
6. UC Irvine
7. Cal State Northridge
8. Cal State Fullerton
9. Cal Poly

PRESEASON PICKS
First team
F Kyle Austin, 6-8, Jr., UC Riverside
F Eric Wise, 6-5, Soph., UC Irvine
G Larry Anderson, 6-5, Soph., Long Beach State
G/F Joe Harden, 6-8, Jr., UC Davis
G Mark Payne, 6-8, Jr., UC Davis
Second team
F Gerard Anderson, 6-6, Sr., Cal State Fullerton
F T.J. Robinson, 6-8, Soph., Long Beach State
G Michael Hunter, 5-10, Sr., UC Irvine
G Orlando Johnson, 6-5, Soph., UC Santa Barbara
G Lorenzo Keeler, 6-2, Sr., Cal Poly
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
F Kyle Austin, 6-8, Jr., UC Riverside
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
F Kyle Richardson, 6-7, Fr., Long Beach State

Regular-season winner last season: Cal State Northridge
Tournament winner last season: Cal State Northridge (lost in first round of NCAA tourney to Memphis as a No. 15 seed)
2010 conference tournament: March 10-13, Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Calif.