Note: The following piece was prepared by Dean Keener, who provides commentary on Southern Conference men’s basketball broadcasts.
Keener played collegiately at Davidson before embarking on a successful 20-year coaching career. He served as head coach at James Madison from 2004-08. You can follow him on X: @DeanKeener1
The Dean’s List
A preview of Southern Conference Men’s Basketball
I. Inside SoCon Basketball:
As hard as it is to believe, it’s been almost eight months since Furman won the conference tournament. Yes, college football is in full swing, but the weather has cooled and it’s time to get ready for the college hoops season. Southern Conference teams have been practicing for several weeks and are preparing for the regular season which begins on Monday, Nov. 6. In fact, eight of the 10 league members will play opening night while Western Carolina opens on Tuesday, Nov. 7, and the UNCG Spartans begin their season on Friday, Nov. 10 against cross-town rival North Carolina A&T.
The SoCon’s 10 men’s basketball teams will again all play a double-round-robin, 18-game intraleague schedule, totaling 90 league contests over nine weeks from Wednesday, Jan. 3, to Saturday, March 2. All 10 teams open league play on Jan. 3, but before then there will plenty of opportunities to help boost the league’s profile with key games during the non-conference part of the season.
This season should be exciting for several reasons, but we need to keep in mind that Southern Conference men’s basketball has seen plenty of change since we last got together Asheville, North Carolina. The transfer portal has once again changed several SoCon rosters. In fact, there were 53 transfers out of the league this past spring.
There was also one coaching change as ETSU reached back into their past and named Brooks Savage, a former Steve Forbes assistant, as their new head coach. Savage should do a terrific job in Johnson City.
Because of all the changes (graduation, expiration of eligibility as well as the transferring of players), every fan base except for maybe Furman, will need a program in the early going to become familiar with their roster. The Paladins only lost one player to transfer - that was backup guard Joe Anderson. But more importantly they did lose two of the all-time greats in program history, Jalen Slawson and Mike Bothwell. Still, there is plenty of talent on their roster.
Speaking of the Paladins, they have been one of the most consistent programs in the country, averaging almost 23 wins during the past seven seasons. Along with Samford, Western Carolina, and UNCG, they look to be the favorites entering the new season.
Bucky McMillian has Samford primed to again compete at a high level. The Bulldogs have one of the best players in The Southern Conference in Jermaine Marshall. The hard-working forward is a terrific player and arguably the best rebounder in the SoCon. As for Western Carolina, Justin Gray enters his third season in Cullowhee with his best team by a wide margin. Thanks to the return of Vonterius Woolbright, Tre Jackson and Russell Jones, Jr. the Catamounts might have the best backcourt in the league. Mike Jones will also benefit from the return of two all-conference guards as twin brothers Keyshaun and Kobe Langley return for a fifth season. But all four top-tier programs are far more than one or two-man teams as each have other talented starters, key reserves, and a good amount of experience.
The other league members certainly have the ability to push the preseason favorites. Each has the coaching and talent to win games and make things difficult during league play, especially on their home courts. In particular, Chattanooga lost do-everything center Jake Stephens, but has a talented roster led by VMI transfer Honor Huff.
With everything that is happening in college athletics today, The Southern Conference continues to remain strong, especially in men’s basketball. The 10 league members remain committed, and men’s basketball is collectively ready for another outstanding season. Even when realignment hit the SoCon almost a decade ago, the league was able to bring back two former members as well as add Mercer who had a history with most of the teams in the conference.
I’ve been privileged to cover Southern Conference men’s basketball for the past thirteen years. The progression of the conference in men’s basketball during the past decade has been outstanding. It’s my opinion that there are enough good players and coaches so that collectively the league will once more be very strong.
Once again, this preseason preview will cover Southern Conference men’s basketball from A to Z. It will also look at players that most likely will lead categories as well as attempting to answer several key questions surrounding the new season. I hope this will get you started for the new season.
