Mid-Major Basketball

Merrimack has 2 very key returners followed by a tremendous group of transfers. Tye Dorset is coming back after averaging double figures and about 2 STL. Todd Brogna should get a lot more touches this season and put up numbers like he did in his time at Stonehill again. Felician transfer Jeremiah Anderson joins this team to likely be their starting point guard as he averaged a whopping 20.6 PPG 5.5 REB 5.3 AST and 2.5 STL. Absolute stud numbers at the D2 level making him arguably the best transfer in the Metro. Dorset at the 2 along with Brown transfer Alexander Lesburt Jr. at the 3 would give the warriors a lot of firepower offensively and defensively which is something no other teams in the Metro can really say as well as Merrimack. Denver Anglin and Urbano will be big leading the second unit too. One concern is big man depth, but I believe James Madison transfer Eli Wilborn is bound to breakout giving that area a boost. 

20+ wins in each of the last 3 seasons for the Tommies where they have finished near the top of the Summit. It's pretty easy to see why they'll achieve that once again this season led by the return of big man Carter Bjerke along with some other impactful returning guards including Austin Herro and Hayden Tibbits. Kendall Blue is also MARFOing his way back to Saint Paul which is the biggest offseason move for this team. Jeremy Lorenz, Caden Wilkins, and Brogan Madson are also 3 transfer additions that all fit this team really well. Incoming freshman Jojo Mitchell could bring a lot to this group weather he plays a lot just adds depth. The Tommies rank first in Offense and a close second in Defense in Torvik currently.

Louisiana is 1st in the Sun Belt in returning minutes at about 38%. Their returners range from all positions and good experience plus getting Jamyron Keller back from injury is absolutely huge. He will be the difference maker. In addition to all the talent they retain, they add some really good newcomers. North Carolina A&T transfer, Trent Middleton Jr. averaged 12.5 PPG for the Aggies and can do a little bit of everything on the offensive end. Lindenwood transfer Mekhi Cooper and incoming freshman Isaiah Wilks are also two impactful and talented guards joining this group. I think the biggest threat of this team is their front court depth. Dani Pounds and Josiah Harris immediately come in as two of the best transfers at their position in the Sun Belt. Both can score and rebound really well. Off the bench, they're gonna have 2 solid returners in Jeremiah Evans and Todd Jones Jr. Either one or both of them could definitely breakout. They also have Tyshawn Duncan who's a reall...

The amount of high level transfers joining Little Rock this season is shocking. Terrion Burgess is the lone returner for this group maintaining big man depth and good upside showing a lot of flashes last season. Bradyn Hubbard, Aaron Clark, and Jah'Likai King ALL led other Mid-Major teams in scoring. Hubbard led Abilene Christian in scoring, Aaron Clark led Pepperdine in scoring, the same for King with UMBC. That is absolutely wild and almost unheard of. They all can do more than just lead a team in scoring as they'll bring defense and rebounding to Little Rock as well. Speaking of rebounding, they also added Pittsburgh transfer, Papa Amadou Kante who averaged 5.4 REB in just 8 GP off the bench for an ACC program. Could average a double double for the Trojans this. Jamai Felt coming over from Temple also brings a lot of potential down low. Many good JUCO products and other transfers round out this roster really well too. In a way, Little Rock has recruited like a Power 5 school...

Top 10 in the whole nation in returning minutes at #9 with roughly 74% of their minutes from last year coming back. That is absolutely wild for a Big South school. This includes 3 of their top 4 leading scorers from last season who all averaged double figures. Their entire bench production is back aside from one guy too which leaves many likely breakout opportunities. I also believe they get better with the addition of Lincoln Memorial transfer, E.J. Smith. A nice defensive guard and a good shooter. The Blue Hose have always showed their potential in recent years with some these same guys and I think this will be that year they make that full leap with a 20+ win season.

Middle Tennessee has yet another intriguing squad this year. They return Jahvin Carter which is huge along with the addition of arguably the best transfer in the conference with former Penn State Guard Eli Rice. Rice averaged 6.7 PPG and shot 39% from three for a Big 10 school. Of course, that's not all as they add more talented guards including North Alabama transfer, Kevin De Kovachich and high level 3-star incoming freshman Landyn Colyer. Ofri Naveh is another big impact guy adding scoring, defense, and rebounding coming over from Oral Roberts. A good chunk of solid bench guys from last year return as well giving them good depth. The only thing about this team that moves them down a bit is no seniors on the roster and that could hurt their experience late in the season.

Not much returning for this LIU squad, but all they need is monster portal class and it looks like they've got one this season. A backcourt of Vesean Allette and Daquan Davis will be absolutely lethal in the NEC and both could win POY. Add Utah transfer Jakhi Howard at the 3 as well and it's game over. It doesn't stop there with the additions of former high ranked recruits as the Bewley brothers who have had interesting careers so far, join the team too and boy if they can dominate at the level of their potential, then this one through five will be unreal. They also fill out their bench with guys like Josh Pickett from Presbyterian and Western Carolina transfer Justin Johnson + more. Tyrell Bowles is another big JUCO transfer to watch who I actually think will end up starting. The Sharks rank first in offense and defense in the NEC preseason. Projected Effective Talent is also a huge gap from the rest of the conference.

