WEST CHESTER, Pa.-618 days. When the West Chester men's basketball team opens its season on Friday afternoon vs. Elizabeth City State at the PSAC/CIAA Challenge hosted by Kutztown University, it will have been 618 days since the Golden Rams last played against an opposing school in a game that counted. Since March 4th, 2020, when the Golden Rams historic 2019-20 season drew to a close, there have certainly been intrasquad's and exhibitions, but on Friday, November 12
th vs. ECSU, it will be real and will most certainly count; basketball will be back for the Golden Rams.
When asked about the lengthy layoff, head coach
Damien Blair said, "I haven't really given it that much thought as we have been more concerned with what we need to do to beat Elizabeth City State on Friday. With that said, we are very excited to play our first official game in so long, and we have a lot of young guys who will be playing in their first collegiate game. This will create a certain level of anxiety and nervousness for them, so it will be our job as coaches to make sure they feel comfortable and can perform at a high level. Getting ready for this season, we have had three good scrimmages against a pair of talented Division I teams and a good Jefferson team led by Hall of Famer Herb Magee, and we have played well in all of those. The scrimmages have been big for our development, but we definitely have a long way to go," continued Blair.
The last time the world saw West Chester men's basketball was in the 2020 PSAC Tournament Quarterfinals at East Stroudsburg; this contest ended in a loss for the Purple and Gold, falling by a final of 86-74. The 2019-20 season was historic, to say the least for West Chester as the Golden Rams rose to heights, which had not been seen for decades as Head Coach
Damien Blair's charges opened the season a perfect 13-0, which was the best start in team history, before rising to Eighth in the DII Basketball polls, which was the highest the team had been ranked since the 1982-83 season. The Golden Rams perfect 13-0 beginning also saw the team jump out to a perfect 7-0 record in PSAC action before hitting tough times, including a season-worst five-game losing streak midway through January. West Chester ended its season with an overall record of 20-10 and a mark of 13-9 in league play with its eighth consecutive PSAC Tournament appearance.
As a team, West Chester ended the season leading the league in points per game, averaging 84.8 points per contest, which also ranked them in a tie for 26
th in all of Division II men's basketball. A team field goal percentage of 42.8 % (845-of-1974) and a three-point percentage of 37.3 % (279-of-948) played a significant role in this, as did their 74.0 % (574-of-776) free-throw shooting percentage. The Golden Rams also ended the year ranked among the top teams in the league in rebounding, averaging 42.1 rebounds per contest, which was second in the conference at the end of the season.
Robbie Heath and Malik Jackson led the team in scoring during the 2019-20 season, averaging 24.6 and 17.8 points per game, respectively. Despite their departures, West Chester remains a dangerous team entering the 2021-22 campaign. Junior forward
Josh Samec (Tresckow, Pa./Hazleton Area) enters the season as the team's leading returning scorer and rebounder, averaging 9.4 points per game and 6.0 rebounds per contest in 2019-20.
Matt Dade (Collegeville, Pa./Episcopal Academy) and
Kyle McGee (Jersey City, N.J./St. Mary's of the Assumption) enter their sophomore seasons on the court for the Purple and Gold, having averaged 6.7 and 5.8 points per game during their rookie 2019-20 campaigns. West Chester also returns
Malik Slay (Philadelphia, Pa./Downingtown East) and
Marcus Littles (Philadelphia, Pa./Neumann-Goretti), who each saw time in the starting lineup a season ago, starting in six and five games, respectively, during their first seasons as Golden Rams.
"Dade has probably been the biggest surprise for us this preseason," stated Blair. "He has gotten a lot stronger and has turned into a great physical presence on both ends of the floor. Josh (Samec) has seen the most minutes of anyone in the group and has done a nice job on the offensive glass. He is transitioning into a new role for us this year, but he is such a smart player that the transition has been pretty easy for him. I am excited to see what
Kyle McGee can do this year as he will be back in his natural position for us this season, so hopefully, he will be feeling more comfortable this season. Slay and Littles are also bright spots for us heading into the season; Slay has slowed down and is now playing within himself again after playing a little too fast at times as a freshman, while Littles provides a great presence in the middle and can take up a lot of space. Overall, we are a very well-balanced team; we definitely have the pieces to be successful; we just need the team to mesh and put it all together over the course of the season," explained the Golden Rams mentor.