II. SoCon basketball from A to Z
- Asheville – The season always ends in the city of Asheville at the SoCon Ingles Basketball Championships
- Brown-Jones – Last season, UNCG forward Mikeal Brown-Jones was the league’s top sixth man. More will be expected this season, and he is certainly capable
- Cross – Michael Cross is the new SoCon commissioner. He will do a great job
- Defense – The UNCG Spartans were the best defensive team in the SoCon last season. They should be tough at that end of the court again this season
- Ed – The Citadel head coach Ed Conroy knows how build a winner. The Bulldogs were hit with injuries last season or else they would have been significantly better. In addition, it’s never easy to beat the Bulldogs in Charleston
- Foster – Furman’s Marcus Foster has steadily improved each season and is now ready to be a go-to guy for the Paladins
- Gray – Head coach Justin Gray has Western Carolina going in the right direction
- Honor Huff – The sophomore followed Dan Earl from VMI, but had to sit out last season. He’s primed for a breakout year for Chattanooga
- Isolation – There are several good one-on-one players in the league. Those that can score in isolation situations include Vonterius Woolbright, Keyshaun Langley and JP Pegues
- Jaden – ETSU forward Jaden Seymour is talented and a big key for the Bucs
- Kyler – Wofford forward Kyler Filewich is one of the most competitive players in The Southern Conference. Strictly an inside presence, he understands his strengths and plays to them well
- Langley – Once again, the Langley twins (Kobe and Keyshaun) are keys to UNCG success
- McCreary – Jalyn McCreary is the Mercer Bears’ best player. He’s a tough one-on-one match up and will be counted on to carry a big load at the offensive end.
- NET (NCAA Evaluation Tool) - A metric developed by the NCAA for use in the selection process for the Division I men's tournament, beginning in 2019. Some of the input data includes game results, strength of schedule, scoring margin and quality of wins within quadrants
- Opportunity – Every season, non-conference games are critical. This season is no different. Unfortunately, there aren’t many home games against Power 6 teams (P 5 + Big East). SoCon programs will have to take advantage of every opportunity
- Pegues – JP Pegues hit “The Shot” against Virginia in the NCAA Tournament. He’s as good as there is in the SoCon
- Quinones – Mercer guard Jah Quinones was an all-freshman selection a year ago. He needs to take another step if the Bears are going to be in the hunt
- Rules – There are several rule changes for the 2023-2024 season. Those include legal guarding position on block/charge scenarios; officials will now be allowed to review goaltending calls during the next media timeout and for the first-time players will be allowed to wear numbers 0-99
- Savage – Brooks Savage is the new boss at ETSU. He will do an outstanding job
- Transfers - The NCAA transfer portal has changed the landscape of college basketball, allowing student-athletes to move about without having to sit out
- Unknown – VMI is a bit of an unknown because of the change in their roster. Andrew Wilson and staff signed a nine-man freshman class
- Vonterius – Vonterius Woolbright is one of the most versatile players in the SoCon. The combo guard can play all over the court. Last season, he led the league in assists and was third in rebounding!
- Western – With the return of Woolbright, Tre Jackson and Russell Jones, Jr., Western Carolina is primed for an outstanding season
- X-factor – There are plenty of “X-factors” in the league this season, including Carter Whitt (Furman), Jalen Cobb (Mercer), AJ Staton-McCray (Samford) and DJ Campbell (Western Carolina)
- Youth – As the transfer portal continues to spin at a dizzying pace, it’s become a bit more difficult for first-year freshmen to really impact the league. But as usual, there are some gifted freshmen in the SoCon this season
- Zidek – Chattanooga’s Jan Zidek arrives from Pepperdine. His father is one of the greatest players in history of Czechoslovakia basketball
III. Player Most Likely To…
- Lead the league in scoring
- Tre Jackson (Western Carolina)
- Lead the league in rebounding
- Jermaine Marshall (Samford)
- Lead the league in assists
- Vonterius Woolbright (Western Carolina)
- Lead the league in assist/turnover ratio
- Lead the league in 3-point shooting
- Tre Jackson (Western Carolina)
- Lead the league in Steals
IV. Four questions that need to be answered
1. Biggest storyline in the SoCon?
The ever-changing rosters remain a big story in college hoops, especially during the early going.Unfortunately, The Southern Conference was not immune to the transfer portal as there were a ton of additions and subtractions to most of the programs across the SoCon.Year-to-year roster continuity is at a historic low, although Furman was able to keep most of their key returners and Western Carolina was also able to keep six of its top nine scorers. But this doesn’t mean league coaches are doing anything wrong, nor does it suggest the SoCon is experiencing anything different from other Division I conferences. This is an issue that is affecting every coach at every level of college basketball.
