SoCon Basketball 2018-19: Top Non-Conference Games in November (Part 1 of 3)

With Wofford's win at No. 5 North Carolina last season, which games could be interesting in the SoCon non-conference in the 2018-19 basketball season

In college football, it's often said they remember what you do in November. In college hoops, that claim can also be made for mid-major programs for both November and December. No fan of mid-major hoops will soon forget what Wofford did at No. 5 North Carolina, or just a few days earlier, UNCG beating N.C. State and East Tennessee State taking a Top 10 ranked Xavier to the wire before losing.

In this two-part article, I will be taking a look at some of the bigger, intriguing matchups for the SoCon against both power five conferences and top-tier mid-major matchups, which offer the SoCon a chance to improve its prestige nationally among its mid-major brethren. Here goes nothing.

Nov. 6 North Carolina at Wofford--We all know what transpired last season in college basketball, with the Terriers registering one of their biggest wins in their Division I history--a 79-75 win at the Dean Dome over No. 5 North Carolina on Dec. 21, 2017. The Terriers, who opened their new Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium last season with a game against South Carolina, which the Terriers lost 73-52. All five starters return for the Terriers, including league Player of the Year Fletcher Magee, who averaged 22.1 PPG last season and connected on 148 triples,shooting the ball at an impressive 43.9% from downtown. North Carolina was a Sweet Sixteen last season, but return All-America candidate Luke Maye in the paint, while junior Seventh Woods and freshman Coby White should shoulder much of the load in the backcourt. Wofford not only thinks they can win this game, they think they should. After all, Mike Young’s club did it last season, taking down Roy Williams’mighty Tar Heels in Chapel Hill.

Nov. 6 East Tennessee State at Georgia State--This a very important mid-major conference battle for the SoCon and its RPI in comparison to other mid-major conferences throughout college basketball this season. ETSU, a perennial SoCon power and contender faces Georgia State, who is also a perennial power in the Sun Belt Conference and likely favorites to win the league again this season. When the Bucs travel to Atlanta, they won't have Desonta Bradford, Jalan McCloud or Devontavius Payne, but they will have a new crop of talented, JUCO transfers and talented freshmen to help the Bucs once again be a factor in the SoCon and a roster able to face up against mid-major basketball's finest. Bo Hodges is back and, after playing mostly in the paint last year because of lack of depth in the paint, will be able to play more on the perimeter this season with Jeromy Rodriguez, who was expected to play last year but redshirted due to injury, now fully healthy. Hodges has improved his perimeter shooting and Rodriguez is a player that head coach Steve Forbes calls his most-skilled player he's ever coached. Forbes will also have Serbian-born Mladen Armus back in the paint, and while Hodges may have been the coaches' SoCon Freshman of the Year last season, Armus made the all-freshman team. Georgia State, who are coached by one of the best coaches in mid-major hoops, in Ron Hunter, will look to make their third trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last five seasons, led by junior guard D'Marcus Simonds, who is the reigning Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year honors after averaging 21.2 PPG, 5.7 RPG and 4.4 APG last season. This is a huge early season road test for the Bucs, and a chance for the SoCon to firmly plant its flag as one of the top-tier mid-major conferences in the country, but it won't be easy. The Bucs won 25 games last year, while Georgia State claimed 24 victories. 

Nov. 6 Mercer at UAB--We'll find out what Bob Hoffman's Mercer Bears are made from the outset of the 2018-19 season. The Bears must replace all five starters, with the loss of significant players from a team that went 19-15 last season and made another postseason appearance in the College Basketball Invitational. Gone are veterans like Jordan Strawberry, Stephon Jelks, Desmond Ringer and Rya'n Holland. Sharp-shooting guard and all-conference candidate guard Ross Cummings remains to carry the mantle for Hoffman's Bears in 2018-19. Mercer also returns talented sophomore guard Marcus Cohen, and the Bears will look to get immediate help and depth in the backcourt from Serbian sharp-shooting guard Djordje Dimitrijevic. Jaylen Stowe and Cory Kilby are now veterans should also contribute and add depth in the backcourt. Victor Baffuto from Brazil and Canadian-born Fardaws Aimag will give the Bears size once again in the front court. They'll take on Conference USA member UAB in the opener--a team that won 20 games last season and has won at least 17 games each of the past five seasons, including 20 or more in three of those campaigns.Head coach Robert Ehsan enters his third season in Birmingham, but had two all-conference players transfer out of the program, taking the Blazers from Conference USA contender to a middle of the pack contender in that league this season. Furman was able to end UAB's 26-game homecourt winning streak at Bartow Arena two years ago, so it wouldn't be unheard of for Hoffman's Bears to steal one here, and that might make Ehsan's seat start to get a little warmer in Birmingham.

