Richmond Spiders
2015-2016 Overall Rank: #43
Conference Rank: #3 Atlantic 10
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Richmond finished last season with a 12-6 record in Atlantic 10 play. That was good enough to be tied for fourth and just two games behind conference champs Davidson. They earned a #1 seed in the NIT and made a nice little run before collapsing against Miami in the quarterfinals. Coach Chris Mooney needs to find a new top scorer, but four starters are back for a team that was on the cusp of the NCAA Tournament.
2014-15 Record: 21-14, 12-6
2014-15 Postseason: NIT
Coach: Chris Mooney
Coach Record: 187-146 at Richmond, 229-185 overall
Who’s Out:
Anthony Kendall was the heart and soul of the Spiders. The point guard averaged 16.4 points and 2.5 assists per game and connected on 39.2 percent of his shots from beyond the arc. It was tough to find a more efficient guard in the A-10, whether it be as a shooter or a ball handler. That and his leadership will certainly be missed and it could take a little time for Richmond to get used to life without Anthony. Alonzo Nelson-Ododa and Kadeem Smithen have both transferred. Nelson-Ododa, who is headed to Pitt, is the bigger loss. The 6-9 forward did the dirty work in the paint off of the bench. His toughness will be appreciated with the Panthers.
Who’s In:
This group does not have everybody Richmond hoped for, most notably Chandler Diekvoss who redshirted then transferred, but there are players who can play a big role this season. Marshall Wood is the most experienced option. The 6-8 junior spent two seasons at Virginia Tech. As a sophomore back in 2013-2014, he averaged 4.0 points and 3.5 rebounds and made 11 starts. On a team that needs a lot of help on the glass, Wood is a great addition. Paul Friendshuh is another big body. He redshirted last season and then tore his ACL. With so much frontcourt talent in front of him, Friendshuh will have time to develop, as will incoming freshman forward KoVien Dominaus. The backcourt adds incoming freshmen Julius Johnson, Keith Oddo and Jesse Pistokache and redshirt freshman Khwan Fore. Johnson and Pistokache in particular could emerge as solid shooters off of the bench right away.
Who to Watch:
It is easy to look at Richmond without Anthony and say this team will be worse than they were last year. However, there was a lot of talent that Anthony overshadowed in 2014-2015. The frontcourt, despite their ineffectiveness on the glass, is absolutely loaded. Terry Allen averaged 13.0 points per game last season and is ready to emerge as the senior leader on this team. He will get plenty of help from fellow forward T.J. Cline, who added 11.8 points and 3.7 rebounds. Deion Taylor, a 6-7 senior, will play about 20 to 25 minutes per game again this year too. He could even play more with Nelson-Ododa gone and Taylor is the guy who will do the dirty work in the paint. Coach Mooney actually started Taylor much of the year beside Allen and Cline, leaving Trey Davis, a 6-5 small forward, to spend much of his time at shooting guard. However, Davis’ was quite ineffective shooting the ball. He is a solid all-around player though. But no matter who starts, this is a Richmond team that can play extremely big.
Final Projection:
Much of the production lost with Anthony will fall on the shoulders of ShawnDre’ Jones. The 5-11 junior is a proven scorer, but now he needs to run the show. Jones averaged 10.3 points per game last season and knocked down a team high 64 three-pointers, so scoring points is not going to be an issue. He also dished out more assists per game than Anthony and committed fewer turnovers, so there is plenty of reason to believe that he is ready to take over the team. Look for combo guard Josh Jones to step into ShawnDre’ Jones’ old role as a secondary ball handler and backup point guard. Once the Spiders get used to playing without Anthony, which shouldn’t take all that long, this will be one of the best teams in the A-10. The A-10 seems like it will be very tight at the top with a five or six teams fighting for two or maybe three NCAA Tournament spots and Richmond will be right in that mix.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
Projected Starting Five:
ShawnDre’ Jones, Junior, Guard, 10.3 points per game
Trey Davis, Senior, Forward, 4.2 points per game
Deion Taylor, Senior, Forward, 2.5 points per game
Terry Allen, Senior, Forward, 13.0 points per game
T.J. Cline, Junior, Forward, 11.8 points per game
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 66.1 (204th in nation, 9th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 61.2 (46, 3)
Field-Goal Percentage: 45.8 (65, 3)
Field-Goal Defense: 41.6 (103, 4)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.6 (143, 5)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 34.0 (188, 6)
Free-Throw Percentage: 69.0 (180, 6)
Rebound Margin: -5.9 (335, 14)
Assists Per Game: 13.4 (106, 5)
Turnovers Per Game: 9.9 (11, 2)
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