WEST CHESTER, Pa.- Following the team's 10 consecutive PSAC Tournament appearance a season ago, the West Chester men's basketball team is finalizing its preparations for the 2022-23 season, which is set to kickoff on Friday evening at Lincoln beginning at 7 p.m.
PRESEASON PROGNOSTICATIONS
West Chester was ranked third in the preseason poll released by the conference office earlier in October, trailing only East Stroudsburg who earned seven first-place votes and Shippensburg who took second with a first-place vote of its own. 2022 National Semifinalist, IUP, secured the top spot in the PSAC West with eight of the nine available first-place votes followed by 2022 runner-up Mercyhurst with the remaining vote in second.
LOOKING BACK
A season ago, West Chester returned from a one-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 Pandemic and little changed for the Golden Rams as the team started the year on a hot streak, winning each of its first five games of the year en route to a 17-12 record overall. Head Coach
Damien Blair, who is now in his 14
th season at the helm of the Golden Rams, led his charges back to the PSAC Tournament for the 10
th year in a row, defeating Shepherd in the first round before falling to Millersville in the PSAC Quarterfinals.
Last season, West Chester led the PSAC in points per game, averaging 83.8 points per contest while also leading the league in rebounding and offensive rebounding, averaging 42.1 rebounds per game and 15.1 offensive rebounds per game. This offensive rebounding average ranked among the best in all of Division II men's basketball, ranking the Golden Rams second in the nation after leading the country for much of the 2022 season while the team also ranked fourth in the nation in rebounding per game overall.
ROSTER CHECK
West Chester returns a number of key members from that 2021-22 team, including Second Team All-Conference honoree
Robert Smith (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) and multiple starters including
Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) and
Kyle McGee (Jersey City, N.J./St. Mary's of the Assumption). Smith, Allen and McGee all ended the 2021-22 season averaging in double figures, led by Smith who averaged 14.2 points per game while Allen and McGee averaged 13.2 and 11.0, respectively. Allen, who did not appear in a game for the Golden Rams until the start of PSAC East play in January, had a tremendous season after making his debut, scoring in double figures in 11 of 19 games, including each of the last five games of the regular season, which included a pair of 24-point efforts at Lock Haven and vs East Stroudsburg in the Regular Season finale. For his part, McGee ended the year strong as well, scoring in double figures in five of the last six games of the year to help West Chester finish fourth in the East and earn a spot in the PSAC Tournament.
In addition to the returning trio of Smith, Allen, and McGee, West Chester also returns six other players from a year ago, including assist-leader
Dame Wall (Philadelphia, Pa./Constitution), Julian Hairston (Philadelphia, Pa./Lower Merion), Eli Barrett (Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg), Alex Walinski (New Hope, Pa./New Hope Solebury), Moro Osumanu (Reading, Pa./Reading), and Marcus Littles (Philadelphia, Pa./Neumann Goretti). Littles provided good versatility for West Chester a season ago, averaging 5.0 points and 2.1 rebounds per game while Barrett also provided post depth, averaging 4.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game for WCU a year ago.
Hairston, Osumanu, and Walinski saw limited action a season ago, and averaged 2.7, 2.2 and 1.5 points per game, respectively to provide additional depth to the Golden Ram rotation.
Joining the Golden Rams in advance of the 2022-23 season is a quintet of newcomers including
Anthony Purnell (Chester, Pa./Kiski Area), Luke Boyd (Somerton, Pa./Archbishop Ryan), Josh Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist), Tahj Malik-Campbell (Philadelphia, Pa./Mastery North), and
Michael McClain (Cheltenham, Pa./Cheltenham). Walker and Malik-Campbell join West Chester with previous collegiate basketball experience, transferring into West Chester from Radford and Morgan State, respectively.
In addition to the Division I experience brought by newcomers Walker and Malik-Campbell along with returner Littles, West Chester also welcomes former Temple standout Khalif Wyatt to the coaching staff this season. Wyatt, starred for the Temple Owls in the early 2010s, including his senior season in 2012-13, which saw him earn A10 and Big 5 Player of the Year honors and lead Temple back to the Round of 32 after defeating eighth-seeded NC State in the opening round before falling to four-seed Indiana by a final of 58-52 despite an electric 31-point effort by Wyatt in his final game as an Owl. Wyatt ended his collegiate career with over 1,500 points scored, averaging 14.5 points per game throughout his career. Wyatt ended his career ranked 15th in Temple history in scoring while scoring 697 points as a senior, which ranks eighth-best in single season history and still stands as the best single-season scoring performance since David Hawkins scored 709 points in the 2003-04 season. After his career at Temple, Wyatt spent time with the hometown Philadelphia 76ers in Preseason before embarking on a nine-year International career. Wyatt had his first foray into the coaching ranks when he led the Big 5 TBT team in the 2022 Tournament.
THE SLATE
West Chester will open its season away from home with a trip down the road to Lincoln for CIAA/PSAC Crossover Challenge, where the Golden Rams will face Lincoln on Friday night at 7 to open the season before facing off against Elizabeth City State on Saturday afternoon. Following these two early road games, West Chester will return home for a six-game homestand beginning with a matchup against Virginia State on November 16
th, which will be head coach
Damien Blair's first career meeting against the Trojans. This homestand will continue through December 8
th when West Chester welcomes Holy Family to Hollinger Field House and will also include the first PSAC Crossover weekend of the year against Mercyhurst and Gannon on December 2
nd and 3
rd along with non-league battles against Wilmington and Georgian Court, who is another first-time opponent for Coach Blair and the Golden Rams.
After December 8
th, West Chester will embark on a two-game road trip, which will take the team to Pitt-Johnstown and IUP on the 18
th and 19
th before returning home on December 30
th to host Seton Hill at 5:30 p.m. in Hollinger. West Chester will open the New Year the same way it concluded 2022 with a home game against Mansfield on January 4
th in what will be the PSAC East opener for the Golden Rams. West Chester will then travel to Kutztown on January 7
th and return home to face Shippensburg on the 11
th before a three-game road trip takes them to Clarion, Lock Haven, and East Stroudsburg on the 14
th, 18
th, and 21
st, respectively. West Chester will have a quick turnaround after its visit to ESU on the 21
st, welcoming Shepherd to Hollinger on the 23
rd before visiting Millersville the 25
th and hosting Bloomsburg on the 28
th to conclude the month of January.
West Chester is set to open February at home again vs Kutztown on the 1
st before visiting Mansfield and Shippensburg on the 4
th and 6
th ahead of a home game vs ESU on February 8
th. The Golden Rams will have a bye on 11
th before visiting Shepherd on the 15
th and returning home on the 18
th and 22
nd in its final homestand of the year vs Lock Haven and Millersville before visiting Bloomsburg to conclude the regular season.
FOLLOW THE GOLDEN RAMS
Radio and audio broadcasts will be available throughout the season on 95.3 FM/WCHE1520AM and wche1520.com while all home games and road games against fellow PSAC teams will be streamed on the PSAC Sports Digital Network.
Fans are also reminded of hte new single-game ticket prices for the upcoming season at $20 for single-game century club tickets, $10 for adults, and $5 for children/seniors. Century club season ticket packages are also available starting at $100 per seat.
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.
