It didn't take long for Troy to make the jump from newcomer to champion in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The jump from A-Sun to Sun Belt is proving to be much tougher.

Troy joined the A-Sun in 1997-98 and won the regular-season championship two years later. By the time the Trojans left after the 2004-05 season, they had won four conference championships and earned one trip each to the NCAA Tournament and the NIT.

In three seasons in the Sun Belt, the Trojans have actually slipped backward, going from 14-15 in 2005-06 to 13-17 in 2006-07 and 12-19 in 2007-08.

While 12th-seeded Troy did pull off a 70-60 upset at fifth-seeded Louisiana-Lafayette in the first round of the Sun Belt tournament, it wasn't enough to overshadow a 4-14 Sun Belt record or a last-place finish in the East Division.

Despite the three-year slide and the loss of the team's three top scorers and a fourth starter, Troy coach Don Maestri remains hopeful about the future. That's one reason why he's survived 25 seasons at Troy. Maestri just keeps finding ways to survive and keep the Trojans competitive. Now he plans to do it with a revamped squad led by Mississippi State transfer Richard Delk, a 6-4 guard who sat out this past season.

"We've been recruiting hard from the get-go, and if we can get the guys that we've been in on, we'll be highly competitive next year," Maestri told the Dothan Eagle. "We need some rebounding help, but we need kids that can come in and play the game of basketball. It will help to have some shooters, too."

Copyright (C) 2008 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.