Wright State Raiders
Horizon (25-9, 14-4)
Wright State is back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2007. After a decent debut season in 2016-2017, Coach Scott Nagy has quickly put his stamp on the program. The Raiders finished second in the Horizon League with a 14-4 record, but have an uphill climb to pull off an upset in the NCAA Tournament.
Big Wins: 12/16 at Toledo (77-69), 12/22 at Georgia Tech (85-81), 1/11 at Northern Kentucky (84-81)
Bad Losses: 2/1 at Cleveland State (74-77), 2/10 Milwaukee (73-74), 2/23 at IUPUI (56-66)
Coach: Scott Nagy
Why They Can Surprise:
The Raiders do have the ingredients to pull off an upset though. They play solid defense, rarely turn the ball over and can hold their own on the glass. Loudon Love is by far the best rebounder on the team. The 6-9 center is just a redshirt freshman, but he is having a huge year, averaging 12.9 points and 9.8 rebounds. Parker Ernsthausen is not nearly as productive on the glass, but at 6-11 and 235 pounds, he is another big body in the paint. Cole Gentry and Mark Hughes deserve much of the credit for the best turnover margin in the Horizon League. Even with the loss of former starting point guard Justin Mitchell 16 games into the season, Gentry and Hughes have managed to create turnovers of their own and take care of the basketball.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The problem Wright State often has is scoring. Grant Benzinger is a very dangerous shooter and Love is very tough in the paint, but this team scores just 72.1 points per game and shoots 43.6 percent from the floor. The Raiders are going to have to shoot better than that if they hope to stay close in a tournament game. Gentry, Hughes and Jaylon Hall are all capable of having good scoring outputs. Those three are also capable outside shooters, although none have been particularly consistent. If one or two of them can get hot at the right time, Wright State could make things interesting.
Probable Starters:
Grant Benzinger, Senior, Guard, 14.5 ppg, 1.2 apg, 5.4 rpg
Cole Gentry, Sophomore, Guard, 9.2 ppg, 2.7 apg
Mark Hughes, Junior, Guard, 9.9 ppg, 3.0 apg
Loudon Love, Freshman, Center, 12.9 ppg, 9.8 rpg, 1.0 bpg
Parker Ernsthausen, Junior, Center, 5.3 ppg, 2.6 rpg
Key Role Players:
Jaylon Hall, Freshman, Guard, 9.3 ppg, 1.4 apg
Everett Winchester, Freshman, Forward, 7.9 ppg, 3.8 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 72.5 (220th in nation, 7th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 66.4 (36, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 43.9 (219, 5)
Field-Goal Defense: 41.8 (56, 3)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.8 (254, 9)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 34.4 (215, 7)
Free-Throw Percentage: 71.2 (181, 6)
Rebound Margin: 2.6 (88, 2)
Assists Per Game: 13.4 (194, 6)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.4 (221, 5)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2014 CIT First Round win over East Carolina
2014 CIT Second Round loss to Ohio
2013 CBI First Round win over Tulsa
2013 CBI Quarterfinal win over Richmond
2013 CBI Semifinal loss to Santa Clara
2007 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Pittsburgh
1993 NCAA Round of 64 loss Indiana
*all team stats through 3/4
