Mike Schrage left Elon for a position at Duke after posting a 33-52 record in three seasons with the Phoenix, and the school hired Billy Taylor as his replacement. Taylor, who was most recently an assistant at Iowa but has 14 years as a DI head coach, has to rebuild the Phoenix after their top three scorers transferred following last season.
2021-22 record: 10-22 (7-11 Colonial)
Top players: Senior swingman Zac Ervin is the top returning player after averaging 7.1 points for the Phoenix last season. Grad senior Torrence Watson missed some time with an injury last season but averaged 9.2 points in 20 games.
Key additions: Sean Halloran reunites with Taylor, who had him on his team at Belmont Abbey. It will be a step up in competition for the grad senior, but he made a stunning 52.7% of his 3-pointers last year while averaging 14.4 points. Taylor also added John Bowen III from UNC Wilmington.
Departed players: Darius Burford transferred to Illinois State, Hunter McIntosh departed for Nevada and Michael Graham left for Loyola Marymount, meaning all three of Elon’s top scorers — and the only players to start more than 17 games a year ago — are gone.
Expectations: The Phoenix will look completely different this season, from both who’s on the bench and who’s leading it. Elon was picked to finish 12th in the 13-team Colonial Athletic Conference by the league’s coaches.