Although, SEMO returns less than they usually have in the last couple seasons, they have some good returners and did some great portal work to develop what looks to be a pretty solid roster. Marqueas Bell is back and has a good chance to be All-conference first team and Landren Blocker is another returning piece that has breakout potential. Darrion Sutton is the biggest name the Redhawks get out of the transfer portal as he is a former 4 star and Georgia Tech and Missouri State transfer, He's absolutely in for a monster season. Two transfer guards to know in Fontaine Williams from West Texas A&M who averaged 20.5 PPG, 1.3 STL and shot 41% from three along with Alonzo Clawson-Smith from the NAIA ranks who averaged around 19 PPG. 5.5 REB, and 6 AST + 2 STL. Talk about getting it done in every aspect of the game. That's hard to do at any level. Colorado Mesa transfer, Clayton Jewell who is another great defender will join Sutton in that front court as well. The Redhawks are a ...

I think Stony Brook is very underrated heading into next season. 2nd in the CAA in returning minutes while being ranked 4th in Projected Effective Experience with a great group of seniors. Looking at their front court they bring in two Power 5 transfers in Efe Vatan and 7'1" Leonardo Van Elswyk. Both should be very talented in the CAA. Weather they put those two at the 4 and 5 in the starting unit or add good returning piece Quin Gorman and Canisius transfer Bryan Ndjonga in there, that depth is phenomenal on paper. Ndjonga led the Golden Griffin's in scoring while adding 6 REB. Richmond transfer Jaden Daughtry also gives the Seawolves even more size as he also has the potential to be their best player and an all-conference guy being one of the best transfers in the conference. They have multiple returning guards to run their offense and West Virginia transfer, Morris Ugusuk joins the team having a ton of upside. You could argue they're a little thin with their guard d...

Brown is THIRD in the country in returning minutes heading into this season. In some cases for certain schools, it doesn't always matter if you return that many minutes, but in this case I think it will give a huge advantage and impact for the Bears. From multiple guards coming back to multiple bigs and just experience all over as they rank first in the Ivy in Projected Effective Experience which is huge in a league like this. The amount of depth on this squad just outweighs a lot of other mid-majors in such a big way. Bowdoin College transfer Ray Cuevas is a key addition that will help generate offense for a team that needs to be improved in that category to have greater success in the league.

Howard could have one of their best teams in program history this season. They return two rising senior and starting guards in Cam Gillus and Alex Cotton from the team that won a tournament game last season and gave the eventual Nation Champion a game in the first half of their R64 game. They also return many solid bench players with multiple bound to have breakout years. Where it gets really intriguing is the additions of two transfer bigs, those being James Brown from North Carolina and Gacper Kocevar from Fresno State. Two of the best transfers in the MEAC and I really believe that should be their starting front court and if it is it'll be one in the conference unlike any other in recent memory.

I feel like some will forget or have forgotten that Cal State Fullerton was part of the three way tie for 3rd place finish in the Big West last year. Overall they were 18-16 (12-8), but they could beat the top teams in the conference on any given matchup no matter how good they were or how hot or cold they were at the time, the Titans would just find a way. I think it will be a similar story to that this year, as they return 4 key  contributors from that team including 2 starters one of them being Christian Williams who will likely be an all-conference guy. They bring in multiple great transfers through the portal including D2 transfer Matthew Willenborg who averaged 20.4 PPG, 9.2 REB, and 3.0 BLK for Central Oklahoma!!! Talk about a guy who can do just about everything on the floor. I think this team can be pretty deep too with them having a pretty underrated freshman class. 

Looking at this Furman starting 5 and I'm really intrigued by the talent. Boston College transfer Luka Toews running the point started 20 games for the Eagles of the ACC. Could already be in the SoCon POY discussion. Army transfer Jaxson Bell is a really well rounded pickup who will join Toews in the backcourt making it one of the most intriguing in Mid-Major hoops. Then, you have Cole Bowser and Marcus Kell who was Western Carolina's second leading scorer last season adding even more physicality. The Paladins are shaping up to be a fantastic rebounding team. South Carolina transfer Jordan Butler joins in his final season of eligibility and will immediately be one of the best bigs in the conference. Davis Molnar is a huge breakout candidate to watch after redshirting last season. One more name to know is Jerrin Samuel who I think could be a popular SoCon freshman of the year pick. Coach Richey's squad goes even deeper with multiple key returning freshman and sophomores from...

Guard play is DEEP for the Falcons this upcoming season. Led by the return of Josiah Shackelford, Bowling Green also adds Jayden Johnson, Juan Cranford Jr., and Tristan Beckford. Johnson is a South Carolina State transfer who led the Bulldogs in scoring last season, while adding 3 AST, 3 REB, and 1.5 STL a night. Cranford Jr. averaged 12.1 PPG for Eastern Kentucky while Beckford is a former 2025 3 star from South Florida with loads of upside. Can't forget about their D2 guys either with Zach Howell and Trey Simmons. Simmons averaged 24.2 PPG and 1.5 STL for Frostburg State last season! Big man depth could be deeper, but Seniors Aiden Goins and South Carolina transfer, Christ Essandoko are big time leaders in that starting frontcourt. I think this team has a lot of firepower to be a threat on both ends of the floor.

Austin Ball and Jackson Holt are two of the most underrated returners in the UAC and I think both those guys are gonna lead this team well. They are also surrounded by a lot of great pieces including two high level JUCO transfers, those being Justin McCarter and Drae Vasser. Vasser averaged 17, 6, and 5 for Vincennes last season! West Florida transfer Aric Demings and Amarr Knox join the team as well just adding to their fantastic guard play. Knox redshirted last season but in 2024-25 averaged 14.5 PPG and roughly 2 steals a night for Alabama State. Big man depth is there as well with the return of Yvens Paul, Louisville transfer Mouhamed Camara, and Long Island University transfer, Shadrak Lasu who I think has tons of breakout potential. Overall, I think a down season last year will give them a lot of strive this year and in a fresh new conference.