Nov. 6 The Citadel at Clemson--Embrace the pace.That's the slogan The Citadel basketball has adopted under the direction of Duggar Baucom, who enters his fourth season at the helm, has three returning starters, including two of which that will contend for all-conference honors, in sharp-shooting guard Matt Frierson and forward/center Zane Najdawi, who is one of the most versatile big men in mid-major basketball. Those two alone should give the Bulldogs a chance to finish in the top half of the Southern Conference this season, as the high-octane Bulldogs figure to have their best team under the guidance on Baucom. They'll face a defensive-minded Clemson club to open the season, and the Tigers really started to come on last season under the direction of Brad Brownwell, making their first Sweet Sixteen appearance since 1997 before losing to Kansas. The Tigers, who return two of the most dynamic guards in the Atlantic Coast Conference, in Shelton Mitchell and Marquise Reed, will likely be ranked when the Bulldogs stroll into Littlejohn Coliseum to open the season. It will be an interesting contrast of styles to say the least. One of the matchups to keep an eye on in this one is between Clemson forward Elijah Thomas and The Citadel's Najdawi.

Nov. 9 UNC Greensboro at LSU--UNCG will get its first test to knock off one of the big boys from a power five conference, when the Spartans face an upstart LSU club coached by former Chattanooga coach Will Wade. Wade set successor Matt McCall up for a Southern Conference Tournament title before leaving for VCU after two years in the Scenic City. Wade is now helping recruit his way to SEC success, bringing in a Top 5 recruiting class in the country, according to some services. The Tigers were 18-15 last season and qualified for the National Invitational Tournament (NIT). All-SEC guard Tremont Waters (15.9 PPG, 6.0 APG, 2.0 SPG) and will be surrounded by five-star recruit and 6-4 guard Ja’Vonte Smart, as well as McDonald’s All-American and 6-10 center Naz Reid, who will look to continue in the tradition of great big men to come through the program, such as “Big Baby” Davis, Stanley Roberts, Shaquille O’Neal, and most recently, Ben Simmons. The Spartans return three starters and their defensive prowess should give them a chance to pull the big early-season upset.

Nov. 9 East Tennessee State at Creighton--Remember last season when ETSU held a 22-point second-half lead at Top 10 Xavier? Well, the Bucs will have another opportunity to put a major scare or perhaps hang a major L on a power five conference member when the Bucs travel to Omaha, NE to face the Blue Jays out of the Big East.The Blue Jays are coming off a 21-12 season last year, bowing out of the NCAA Tournament in the second round with a loss to Kansas State. The Bluejays have made 2,142 three-point field goals during the last seven seasons, while the Bucs have a streak of 960-consecutive games with at least one made triple, dating back to 1987. The Bluejays had one of the greatest three-point shooters in the history of college basketball--Kyle Korver--and he wasn't included in that timespan of the past seven seasons. The Bluejays could be ripe for the upset, as many consider this to be a rebuilding season for Greg McDermott, who have seven freshmen or sophomores among their 11 possible scholarship players. This would be a big win for the ETSU and the SoCon and could be a real possibility.

