Lidskin Top 100: 100-91

By Jonathan Lidskin

Photo: Alex Carnochan/ISU Athletics

#100 Vermont: 

Vermont not winning the America East regular season title with what they returned last year was a total shocker to me. I think with major changes at Bryant, the Catamounts are due to get back to their dominating ways.

After a dreadful offensive year, I think Vermont takes a huge step up in that category. TJ Long only played 8 games last season because of injury, they had guys playing out of position because they didn’t really have a true point guard and they didn’t have enough perimeter shooting.

International guard Lucas Mari is a name to watch at the point guard spot, and Bellarmine transfer Ben Johnson adds a much needed shooter. We’ll see if the new bigs they added can fix the rim finishing issues, but I fully expect Vermont to be back on top of the America East regardless.

Projected Lineup:

Lucas Mari

TJ Hurley

TJ Long

Ben Michaels

Gus Yalden

#99 Colorado State:

Year 1 of the Ali Farokhmanesh era is just months away, and I am very interested to see this group in his first season. The team lost a ton of players after being on the cusp of a Sweet 16, but there is talent here to be competitive or better.

Carey Booth is the name I am most intrigued by. Booth transferred down a level after a sophomore season at Illinois in which he played sparingly. As a prospect out of HS, Booth was a 4-star who I thought could stretch the floor and had solid athleticism despite being more of a project. Also very interested to see the kid of scorer Josh Pascarelli can be in the Mountain West after an efficient year for a pitiful Marist offense.

A couple of other names to know are Rashaan Mbemba, who was a great offensive rebounder for CSU last year, and Jevin Muniz who is a nice wing connecting piece from FGCU.

Projected Lineup:

Brandon Rechsteiner

Josh Pascarelli

Jevin Muniz

Carey Booth

Rashaan Mbemba

#98 Towson:

Once again, Pat Skerry should have a solid group. The backcourt is one of the most underrated in mid-major basketball, with Dylan Williamson coming back and sharpshooter Tyler Schmidt coming in from Valpo.

Tyler Tejada should be one of the favorites to win CAA Player of the Year. As a high-usage player, Tejada does a lot of his work in the post. Last year, Towson scored 109.6 points per 100 possessions with Tejada on the floor. That led the team. Jack Doumbia from Wright State will also be a valuable defensive piece.

From December 22nd onward last year, Towson went 18-3. They won the CAA outright by multiple games and will have a chance to do that again this season.

Projected Lineup:

Dylan Williamson

Tyler Schmidt

Tyler Tejada

Jack Doumbia

Caleb Embeya

#97 Bradley:

Brian Wardle has built up quite a program in Peoria. In four straight seasons, Bradley has finished inside the top 100 at KenPom despite having to replace key players annually. I think the Valley is going to be deep this season, but Wardle, despite having to replace Duke Deen, Darius Hannah and more, should have another solid group.

Let’s start with this backcourt, which I think has a chance to be the best in the conference. Demarion Burch was solid but didn’t take the leap I expected because freshman JaQuan Johnson was so good. Johnson proved to be a great playmaker and forced a ton of turnovers. He will be the starting point guard this season. The one thing this backcourt was missing was perimeter shooting, and then they brought in Alex Huibregtse, who shot around 37% on 229 attempts last season at Wright State.

This frontcourt is going to be an elite defensive group. Charleston transfer AJ Smith immediately becomes one of the best wing defenders in the conference. Ahmet Jonovic and Corey Thomas both took strides last year and are elite on the boards. In Thomas’ case, the potential to be the best rim protector in the league is there.

Keep an eye on this freshman group, too. Matthew Zobrist is a player I scouted in person, and if this team needs more shooting, he absolutely can contribute.

Projected Lineup:

JaQuan Johnson

Alex Huibregtse

AJ Smith

Timoty van der Knaap

Ahmet Jonovic

#96 Florida Atlantic:

John Jakus has added a lot of talent for his second year in Boca. While they lost a couple of good players, the team was not good defensively last season, and I think they should be much improved in that category.

One of the reasons I think FAU will be much improved defensively is that they added legitimate athleticism and toughness that I don’t think they had last season. Kanaan Carlyle, Isaiah Elohim and Devin Williams all project as guys that could switch and guard multiple positions, with Carlyle being an excellent point of attack defender.

Carlyle and Elohim coming down a level could be great slashing wings, but Maxim Logue is the guy on this roster that I am super excited for. Logue is a project, but he has some of the best athleticism in the country. I expect to see him catching some lobs from Niccolo Moretti, who had an assist rate of 25 last season.

The major question mark I have with this group is the bench, but they do have some intriguing freshmen. Max Lagenfeld is a guy I have my eyes on as a floor spacer for these wings. FAU has an argument for the best starting five in the American. If they can find a couple of solid pieces to come off the bench, you have a team that can win the conference.

