SMU Mustangs
2021-2022 Overall Rank: #61
Conference Rank: #4 American
The 11-6 record does not look like much, but SMU had a very good season. Their only losses before the NIT came against Houston, Cincinnati and Memphis. On February 8th the Mustangs were sitting at 11-4. They did not play again for over a month, but nearly knocked off Cincinnati in their AAC Tournament opener. They went on the road in the NIT and nearly upset Boise State. Those were a couple tough losses to end the year, but after a month off nearly beating Cincinnati and Boise State is not a terrible way to head into the 2021-2022 campaign.
2020-21 Record: 11-6, 7-4
2020-21 Postseason: NIT
Coach: Tim Jankovich
Coach Record: 105-55 at SMU, 258-176 overall
Key Departed Players:
Feron Hunt, Forward, 11.1 ppg
Tyson Jolly, Guard, 9.3 ppg
Ethan Chargois, Forward, 8.8 ppg
Darius McNeill, Guard, 7.3 ppg
Yor Anel, Forward, 6.6 ppg
Charles Smith IV, Guard, 5.2 ppg
William Douglas, Guard, 3.5 ppg
Key Returning Players:
Kendric Davis, Senior, Guard, 19.0 ppg
Emmanuel Bandoumel, Senior, Guard, 10.2 ppg
Isiah Jasey, Senior, Forward, 3.6 ppg
Jahmar Young Jr, Junior, Forward, 1.4 ppg
Key New Players:
Franklin Agunanne, Junior Forward, Transfer from Loyola Chicago
Tristan Clark, Senior, Forward, Transfer from Baylor
Tyler Lundblade, Freshman, Guard
Darius McBride, Sophomore, Guard
Zach Nutall, Senior, Guard, Transfer from Sam Houston
Zhuric Phelps, Freshman, Guard
Jalen Smith, Freshman, Guard
Stefan Todorovic, Freshman, Forward
Marcus Weathers, Senior, Forward, Transfer from Duquesne
Michael Weathers, Senior, Guard, Transfer from Texas Southern
Projection:
Three starters are back and they will form the heart of this team. Kendric Davis was the team’s top scorer last year, averaging 19.0 points, 7.6 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 1.6 steals. The point guard is a consistent outside shooter and can obviously attack the basket and finish or find one of his teammates. Emmanuel Bandoumel led the team with 28 made three-pointers and tallied 10-.2 points per game. Isiah Jasey started 15 games in 2020-2021. The 6-10 forward is not a major scoring threat in the paint, but he is a tough rebounder and a solid shot blocker. Three of the five Division I transfers will join Jasey in the frontcourt. Tristian Clark was a major force at Baylor until a knee injury ended his 2018-2019 season after just 14 games. He has never really gained his pre-injury form, but will get one more chance at SMU. Marcus Weathers spent the last three seasons starting at Duquesne. Last season he averaged 15.3 points and 7.5 rebounds. Franklin Agunanne will add more depth after seeing limited playing with Loyola Chicago. The newcomers in the backcourt have less minutes to go around, but both Zach Nutall and Michael Weathers will still make a big impact. Nutall is a prolific scorer and averaged 19.3 points per game with Sam Houston last season. Michael Weathers will again rejoin his brother Marcus. They began their collegiate careers together at Miami (OH). Michael has since gone to Oklahoma State and Texas Southern before landing at SMU. At Texas Southern last season he averaged 16.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.0 blocks. Coach Jankovich has done a good job of filling the holes on his team and this group should have plenty of depth. But with so many new pieces, another trip to the NIT would be a good season for SMU.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NIT
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 74.6 (88th in nation, 2nd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 68.1 (107, 7)
Field-Goal Percentage: 45.6 (81, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 40.5 (32, 4)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.6 (130, 5)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.0 (112, 4)
Free-Throw Percentage: 72.8 (98, 4)
Rebound Margin: 1.8 (129, 4)
Assists Per Game: 15.3 (48, 3)
Turnovers Per Game: 14.0 (222, 7)
Madness 2021 Men’s Basketball Recruit Rankings:
#117 Stefan Todorovic
#128 Zhuric Phelps
