Benedict Excited About New Season

COLUMBIA, S.C. (BC SID) — After losing five seniors from last season’s SIAC championship team, the 2015-16 season might be considered a rebuilding year for the Benedict College men’s basketball team. But head coach Fred Watson said this year’s Tiger squad is hungry for a repeat performance. “It’s not easy to replace that much talent in one year, but I think we did a good job with our recruiting class. We did a real good job of recruiting some high caliber kids to kind of replace those guys,” Watson said. The Tigers were picked by the SIAC men’s basketball coaches and sports information directors to win the SIAC East Division, and were ranked 10th in the South Region in the preseason Division II Sports Information Directors poll. “It’s going to be a challenge. All the teams in the league have gotten better. We thought we improved our team as well. We’ve got the proverbial target on our backs and we’re going to get everybody’s ‘A’ game, so we know it’s going to be a challenge night in and night out. I think the guys are prepared and they know what to expect. Being on the top and the top definitely feels much better than the bottom.” Although the Tigers will open the season with seven new faces on the roster, a couple of familiar names return, led by senior point guard Brennan Reynard, the Most Valuable Performer from last year’s conference tournament. “I think he’s going to take his game to the next level. He knows this is his team, no question about it,” Watson said. In his three years on the court, Reynard has helped the Tigers win two SIAC tournament championships and one regular-season title. He was also named the national Player of the Week after last year’s tournament run. “We expect him to do a lot, but we don’t want to put too much pressure on him, he’s been putting that pressure on himself and carrying the torch. He’s looking for a breakout season this year. He’s a senior and he wants to go out with a bang and hopefully he can be the most decorated player leaving here.” The Tigers return two other key contributors from last year in guard Jordan Smith and forward Lafonzo Smith. Jordan Smith, a transfer from South Carolina State, joined the team after the first semester last season and averaged 10.4 points and shot 38 percent on 3-pointers. Lafonzo Smith averaged 4.3 points and was fourth on the team in rebounds. “Jordan’s going to have a huge year,” Watson said. We threw Jordan in the fire, he came in at the break not knowing much of our offense or our defense sets, so we kind of dummied things down for him. But this year, he’s playing at a high level right now. He’s a big-time player. He’s a D1 transfer and we’re happy to have him on campus and he’s ready to go. I think he has a chance to play beyond Benedict. We look for him to carry the scoring load. I know he can do it. He wants to do it. He’s a very confident player.” Watson also expects a breakout season from Lafonzo Smith. “He’s talented. He’s long, he’s talented and he’s athletic. He’s got all the tools. Once he has the mentality to dominate every play – and I see it coming – then he’s going to be a force to be reckoned with,” Watson said. “He’s put on some muscle in the summer, he’s become more physical, he came back in tip-top shape, he understands now what I expect with a year under his belt with me, and I think he’s going to blossom in this offense. He’s a 6-9 guy with perimeter skills. He’s a hard guy to cover. I think he’s a guy that’s going to fill the stat sheet up with points, rebounds, blocked shots and assists. He’s a do-it-all guy and I think he’s going to have a big year.” Some of the new names expected to make immediate contributions are guard Quayshun Hawkins, as well as junior college transfers Rydealous Taylor and Christopher Spencer. Hawkins, a transfer from Newberry College two years ago, suffered a season-ending injury in the preseason last year, but is now ready to hit the court. “We thought he was going to come in two years ago and change the league,” Watson said. “I think he’s got that opportunity now. He’s playing with a lot of talented and veteran guys. Sitting and watching for two years, he knows exactly what I want and expect. I’m really excited to see him play. He really can play. He can get the job done on both ends. And he’s a vocal leader. He can score and can defend. He’s going to be a joy to watch play.” Spencer, a 6-foot-5 forward, averaged 15.4 points and 7.9 rebounds last season at Long Beach City College in California. Taylor, a 6-foot-3 guard, averaged 11.5 points and shot 43.5 percent on 3-pointers at Coastal Bend College. “They’re both perimeter guys who can play multiple positions. I mean really talented, really hard-working guys with size,” Watson said. “That gives us a little more length that we haven’t had since the Marcus Goode days. I’m excited about those two guys.” The Tigers also return forward Jose Roman-Angueira, who started two years ago as a freshman, but missed last season with health issues. “Jose started for us as a freshman, so it goes without saying the kid can play. He’s very versatile. He’s got a high basketball IQ,” Watson said. “He’s dealt with some injuries, some severe health issues that he had to take some time away and get that stuff situated. I’m glad he’s back. He’s going to add depth for us, add more talent, and add more length and athleticism. We’re as deep as we’ve been in quite some time.” Watson has three freshmen on the roster, including 6-3 shooting guard Robert Hobson, who should see meaningful minutes this season. “Robert Hobson is the best shooter on the team. He’s probably going to be one of the best in the conference,” Watson said. “He’s just young. He’s got to learn how to play and bring energy and keep his body language right. If he gets going, he can flat out stroke it.” With all the offensive firepower on this year’s squad, Watson is more concerned trying to make sure they can live up to his expectations on the defensive end of the court. “We’re not there yet. Normally when you have talented teams, your offense is always ahead of your defense, and that’s the case with us. Our offense is ahead of our defense. We do have some talent, more talent that we’ve had in a couple of years, but we won’t change our identity. Our bread is still buttered on the defensive side,” Watson said. “That’s the hard part when you’ve got a lot of new guys, teaching them the rotation and where to be at. We’re working at it. That’s going to be there. That’s the staple of my whole career, even when we have trouble scoring we’re going to be in games because we’re going to defend. That kept us through the season last year. We were a solid defensive team, then our offense caught up. But our offense is a little ahead of our defense, so when our defense catches up, we’re going to be pretty good.” Watson is excited about what he has seen in preseason practice from this group. “This team is not as good as the team that finished the season last year, yet. But they are ahead of that team where they were at this point last year. So we’re moving at a faster pace. I’m hopeful we can finish at least where we finished last year. Last year’s team really did a good job of developing and we got the end result. This team came in talented, they came in ready to play. They came in with that hunger. They knew we just came off that championship and they don’t want to be the team that drops the ball. We’re ahead, but we’ve got a long way to go and I hope by tournament time we get there.” The Tigers open the season on Friday night, taking on West Florida on Friday at 1 p.m. in Valdosta, Ga., in the Gulf South vs. SIAC conference challenge tournament. Saturday’s contests will move to Fort Valley State, where Benedict will play Valdosta State at 6 p.m. “West Florida poses a challenge. They’re big and fast and get up and down. Valdosta poses a different challenge. They’re very big, they’re athletic, they’re aggressive and they defend well. So we’ve got our work cut out for us,” Watson said. “Valdosta is good because they return a lot of guys, and West Florida will be good. It’s an early season test. This is all preparation for February and March. We want to get better every day, every game.”