Projected Lineup:

Niccolo Moretti

Kanaan Carlyle

Isaiah Elohim

Devin Williams

Maxim Logue

#95 DePaul:

One of the least talked about things in the portal cycle is coaches having to turn the roster over after a first year. Chris Holtmann did have to do that after a successful first year in Chicago. I still like the roster as much as last year though.

Layden Blocker has all-Big East potential. He’s an elite passer, good perimeter defender and I thought he started to live up to his recruiting pedigree in the second half of last year. Freshman Kruz McClure has also been getting some buzz this off-season, so the backcourt could be underrated.

The Demons also have some nice role players around Blocker, CJ Gunn and Kaleb Banks who was awesome for Tulane last year. RJ Smith from Colorado can shoot it, NJ Benson is a veteran who is great on the boards and Jeremy Lorenz was great around the rim at both ends for Wofford last season.

Projected Starters:

Layden Blocker

RJ Smith

CJ Gunn

Kaleb Banks

NJ Benson

#94 Illinois State:

Ryan Pedon’s team has progressed in every season so far in his tenure. Now entering year 4, he’s brought back the core of a group that finished 5th in the MVC last year and has one of the favorites in the league.

Chase Walker will almost certainly be the preseason POTY in the Valley. As a mid-major big man, you’re not finding many better offensive players. Walker is a high usage player in the low post who can pass and also draws a ton of fouls. He was also a huge reason that the Redbirds had a top 15 defensive rebounding team last season.

Outside of Walker, this team has a lot of key veterans and players I expect to grow. Boden Skunberg is back, and they added Landon Moore. Johnny Kinzger took a step forward last season as a sophomore and is another legitimate Valley POTY contender. I’m excited about Ty Pence, too. He showed flashes last season and is one of the most athletic players in the league. Finally, Jack Daugherty had an awesome freshman season, shooting 39% from 3.

If Kinziger can handle more responsibility playing point guard, this is a team that won’t play until Friday in St. Louis.

Projected Lineup:

Johnny Kinziger

Ty Pence

Boden Skunberg

Jack Daugherty

Chase Walker

#93 Charleston:

I think this Charleston team has tremendous upside. The CAA has some good teams (see #98), but I think we could pick out 3-4 players on Charleston’s roster that might end up being too good for the CAA.

Let’s start with the backcourt. They’re going through some injury problems, but Jlynn Counter and Connor Hickman are a more than formidable tandem. Counter had a productive year at MTSU and is great as a table setter. Hickman, while more of a combo guard, has experience playing point from his days at Bradley and is a proven two-way player at this level.

Mister Dean is one of the more exciting players in college basketball with his high-flying ability, and also graded out well analytically for a USC Upstate team that was not good. Colby Duggan had a breakout year at Campbell and should help this team by getting to the line and being able to stretch the floor. Christian Reeves is the biggest question mark here at the center spot, but he is 7’2 and has 3 seasons of high major experience.

Projected Lineup:

Jlynn Counter

Connor Hickman

Mister Dean

Colby Duggan

Christian Reeves

#92 George Mason

It wouldn’t surprise me at all if George Mason was much higher than this. Tony Skinn has done a terrific job and appears to have another great roster in year 3 despite losing a handful of players.

Even with a lot of new faces, this roster has talent. The 2 ball handler lineups with Kory Mincy and Brayden O’Connor could lead to some good offense from a program that has been built on defense so far in the Tony Skinn era. Masai Troutman should benefit from playing with both Mincy and O’Connor.

Dola Adebayo will likely be the best rim defender on this team. I’m not a huge Riley Allenspach fan, but they added Nick Ellington to back him up. I think overall this team won’t force as many turnovers as last year, but they also should be a better offensive team.

Projected Lineup:

Korcy Mincy

Brayden O’Connor

Masai Troutman

Dola Adebayo

Riley Allenspach

#91 Murray State

The most fascinating team in the Missouri Valley to me. Still flirting with how I will rank the top 4 in the conference, but Murray State has absolutely gotten consideration for #1.

Ryan Miller had to build this team from the ground up, but they have a very good argument for the most talented team in the conference. Roman Domon is my sleeper for MVC POTY. Layne Taylor had an awesome freshman season at Central Arkansas and Javon Jackson had a great season at UIC.

Mason Miller hopefully returns to form at a lower level. I’m not as high on Fred King, but obviously you don’t get a guy in the MVC with a frame like that very often. JJ Traynor and KJ Tenner are other names to know. Could see this team struggling to start the season, but improving dramatically as the season goes on.

Projected Lineup:

Layne Taylor

Javon Jackson

Roman Domon

Mason Miller

Fred King