Nov. 9 Furman at Loyola-Chicago--Winners of 46 games over the past two seasons, Furman has to replace four seniors that meant so much to its program a year ago, with the graduation of Daniel Fowler, 2017 SoCon Player of the Year and leading scorer Devin Sibley, sharp-shooter Geoff Beans off the bench, and heady point guard John Davis III. However, a pair of all-conference caliber players are still around, in forward Matt Rafferty and Andrew Brown. Brown might be one of the most underrated players in the SoCon. The Paladins will have much more size and length this season. Watch out for newcomer Noah Gurley, who might be the league's best newcomer, and expect breakout years from the athletic 6-7 Clay Mounce and shooting guard Jordan Lyons. The Ramblers are coached by Porter Moser, who will enter his eighth season in charge of the Ramblers’ basketball program, where he has produced a 121-111 record in his career as the head coach. Loyola returns three starters from that team that finished 32-6 last season and made a Final Four appearance, losing to Michigan, 69-57, in the penultimate game to cap the 2017-18 season for the Ramblers. Returning from that Final Four team for the Ramblers from a year ago will be guards Clayton Custer (13.2 PPG, 4.1 APG, 2.2 RPG) and Marques Towns (11.1 PPG, 2.4 APG, 4.0 RPG), while 6-9 center Cameron Krutwig (10.5 PPG, 6.1 RPG). Of course, the Ramblers made that Cinderella run to the Final Four last season, and who will soon forget the images that Sister Jean gave from that tournament. This will be a tough game for the Paladins to come away with a win, however, they have the talent still around to potentially pull it off.

Western Carolina will face former SoCon member and reigning CAA champion College of Charleston

Nov. 10 College of Charleston at Western Carolina--New Western Carolina head coach Mark Prosser will have a chance to test out his young Catamounts early on in the season, as the Catamounts will welcome former SoCon member College of Charleston to the Ramsey Center on Nov. 10. The Cougars, who under the direction of Anthony Grant, claimed their first CAA title and subsequent NCAA Tournament in two decades last season, which was when CofC was in the SoCon, and the Cougars should once again be the favorites in their conference. The Cougars last visited the NCAA Tournament after defeating Appalachian State in the SoCon title game in Greensboro, N.C. in the 1999 SoCon title game until this past season. Grant returns All-CAA guard Grant Riller, who averaged 18.6 PPG and Jarrell Brantley, who averaged 17.3 PPG last season, both return, however, the up-and-coming coach must find a way to replace the third significant piece of that backcourt, in Joe Chealey, who has graduated. The Catamounts won't have big man and leading scorer Mike Amius from a year ago, who decided to turn pro a year early, but will have highly touted big man Carlos Dotson transferring in from junior college on the front line. He'll be joined down low by Marc Paulus-Gosselin, and sharp-shooter Matt Halvorsen returns in the backcourt for his sophomore season. As tough as the Ramsey Center has been for opponents to win in over the past decade or so, it seems like a tall task for Prosser's young Catamounts. Still, if the Catamounts could pull it off, it would be a big non-conference win for Western and the SoCon.

UNC Greensboro defeated UNC Wilmington, 71-58, last season at the Greensboro Coliseum

Nov. 13 UNC Greensboro at UNC Wilmington--The Spartans and Seahawks will battle each other for a second-straight season in another key SoCon vs. CAA clash, as the Seahawks have traditionally been one of the top teams in the CAA, but finished with an uncharacteristic 11 wins. Both Furman and UNCG made relatively easy work of the Seahawks last season, with a 71-58 win at Trask Coliseum last season. The Seahawks should be much improved this season and they still have one of the top players in mid-major hoops, in Devontae Cacok. Cacok set the NCAA record for field goal percentage record two years ago, hitting over 80%, with over half his makes being dunks. That percentage dipped to 58.5% last season, however, his matchup with 2018 SoCon Defensive Player of the Year James Dickey alone makes this an intriguing matchup and a key early season opportunity for another solid SoCon mid-major win.