In addition to its collection of returners who saw time on the floor for West Chester in 2019-20, the Golden Rams also welcome a host of relative newcomers as
Dame Wall (Philadelphia, Pa./Constitution High School), Robert Smith (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt), Cam Polak (Munhall, Pa./Steel Valley), Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover), Julian Hairston (Philadelphia, Pa./Lower Merion), Chestnut Hill Transfer
Eli Barrett (Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg), Tim Myarick (Elkins Park, Pa./Cheltenham), Jamil Manigo (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt), Alex Walinski (New Hope, Pa./New Hope Solebury), and
Moro Osumano (Reading, Pa./Reading) all embark upon their first seasons of competition for West Chester this season. Barrett joins the Golden Rams as an experienced college forward after transferring in from CACC foe Chestnut Hill. In his last season with the Griffins, Barrett appeared and started in seven games averaging 13.1 points and 9.9 rebounds per contest before an injury halted his season.
"Our new guys have done a nice job picking up our system on both ends of the floor, and I think a number of them will see considerable minutes early on here," continued Blair. "
Jamil Manigo is a guy who will have a chance to get in the starting lineup early, and
Robert Smith has done a really nice job guarding the ball and shooting perimeter jumpers while also bringing a good level of physicality. I am also excited to see what Polak can do as he brings a nice sharp-shooting ability for us. At times the little bit of inexperience may show, but hopefully, they can play with a little less pressure and put us in a position to succeed," said Blair.
Blair also expressed excitement about the potential contributions of Chestnut Hill transfer,
Eli Barrett saying, "He is still learning our system compared to what he knew while he was at Chestnut Hill, but he definitely brings a nice post presence. He generally averaged 8-9 rebounds per game for them, so he will be a great asset to us."
In the PSAC East preseason coaches poll released at the end of October, Blair's contemporaries picked the Golden Rams to finish third in the East with one first-place vote. First-place Shippensburg earned seven of the nine first-place votes, while third-place West Chester and fourth-place Millersville split the remaining two first-place votes. East Stroudsburg, whom the Golden Rams fell to in the PSAC Tournament Quarterfinals to end the 2019-20 season, earned the second spot in the preseason poll but did not receive first-place votes.
"We don't put too much stock in the preseason poll," explained Blair. "It is nice that people think we are going to be a good team this year, but we need to go out and win games," noted Blair.
In the first half of its 2021-22 season, West Chester will be on the road for seven of its first 10 games, including its first three contests of the year vs. Elizabeth City State (11/12), vs. Lincoln (11/13), and vs. Wilmington (11/21) before returning home on November 23
rd to host Chestnut Hill in its first home game of the season. West Chester will then take to the road on the 28
th to face Holy Family before returning home to host Pitt-Johnstown and IUP on December 3
rd and 4
th in its final two home games of 2021. West Chester will conclude the 2021 portion of its schedule with a three-game road swing, making stops at Seton Hill (12/14), California (Pa.) (12/18), and Slippery Rock (12/19).
The Golden Rams will open 2022, similarly to which they concluded 2021, with a pair of road games at Kutztown and Shepherd on January 5
th and 8
th before returning home to host rival Shippensburg on January 10
th. This matchup vs. the Raiders will begin a busy three-game week and four-game homestand for West Chester as the Golden Rams will remain home to face Edinboro on the 12
th, Mansfield on the 15
th, and Millersville on the 19
th before departing for another two-game road trip, which will take them to Bloomsburg and East Stroudsburg on January 22
nd and 24
th, respectively. Blair's charges are scheduled to make a brief stop at home for a game vs. Lock Haven on the 26
th before concluding January on the road with a visit to Mansfield on the 29
th to conclude the season series with the Mounties. West Chester will open the month of February with a pair of home games against Shepherd (2/2) and PSU-Brandywine (2/5) before heading to Shippensburg on the 9
th to conclude its season series with the Raiders. West Chester is scheduled to complete its 2021-22 season with three of its final five games inside Hollinger Field House, as the Golden Rams will host Bloomsburg (2/12), Kutztown (2/16), and East Stroudsburg (2/26) while traveling to Lock Haven (2/19) and Millersville (2/23) on what will be their final road trip of the season.
Radio and audio broadcasts will be available throughout the season on WCHE1520AM and wche1520.com while all home games and road games against fellow PSAC teams will be streamed on the PSAC Sports Digital Network.
As always, fans are encouraged to visit wcupagoldenrams.com and follow West Chester Athletics on social media for all the latest news and notes on the Golden Rams varsity athletic programs.
