D2SS: The Weekend (Part 1)

More than a week remains in the regular season for basketball teams in D-II South Nation. Here's how the races for conference tournament seeding and berths stack up heading into the next to last weekend of February.



Gulf South Conference: Four teams--two in the East Division, two in the West Division--have already clinched spots in this year's GSC tournament. Valdosta State (16-7, 8-0 GSC) wrapped up the No. 1 seed in the GSC East with a 74-39 rout of West Alabama (7-18, 3-5) on the road Thursday night. North Alabama (15-12, 7-2) is assured of finishing no worse than second place in the division, as the Lady Blazers swept the regular season against the Lady Lions.



In the West, No. 5 (NABC) Delta State (20-2, 9-2) and No. 12 Arkansas Tech (23-1, 10-1) are running neck and neck for the top spot on the side of the GSC. Both teams square off in the highly anticipated re-match at DSU Saturday night. The Golden Suns defeated the Lady Statesmen 56-47 at ATU last month (01/23/2010). The DSU women's only other loss came at Henderson State 68-55 one week later. Meanwhile, it's a tight race for the three remaining GSC tourney berths in the West, as Harding (13-10, 6-5), Christian Brothers (14-9, 5-6), and Henderson State (14-12, 5-6) all find themselves separated by at least one game heading into this weekend's action.



Peach Belt Conference: A "wacky" Wednesday full of surprises was the key word for women's hoops action in the PBC at mid-week, as multiple teams pulled off stunning upsets.



Francis Marion (21-3, 13-2) snapped Lander's 14-game winning streak with an 82-71 win over the Lady Bearcats. That victory avenged a 91-86 loss at LU on Jan. 6. Despite the loss, though, Lander (21-2, 14-1) still has a one-game lead over the Patriots in the PBC East Division with three conference games remaining for both squads.



On the other hand, the West Division appears to be a huge mess, as both of the top two teams fell victim to the upset bug Wednesday. No. 15 (WBCA) Clayton State (19-5, 10-4) lost at home to Columbus State (15-9, 9-5) 67-61 in overtime, while Georgia College & State University (17-7, 10-4) fell at Georgia Southwestern 73-61. Both Clayton State and GC&SU remain tied for first place in the PBC West, while CSU stands one game behind both aforementioned squads.

SIAC: With just two conference games remaining, No. 10 (WBCA) Fort Valley State (24-1, 19-1) appears to have the No. 1 seed for the upcoming SIAC tournament in Atlanta all but wrapped up. The Wildcats closest pursuers are Kentucky State (15-7, 15-3) and Benedict (18-8, 15-6)

The big game

Arkansas Tech (23-1, 10-1) at Delta State (20-2, 9-2)--Saturday 4 p.m. CST

As mentioned above, the Lady Statesmen play host to the Golden Suns in a highly anticipated re-match at Walter Sillers Coliseum. ATU will look to get a sweep of the regular season series, while DSU will look for payback.