Nov. 16 Wofford at Stanford--The Terriers and Cardinal have faced each other once before, and just 10 days removed from a game at home vs. North Carolina, the Terriers will be on the road to face the PAC 12 member, and yet this might offer a better chance at an upset than the home game to open the season against North Carolina. The Terriers dropped a 74-59 decision at Maples Pavilion to open the 2014-15 season. The Cardinal are picked towards the middle-bottom of the PAC 12 entering the 2018-19 season. Head coach Jerod Haase, who used to be a player under the former legendary coach Mike Montgomery, is hoping the Cardinal can improve on last season's 19-win campaign and NIT appearance, and make it back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in five years. Hopes for that will start with sophomore guard Daejon Davis, who averaged 10.7 PPG, returns to lead a young roster that features just one senior. This game offers Wofford a prime opportunity and maybe the SoCon's best opportunity to garner a win over a power five program. The Terriers' experience could prove pivotal in a game like this.

Nov. 17 Furman at Villanova (Advocare Preliminary Game)--For the first time since 1987, Furman will face off against Villanova on the college basketball hardwood. On that occasion, Furman was able to down the Wildcats, 77-73, at Memorial Auditorium in Greenville much to the chagrin of former Wildcats coach Roly Massamino, who had led the Wildcats to a national title just two years earlier. When Jay Wright puts his team on the floor against Furman on Nov. 17 at the Wells Fargo Center, he'll be putting the reigning national champs on the floor. Villanova returns two starters off last year’s national champioship team, which won the national championship last season and completed the campaign with an outstanding record of 36-4 following a 79-62 win in the national championship over Michigan. The lone two returning starters from that national championship club of a year ago are 6-8 senior forward Eric Paschall (10.6 PPG, 5.6 RPG) and redshirt senior shooting guard Phil Booth (10.0, 3.2 RPG). Jay Wright will be entering his 18th season as the head coach of the Wildcats as the head coach of the Wildcats. The Paladins nearly pulled off a big upset just before Christmas last season at Thomspon Boling Arena against No. 24 Tennessee, losing 66-61, but this is a different animal. However, nothing is impossible in college hoops. The Wildcats, despite returning just two starters from last season, will once again be favorites to take the Big East and make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

Nov. 20 Samford at Ohio State--Samford has seen more turnover than just about any college basketball programs than any other in the past four seasons. Two years ago, Samford won 20 games. It seemed that the ball was rolling in the right direction for head coach Scott Padgett, who took over in 2014-15. He even earned himself a contract extension last July, which will take him through 2022. Padgett did not exactly inherit an easy situation after prior coach Bennie Seltzer was fired. He had to figure out a way to pick up the pieces after 14 players transferred out of the program during Seltzer’s two seasons at the helm. Now fast-forward to the 2017-18 season, where Samford was seen by some as a preseason favorite. Padgett and the Bulldogs returned all the significant pieces to live up to such lofty preseason accolades, and even made key additions, such as Alabama transfer point guard Justin Coleman. But things didn’t work out, and now Padgett is dealing with another mass exodus.Wyatt Walker (First-Team All-SoCon in 2016-17), Christen Cunningham (the school’s all-time assist leader), Justin Coleman (Second-Team All-SoCon in 2017-18) and Triston Chambers (SoCon All-Freshman Team in 2016-17) have all decided to transfer out of the program. After injuries decimated the Bulldogs in 2017-18, Samford was not the same as it was a year earlier by any stretch. Walker and Cunningham — two all-conference players — suffered early season injuries and did not return the remainder of the season. Add to that a season-ending injury later in the season to post Alex Peters, and the depth only got thinner underneath the basket.The Bulldogs struggled to win as half as many games as 2016-17, and finished the season with just a 10-22 overall record and a 6-12 mark in the league. Adding to the frustration for Padgett and the Bulldogs was an 89-79 opening-round loss to 10th-seeded Chattanooga in the conference tournament. The Bulldogs will rely on some young faces like one of top incoming recruits in the SoCon, in Stephen Bradley, who is rated as a four-star recruit by some organizations. Brandon Allen--a transfer from Alabama--will likely team with rising junior Josh Sharkey in the backcourt. Ohio State is a perennial Big Ten power and will be a tough test in the early going for the Bulldogs. Ohio State is rebuilding a bit, but then again, that's what we all thought last year. This one should be a pretty big win for the Buckeyes, however.

Stay tuned for parts two and three of this series, as we finish out some intriguing games to close out November, and then part three will take a look at the entire month of December. College hoops season is almost here.