2. Is Western Carolina for real?
Yes! The Catamounts finished last season in strong fashion and almost beat Furman in the conference semifinals. They also participated in a post season tournament for just the fourth time in program history. With a strong backcourt in addition to a fine group of newcomers, this team is very dangerous. Justin Gray and staff have done a terrific job creating a winning program.
3. What can the league do to make some noise nationally?
What can the league do to gain national exposure during the non-conference portion of the season?It very well could be more difficult this season with a lack of home games against P6 (Power 5 + Big East) opponents.Regardless, every SoCon team needs to avoid “bad losses” and more importantly, pick off a few big wins.
Here are 14 non-conference games / events that are critical for the SoCon:
- Samford at Purdue – Nov. 6
- The Bulldogs open the season against a top 5 team with last year’s National Player of the Year. This is the highest ranked opponent among all SoCon non-conference opponents
- Belmont at Furman – Nov. 10
- A key early season clash between two outstanding programs
- Chattanooga at Louisville – Nov. 10
- The Cardinals will be much improved, so this would be a nice road win for the SoCon
- Wofford at Virginia Tech – Nov. 19
- The Terriers head to Blacksburg for the Mike Young Classic
- Western Carolina at Notre Dame – Nov. 11
- The Fighting Irish aren’t supposed to be in the top half of the ACC, but this would still be a very good win for the Catamounts and The Southern Conference
- UNCG at Vanderbilt – Nov. 14
- The Spartans could score a key early season win against a SEC foe
- UNCG at Arkansas – Nov. 17
- Another key game for the Spartans right out of the gate
- Furman at The Myrtle Beach Invitational – Nov. 16, 17 & 19
- A big three-game tournament for the Paladins. They open with Liberty, then have Wichita State or Coastal Carolina
- Davidson at ETSU – Nov. 17
- A solid home game for the Bucs at Freedom Hall
- UNCA at Western Carolina – Dec. 9
- This would be a good win for the Catamounts as UNCA is the heavy favorite in the Big South
- Samford at Belmont at Samford – Dec. 16
- Samford gets Belmont in a key home game
- Western Carolina at Vanderbilt – Dec. 19
- Similar to their game at Notre Dame, Vandy is not considered a top tier team in the SEC, but this would be a very good win for Western and the league
- ETSU at Utah State – Dec. 22
- An interesting game. The Aggies have been a mainstay in March Madness but lost a ton (including their coach) from a 26-win team. Regardless, this would be an outstanding win against a Mountain West foe
- Chattanooga at Auburn – Dec. 30
- The last chance for the league to get a Power win before conference play begins
4. Who will be the sleeper?
No doubt, this is always a tough question. That is true again this year in the SoCon with so much uncertainty throughout the league. That said, I’m going with ETSU. Not many are going to have them in the top tier in the pre-season, but I firmly believe Brooks Savage and staff will have them playing well by the time we get to conference play. Like many teams, the Bucs need to navigate the integration of several new players as well as a new system, but could very well surprise once league play begins.
Also, don’t sleep on Chattanooga. Dan Earl is an outstanding coach, and the Mocs have enough talent to compete every night out.
It’s College Hoops Season
This should be another electrifying season of basketball in The Southern Conference. No doubt, there will be exciting games, great crowds, and interesting headlines as we start the path to Asheville.
For the 13
th consecutive year, the season will end in Asheville, North Carolina, and the Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville for the Ingles Southern Conference Basketball Championship. The Southern Conference Tournament remains the nation’s oldest post-season tournament in college basketball and is always a terrific weekend of hoops.
I’m excited for a new season of SoCon hoops and hope you are as well. See everyone on the road very soon!
Next edition: In the December 20th edition, we will look at how everyone is doing six weeks into the new season.
Follow me throughout the year on X @DeanKeener1