College basketball in North Carolina goes far beyond the ACC. Here’s a look at the top mid-major teams in the state this season.
ECU
The ECU Pirates are hoping to have a better showing this year as compared to last season where they finished eighth in the American Athletic Conference with a 7-11 record, 15-18 overall.
It’s been tough sledding for the Pirates, who haven’t gone positive in conference play since the 2013 season, but they’re hoping coach Michael Schwartz can get them there in his third season.
Things were actually going fairly well for ECU last year right up until the end where the team proceeded to lose five straight heading into the AAC Tournament, so a big focus this year should be on finishing strong.
The Pirates lost two key players to the portal with Brandon Johnson transferring to Miami and Ezra Ausar transferring to Utah.
The Pirates did however manage to retain their leading scorer from last season, senior guard RJ Felton.
The South Carolina native is off to a strong start, averaging 23.5 points and 7.5 rebounds on the year so far and he looks ready to once again be a big part of the offense.
ECU has surrounded Felton with a few key transfers too, namely senior forward C.J. Walker from UCF and senior guard Jordan Riley from Temple.
Charlotte
Last year was a big one for the Charlotte 49ers who finished third in the AAC with a 13-5 record, 25-9 overall, but an early exit to No. 11 Temple in the AAC Tournament put a bit of a damper on what was a pretty good season.
Not only was it Charlotte’s first year as a member of the AAC, but it was also the first year under coach Aaron Fearne who got a lot out of the 49ers last season.
However, the portal hit Charlotte hard this offseason with four members of their starting lineup transferring out: Lu’Cye Patterson to Minnesota, Igor Milicic, Jr. to Tennessee, Dishon Jackson to Iowa State and Jackson Threadgill to App State.
But this era of college basketball is all about finding ways to make the portal work for you and Fearne was busy himself, adding several players from the portal including senior forward Giancarlo Rosado from FAU, Kylan Blackman from Coastal Carolina and junior guard Jaehshon Thomas a JUCO transfer.
Charlotte is returning one starter though in junior guard Nik Graves who will more than likely run the offense and they still have a few key returners beyond him like sophomore forward Rich Rolf and senior forward Robert Braswell IV.
Davidson
Davidson Wildcats coach Matt McKillop – who is heading into his third season – hasn’t yet been able to fill the shoes left by his father, legendary coach Bob McKillop, following his retirement in 2022, and has seen the team take steps back every year since.
Since finishing first in the Atlantic 10 regular season and qualifying for the NCAA Tournament in 2022, the Wildcats have subsequently finished 8-10 and 5-13 in conference play.
However, Davidson was close in a lot of those losses last season (four of their conference losses came in overtime) and there’s a lot of hope that they can have a better showing this season.
The Wildcats are a rare anomaly in this day and age and have a lot of continuity, returning four of five starters, most notably their leading scorer, senior guard Connor Kochera, who averaged 13.2 points per game.
Despite losing guard Grant Huffman to Vanderbilt, Davidson held onto junior forwards Reed Bailey and Sean Logan and sophomore forward Bobby Durkin while adding freshman guard Robert Blums to the starting rotation.
And perhaps this unusual familiarity is just what the Wildcats need to get back up to the top.
Appalachian State
The Appalachian State Mountaineers look to have turned a corner with coach Dustin Kerns, now entering his sixth season with the program.
After a few good seasons, the Mountaineers really broke through in a big way last year, finishing first in the Sun Belt with a 16-2 conference record, before a shocking loss to Arkansas State in the Sun Belt Tournament semifinals ultimately cost them a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
While App State has relied on its depth more than a lot of other teams, it still had its fair share of tough losses including four of its top minute players.
Forward Donovan Gregory graduated and then forwards Tre’von Spillers transferred to Wake Forest, Justin Abson transferred to Georgia and guard Terence Harcum transferred to Murray State.
The Mountaineers will more than likely be led at the point by senior guard Myles Tate, who averaged 9.4 points and 3.5 assists off the bench for App State last year.
Other key pieces for App State include fifth-year senior forward CJ Huntley and senior guard transfer Jackson Threadgill from Charlotte.
The Mountaineers haven’t been able to land a big win yet this season, but it might take time for this new group to properly gel.
Queens
The Queens University of Charlotte will be competing in their third season of Division I +-basketball this season.
In each of his previous two seasons, coach Grant Leonard has gotten the Royals to identical years with seven conference wins and a ASUN Tournament quarterfinals appearance.
Last year, Queens went 7-9 in conference play and 14-19 overall. It was a slow start for the Royals, but they found some momentum toward the end of the season, winning three of their last four heading into the conference tournament.
Coming into this season, the Queens look to try and replace the production of three starters from last season’s squad including leading scorer AJ McKee who transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Deyton Albury who transferred to Utah State and BJ McLaurin who graduated.
Starting guards sophomore Bryce Cash and senior Chris Ashby return for another season and the Royals also added Fresno State senior forward transfer Leo Colimerio and freshman forward Yoav Berman from Israel to the starting rotation.
